**huge thanks to Netgalley for providing me with the audio arc of this book**

Now I’ve never read a Casey McQuinston book (despite owning one or two and hearing a lot about them) so I don’t know how strong those books are but this one was just okay for me.

If you’re looking for smut, you’ll find that here for sure.
I loved the adventure aspect of it but I kind of wish we had more detail around that. They had a hookup competition which wasn’t the most intriguing thing for me, it’s like they both kind of knew they weren’t over eachother but instead they were just throwing themselves at whoever else to avoid that fact when they could’ve been really developing their relationship again.

Maybe I’m just a sucker for a true romance and this didn’t give me that feeling (is just my own opinion. It might not be enough for me, but more than enough for you)

This book was good enough for me in the sense that, I continued to open and listen to it but I didn’t find myself deeply connected to it, I don’t remember a whole lot but the main; important details.

I’d recommend it still, but it wasn’t the most amazing read for me

Now for the structure; I do think this was an easy listen and would be an easy read if I was to have the paperback copy. The plot was interesting and different atleast for me personally and I think that’s what kept me interested when other things weren’t grasping; it was just something new to experience

Overall I’d give Casey’s other books a shot and maybe I’ll revisit this one in the future and see more potential in it

“The Pairing” by Casey McQuiston 5/5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book and the audiobook!

“The Pairing” follows exes, Theo and Kit, as they accidentally reunite on a food and wine tour across southern Europe.

If you have been following me, you know how much I adore Casey McQuiston’s books. This book was (unsurprisingly) fantastic.

I LOVE Theo and Kit. I found myself so connected to both of them. All of the characters in this book, even the side characters, felt so human and real. This aspect combined with the stunning descriptions of European scenery and food made the reading/listening experience so immersive.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a beautiful, emotional, summery book! It comes out on August 6th!

Kit and Theo broke up four years ago. With a wine and food tour voucher ending soon, Theo hops on a bus only to find Kit sitting next to the only open spot. This food tour, across France, Spain, and Italy will show these two all that has changed and all that has stayed the same.

McQuiston writes with such panache and such delicacy, it feels like a feast for the eyes to read each of their books and this is no exception. Kit and Theo are fully fleshed out and immediately lovable and frustrating as they go through the ups and downs of break ups, friendship, and finding each other once more. No McQuiston is without its supporting cast and this book is no different. While all of the fellow travelers are strangers at the start, by the end of the three week tour, they are all old friends and family. They complemented Kit and Theo beautifully.

Slower paced, stretched out over three weeks and 400 some odd pages, this story of love and finding oneself is as beautiful crafted as the dessert and drink pairings Theo and Kit bandy about throughout different parts of the book. A stunning beautiful book.

I was super excited about this book because of the European backdrop—I’m now in desperate need of a Euro summer trip 🌍✈️—and because I absolutely loved “Red, White & Royal Blue.” I listened to this on audiobook, so maybe it was just that I didn’t connect with the narrators, but this one struggled to keep my attention. 🫣

In the end, I finished the book more for the European backdrop than the relationship between Kit and Theo. I would recommend “Red, White & Royal Blue” (now a Prime Video movie) over this. ❤️💙

I was excited to read The Pairing by Casey McQuiston since I loved Red White & Royal Blue and really enjoyed One Last Stop but unfortunately this book just wasn’t as good as those two. It’s a second chance romance about two bisexual young adults Kit and Theo. I really enjoyed the representation of bisexual and nonbinary characters but overall I felt this book was too long and the whole plot wasn’t for me. I liked the settings of France, Spain and Italy and the descriptions of the food and wine were decadent but got old fast. There were some cute moments, some sexy moments and some cringy moments. I liked how the narrative was told in two parts first from Theo’s point of view and then Kit’s. I listened to the audiobook and the two narrators Emma Galvin and Max Meyers did a good job. Even though I didn’t love this book I’d still definitely be interested to read I Kissed Shara Wheeler and McQuiston’s next book.

Unfortunately, this book was a big fat DNF for me. I’m so bummed because I loved this author’s other books, but this was just so slow, boring, and the characters were both so unlikeable. I read about 60% and had to give it up.

Thank you to @NetGalley for letting me listen to the advanced audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This book only had three things in the plot - food, alcohol and sex. The two main characters only wanted to have sex with every person they meet, and luckily for them everyone they met were the most beautiful people they've ever seen. The book could have been cut in half easily. Both main characters had almost no growth or change throughout the book. Im happy this author introduced many different LGBTQIAP+ characters with different pronouns as well.

I liked this authors other books, but this one was not it.

