2.5/5 Stars

I really enjoyed previous books by this author, but this one was a miss for me personally. I felt like I was having a tough time staying invested in the characters and relationship. I also was a bit thrown off about the switch in the POV midway through the book, I feel like I would have enjoyed this more if it were alternating from the beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of the ebook and audiobook.

This wasn't exactly what I thought it was going to be. Exes who go on a sexual conquest bender across Europe to prove how over the other they are when they find themselves on the same trip sounded like catnip to me. This ended up not being quite right. I don't know if this was an audiobook problem for me but Theo's narration started feeling very manic in the first half.

I'm wildly annoyed that the initial breakup and years lost amounted to a miscommunication from two people who talk constantly and are relatively decent at having the hard conversations. The time apart was good for them but come on.

I loved that the minute Theo had a conversation with Kit about pronouns and their identity, that was it. All the 'she's' used in the story to that point are retconned and that's all they wrote on the matter.

2.5 / 5 stars !

this book, being that it is written by casey, was one of my most anticipated and looked forward to books of the year, and for me, it disappointed severely.

the chapters are long and drawn out, a lot of what goes on seems to be repetitive, and the two mcs are very one dimensional to me, the only thing that they have is their one respective interests and that's sort of their entire personality.. if you don't share those interests, frankly you're bored like i was.

thank you to the publishers and netgalley for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Casey McQuiston is usually hot or miss for me and I'm happy to report The Pairing was a mostly a hit! I found the book a little difficult to get into initially but once I found my groove I enjoyed the story.

Kit and Theo were in love and then they broke up and then they ended up on a European bus tour together. Theo's character was kind of hard to love - they are stubborn and the world's worst communicator. Kit isn't much better - it's no wonder they ended up splitting. There's some spice but not a crazy amount so if you enjoy that and the miscommunication trope or love to read beautiful descriptions of Europe and food you'll like The Pairing..

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Casey McQuiston does it again, brining us the perfect summer getaway read!

This book is filled with all the delicacies life has to offer while still brining that emotional whirlwind that makes the story feel more real. I absolutely devoured this and while the changing of the character’s POV did throw me out of the book for a hot second, I got sucked into this just like any other of McQuiston’s previous books. I’ve never read another romance book quite like this one and while it probably won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, it’s worth the read just to hear about Theo and Kit’s trip through Europe while you sit at home wishing you were there too!

I will be withholding my review of this book in solidarity with the <a href="https://r4acollective.org/">St. Martin's Press boycott</a>.

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin

2/5 Stars. This one just was not for me.

I've read everything Casey McQuiston has ever put out into the universe, but this one just hit all the things I'm not a fan of unfortunately.

Two exes find they've accidentally booked the same overseas wine and food tour and decide to slut their way across Europe in a competition that should also serve to prove HOW over each other they are.

As the great Sally Owens once said, "Since when is being a slut a crime in this family?"

I mean this book was a complete and unrepentant sexual romp. A bunch of young, rich, privileged kids who have nothing better to do than run a train on each other and eat good food. I mean, I love that for them honestly. That wasn't even my issue with the book.

My problem was that I didn't care about the main pairing. Granted, I am not generally a fan of "second-chance" romances or even the "friends to lovers" trope. I find it often boring, and weirdly expectant of at least one party. But this is CM, and as I said, I've read all of their published works. I enjoy their humor, their irreverence. I'm always down to give anything a shot once. But I couldn't connect to Kit, and Theo was. A lot. to deal with. And not in the good way. It seemed more about a couple of spoiled brats more than it was about a great love reconnecting through trial and error.

I don't know. Maybe I wasn't in the headspace for this. Maybe I just really do not like the tropes displayed here. But I slogged through this book for months, missing the fun that I usually get from one of Casey's books. I'm sure plenty of people will love this. It is queer indulgence in book form, I will give it that.

The Pairing starts off very New Adult with a dramatic flair around how these ex-lovers come back together and why they broke up in the first place, with the backdrop of a grand European tour, and then turns into this queer, culinarily indulgent and hedonistic romp. Along the way the two MCs' stories and romantic feelings unfold.

I go back and forth on this book. In parts I loved this book, and in other parts I couldn't wait for the two MCs to realize what was happening and just get on with it. It felt like it could use a heavier editing hand and at the 65% mark I was like, "how on earth are we going to fill another 35%??"

I think this book will benefit from a great audiobook narrator; when I read One Last Stop on audio, I felt strongly that it worked in that format for me in a way that it wouldn't have in print.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for “The Pairing” by Casey McQuinston.

I couldn’t put this book down! It’s a lovely summer read full of European food and wine, friendship, and steamy scenes. The book is amazing in portraying queer sexuality and love as it includes trans and gender non-conforming people. I absolutely adore Casey McQuiston’s writing and this one didn’t disappoint. Amazing read!

As I put this book down I am at a loss of how to even put into words the beauty that is this story. I feel like I was right along side them as they navigated each obstacle in their way, even if it was themselves. The descriptions of the food, sights, and sex had mouthwatering. Casey McQuiston has found a way to make a story an immersive experience that I never wanted to leave but couldn’t put down.

This is a love story for anyone who has ever felt that their partner isn’t a missing puzzle piece but rather a compliment to what they bring to the relationship.

