If I were to describe *The Pairing* in one word, it would be "decadent." Everything, from the wine and food pairing epigraphs to the pining of our main characters, is exactly what I need from a swoony romance.

Depending on your mood when you start this book, you will either appreciate or lose patience with the languid pacing. It excels at providing rich relationship development and quirky side characters, but it can feel a bit drawn out for a lighter style romance.

Overall, I am thrilled with this read and cannot recommend it fast enough for your next heartfelt romance. But you absolutely have to be comfortable with spice. I’m not in the habit of rating spice, but I feel like this is at least a four-pepper read.

Huge thank you to Casey McQueston, Macmillan Audio, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for my advanced review digital and audio copies. My opinions are my own.

Plot - 4
Writing and Editing - 5
Character Development - 5
Narration - 5
Personal Bias - 4
Final Score - 4.6

The Pairing is out Aug 6th, 2024!

Womp womp. More like a 2.5- very VERY sadly.

Because I adored One Last Stop SO fucking much, I keep thinking Casey McQuiston and I make a good team, always forgetting that I have felt pretty mid about every single other thing they've come out with. This one unfortunately gets to be tied up with those. Actually, I think this may be my least favorite.

Things I liked:
- European food and wine tour setting (makes for a great summer vibe)
- Second chance lovers, also kind of friends to lovers, also kind of enemies to lovers. All of it!!!!!
-Cheeky, clever, writing style. I will always love McQuiston's writing style.
- Kit's parts were definitely my favorite. There seemed to be more development there.

Things I disliked:
- Theo. Period. As a character. They were very annoying.
- The hypersexualization of queer characters. This is already a huge stereotype in the community and this book just feeds right into it. I hated it. SO much. It wasn't even written in a badass sexual liberation kind of way. Sex was literally all these characters thought about, to the point they even made a game out of it. And the book mentions SO many times how their queerness just ~allows them to fuck everyone~. Sure, pal. Sure.
- The way that apparently every single person in this book wanted to fuck one of our two MCs at some point??? So just every person they found attractive wanted to sleep with them too? Magically? LMFAOOOO ok. The stereotypes about Europeans and European summers and everything were just MADDENING.
- There wasn't a lot of development in general. Side characters? Bland. Side quests? Only involved sex. Relationship building? Was all prior to the book's beginning and we're not privy to any of it. There just lacked... a LOT. This book had potential, but it needed some editing and development for sure.

Okay. Maybe I'm realizing this should get an even lower rating. I don't know! But I did not enjoy this book, which I'm VERY disappointed about since it was a most anticipated release. Can't win them all, boys.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are, as always, very much my own.

I really enjoyed “The Pairing”. Kit and Theo are incredibly charming, along with all of their found friends/family brought into the story long their travels. This is a deeper RomCom (Theo’s wit is there. Idk if this is a real RomCom situation, but I’m saying it is because I laughed a lot.) than some readers may typically go for but its worth it! I feel both characters go through impressive personal transformations on and off page. The food and wine tour was a lovely backdrop for this journey; this very horny and universally attractive cast (anyone who wants to get some does, always) have GOOD time at every stop.

Emma Galvin and Max Meyers provide a dual POV narration. Both narrators provided a great performance to guide the reader through the story. For Theo’s narration though, it felt off to me. The narrator’s performance isn’t in question; its more that Theo’s voice/tone in my head was vastly different than what was chosen for them. It often pulled me out of the story. For that reason, while the audiobook is a great option, I do think I’d recommend eyeball reading this one over the audiobook.

Thank you NetGalley, Casy McQuiston, and Macmillan Audio for this audiobook ARC.

brb gonna go drown my sorrows in Aperol Spritz.

I'll get the good stuff out of the way - queer rep, delicious sounding food, and a way for me to personally relive my trip to Italy.

Now the bad... the first half of this book is told by Theo who is inherently unlikable, immature, and pretentious. When the narrative flips to Kit, it is MUCH more enjoyable but at that point you have him longing for Theo and you're kinda like "but, why?" There's a lot of stereotypical portrayals of characters, side characters don't add to the story, and the hook-up wager comes off as try hard and strange.

The real big issue is that too much of the romance with Theo and Kit happens off-page, and I think this really hurt the story of their relationship getting back together. I didn't feel that I cared one way or another if they got together in the end. It lacked that "will they, won't they" feeling that second-chance romances thrive on. It was just ... boring?

I’m a big fan of Casey McQuiston, so I was thrilled to be able to listen to this book! The Pairing follows two exes, Kit and Theo, as they run into each other while on a European food and wine tour.

