This book did not live up to the hype that the other books by McQuiston created. It was just unrealistic at times and represented the pan/bi lifestyle as just a free for all. I'm also not a huge "foodie" and so I just wasn't interested in the premise. I wanted to like this book because I love the author but it just wasn't a well developed story or romance. The nepo baby concept is annoying along with their "Struggle" and almost patronizing, the connection between the characters just wasn't explained and I don't even know how or why they loved each other. All in all this book just fell flat.

The Pairing is a fun bus tour through France Spain and Italy with two exes who never expected to see each other again.

Casey does such a great job with describing each location to really make you feel like you are along for this ride.

You also get some fun knowledge on wine , did I check if it was right? No but it was fun.

I really liked Theo and Kit and how they feel real and are a mess and not having their life together but make it work.

The contest that goes on is fun and adds some spicy moments.

Thank you so much to Net Galley & Casey McQuiston for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I thought I was going to love this so much, as I love Casey McQuiston's other two books wholeheartedly, and the premise of this one sounds fantastic. Two bisexual exes on a European tour having a hookup competition? That sounds stunning. However, this book was a huge flop for me. Something I love about RWARB and OLS are the side characters, as they're all super unique, well fleshed out characters. The side characters in this story, however, were pretty insignificant and mostly just used as potential hook ups for Kit and Theo. Theo and Kit also are, in my opinion, not nearly as memorable as Jane and August, or Alex and Henry. The banter was good, as Casey is a phenomenal writer, and I loved the writing and how very queer this story is, I was just disappointed by all the characters. The Pairing was missing the super lovable characters that drive their other books, and so I didn't like it, but I can't wait for Casey McQuiston's next book!

Thank you so much to Netgalley for the arc!

Thank you to the publisher, and NetGalley, for allowing me to review an advance copy of The Pairing.

First - I think a lot of people won't like this book. Of course it is unapologetically queer, sensual, erotic. The main characters are not exclusive and there is a lot of descriptive sexual encounters with others. The premise and characters exude privilege, whiteness, wealth with no consequences. It is a fantasy where everybody is cool and everybody is desirable and anybody that isn't cool or desirable isn't named or centered. The two main characters are epicurean lushes who don't communicate with each other properly, are pretentious and honestly insufferable in their self-absorption, and have so many feelings without having any real problems. It is kind of unclear why they love each other other than "they love each other so much" and are sexually compatible.

However! Big however! I really loved reading this - as I read, I began to approach it as a beautiful fantasy novel where everybody can eat and drink what they want without getting a tummy-ache or hangover; where everybody is up for casual sex with any gender partner at any time; where NB and queer characters are welcomed and embraced wherever they go; where lifestyles can be sustained by service industry jobs. The descriptions of the architecture, art, and food and drunk is so sensually stimulating and beautiful.. I loved that the descriptions of the sex was different than the norm, that it was genderless, that it was quite honestly dirtier and rawer than I almost ever read in mainstream novels. Kudos to Casey McQuiston for breaking some of those norms and barriers.

I would say I loved this book despite its deficiencies and narrow snippet of the world that it shows us - it is delectable and deliborately pushing the usual "romance" reader's boundaries in a way that is quite delightful as long as we can recognize this is nowhere near the real world for most people.

Have you ever borrowed a book or read an ebook/audiobook that you immediately knew you had to own? So you can reread it whenever you want, loan it to a friend, write in the margins, or really, just to know something that beautiful is in your home in easy reach. This was that book for me. I read The Pairing as an advanced reader's copy, and preordered the hardcover before I even finished because I had to physically own a book this perfect.

Theo and Kit are two bisexual disasters on a romantic European food and wine tour-- only four years and a nasty breakup too late. Stuck together on what was once the vacation of their dreams, they try to keep it from dissolving into nightmare by having a "friendly-but-horny" competition to see who can seduce more locals. The book ends up being part romantic comedy, part traveloge, with so much loving detail painting each city, dish, and drink that you're completely transported. August 6th cannot come soon enough!

