For some reason, the Table of Contents is at the end of the ARC, and I kept waiting for the POV shift that the beginning seems to promise. By the time I got to it, I felt like I'd read 90% of the story. I was around, maybe under, 50% done.

But this is what I forget with McQuiston: they don't write light, breezy books. They write solid, meaty books, and it's all a pleasure. This book is a tour–through places, through meals, through hearts. It's meant for long summer days when you want something more than light and breezy. It's queer sex and queer mess and queer love.

Thanks to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for access to this E-ARC! Loved this so much! The characters were so cute together and their communication was perfect! New favorite.

'The Pairing' is one of the most engaging reads I've ever had. From the jump, a vibrancy of the senses is so all-consuming and intoxicating. Theo and Kit's dynamic of falling together, falling apart, and reuniting unexpectedly may seem simple, but with characters as rich and lived in as these two, there's only ever decadence oozing off of the page. With the complex explorations of sexuality and gender, Casey's provided such a wealth of comfort and knowledge, a sense that, even if you don't relate to these characters specifically, there's love and hope for you out there. Truly, nothing makes me happier than lived in, lavishly layered characters and by placing them in an tipsy, lust-filled cuisine-to-die-for hookup trip of a lifetime, well, you're in for the ride of your life just like Theo and Kit.

European food+ wine tour was a fun aspect. Overall a fun read with humor and pop culture references but fell short in the romance aspect for me.

Casey McQuiston does it again! I have no idea how they keep one-upping themselves in terms of how banging their books are. CMQ's ability to keep creating such rich characters is astounding. Four books in and not a single flop. Iconic behavior.

This book is HOT HOT HOT. It really leans into the slutty bisexual stigma, of which, as a bisexual myself, I am a big fan. There are a lot of sexy moments and tender moments. It gets pretty sentimental about the loss of friendship and romantic love. It was incredibly heartfelt and touching.

I'll admit that the food tour across Europe was a bit overdone. There were too many lush descriptions of the locations and the food and wine that I ended up skipping most of them. Unless you are a huge foodie or have been to these places yourself, I find it hard to care about that.

But the best thing about this book was Kit, one of the love interests. I don't want to get too spoilery but he absolutely ADORES Theo and it was so amazing to see a non-hyper femme character be worshiped by their love interest. The way he would speak about Theo will break your heart (in a good way).

If you can't tell by this glowing review, this book is 5 stars and I encourage everyone who is even remotely interested to give it a shot.

Another absolute banger from CMQ. They really understand how to weave magic into their stories. I could taste and feel every detail. The food and wine really is a third main character. As for Theo and Kit - I love them and they fully stressed me out with their pining and angst. I’m not a huge fan of second chance, especially when there was a break up, but these two really earned it. This book was a whole experience - one that will definitely capture the heart of any CMQ fan! Thank you to CMQ, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this before publication.

This is a really sweet book full of adventure. It really activated my 5 senses and I was transported to Europe. It was a bit slow for my taste and description heavy which had me lost at some points. I can see others loving it but it fell a little short for me

This book is a sumptuous feast of a romance as it follows ex-lovers Kit and Theo on a romantic wine and food tour through Europe. I want to be on this tour for the rest of my life, it sounded incredible. I would not recommend reading this book on an empty stomach. Beyond the insanely delicious food descriptions, this is a craveable and bingeable romance and CMQ's best, in my opinion. The steaminess and the pining and all the romantic details are top-notch. This book just catapulted itself to the top of my favorite CMQ books - I absolutely ADORED it.

Casey McQuiston is the only author I love enough to pre-order their new book without even knowing what it's about. That's why I was SO excited when I learned I could get an advanced copy of The Pairing through NetGalley - a special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to review the digital ARC!

The Pairing did not disappoint. Casey's writing is as magical as ever. They have a way describing emotion and love in a way that scratches an itch I never knew I had. Theo and Kit's journey is steamy, realistic, and at times a very sun drenched fever dream. Reading this book made me realize why I love art so much.

Casey McQuinston does it again!!! One of my favorite authors, who never fails to deliver, shares the story of Kit and Theo. Obsessed with their reconnection and travels!

Five stars. Five full-bodied, juicy, tart, heady, melty, sun-soaked stars, with hints of black peppercorn and saddle leather.

“…the most fuck-off magnificent morsel…”

The Pairing is, by far, the most gorgeous, decadent, mouth-watering food and wine adventure imaginable. But more than that, it’s a gorgeous, decadent, mouth-watering exploration of PEOPLE (and yes, I do mean this, ya know… biblically).

“There is perhaps nothing as true, as enduring, as fitting a tribute to the Renaissance as being so horny you could die on the streets of Florence.”

Kit and Theo are the exes you didn’t know you needed- talented but relatable, slutty but heartfelt, flawed but so perfect. Casey has once again knocked it out of the park. Side characters, people watching, the most stunning details- I’m simultaneously speechless and overflowing with adjectives.

Huge thanks to NetGalley for access to an advanced copy. I feel lucky as heck to get to share my feelings about this book.