I am IN LOVE with this book! I finished it and immediately wanted to start it again. My wife and I read it together and WOW it was an incredible read. The characters are so relatable and loveable, we both saw parts of ourselves in both main characters. The story is inspiring - we were immediately wishing we could go on a food and wine tour through Europe - and my wife doesn't even like wine! Casey McQuiston has a knack for bringing you into the story and making you feel like you are a part of their world.

This is the book to read if you love books about food and wine. Each stop on the tour, the author talks so vividly about all the flavor notes in the wines and what ingredients go into the food. This book is about friendship, about love, about not giving up on someone, and sometimes no matter what happens or how much time goes by, some people are just meant to be.

Thanks Netgalley for the advanced ebook!

It didn't suck me in as much as other Casey work. However you will like it if you enjoy

Second chance romance
Bi rep
Wine
Food
Frolicking around Europe

A horny little European food and wine tour. If you're a fan of Under the Tuscan Sun, or Eat, Pray, Love you'll probably love this queer love story. This book will make you want to eat all the pastries, drink all the wine, and love wholeheartedly and if that sounds like a good thing to you then definitely read this book.

I really really wanted to like this but man did it drag on for way too long. I think it could 100 pages shorter and we still would've gotten the same story. The chapters were broken up by city and that's it, so that made everything feel excessively long. If it would have been broken down a bit more, I think it would have been a bit more successful in the pacing. It started to feel repetitive and I found myself zoning out at times. This is a second chance romance but you get pretty much no flashbacks or anything to help you see how they fell in love and got where they are now. It's also one huge miscommunication trope, which I also do not usually enjoy. I know a lot of people will love this one, I just don't think it was the perfect book for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Casey McQuiston is BACK with an extremely sexy summer romp through Europe, which seems like something they were simply born to write. CMQ really hasn't disappointed me so far, and THE PARIING is no exception. Warning: do not read this book if you are hungry, or pregnant, like I am, and can't run to Whole Foods and stock up on fancy meats and cheeses and wines to eat like the characters do in this book!

Quick premise -- Theo and Kit were childhood best friends, both harboring secret massive crushes on each other. It isn't until after college that they finally get together, but quickly break up over some classic rom com miscommunication. Cut to a few years later, and they end up on the same food tour of Europe that they were supposed to go on years ago. But, of course, neither of them realize they booked the same tour.

It's a perfect set up for a sexy time, and as we slowly realize these two are meant to be together, CMQ does a fantastic job of also convincing us why they should be apart. Heads up = it gets VERY sexy. A hard R! Unexpected but steamy. It is also so great to read a rom com about two bisexuals, including one non-binary person. I don't think I've come across that in a romance yet and I found it very eye-opening. There is a LOT of food and wine talk, which I started to skim past eventually (hence the only 4 star rating) but over all I had fun reading this book and it was a great escape. I can't wait to hear what everyone else thinks!

Is there every a Casey McQuiston book that doesn't slap? This one, though, is really a different creature from their others. This book is unapologetically hungry, dripping with desire and rich sensory detail. I fell in love with the way McQuiston described the stunning landscapes of southern Europe but most of all, how the food was a character in and of itself. Oh! To be on this tour with Kit and Theo, if not for the sexy eye candy of each other and the beautiful Europeans surrounding them, but the food -- definitely for the food. If this trip existed, I would take it in a heartbeat.

But most importantly, this book is about queer sexuality and love. I mentioned in another book review how queer romance authors are still catching up with how to portray trans and gender nonconforming people on the page and in sex scenes, and they are all getting better and better at it. What McQuiston does in this book in particular is really show the reader how it feels to come to grips with these feelings, not just how to have sex with a gender nonconforming person, what it could and should be like. Theo's journey from AFAB to nonbinary, at least how it's portrayed on page, was an important on to articulate. So many of us can find ourselves in Theo, I think. And Kit! Kit is such a beautiful peach of a human. They really outdid themselves with characters to fall in love with in this one (I mean -- no one will be Alex and Henry, but I think these two will come close).

Anyway - read this book. It's a delight, a trip--a journey, even.

McQuiston's latest novel is an sensual delight, full of mouth-watering descriptions of the pleasures of a European vacation. Four years after they broke up, Theo and Kit find themselves on the same European tour that they meant to take before they broke up. To ease the tension, they propose a friendly competition to see who can sleep with their tour guide first. Warning: this book is sexy and will make you very, very hungry.

⭐️⭐️

I love Casey McQuiston so I was very excited to read The Pairing. I really wanted to like but unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me.
I never felt invested in Theo and Kit’s story. I kept waiting to feel more for the story and the characters but it never happened.
Thank you NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review

Synopsis: Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other's lives once and for all.

Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It's in the past.

All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately.

It's not until they board the tour bus that they discover they've both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they're trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It's fine. There's nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition?

But sometimes a taste of everything only makes you crave what you can't have.

Review: This was hands down my favorite read so far this year. Not a single question in my mind. It made me cry 5 minutes and 33 seconds into the audiobook and it basically didn't stop pulling on my heart strings from there. I listened to about 30% and then read the other 70% in a single sitting. Just like RWRB, I could not put this book down. This is, in my opinion, Casey's best book. And yes, I've read them all. Just for an idea of this book, the quote five minutes in that made me cry: "Every person I take to bed from now on will be fighting his ghost for my attention." So, yeah. This book is a masterpiece.