I definitely enjoyed this one, but it didn't hold my attention like CM's other books have. The perspective shift was very interesting and I think important to the story. Liked it overall, but didn't have me gasping for air like their other books.

As much as I love Casey McQuiston, I am withholding my review in solidarity with the boycott led by Readers for Solidarity:

An employee within the marketing department of Wednesday Books, an imprint of St Martins Press, which is an imprint of Macmillan, made several concerning statements including using an Islamophobic stereotype (specifically a harmful overgeneralization regarding Muslim beliefs about queerness), racism towards Palestinians, and sharing Prager “university” material that perpetuated harmful misinformation. We are concerned that, based on these posts, this employee may hold prejudice against Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian influencers and authors who they work with and interact with. We are asking that the publisher work with us to ensure the safety of the people who work with this employee to market further St. Martins Press titles, so that no prejudice is weaponized against anyone.

We are only asking for three things:

1. Address and denounce the Islamophobic and racist remarks from their employee.
2. Offer tangible steps for how they are going to mitigate the harm this employee caused.
3. Address how, moving forward, they will support and protect their Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian influencers, authors and readers, in addition to supporting their BIPOC influencers, authors, and readers.

this book brought me so much joy and feeling.

this is friends to lovers… x2. so if that trope isn’t your thing? this might be a skip. it is also, unapologetically sex positive, and queer joy.

theo is incredibly endearing, their energy is !!!! infectious, and starting the story with their perspective is so important to me, the way you see the world through their eyes, then midway through - you see it through kit’s. you see the similarities, you see it in the differences.

it is, a celebratory book even in its heartbreak. the value of finding yourself for you. for loving someone for the places they occupy within yourself while recognising the need for you both to grow. it is — joyous in its descriptions of intimacy, from hookups to more long term loving dynamics. it is sex forward, they’re two pan/bi people who enjoy flirting and kissing both genders and teasing each other. it isn’t a reductive or heteronormative relationship, it is deeply queer.

while theo identifies as non binary / on the trans spectrum, i found myself fascinated with the broadness of how kit interpreted gender. unapologetically himself he is softness and strength, the gentle enduring love and acceptance. he has a moment with the birth of venus where he sees both himself and kit in the feminine, and wonders if where they’re looking at michelanglos david if they see both of them in the masculine of that sculpture.

it is a beautiful book. and i must admit i will be rereading this… several times. i loved it.

also!’ this book was generously provided by netgalley for a honest review!

Casey McQuiston's "The Pairing" serves up a delicious blend of romance and humor set against the backdrop of a European food and wine tour. This narrative follows Theo and Kit, bisexual exes who, after a disastrous breakup, find themselves on the same tour they had initially planned to take together. Intent on proving they've moved on, they engage in a playful hookup competition across France, Spain, and Italy.

McQuiston's writing is vivid, capturing the romantic locales and the gastronomic delights that frame the ex-couple's escapades. The competition between Theo and Kit cleverly unfolds deeper themes of love and personal growth, as their quest to outdo each other reveals lingering feelings and unresolved desires.

Casey is one of my favorite authors. They have such a good grasp on character development and emotional depth. I loved this book equally as much as their other ones! Please read a book by this author and you will love it!

This was really, really well done. Always a fan of CMQ and this book is no exception. Theo and Kit and Europe! What a time! I really wish that Theo's character was a bit more three dimensional. Casey gave us more with Kit and I wanted the same treatment for Theo. Overall, a wonderful read!

This whole story feels like it's the daydream I'm not nice enough to myself to make up on my own - a brilliant, European, foodie fantasy featuring all the intensity of a first love and far, far more sexual confidence than I've ever personally experienced.

I absolutely want to at least temporarily fall in love with pretty much every named character in this book. Pretty much every chapter could be another daydream (fed fruit by a very pretty barista, we don't speak the same language but we don't need to, that chocolatier wants me as much as I want him and almost as much as I want his chocolate, true love...)

There's quite a bit of foodie and art talk that went over my head, but I'll say despite my lack of a palate and having never (yet!) been to any of the artistic destinations in the book, a sexy romp was made romantic almost just by how much our main characters enjoy their world, and the story made me want to romanticize my own life a little more.

Lovely light reading, a quick finish and leaves a pleasant aftertaste. Probably pairs well with a sweet dessert wine, sun, and a pastry with something chocolate in the middle.

Ugh! What a great book. Like everyone, I discovered Casey McQuiston with Red, White, and Royal Blue, which I devoured in like, 2 days. I couldn't get into One Last Stop for two reasons—I was bait-and-switched for a sci-fi book, and I couldn't enjoy it after I was made to read a sex scene on the NYC Subway. BUT THIS BOOK BROUGHT ME BACK! I couldn't put this book down!!! The story was great, the writing was beautiful, and the descriptions of art, flavor, and Europe were so stunning. Would recommend this book to anyone!

