This book includes approximately 5 things whose singular presence in a work will typically cause me DNF them. And yet, this book was absolutely delicious and lovely and one of my favorite reads of the year. Thanks NetGalley for the e-ARC!

This book feels like the story at its center. A meandering, decadent, borderline gratuitous traipse through lush scenery, mouth watering confections and unapologetic intimacy. It is not a book you read for a thrilling plot. It is a book to read when you need to feel the summer sunshine dancing across your skin. It’s one to read to remind yourself that you deserve to be deeply known and lavishly cherished. These characters are incredibly messy and so damn precious that I read half of this book with tears in my eyes either from laughter or the sheer sweetness of their affection for each other. This story is driven by lust for the lushest of life’s experiences and watching Kit and Theo chase them made my heart throb with queer joy.

Thank you CMQ for another stunning queer story that makes me hopeful for our futures. Thank you for giving ENBYs like me, a beautiful, validating love story to hold in my hands and my heart.

Long live Theo and Kit, may your sluttiness for each other forever reign.

I wanted to live inside of this book. Theo and Kit are without a doubt people who I would find pretentious and annoying in real life, but in fiction? I loved them, I loved their obsession with food and wine and all the finer things in life, and I loved their second chance romance disguised as an international hookup competition. CMQ has done it again!

2.5 stars

I thought the romance in this book was very cute and I liked the premise of this book. However, the book was very slow paced and boring, so it was difficult to get through. I was rooting for Kit and Theo though.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC of this book!

Casey McQuiston does it again, but add spice. Another wonderfully queer novel, with fantastic characters, a well written story and the addition of some spicy scenes that we haven't really had from her books before. Would absolutely recommend.

I adore this book. It's genuinely one of the best I've ever read- not an exaggeration. The characterization was lovely, and it had the perfect balance between poignant, serious moments between the MCs and silly goofy funny moments.
I also just adore bi rep in books (as a bisexual) so that was really cool to see.
And yes, I do have a list of my favorite moments in my notes app. In conclusion: GOD this was good and I need to erase it from my brain and reread to experience the emotions that ran through my brain again.

The Pairing is a full-on visual and gastronomic feast. If you're like me, the best time to read this is right after you've eaten because it will make you incredibly hungry, and not for something simple and cheap like fast food. I don't know if I've ever read a book that makes me want to go take a tour of Europe more, not that that's particularly hard anyway. The romance part of it I have more mixed feelings about. It's pretty clear that both Theo and Kit have it bad for each other. The reader will pick it up incredibly quickly, and the rest of the people on their tour seem to as well. But they broke up years ago because of miscommunication, which they seem to pick right back up with when they reconnect, by placing a bet to see who can sleep with more people during their trip. The characters are very free love, and borderline promiscuous, which really isn't my vibe. And while I can't speak from experience of being in an open relationship, encouraging the person you're in love with to try and keep up with your own sexual escapades doesn't seem like a really good idea. The language also tends to be more coarse than what's really my vibe, which is a personal turnoff but may not bother other people. The story is told by both Theo and Kit, but unlike in most books the first half of the trip is told by Theo and the second half by Kit, instead of alternating back and forth throughout the book. This is unique, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. It kind of made me feel frustrated with the opposite one in turn for all the stupid things they were doing to screw up the relationship, or for putting the other one on a pedestal when both had their inherent flaws. Maybe this would have been less noticeable if the POV had been alternating? But maybe this is exactly what McQuiston wanted the reader to experience. The romance wasn't bad, but I definitely enjoyed the food, drink and settings more. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have diligently read all of McQuiuston’s books, and found all of them wanting. The Pairing hit me IMMEDIATELY, though, and I loved it all the way through. I’ve already recommended it to numerous others and wish it was oublishing sooner so it could be one of the books of the summer. I’ve described it to others as Sex and Vanity meets Anthony Bourdain meets Eat Pray Love,

I am extremely disappointed with 'The Pairing.' If it wasn't Casey McQuiston, I would have dropped it about a quarter of the way through, and even after reading the rest, I would still think not finishing it was the right call.

'The Pairing' is about Kit and Theo, who split up years ago on their way to Europe for a wine and food tour, and received vouchers for cancelling. Right as the vouchers are going to run out, both of them decide to take the tour, they end up together on it, feelings happen. They work through misunderstandings of their breakup, try to grow up, and have a competition about who can sleep with the most people (which is just as cringe and weird as it sounds).

I found the others on the tour to be charming, there's a great moment with a sheep, a hilarious possible threesome and some truly beautiful lines of text. If you love the romanticism of food, wine, mythology and architecture, you will be entranced.

