Casey McQuiston can write a steamy book with a lot of foreplay, tension, and a lack of penetration.

While I enjoyed the descriptions, the food, in particular, was divine, I wished the characters were a bit more likable. I was not a fan of Kit or Theo. I wanted them together so no one else would have to deal with them.

The narrator's voice for Theo was grating and made the character more annoying. Once the POV switched to Kit, the story got significantly better and I was more willing to listen.

I have enjoyed other books by the author more in the past and will continue to read this author. I am not sure I am the intended audience for this one.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC! All opinions are my own.

I fear that this book has the potential to become my whole personality.

Everything about Theo and Kit made my heart so happy. Add to their incredible connection the setting of a Hot Girl Euro Summer.? The vibes are immaculate. I loved the wine pairings at the beginning of each location section were not only super cute but also made me feel even more connected to the story.

The way that gender and sexual identity and expression were explored throughout this story made my heart so beyond happy. I felt so incredibly seen and there were times my heart absolutely sank, but like in a good way? I’ve never been able to describe how I feel but while listening to this book I felt like the words were pulled right out of my brain.

Don’t get me started on the spice - I am obsessed. No other word for it. Yeah, it was quite plentiful but personally, I L O V E D it. The one-star reviews based on the spice made me giggle.

This book feels like a great happy medium between RWRB and OLS - and thus I believe it is perfect and I love it. No further questions.

I'm withholding my review for this because of the SMP boycott and apparently a lot of you need reminders that this is an SMP title.

All I will say is that this is very different from CMQ's previous books and I didn't love it. (2-3 star)

I wanted to like "The Pairing" more than I did. And, don't get me wrong, there are a lot of things I really liked about this book. I love the descriptions of the places Kit and Theo visit on their tour. It made me so badly want to do a food and wine tour of France and Italy! The characters were likable enough for the most part and the writing was vivid, fresh, and fun. Unfortunately, I found myself dragging through parts of this book, desperately wanting it to wrap up and be over with. It was a bit too long, perhaps. The use of both Theo and Kit's voices in the books (Theo's in part 1 and Kit's in part 2) were nice, but again, towards the end of both parts, I wanted that part of the story to just wrap itself up.

Overall, it was a fun read but paled in comparison to the author's previous book "Red, White, and Royal Blue," which I found to be much quicker paced and enjoyable throughout!

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Griffin for the arc of this book.

The pairing is a delightful romp full of sex, yearning, and the most deeply bisexual characters that have ever been written. I had so much fun following our two MCs romp around Europe and watching them resolve past grievances. I would recommend this book to lovers of romance and unrealistic plotlines.

Thank you in advance to the publisher for an early copy for review.

Audio Review: The audio is a good way to give this book a try. There are added sounds and voices throughout that help the story come alive and feel more immersive.

Story Review: this is going to be a difficult review to write. This book just simply was not for me. I have thought hard about who may enjoy this book, and I think I've been able to seperate that. For my own enjoyment, I just didn't. The two main characters were written in a way that felt very immature and unrealistic for me. However, I do believe that there are people who may share similar thoughts and actions out there, my own lived experience was just a little irritated by these characters. I feel like this book, let out a different part of Casey McQuiston's heart and desires and it should be consumed by people who could appreciate that. This story is very carefree, do what you want, be who you want, no consequences considered. There is nothing wrong with that, we all need a little of that in our life. It just didn't hit well for me right now.

One issue I had was with believability. This is a second chance love story, however, in the first 10 percent when they are meeting again, one main character start talking about how good at relationship-ing the other is and how perfect they are. Now, how could that make sense when it's your ex. I understand break ups are confusing and multifaceted, but we aren't even going to acknowledge that? I don't typically get hung up on these small details but they really bothered me in this story.

If you are at a point in your life where you want to experience a character who lives without thinking, has a ton of sex (including a competition about how much sex one can have), etc... then give this a try.

I don't actually think I should rate this book but because netgalley and goodreads makes me, I think a 3 star is a fair representation.

This was my first Casey McQuiston book I've read and was very pleased to have liked it so much! I love a good second-chance romance trope and was obsessed with the dynamimcs between the two main characters. The switch of the two main characters being the narrotor suprised me, after aa little while I got used to it and ended up not minding it. I did like Theo as the narrator over Kit.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this advanced audiobook in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

This book was fascinating on so many levels. The in depth descriptions of foods and places and breathtaking views and amazing once in a lifetime adventures were merely the background to so many relationships, (romantic or otherwise). Kit and Theo were incredibly interesting characters and I really enjoyed their journey through Europe as I listened to this book.