I don’t normally review DNFs, but since RW&RB is one of my all time faves, I wanted to explain why I’m stopping at 35%.

I'm sure there's an audience who will love this book. But there was just too much sex for me. Sex thoughts, sex banter, lots of sex with strangers. I thought McQuiston’s witty banter + a European food tour sounded amazing.

But the food tour setting means all the side characters are constantly changing, and the story focuses on Kit & Theo — exes currently having a competition to see who can sleep with the most people in the most cities. I was actively disliking it & trying to make myself keep going, to see if there’d be payoff at the end, but I just couldn’t do it.

Four years ago, Theo and Kit were on a flight to Europe for a food and wine tour when they broke up… Now, the tour voucher is about to expire and Theo is ready to take the tour and move on. Only problem is… Kit had the same idea. As Theo and Kit navigate this trip together, they realize they’re not over each other.

As someone who was obsessed with Alex and Henry in RWARB, this book was super disappointing. I’m not a foodie, but I do love wine and traveling through Europe and I’m a baker. And I still didn’t enjoy it. Theo and Kit try to prove they’re over each other by having a competition on who can sleep with the most locals on their trip. Call me old fashioned, but I don’t want to read a romance book where the main “couple” is hooking up with a bunch of other people. The second half was better when it was from Kit’s POV and they were acknowledging they still had feelings for each other. But that’s not to say I didn’t still want to throw the book out the window multiple times.

Casey has done it again with a fun, sexy, sweet rom-com. I loved every minute of this book. The food, wine, and travel gave me serious envy, and honestly reading the whole thing made me just want to romp around Europe with my girlfriend.

There was a little more L O N G I N G in the book than I was prepared for based on the blurb (the sex bet is really just a mechanic for wishing they were together), but there's also a lot of fun to be had here.

One note about the *gender* of it all - I hope reviewers respect Casey's initial wish to keep some of that obscure in reviews and have the reader discover it organically. I thought the way that developed (iykyk) was impeccably, thoughtfully, and respectfully done. It's a shame that they've had to speak about it publically and that some reviewers are not taking their wishes into account.

I was astonished when I got accepted to review an early copy of The Pairing, as I have enjoyed many of Casey McQuiston's books in the past. I've always been turned down for "big" books like these, and I realize why I was accepted when I saw the publisher: St. Martin's Press. Until they address the concerns raised by us readers boycotting, I will be withholding my review. Please read this article https://prismreports.org/2024/01/18/bipoc-book-creators-boycott-st-martins-press/ or Google "St. Martin's Press boycott" to learn more about the publisher's unequal treatment of BIPOC authors and creators, and anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic remarks made internally within the imprint. I will be withholding from publicly promoting any St. Martin's Press titles and I encourage anyone with a soul to do the same.

The Pairing takes us on the kind of gluttonous, lustful European road trip of which even the most prudish among us occasionally fantasize. From the outset, the all-too-coincidental post-relationship meet cute sets up the implausible, but enjoyable story of Theo and Kit's reunion as they venture across France, Spain, and Italy, exploring all things sexual, gustatory, and deeply buried within themselves. In a lesser writer's hands, the artifice and superficiality of the whole thing would make this book unreadable drivel, but McQuiston shows real mastery, rendering it a fun, escapist romp that will leave you wanting to plan your own culinary tour of Europe.

Warning: Do not read on an empty stomach! The descriptions of food will leave you STARVING.

Casey McQuiston is an automatic must read for me, and The Pairing did not disappoint. Its representation of bisexuality, and the journey of discovering new parts of yourself as you mature as an adult, made me feel so seen - and it’s all wrapped up with the angst, heartbreak, and epic love that make a romance novel great. This was one of my top anticipated reads of 2024, and it met my every expectation!