But Kit and Theo didn't work. Nothing about their emotions felt tangible. It was a weak relationship built on weak characters, and I felt removed from them entirely. I did not care about either of them at all. I couldn't connect to them, and I could barely feel them connecting with each other. It felt uncharacteristically flat for such a talented author. And that broke my heart.

It is entirely possible that The Pairing might be replacing I Kissed Shara Wheeler as my favorite Casey McQuiston book.

I LOVE getting dual POV so I was extremely excited when there was a shift halfway through the book (queue the mutual pining).

Some of my favorite things about this book with absolutely no context were:
- the Calums
- Baguette husband
- Peaches
- Olive condoms
- Fabrizio

Does this book make it out like everyone in Europe is a hot 20 something looking to bang any other hot person they come across? Yes. Is this realistic? No. But when the main characters have created a literal sex competition to deny their feeling for each other obviously every person they come across is going to be a literal god/goddess. And I’m okay with that. I’m calling this the rose colored vacation glasses. Where everyone you come across is inherently hotter because you are on vacation and those are just the rules.

If you don’t like second chance romance or miscommunication this might not be the book for you. While I typically despise miscommunication and find myself screaming in frustration at the characters. It didn’t bother me as much in this book. I think this could be that for the most part this miscommunication happened off page with their initial breakup and the reader didn’t experience it in real time. I also, shockingly, think that their miscommunication benefited them in the long run. Which is probably why it doesn’t bother me much in this book.

If you’re like me. One good quote can convince me to read a book. So here are some of my favorites from The Pairing:

“Life is silly and random and magnificent, and I’m experiencing it all the way.”

“I would be so much braver if I was someone I could trust.”

“Seems like a waste to never have sex with the person who pulled you from the mouth of a shark.”

“I have had the gift of being loved to the center of my soul twice in my life, and even if both of those people were gone, the love had been there. It was still there, in the shape it had made me into.”

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Casey McQuiston's "The Pairing" delivers a vibrant and indulgent escape to Europe's culinary delights, but with a few caveats. Theo and Kit, estranged exes reunited on a food tour, offer an intriguing premise with the potential for fiery passion and emotional depth. However, the narrative often loses its way in overly detailed descriptions of landscapes and cuisine, leaving the characters and their rekindled connection somewhat underdeveloped.

McQuiston's prose is undoubtedly evocative, painting vivid pictures of picturesque vineyards and mouthwatering delicacies. Yet, this focus on setting sometimes overshadows the emotional core of the story. Additionally, the lengthy chapters can feel cumbersome, disrupting the narrative flow and hindering the development of tension.

Despite these shortcomings, "The Pairing" shines in its exploration of second chances and the enduring power of love. The simmering chemistry between Theo and Kit keeps the pages turning, even when the plot veers into indulgence. While not McQuiston's most refined work, "The Pairing" offers an enjoyable, albeit flawed, journey of rediscovery and romance.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader copy of this book. Love all of Casey McQuiston's books. I really enjoy the love stories they have written and this is no exception. The reader must continue turning pages, quickly, to discover if the main characters end up with each other. The happy ending is always fantastic. Keep writing McQuiston!! 5 stars

The most important thing I can say about this book is that you should be highly prepared to be super hungry whilel you're reading it. The setting is a food and wine tour across Europe and there is so much delicious food described that I wanted to be eating the whole time I was reading. Our two main characters, Theo and Kit, are exes who haven't seen each other at all since they broke up, rather dramatically, on the way to Europe for a food and wine tour several years before the start of this story. They had been in love since they were kids, and since the breakup they've both been focused on building their professional lives (Theo as an aspiring sommelier in Palm Springs and Kit as a pastry chef in Paris), but have each been serially hooking up with people rather than pursuing real romantic relationships. Because they never went on their original food and wine tour due to the breakup, they each have a voucher and, because this is a romance, they both decide to cash in on the very same tour. I had a lot of trouble connecting with them both for the first half of the novel or so, and I think this might be an age/generational thing. They spent like half of their tour competing to see who can hook up with more people (they both identify as bisexual, and they are happy to point out hook-up prospects for each other) as a way to avoid actually dealing with their unresolved feelings for each other. I make no moral judgments against hook-up culture, but I also have literally no experience with it so I find it hard to connect with. As a child of the 1980s and 1990s, I'm not only much older than Theo and Kit, I was also permanently impacted by the fear that existed around HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections in my youth. When they finally started talking to each other, I felt more invested in the story and their characters. This wasn't my favorite Casey McQuiston, but I did enjoy it overall and appreciated that it brought up topics related to sexuality and gender identity in what felt like a sensitive way. Also, so much delicious food!