This was a beautiful, emotional, fun and funny European vacation of a book, you could almost taste and savor the flavors they were enjoying, and I was routing for the characters from the first few pages, the book was full of the magic of possibility, of fate bringing someone back in your life and your problems being just one conversation away from being solved, it was romantic in a way that broke your heart and put it back together again, it was a queer normative book which I loved so much, everyone they encountered being bi/pan probably wasn't realistic, but I loved it anyway
and I'm obsessed with the audiobook - the music and pairing recommendations made it an experience

DNF @35%

I....really should have read the description of this book more closely. McQuiston's books have been hit and miss for me, but a food-related European rom-com sounded fun. What I didn't realize was that it's 1- a second-chance romance and 2- involves a sex-competition to see who can have a higher "body count" on this European tour. Which is gross and relegates attractive tour guides and locals from Italy and Spain to nothing more than bodies being used in this weird, immature sex game between two people who cannot get their shit together enough to communicate properly. There's a line that literally refers to their hot tour guide as the equivalent of a human appetizer. The food descriptions sound amazing, but I was hating reading this book so I'm stopping here. I received an audio review copy via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

CMQ made the wait worth it.

I had hyped this up so much in my mind that I was deeply concerned that it wasn't going to live up to the idea I had in my head.

But Kit and Theo were EVERYTHING. I loved every single moment of this book.

Theo was so relatable. I loved their chaotic queer energy and determination to not be a fuck up.

Kit was such a beautiful soft boy with wonderful feelings and ideas. He was like walking poetry.

The dynamic of these two together. Even when they don't want to be around each other, their chemistry literally jumped off the page.

I loved this book and I cannot wait to reread it.

Ps this book also taught me I am so NOT a foodie hahaha

This book had me lusting for a European excursion. Yes, lusting is the right word. Once you read the book, you'll fully understand why. I love Casey McQuiston and their works. This book is no different. It definitely took me on adventure filled with lots of heart and emotions. Theo and Kit were fun but frustrating characters. I had my issues with the book, but I still enjoyed reading it. It's a little long and there are too many moments of "will they, won't they" that could have been avoided by the two MCs just having a simple conversation. However, it was still a sweet second chances novel about two people who needed time to grow and learn more about themselves before meeting up again in life. I will continue to read anything that McQuiston writes because I think they are a brilliant writer.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

I DNF-ed at about the fifty percent mark. The prose is good, but the narration is not working for me. I also find it difficult to buy into two characters having so much rizz that everyone is constantly falling all over them.

The Pairing

OH MY HEART THIS BOOK! Pairs well with literally anything, it was so delightful.

Theo and Kit were childhood best friends, then they were lovers, and now they are living two worlds (and continents) apart. Their voucher for the food and wine tour of Europe they booked before they split up is about to expire and they unknowingly redeem it on the same tour. So many wonderful adventures across different cities of Europe. Among the art, food, wine and friends, they set off on a competition to who can find more lovers on all their adventures. However, these two must accept that the ultimate pairing is really each other.

Such a wonderful story from Casey McQuiston. I absolutely adored Theo and Kit, they way they came together as they are now, acknowledging their past but moving into their future together. The rest of the characters on the tour were also a huge delight and so fun to watch throughout the book.

The narration was absolutely wonderful. I loved how the dual POV worked - switching halfway through the tour instead of alternating chapters as is common with dual POV. Hearing the different languages read to me was also a true delight. I alternated between the eARC and ALC but preferred the audio for the language and accents.

Check this one out if you're looking for:
- Second chance romace
- Non-binary rep
- European adventures
- Food and wine pairings galore

I'll just say - if Casey McQuiston writes it, I'm going to read it. I am amazed and I think this is an important story. I hope everyone reads it.

Thank you to St Martin's Press and Macmillian audio for the ARC/ALC. The Pairing is on shelves August 6th, 2024! My opinions are my own.

I do not even know where to begin with this! I never thought I would love a book by Casey McQuiston more than I loved One Last Stop, but they have done it again. The Pairing is smart, sexy and indulgent.

The Pairing tells us the story of Kit and Theo lifelong best friends and former lovers. While on a transatlantic flight to the food and wine tour of their fantasy the two have a brutal break up and exit each other's lives forever. Time apart has done the two of them very well, Theo has found a calling of bartending and studying to become a sommelier with the occasional lover here and there. While Kit who has never returned to America becomes the God of sexual conquers in his pastry school in Paris and eventually the head pastry chef at one of the finest dining establishments in Paris. Sure, they still think of what they had with the other on occasion, but it's also the furthest thing in either of their minds as they discover themselves.

When they both independently decide to use the tour voucher, they received that was good for 48 months after the tour they missed they never thought the other would have the same idea.

So here they are, ex lovers, ex friends, essentially no one to the other trapped on the same tour for 3 weeks. In an effort to hide all emotions the two enter into a friendly competition of who can better sleep their way around Europe, but somethings you crave more than once....