I enjoyed the richness of the story with regards to the traveling and food and drink details. However, I think there was so much of it that it became repetitive by the end. If it was done with a little more moderation, I think it would have added more value to the plot. I’m not the biggest fan of second chance romance because I feel like it’s hard to do it well with a justification for why they come back together in the end, and this felt a little like that to me. I didn’t really enjoy that their original separation was merely because of an easily overcome miscommunication. The characters and the romance were just okay. It was nice to see them grow throughout their travels, but I never really grew to care about them. I also wish we saw more of the romance on page because at times I wasn’t sure if I truly cared if they got back together. Also, them just having sex with everyone in Europe and never having any issues with someone wanting them made the story a little too unrealistic. I felt like any scenes around the sex competition were really cringey and not a good look. I’m a sucker for a travel story though, and I did enjoy getting to go along for the journey for that reason even if the romance didn’t really sell me.

🍋✨book review✨🍋

The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

Pub Date: August 6th, 2024

5/5 STARS
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Sometimes I think the only way to keep something forever is to lose it and let it haunt you.”

Y’ALL 🫠 I. don’t. have. words.

Casey has done it again, plain and simple. I went into this book with no expectations of what to expect. Casey’s true diversity of characters in their books is unmatched. This books MC’s represent bi/nb/trans/queer individuals. There is truly not enough NB rep in books out there and Casey has truly brought it to life.

This book is about Theo and Kit who went through a breakup years prior and both end up on the Food and Wine tour they both bought tickets to while together but then they broke up and both went to the last available tour before their tickets expired. Walking onto a bus where your Ex is, just like running into a brick wall. YIKES.


Theo stole my heart away, they are everything. Their chaos of living life is just miraculous and melts me to pieces… and not to forget extremely attractive. Kit is sex on a stick and melts anyone he walks by. I fell so and utterly in love with Theo and Kit, their love, growth, and self discovery. Pure MAGIC.

This book as a dual POV which is absolutely one of my favorite ways to read a book. The desccription of the food felt like I was actually experiencing alone side the characters. ALSO this book is adult and IS EVERYTHING

The Pairing made me feel so many feelings and now I wanna book and food & wine tour in Europe and live like Theo and Kit.

Go preorder this book y’all, the first edition is going to have sprayed edges. Im a slut for sprayed edges.

Pairs well with: devastation, tissues, being too real


Super thankful to receive this ARC. Honestly I am between giving it zero stars and five stars, but because it’s an ARC I’ll go with five.

This book is all about pairings, the pairing of Theo & Kit, food & wine, and loves lost and loves gained. This is a second chance romance full of miscommunication and frustration. It’s also full of compassion, the reality of life, and so much more.

My absolute favorite part of this book was how it captured the importance of perspective. How one views themselves may be very different from how someone else views them. All it takes is one moment to shift that perception. The POV switch of this book was incredibly done. Another great pairing pulled off. Most importantly it captured the importance of first person POV and identity.

Finally, I don’t think I’ve ever cried as hard as I did when Kit talked about grief and how Theo got him through it.

Just going to go cry for a while I guess. (I don’t think it was actually that sad, but I was hit so hard but how real it all felt to me).

“I’ve always agreed with the French that a meal should begin with sweetness, but I'm beginning to wonder if the Italians have it right if, sometimes, discovery wants bitterness first.”

This was a beautiful and indulgent romance!!! Sometimes too indulgent……….in some parts…….but mostly I loved it!

You can tell how much research and painstaking care Casey McQuiston put into this book: Every location, meal and drink is vividly written without ever feeling cliche or strained. There are also some really special metaphors about love and art and food.

I think I enjoyed Kit’s perspective most, it felt more developed and original? There were moments that were predictable, but others that felt grand and sweeping. I think my favourite city was Bordeaux!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️/5

<b><I>The Pairing</I></b> follows exes Kit and Theo, who are thrown together in an unforeseen reunion during a food and wine tour across Europe.

Though both Kit and Theo left their breakup completely heartbroken, their forced proximity on their tour has resulted in an armistice of sorts, with both sides tentatively acting as though all is well. They’re acting so normal with each other, in fact, that their multi-city and country tour has turned into an agreed upon sex competition: whoever can bag the most conquests is the winner. Though at first this competition seems all well and good, it soon is made plain that feelings between our two main characters are still involved. Will Theo and Kit be able to get through their trip with their respective hearts still in tact? Or will their compelled closeness cause irreparable damage?

This book was such an adventure. I was completely besotted with the descriptors surrounding the food and wine that was experienced in the trip our characters were on… it made me so nostalgic for my time spent in Europe. The sensory overload of how everything tasted, smelled, looked, felt… it made the experience of reading this story such a joy. On top of this, the exploration the characters go through not just in regards to their own sexuality and genders, but also with their relationship in general, was an incredibly compelling and fascinating story. There is something so modern and forward-thinking about removing gender as a determiner for love and relationships… it was so freeing to read and, I can only imagine, powerful for someone who might specifically identify with these characters. I had not read a story like this in a long while—one that struck such an emotional chord and hit me right in the heart.