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book IS Bisexual representation. This is easily Casey Mcquiston's funniest, smuttiest and most indulgent work so far. Theo and Kit are the most believably broken bisexuals to ever bisexual, and their delicious dance of a journey is the perfect pairing of heady and cathartic. So rarely do we read romances where we get the journey on both sides, and here, Casey not only gives us two distinctly different voices, but the unfolding of their story together is so seamless that it feels as lived in and familiar as Kit and Theo to each other. There's one thing Casey never fails to give you in their books, whether they ultimately work for you or not, and that is a cast of found family that shines so vividly that you half expect to see them in the very real places the journey of the story takes you. That said, the length and the internal monologues do start to feel a bit on the circular and self-indulgent side. But am I really mad about this unabashed gift of hot horny bisexuals languishing in art, food, drink and (SO MUCH) hot queer sex across Europe? Absolutely not. Can't wait for the audiobook release.

It pains me to do this but unfortunately I had to DNF this book at 60%.

What I liked: I loved the queer representation in this book about two bisexual exes who end up using their vouchers for a European tour at the same time years after their breakup. This premise was intriguing and the backstories of the two main characters were unique and well-developed.

What I didn’t like: The story was very repetitive… In each new city the characters visit, there would be detailed descriptions of food, drinks and the tourist attraction, then they would find a young attractive bisexual person and have sex with them. This book has a LOT of casual sex in it. To me, it felt like a lot of pages were wasted with over description and I just didn’t vibe with what the plot turned into. The book just really dragged for me until I convinced myself to give up on it.

I wish I could’ve enjoyed this more as I’ve loved McQuiston’s other books. Unfortunately, this one wasn’t for me.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the ARC!

I am dnf'ing this at 40%.

I have tried quite a few of McQuiston's works and have a 50% success rate with them. I was drawn to the premise: bisexual exes forced into a tour bus to spend time on a food and wine tour they booked before they broke up? Sounds like a silly, awkward, fun time! I was so in!

However, neither Theo nor Kit really captured my interest and the "friendly competition" to see who can hook up with more people on this trip was not my cup of tea.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to read this. I think I could handsell it to the right reader with how far I got. But I won't be finishing this.

Thank you to the publishers & netgalley for this arc.
So I did enjoy this book in the very beginning. I truly enjoyed Casey’s writing. Theo & Kit were two interesting characters. I loved how they were written about. I also really loved reading the unspoken words and actions between them. I think the author did a very good job at portraying the heaviness between them. Especially with the history. I was truly rooting for them.
Sadly, the book started to feel like they had not much tension or chemistry. Like they had “history” but that was it. I hated that Kit didn’t try harder after having left Theo the way he did. He almost seemed indifferent. Also the whole competition between them trying to sleep with random people just didn’t do it for me.

Theo and Kit broke up four years ago at the beginning of what was supposed to be a great European adventure. Theo decides to take the trip on their own before the voucher expires and arrives to find that Kit had the same idea. What follows is a charming, romantic journey. I love a good second chance romance. I love getting to know the characters and their history all while yearning to know what caused the rift between them and how they’re going to come back together where they’re clearly meant to be. When it’s done well it’s the perfect amount of angst, conflict, and beautiful resolution. This book hit so many of the right notes for me:
- I loved visiting these cities in Europe and the descriptions of the food and drinks. Pro tip: don’t read this book when you’re hungry
- The queer representation is abundant. This version of Europe is a pansexual wonderland. I also appreciated the non-traditional aspects of their relationship that aren’t always shown in mainstream books.
- I enjoyed Theo’s character development and there were several times when they felt so relatable. That struggle to find yourself and feeling like you’re failing and wondering if you’re ever going to get your shit together.
- The ending felt true to the characters and their growth.
- Kit ❤️

There were also things that made this a less enjoyable read:
- It’s long. They are on a 3 week tour through Europe and we get detailed descriptions of every. Single. Day. A nice montage would have been great and could have given us the same impression without feeling as monotonous. The descriptions of the cities and food I loved at the beginning started to feel repetitive and I definitely skimmed over parts.
- The sex competition was not my favorite.
- At times Theo had a manic pixie dream girl vibe that annoyed me. They’re so magical and spontaneous and do things without thinking about consequences, but that’s ok because there aren’t really any because they can charm everyone around them.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this. There is a whole cast of interesting side characters and a lot of warmth and charm. The last 50 pages made me start to forget about how the book dragged in some places and when it wrapped up I had all the happy, warm, fuzzy feelings.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