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

The Pairing by Casey McQuiston
Release Date: 8/6/24
Format: audio/ebook
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

This book took me a month to read. Normally that means a book was a slog or I didn’t like it, but that certainly wasn’t the case with The Pairing. It felt like a book that, much like the food and wine Theo & Kit experience along the way, deserved to be savored.

This book had so much of what I absolutely adore about McQuiston’s writing. They give us impeccably hilarious pop culture references, top notch found family vibes despite this being a romance book, and a queer romance that feels truly unique.

This second chance romance is indulgent in every single way possible. I’ve read early reviews saying it is too much…too much sex, too many long winded food descriptions, too pretentious. I agree it might not be for everyone, but I thought the entire on page journey felt so true to these specific characters. I truly adored it.

Let yourself go and get lost in these pages. I think it’s more about the journey and while I would have loved a litttttttle more on page character or plot growth and development, I understand why McQuiston wrote this the way they did and freaking loved it overall!

3.5/5 stars

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

I think I was hoping this would be better than it was, but I still enjoyed it by the end. To be honest, I think the first 75% was a bit of a drag. They're basically going around a city, eating food, drinking alcohol, having sex, repeat. I got tired of it pretty quickly and skimmed through parts of the book. My interest was really piqued at the end when they finally clear up miscommunication, where the author explores the roots of their relationship and how two people can make it work when there are so many other factors in their lives.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audi, and Casey McQuiston for an ARC of this audiobook performed by Emma Galvin and Max Meyers with narration by Casey McQuiston in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this second-chance romance of best friends turned lovers turned exes as they navigate their emotions and unresolved issues and a European Food Tour they both happen to book a year after their break up. This story is filled with vibrant characters, picturesque settings, succulent descriptions of food and drink, and exquisite yearning from both of our main characters. As someone who experienced my first European trip earlier this year, this story have me yearning to go back and I wish I had spent my twenties booking food tours of Europe at every opportunity. This is truly a love letter to European food and culture and how the two can transport anyone to an immersive experience unlike any other.

I really love Kit and Theo and the palpable tension and yearning I could feel in my soul. I love a childhood best friends to lovers story, and the emotions and history between these two was just beautiful to experience. I’m not a huge fan of the miscommunication trope that led to their initial parting, however once learning about each characters’ flaws, it is understandable how they ended up where our story begins.

I enjoyed the narrators as well, however I wish the who book had been dual narration from the beginning rather than switching performers halfway through. In doing so, I had a little bit of a hard time staying focused on the story. But overall, I really enjoyed them!

I highly recommend picking this up, just be ready as you’ll want to book a foodie excursion immediately!

I really enjoyed this book. This is a great second chance romance. Childhood best friends, turned exes Theo and Kit just happen to be on the same wine and food tour of Europe. They haven't seen each other in four years, so to smooth over the awkwardness they have a friendly competition to see who can hook up with the most people during the tour. Did I mention that this is probably Casey McQuinston spiciest book?

This book felt like a bisexual version of People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry, You get the same deep in you soul pining from the main characters, and the same frustration from the reader for the couple get together already! The travel aspect was appealing, I loved hearing about all of the European stops, plus there was major food porn. You also get the humor and detailed historical facts that you expect from McQuinston.

Thank-you to NetGalley and MacMaillan Audio for the advanced listener copy. I enjoyed both narrators Emma Galvin and Max Meyers, they really brought the book to life. I highly recommend this book.

I've come to learn that no CM book will ever comepare to RWRB. While I loved the premise of The Pairing, the actual execution did not work for me. I wanted to like the MCs more than I did.

I have a hard time with self-sabotaging characters. That's why for the first 2/3 of the book, my favorite character in The Pairing is actually the setting. The food/travel porn is *chefs kiss* and I adored how the chapters were destination-specific. It was like I got to travel without leaving my house!

I enjoyed the romance the last 1/3 of the book, and the ending was very satisfying. I appreciated the dual POV but I didn't enjoy the audiobook narrators - both had an overdramatic vibe that made the tone a little soapy and took you out of the story every now and then.

Red White and Royal Blue is still my favorite from Casey McQuiston. But there were some one-liners in this one that did really move me. And it definitely made me hungry for a traveling foodie romance of my own!