Casey McQuiston always delights with their gorgeous, lush vocabulary and their brilliant way with words. I could see, feel, hear, and taste the Pairing. Everything was so devoted to the senses, it was just gorgeous to experience, and the fact that the characters and plot were just as intriguing was a plus. I would've read this happily even if the rest of the book was bland as can be - but it wasn't! The emotional depth and journey for both Kit and Theo was so interesting, I was immediately locked in with Theo and fell in love with Kit right along with them. My absolute favorite part, as a queer, nonbinary reader, was Theo's relationship with their identity and their body. Casey hit it better than any other author I've read, even other trans authors. This experience of being nonbinary/genderqueer is the closest I've seen to my experience, and it was affirming as hell to finally see that on the page. Thank you for sharing this story with us, Casey, it was so beautiful.

oh. my. GOODNESS. this book is SO GOOD. McQuiston has done it again <3 this book is quick, queer, and all around a delicious summer read. i've literally started looking at flights to Europe for this summer because of this. plus the descriptions of wine and cuisine were incredible and honestly mouth watering at times. i just know this will make a sexy movie/limited series when Hollywood gets a taste of this! i will def be buying a copy for my library when it releases.

This was a. LOT of fun and a super fast read. I loved all the food and wine descriptions (almost felt like I went through a wine course based on Theo's comments!) I also loved the exploration of gender, sexuality, and friendship. What didn't work for me was the graphic sex scenes. There were just too many for me but that's definitely a personal reaction. All in all, I really liked the book.

I was so, so stoked to be able to get an e-ARC of The Pairing in exchange for an honest review. What a delight!

As a huge fan of Casey McQuiston's previous books, I had a feeling I'd love The Pairing, but it far, far exceeded my expectations. There were so many small details that felt pitch-perfect and so many character moments that hit exactly right. McQuiston is so good at creating characters that feel lived in and real, from their tattoos to their reading taste to their quips. Theo and Kit felt so real, as did the other folks on the trip with them.

I'd seen some initial reactions to this book that made me think this wouldn't have a happy ending, but it absolutely does. I'm not sure why it's getting that kind of feedback? In any case, I loved this book a ton, and I'll be rereading as soon as I can.

I was so, so excited to be given an ARC of The Pairing that I started on it the moment I was approved, expecting to devour it the same way I did RWRB and One Last Stop. Unfortunately, that was 16 days ago, and I just finished it.

The first 50% took me about 15 of those days, and the last half about a day. In all honesty, I likely would have DNF’d this by 40% if it hadn’t been an ARC read, but I am glad that I didn’t. I enjoyed the second half so much more.

In Theo’s POV, the imagery was beautiful and so, so very descriptive, almost too much so for me. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t need that much details on their surroundings. I felt the same way about the description of the food and wine. I understand that it is part of the plot, part of their character’s personality. I just didn’t enjoy it. Theo’s POV just felt like it lacked the emotional depth I was expecting. It was very horny, and it made me want wine, but it didn’t make me fall in love with either character.

I enjoyed Kit’s POV more. Had more of the emotion I expected and craved, a better balance. Maybe I just related to his character better, but it also made me love Theo, seeing them through his perspective. The way he saw them, the way he loved them, it was hard not to love them, too.

If you love descriptive scenery and a horniness that borderlines on yearning, friends-to-lovers-to-exes-to-lovers-again, then this book is probably something you’ll enjoy. Although it took me a while to get into the book, I did enjoy it, although I don’t know if I’ll end up rereading it, the way I did RWRB.

This book desperately made me want to go on a lavish European vacation! (Especially since I read most of it on a plane).

CMQ books tend to be hit or miss for me and The Pairing, for the most part, hits. I do think I’m a bit too ace for for some of what McQuiston is doing to fully hit the mark for me personally, but I did appreciate how they showed a dynamic and complex modern relationship, and the vivid descriptions of our various European locales were exceptional. Though for some readers it might seem a bit much, I personally really enjoyed the descriptions of food and wine in this book as it really sold how Kit and Theo live and breathe in that world.

Speaking of Kit and Theo, I did love our two millennial disaster MCs and found both their personal journeys and journeys back to each other compelling — I love a good angsty second chance romance and this didn’t disappoint!

Withholding my review in solidarity with the readers' strike started by Readers Want Accountability.

casey mcquiston has done it yet again! i can’t wait for it to come out so i get my hands on a physical copy!

thank you netgalley for the eARC

Theo and Kit are best friends turned lovers that were set out for a food and wine tour around the Mediterranean but a comment caused them to postpone their trip and eventually breakup. Four years later, Theo decides to cash in their voucher and take the trip on their own. But when they board the bus, they find Kit is also on the trip. They are trapped together for three weeks as they tour France, Spain, and Italy. When they bet on who can hookup with the most people during their vacation, they slowly open up old wounds and revisit that day when everything changed.

I wanted to love this book but just couldn’t. The first half of the book was narrated by Theo and then the last half was Kit’s perspective. I wish I could have gotten both their perspectives throughout the book. The main characters were great and enjoyed their banter but there were too many characters that it was hard to remember. The author described the wine flavors and tourist spots in too much detail that I easily glazed over. If you’re into wine or visited the spots mentioned in the book, it may be better for you. Despite my reservations with the book, I did enjoy the story. The love story was easy to root for, I just wish it was done with less description of the sites and food and drink.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy of The Pairing in exchange of my honest opinion.