This author has done it again! :D If you are a fan of hers, you are going to LOVE this story as much as her others. <3

I was so excited to get an advanced copy of Casey McQuiston's newest book and trust me they did not disappoint. The story involves two exes who end up on the same trip that they booked a year ago when they were together. After breaking up and healing, they were shocked to find that they both decided to use the trip ticket before it expired. Traveling through Europe tasting wine and food, they find themselves thrown together in ways that are funny, endearing, and touching.. I couldn't put it down!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this arc!

The biggest positive of this book is the setting! I loved the tour and the history embedded into the story and it created a really fun plot device. I didn’t love the intense miscommunication for 90% of the book and found both main characters a little unlikeable for it. Unfortunately my least favourite McQuiston book.

Somehow was lucky enough to be approved for an eARC of this book?? Gasped out loud upon getting the approval email. Thank you so much to NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and Casey McQuiston!!

My little heart feels so happy after reading this book in one sitting. More of this!! More travel romances please!!!

I enjoyed this so much that I wish I didn’t enjoy it so much so that it would’ve taken me longer to finish it, y’know? Between the travelling, second-chance romance, friends-to-lovers-to-enemies(?)-to-friends-to-lovers, witty banter, one bed trope, forced proximity, ugh! This ticked off so many boxes for me, the perfect summer romance read (I kinda wish I had saved it for my upcoming vacation but I couldn’t wait). If you loved Happy Place by Emily Henry as much as I did for incorporating so many tropes so well, you may like this one for that same reason alone (and then some).

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again and again, what McQuiston does better than most is creating characters that are so easy to love. No matter what happens with the story, you cannot walk away from one of their works without having fallen in love with at least one character within it. In terms of The Pairing, I honestly can’t think of one single character who I didn’t love. Everyone was so uniquely themselves, had such strong individual voices. I wanted to scoop all of them up and make them have a coffee with me. In fact, I need a whole Fabrizio spin-off ASAP por favor. Also, more on the Calums who, despite being fictional, definitely need to write a tell-all with a forward by Montana and Dakota.

I almost hesitate to say this next part, considering how exhausting it must be for authors to constantly have their works compared to one another, but I’m going to do it because if you know me and my book couple opinions, you know this is a high compliment: Kit and Theo rival Alex and Henry for me. With their flirtatious back-and-forth, pining, and the way they are opposites with so many similarities, Kit and Theo have something so special. Theo describes their relationship with Kit as being a never ending “yes, and” conversation and I have not stopped thinking about that since I read it. I think that sounds like a magical way to interact with someone you love, never having them question what you’re saying but instead meeting that with genuine curiosity and support. Have you all ever seen that person on TikTok who rates book couples based on how long they stay together after their books end? Kit and Theo are definitely in it for the long haul. I love them so much.

Love in this romcom shows up in so many different ways: the hidden depths of wine, the layers of pastries, bodacious sculptures, French literature, nosebleeds, bacchanals, and the magnitude of a new world unfolding in front of your eyes. In history, both personal and worldly, and in keeping an open mind. In letting love lead. To sum it up, this book is like the entirety of the Elephant Love Medley from Moulin Rouge (the movie, not the musical, it’s important to me that you recognize the distinction). All of this may seem like too much to say about a contemporary romance but it really was magical in so many ways! Dare I say that this is McQuiston’s best work yet? It just may be

Also I miss travelling!! This book let me revisit a couple places I’ve been to and have loved (hi, Cinque Terre) and it took me to places I’ve always dreamed of going (looking at you, my amiga cheetah Barcelona). Maybe we can all find a Fabrizio who exists in real life and make them take us on a Theo and Kit Euro Tour

Also also, just need to give a shout-out to the line “This is just like Ratatouille!”. Not giving any context for that, just loved it

5/5