Theo and Kit broke up at Heathrow Airport some years before the start of the book, and the next time they see each other is a tour bus in London. We then follow the two around Europe on a three-week tour as they get to know each other, and others, again. The fabulous backdrops of the novel were intoxicating! What perfect settings for Theo and Kit to find each other again.

Both Theo and Kit are bi, and Theo is non-binary, and I really appreciated the many representations of queer identity and queer sex in this book.

While I think Red, White, and Royal Blue will always be my favorite McQuiston, this is a close second. Thank you for bringing us their story!

Who needs airport delays and cancelled flights when you can read about a food and wine tour through Europe. Lots of mouth watering food mentioned so maybe don’t read with an empty stomach.
The format of having the first part in Theo’s POV and Kit’s POV in the second was a great way to get to know each of them and their personalities.

The food vibes and travel vibes are BEYOND dreamy in this book. I could barely focus because all I could think about was how I needed to travel to every place in the book. This was just written so beautifully. Some of the metaphors throughout the book gave me goosebumps. I personally was not a fan of the challenge between Theo and Kit, but that doesn’t over shadow any of the really amazing things about his book.

I loved the transition music at the start of each chapter and I love when authors take part in the narration as well. The two narrators were new to me but I thoroughly enjoyed the presentation.

I listened to the audiobook of this and with a really strong beginning, I expected this to be a favorite, 5 star… but the middle was really a slog to get through. I’m not sure why, maybe just the lack of stuff going on besides the most graphic, kinda cringe sex scenes I’ve ever listened to in a book??? 50 shades of grey who.. I don’t know if it’s just the second hand embarrassment I get from that content or if it really was just too spicy for my taste. Just let that be known going forward. I did love reading about the queer romance, I thought it was cute and I did love Theo! I also loved the interludes between chapters, I thought that was really fun on audiobook. Overall I give it a 3.75 I think people really will love this book though!

St. Martin's Griffin & NetGalley thanks for the arc!

🎶this book sounds like: Goodluck, babe! - Chappell Roan.🎶

This was one of my most anticipated book of 2024 and to say I am disappointed is an understatement.
Kit and Theo are so insufferable especially Theo that it was so hard to have any connections or feelings towards either of them. All they cared about was sex which includes their sex competition. This is not the spice that I like as they just seemed like horny teenagers. I am not sure what type of story she was trying to get across but this just wasn't it.

Guess I will be returning my copy when it arrives

I will be withholding my review of this book as it is under the St. Martin’s Press imprint. Book influencers are urging St. Martin’s Press for many months now to address 1. are influencers safe with SMP? 2. what are you doing to protect influencers? 3. who has access to influencer information? and 4. what happens when an SMP employee misuses that information? These questions follow an incident with a Wednesday Books employee back in October 2023 who posted anti-queer and anti-Palestinian hate online.

Casey McQuiston knows what she's doing. She writes in a manner that allows us to be so connected to fallible and perfectly imperfect characters. This was a beautiful queer story. Buckle down with this book and some great snacks!

I enjoyed the audiobook of this story, but I did find myself occasionally switching to the eARC I received because the characters' voices just weren't quite how I imagined them.

I can think of nothing worse than being stuck with an ex on a European food and wine tour--but, I mean, at least there's alcohol? Theo and Kit, two chaotic bisexual disasters, in order to survive the trip, challenge each other to a hookup competition because they're soooo over each other (spoiler alert; they're not). I really wanted to love this one, but it was just too horny for me. The Pairing has all of Casey's classic humor and heat, just turned up to a ten.

Also, to be fair, this probably colored my perception of the entire story--I'm demi. I have a hard time relating to/enjoying "hook up" scenes as compared to scenes where the characters already have an established connection. If you've loved McQuiston's other books AND love spicy spice, then The Pairing should be on your menu, I mean TBR in August.

The narrators Emma Galvin and Max Meyers are FANTASTIC--if you love audiobooks, consider listening to this one. Thank you MacMillan Audio and Netgalley for my ALC.

Had a hard time getting into this one. It got more interesting when the pair begin to have a competition, but ultimately it kind of fell flat for me.

Casey McQuiston knocked it out of the park again with The Pairing. Kit and Theo were adorable. This 100% should be a summer movie. The book will make you want to pan your own food and wine tour of Europe. I enjoyed my time in this story and look forward to what they write next!

The Pairing is a raw emotional journey that encapsulates bisexual and queer hookup culture, situationships and coming to terms with romantic feelings. Casey McQuiston stunned me with beautiful descriptions of Europe and the food in the tour. But overall, I was wowed the most by the gentle but thrilling relationship between Theo and Kit.