The Pairing is a queer contemporary romance that follows two childhood friends who, after a deeply heartbreaking split 4 years earlier, reconnect on the European vacation they were supposed to take together. I think both characters had great growth through the story, and I enjoyed being able to hear from both of their POV's. There were certain things in the book that felt a little silly, but when you want someone around, you'll sometimes do ridiculous things to keep their attention and friendship.

Overall I really enjoyed this read. I have yet to read a Casey McQuiston book that I haven't enjoyed. It's witty, funny, and a great summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me the ARC of this book in exchange for review!

I love all Casey’s books they never disappoint. This one was so good. Such a perfect sexy summer read. Theo and Kit are just perfect. Thank you Netgallery and to the publisher for the opportunity.

The Pairing is a fabulously sexy summer romance full of heart, emotions and perfect pairings. First of I loved the pairings of food and drinks to go with each destination of the book, I thought it was such a unique and fun twist. It was also so well matched! As for the story itself well The Pairing is very steamy! Theo and Kit were grew up together, then they date, then they had a very messy break up and now they are doing very well on their own. Theo is has discovered their love for wine and bartending and is doing very well in the dating game. Kit is in Paris studying to be pastry chef and living the dream. They both decide to book a European food and wine tour and they happen to book the same tour. Stuck together on the tour they decided to stick it out and enjoy the trip together but old feelings they thought were gone start to resurface and they realize maybe they weren't better off on there own after all. I truly loved this story! I thought it was the perfect summer read!

This book is very well written—Casey McQuiston writes such beautiful prose. Theo and Kit were both so well developed as characters, and you really could see the depth of their feelings, both about their own lives and each other. I’m a sucker for a friends to lovers story, and this book had so much beautifully written yearning nostalgia.

That said, it felt long for a romance novel. The drawn out nature of the book is perhaps exacerbated by how apparent it is early on that the two main characters are still in love with each other. As a result, I felt like I was waiting for nearly four hundred pages for the inevitable to happen. This book was fun and unique, and I’m glad to have read it, but I don’t see myself pursuing a reread.

The Pairing is nothing short of an eternal summer read.

This read was the emotional equivalent of permashifting into a pastry shared by life-long lovers on the European vineyard. My synopsis of this novel starts and ends with that statement.

As an avid supporter of Casey McQuiston's work, I can wholeheartedly attest that The Pairing fundamentally differs from anything we've seen from them before. Where their previous novels have focused on a more character-centric approach to plot development, The Pairing deviates from this due to the sheer weight of the scenery and historical artifacts presented. This novel focuses heavily on all aspects of sensuality ranging from the pleasures of sex to the pleasures of food, wine, art, and history.

In other words, this is a Taurus and Libra's wet dream.

Theo and Kit are meant to be together. It's objective. It's a fact. It's a scientific law so powerful that it could put gravity to shame. Their magnetic forcefield is like no other, childhood best friends to young adult lovers. They were soulmates from the start, romance or no romance.

Establishing this so early on was an interesting, and unusual tactic. Most romances, including those we've seen from Casey, typically start, to some degree, with two strangers. In the case of The Pairing, this strategy works and is reinforced by the setup of the dual perspective and the way the relationship between the characters is painted.

I will add that while the scenery work and history were well-researched and thorough they did make my brain swim. The same goes for the in-depth food and wine talk. It was a vast ocean of information that, at some point, began to weigh me down like a ball and chain to the ankle.

All in all, the romance, the sex, the food, the wine, the history, and the places all tied together in a beautiful luxurious bow. This is best paired with hot sun, salt water, and the finest local wine.

I have loved everything that McQuiston has written. When I started The Pairing, though, I was confused. Until I wasn't. They have done such a magnificent job of laying the groundwork for a nuanced character study and a romance that made me yearn for them to just "be" together. When it flips POV midway through the story, I found myself welling up over and over again, and the last 10% was just tears streaming down my face. This is such a great story about living life outside the constraints of a society that seems intent on "othering". What a gorgeous, sumptuous book that I would love to read again for the first time. 🥹 And it also made me very hungry. Read it, and you'll understand. 😋

Yes yes and always YES!!! So excited for this to be out in the world! Casey did it again with a winner!

This was a great one to read during Pride month! McQuiston always strikes a good balance between romance and humor and this book is no exception!