This story blew me away. The sexuality this book oozes from every aspect is done in such a brilliant way! My jaw was on the floor throughout a lot of this book. The sensuality of cooking and art and cocktails mixed with the history of your old best friend, there is something so romantic about the idea. I was so absorbed into this world; it was all I could think about. I wanted to get on a mountain top and scream at everyone to read this book.

While its main themes are heavy into the culinary world, art history and classic literature it also spans the theme of what sexuality and gender are. McQuiston is no stranger to these themes as their YA debut I Kissed Shara Wheeler explored the same themes, The Pairing does so in a more concrete way. These are two characters so aware of who they are physically and emotionally, and they are not afraid to show it or explore it. This book is full of gorgeous prose and passion and I could not get enough of it!

I recommend this read to anyone who especially misses Anthony Bourdain, lovers of White Lotus, foodies, wine lovers, lost and exploring queers, anyone experiencing gender dysphoria and lovers of smut!

The Pairing is out August 6th, preorder your copy now! I sure did!

Thank you Netgalley and McMillian Audio for this digital arc!

Summary: "Two bisexual exes accidentally book the same European food and wine tour and challenge each other to a hookup competition to prove they're over each other—except they're definitely not."

I have read all of Casey McQuiston's novels, so when I got a chance to read the latest, I jumped on it. For me, this one just fell flat. I did not relate to either one of the characters, or get into their stories (I felt they both needed to just grow up honestly...). I loved the idea of a travel romance with a second chance, but it was honestly just travel from city to city, food, booze, and hooking up (and the book book was pretty sexually explicit).

All in all, not terrible, but not a favorite for sure.

The prose was great, the dialogue sparkled, and now I want nothing more than to do a three-week food/wine tour through Western Europe, but........... the conflict was essentially resolved like 40% through the book??

HELLO I LOVED THIS.

Two exes end up on the same European bus tour and must come to terms with being together for a few weeks. This entails finding the truth about the breakup and deciding what’s next for them. WHILE EATING AND DRINKING EVERYTHING AND IT IS DELCIOSO!

I felt like this was one part travel blog, one part study of the service industry, and one part romance. It was a delight to listen to - full of accents and wonderful foreign language moments by excellent narrators. It had incredible queer rep, queer joy, and some “finding themselves” types of moments, concerning queerness, gender fluidity, and also the way brains, experiences, fears, and relationships work. Casey is so careful with Kit and Theo, and I trusted that nothing bad would happen to them, even if the road was rocky.

All in all, highly recommend the audio AND the print/ebook so you can read AND listen to the words, recipes, and pairings. 🩵

My only note that knocked off half a star is the amount of sex - and casual, random hook-up sex at that - that made its way around both the leads. I just…. Couldn’t get behind why it was necessary to the story? But the rest of the book was such a hit for me I’m sure I’ll read it again!

What a fantastic book! This was charming, and I loved how real and relatable the characters felt. The main characters' emotions as they navigate the past, present, and future of their relationship. There are also a number of compelling and fun secondary characters. Their travels around Europe will make you feel like you're right there with them experiencing the different sights and especially the food! I was told this was "the spicy one", and it is, but if that's not your thing, it's also easy enough to skip or skim those parts without losing the story. Casey McQuiston has written in multiple different genres and has been successful in all of them, and this is another triumph!

Casey always manages to write fun, inclusive novels without it feeling overly forced. Discussing how those that are LGBTQIA are so similar to those who aren't felt so important.

The Pairing was a fun second-chance romance novel that involved culture, friends, and lots of sex but in a great way. It felt like two young people traveling around the world and just having fun. It is exactly what everyone pictures for traveling through Europe and staying at hostels in my mind. It felt realistic but also not so realistic that it doesn't feel like fiction. I enjoyed the references to places I have been in Europe as well as foods I have always wanted to try. I loved the connection between all the characters and how food/wine brought them together.

Casey does write REALLY long chapters though. For me, that is why the audiobook was perfect. I am not a fan of long chapters and I find long chapters to be a struggle to get through but the audiobook helps. I do wish that it was set up to go back and forth between the two characters POV instead of first half/second half but that is a personal preference.

Casey McQuiston has been an auto-buy author for me ever since RW&RB, so The Pairing was one of my most-anticipated books of the year! I don’t normally love second chance romance, so the idea of exes running into each other on a european tour made me a little nervous. But I should have trusted Casey! Theo and Kit were such interesting, dynamic characters and I really felt for both of them for the entire book. I loved the format of the novel, with one perspective for the first half of the book and the other for the second half.

Theo’s identity, as well as the sexualities and identities of all of the characters, was handled with such care and nuance and was truly a joy to read.

The author promised that this was their horniest novel yet and that was the TRUTH! I’ve literally never read about two hornier characters. Definitely go into this prepared for smut!

I loved having two narrators for the different perspectives and particularly enjoyed Theo’s narrator!