2.5/5
The miscommunication trope takes up over 50% of this entire book, so if that is off-putting for you, steer clear of this one. I was extremely excited to read The Pairing, even though I didn’t care for I Kissed Shara Wheeler. McQuiston making a return to adult fiction gave me hope I would enjoy this more. And the plot?? Two bisexual exes eating their way through Europe? Sounds like exactly the kind of contemporary romance I would like. Unfortunately that really is the entire plot. Every city repeats the same pattern - descriptions of food, wine, and sex. And then there’s the characters…Theo is so unbearably insufferable throughout this entire book and Kit has no character development outside of Theo. This is a second chance romance so I was willing to give a bit of leeway for the lack of romantic development between the characters, however, I never felt any chemistry between them. Their entire relationship was predicated on being childhood friends and then having a lot of sex. The flashbacks to “before” were intended to give a bit of insight into how their relationship developed, however, it felt like the flashbacks were just setups for more miscommunication between the main characters. This was a quick read and it was by no means terrible, however, there was immense potential and the execution was such a disappointment. Still, this is better than I Kissed Shara Wheeler and it made me desperately want to go on a European food & wine tour. I will probably still read something else by McQuiston, but it’s not a priority, despite how much I liked Red, White, and Royal Blue.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review.

“𝘿𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 […] 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖 𝙙𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙮, 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚?”

As someone who has fond memories from her own European bus tour, loves food and wine/cocktails, and has some knowledge and appreciation for Renaissance art, I can say that I enjoyed this book. Did I “love” it? No. Do I see some problems and why other people might not enjoy it? Yes.

If you hate miscommunication, this probably isn’t a good book for you. If you hate when MCs hook up with other people, this is definitely not a book for you.

The premise is that Theo and Kit, best friends all their lives, and eventually a couple, had a major fight on their way to a European Food & Wine tour 4 years ago, causing them to break up. Now, 4 years later, they have both cashed in their tour vouchers before they expire, and find themselves on this tour together.

They also take part in a “hookup competition” because…well, because these are very horny people. 😝

I enjoyed the journey. I thought the way the book was laid out with their different POVs was effective. I thought Theo’s journey, in particular, was very good. And the ending was very sweet. Sometimes I felt the two MCs were frustrating, but still, overall, I found myself unable to put it down, and enjoyed myself while I was listening.

Audiobook notes: Both narrators were fine. I felt some of the accents were a little off, but seeing as they had SO MANY to perform, I think that can be forgiven.

Thank you @macmillan.audio for providing me an ALC of this book. All opinions are my own.

What this book is giving:
✅ Contemporary Queer Romance
✅ Second Chance
✅ Chaotic Bisexuals
✅ The Horniest European Food & Wine Tour
✅ Hookup Competition

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5
🌶️🌶️🌶️½ / 5

DNF at 25% -- I will acknowledge that I'm incredibly picky when it comes to audiobook narration but this just did not work for me. In the first half of "The Pairing" Theo toes the line of insufferable, being both cocky and whiny, and the narration choices made with this character did not help to relieve my annoyance. I had a much better time with this book once I switched to the e-book version and was able to craft Theo's tone for myself.

I will say that I really loved the musical motifs that accompanied each new chapter!

While I absolutely fell in love with Theo & Kit as characters, The Pairing was originally a bit of a mixed bag for me. I found the first few chapters to be a bit difficult to connect with. Once the food and wine tour (and the hookup competition) got underway, I was able to sink. further and further into the narrative. McQuiston's writing style and the amazing performances from the narrators made the audiobook a truly enjoyable experience.

This was SO different from IKSW, though there was one thing in common. They both stunned me halfway. With this one, I had absolutely no idea that Theo was non-binary, their name actually Theodora. Knowing the author writes LGBTQ+ romances, until I reached Kit's POV, I assumed that both MCs are bisexual males, and realizing I was wrong obviously confused me to the point I had to give the book a break for a couple of days. In my defense, I don't know any non-binary people, so I pictured Theo as a male.

I think this book is pretty good with its sentiment and general outlook it shares with the reader. I loved the take on the miscommunication trope, which is generally so easy to go wrong with. Having seen the repercussions of misunderstandings in my personal life, I think the way McQuiston depicted the impact on a relationship and the people involved, even long term. The dual perspective definitely helps get across both characters' version of events and how they coped with it. The narration was on point too, super enjoyable with the fun pronunciations and unique accents.