I highly recommend this book. Period. I don’t think it’s even fair to say that you need to be a lover of a specific type of story for this to hit home. It’s a romance, it’s a love letter to European food and wine, it’s an opportunity for the reader to root for something as simple as a second-chance love.

Tropes in this story:
✨ Forced proximity
✨ Only one bed (several times!)
✨ Second chance for a first-time love
✨ Exploration and fluidity of sexuality and gender
✨ LGBTQIA+ love

I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book via NetGalley, but my review is all my own.

what a wonderful rich reading experience! every moment of the pairing is filled with indulgence from the food and landscape descriptions to the romcom ingredients that sneak their way into the plot. this is going to be such a great book to read this summer, sweating in the sun with a chilled drink and a delicious snack.

This is soo cute 😻. There is a lot of growth in Casey McQuisten’s writing from Red, white and royal blue to the pairing. Red, white and royal felt a bit like fan fiction and much younger writing, whereas this felt cleaner, more mature and like a seasoned professional. The characters were developed well and the comedy moments were actually funny. I think the pacing was good and it’s just such a fun read. If you’ve enjoyed their other books or just want some good queer romances I recommend this!

Hi! I am so desperately sorry but I am not going to finish or review the book. I was so beyond excited to have a chance to read the ARC because I absolutely loved RWRB (which I read twice and would give 10 stars to each time if I could) and I think Casey is a very talented modern author. The story summary for The Pairing seemed something that I would really appreciate reading however, in reality this book did not connect with me at all. I think I was expecting something a little lighter, plus I think the book is weighed down with too much discussion and detail about food and wine in such an overwhelming way that it actually takes away from the story the reader would want to hear. I found no connection to Theo and found them to be almost an unlikable character. I also just did not appreciate the challenge of hooking up with random strangers as a competition amongst the exes. I thought it was a little gross and also unsafe. I truly thank you for the opportunity but I think it's best that I do not review the book at this time. Thank you.

This book was frothy, decadent and exactly what I wanted! Completely fantastical, this version of Europe is one for the ages.

I’m a big fan of Casey McQuiston novels, but this was a giant miss. It didn’t even feel like it was their writing. Here are some enjoyable moments. I did appreciate that the book was broken up into the different tour stops the characters make on their wine/food tour. However, this made chapters very long without a good stopping place for a break. The description of the food and wine consumed was spot on-even pretentious at points, but I appreciated the knowledge of pairings that McQuiston painted. However, the big downfall of this novel was the lack of progression. Every chapter droned on. The characters were flat with little personality. At times it was written as if the characters had side jokes that only they understood and the reader was left in the dark. It could have easily been 200 pages shorter because each chapter was identical to the previous. I was sad that this was so disappointing. I’ve never struggled to read a McQuiston novel, but this was borderline tortuous.

I liked this book, I didn’t love it.

I had **such high hopes** this was going to be my queer book of the head! It has all the right ingredients - Casey McQuiston, European summer trip, and queer love and hookups (yes it’s steamy!),

And the first half of the book ACED IT. I was immediately taken in, I loved getting to know the two main characters Theo and Kit, and I was excited for their adventure. The descriptions of various spots in Europe and the food was a super fun (and delicious sounding) backdrop to their story. The first 50% of the book is told from Theo’s perspective which was fun (although at times frustrating as Theo would self-sabotage).

The back half of the book is told from Kit’s perspective and this is where it go boring for me. I started to feel like the descriptions of food, and European cities was too long, too much filler and not super interesting. I was really looking for the bits of the story about Theo and Kit and some times full pages would go by with just descriptions of the city. I guess it sets the mood but I found it boring. I was invested in their growth, their self-learning, their reationship… and the food and city info felt boring. I also felt like the book wrapped up a few of their challenges super quickly and almost too easily at the end. I waited so long and travelled through so much with them for a simplified ending. A happy ending but a simplified one.

4.5 rounded up. Theo and Kit are exes. It's not that they just used to date, they were very much best friends and first loves that finally confessed in college. On the eve of a European food and wine tour on the plane ride over, Theo breaks things off with Kit. Now, 4 years later they both inadvertently opt to use their tour vouchers on the same tour. Theo wants to project that they have their life together and are over Kit. What can they do, but perhaps compete to see how many locals they can bed along the way.

With two bisexual leads, a lot of spice, copious food, wine, and tourist descriptions, this book is a feast. That said, go in eyes open. Self described as sluts, Kit and Theo are diving in fast and there's a lot of sex. Compared to Casey's other works I've read (Red, White, and Royal Blue and One Last Stop) I would say you could expect double or more in terms of spice. The Pairing is part foodie tourist trip, part millennial coming of age/self discovery, and messy romance. Is the story line realistic? I would say no, but then, is that what you are looking for? There's plenty of joy and adventure to be had in this travel romance.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for an ARC on NetGalley. All opinions are my own.