I was very excited for this book to be released but the expectations and the hype didn’t match what I was expecting with this story.

*Spoilers*
The first half of the book was great, and I enjoyed hearing Theo’s narrative and loved the food and wine throughout the book. Once we hit halfway, and it turned into Kit’s narrative, it lost me. His voice for Theo was frustrating and wasn’t the Theo we knew from the first half of the book. It made it seem like two completely different stories and two different narrative completely.

The second half of the book also became a sex crazed book and it seemed like that’s all it was about. I’m all for a sex positive book but after a while it becomes too much. It seemed crazy to me that every single person they ran into was willing to have sex with them.

Maybe if I read the book I would have a different approach to it but by listening to the audio, it lost me by the end. I had no connection with these characters are the second half and it was a little disappointing.

Sometimes you're lucky enough to find an author that seems to write just for you. For me, that's Casey McQuiston. They truly do not miss.

This book is Eurotrip: Slutty Bi Edition and I mean that in the best possible way. The journey through countries, food and wine is such a delightful escape. The leads are absolutely lovely and flawed in their own unique ways. Their actions are incredibly frustrating at times, but in ways that are realistic to who they are.

It's a heartwarming journey to watch them grow both as people and as a couple and always with McQuiston's trademark charm and wit. And the spice? BOY OH BOY such excellent spice.

If you are someone who hates seeing a main character have relations with a third party this will NOT be the book for you, but if you're willing to accept the journey for the chaotic mess that it is you're going to have a great time.

Thank you to MacMillan Audio and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel!

I love Casey McQuiston's writing. Their characters and writing style always just work for me and make for a really satisfying read.

This is a hazy, lust-fueled few weeks of European food & wine tour with lavishly described decadent food and desserts, drinks, and hookups.

I loved Theo and Kit. I loved how they were coming back together after breaking up. I didn't love the stupid misunderstanding but it was maybe necessary for both of them to do some growing. I had a little trouble with their falling back in love via a hookup competition but that's a personal style thing. It did allow for a heck of a lot of mutual pining. I did love how easily they fell back together and picked up all the little quirks of a long-standing best-friendship that had evolved into love long ago.

I also loved how Theo deals with coming out as nonbinary and how Kit is immediately on board with it.

All of the characters were quirky and endearing. Literally everyone was bisexual and hooking up with everyone else. It was a lot, but in an endearing way.

I thought it was a really interesting choice to tell the first half of the book from Theo's point of view and then switch to Kit for the second half. The audiobook narrators switch halfway through as well. This is a little jarring at first, but it's written really smoothly so it didn't bother me much. I can see that it allowed McQuiston to drag out the misunderstanding / getting back together for as long as possible while highlighting the mutual pining.

I recommend the audiobook because it was really well done and also makes the hazy, decadent, lust-filled setting really immersive. Both narrators did a fabulous job bringing the characters to life and the transition between them was really smooth and not jarring at all.

Even though it's not my favorite McQuiston novel, it's still excellent and I highly recommend it.

*Thanks to St. Martin's Griffin and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy for review.

I’m going to be really honest. It’s pretty clear that “Red, White, and Royal Blue” was written to appeal to a wide audience, while the books since have been a lot more niche. And that’s fine. I believe authors should write what they’re passionate about. But it’s also clear that I’m not part of the niche audience the author is targeting.

The first three chapters of the book felt like the openings of three different books. For me it was like being stranded in the ocean and buffeted by the waves, without anything to tether me to shore. And I hate that feeling. So I’m not going to finish this book, and I’m not going to start any more books by this author. We’re not a good fit.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

I didn’t love this book by this author as much as her others. I loved the traveling and food discussions. I found the love story a little odd. How do you break up on a plane and never know the truth for four years. Not that I care if a book is believable, but it was hard to connect to.

Unfortunately I think this was not for me. I hold some blame for that, though, because the concept of exes holding in tension and having a f**k contest seemed fun but in actuality I found it quite immature and hard to get through as they were both holding in a million feelings instead of simply communicating.

It grew a bit for me over time as the dual perspective from Theo and Kit (and the ending of the f**k contest) gave me more empathy towards each of them and their reasoning for holding stuff in. I did fully believe these two were meant to be and was ultimately happy with their ending.

Lastly, I think this was about 100 pages too long. While I enjoyed the imagery of the Euro vacation, this easily could have been condensed down into something more concise that had the same impact.

2.5 stars