Good premise, decent execution. The first chapter hits the ground running and you’re immediately immersed in the story. The reality show elements felt pretty disjointed at the beginning, I didn’t really understand the premise of the show or when you get eliminated or how frequent eliminations are. I liked Theo & Asher, but liked them the most through the other’s POV. The POV writing style also felt kind of similar? There are also some important & heavier topics in the plot that are handled and discussed with care. Ultimately, I think this has good bones and just needs a little more fleshing out and it will be a great romance novel. You can tell that the author’s heart is in this and the queer joy on the pages is palpable.

Thank you to Putnam & Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Omg, this book is so good. I had no idea what to expect when I picked it up and could not stop reading. Asher and Theo are so good together. I adore how it went from fake dating to the real thing. The growth is so strong and the backdrop of the show was so cool! I also liked the amount of spice bc it went from kisses to more and I was like this is so well done. I also loved Theo and his family! Genuinely just such a good queer romance.

I loved this!!!! As someone who loves Amazing Race, this was so fun! although, I could’ve done without the snakes 😂😂😂. I loved Asher and Theo’s story and didn’t want it to end

This was so cute! I love a good fake dating trope and Winging It With You did it well. After getting dumped at the airport, Asher now has to find someone (preferably before his flight boards) to replace his ex as his partner on a world traveling challenge show. While drowning his sorrows in mimosas and mozzarella sticks at the airport TGIFridays, he finds that person. Asher and Theo had chemistry from the start, but watching the way their interactions turned from “for the camera” to “for us” was really sweet and well written. The side characters, film crew and other contestants on the show, were well written, some more than others. The ability to write characters that I absolutely hate is something I admire in authors, and Chip Pons absolutely did that with Dalton. Slimy game show host character was strong with this one.
Overall I really enjoyed this book even though some of the challenge show aspects didn’t feel overly believable, and the ending felt a bit abrupt. It was still very cute and the chemistry between Asher and Theo was worth the read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

let's just say, you had me at Ashley Tisdale...

this was super cute, but I didn't necessarily love it.

there were a lot of "ah ha" moments despite nothing happening plot-wise to warrent them; like, Asher is literally philosophizing the second his 7-year relationship is over. I don't care how self-aware you are, that kind of revelation doesn't happen in just a couple hours... same thing happened with Theo at a different point. tbh, the characterization worked best for me from each other's perspective—I feel like I really got a sense of who Asher was from Theo's POV and vice versa; their actual voices in their own chapters felt very similar and unidentifiable.

I also really enjoyed the side characters, especially Jenn and Elise, but we barely got to see them. at most, we saw Jo and Arthur and even they didn't always feel super concrete. plus, the author completely glossed over the actual competition show aside from a few odd challenges. I was hoping for a literal "Amazing Race"-type chapter breakdown, with full on descriptions of the challenges, places, etc. only a few of them were fleshed out, and even then, it was still hyperfocused on Asher and Theo; I was desperately craving some omniscient POV by the end of that climbing challenge...

lastly, the third act conflict was a) super obvious and b) seriously frustrating, and kinda proved to me that the both of them hadn't really learned to trust each other. look, I know they've only been together for 3-4 weeks, but they literally decided, verbally stated, that they were done pretending?? so where was the trust??? and how could Theo just walk away like that!? if you knew your partner has anxiety, why in god's name would you walk away from them during such an emotionally challenging moment, especially when it's literally being broadcast to the public?? it felt like such a cop out for Theo to just skip town and leave Asher to pick up the pieces... idk, maybe I'm feeling a little incensed because I struggle with panic attacks and felt so. hard. for Asher in that moment...

anyway, my overall reading experience? pretty good! my vibe takeaway? pretty ok. I've not had the opportunity to read much M/M romance, so this was definitely a step in the right direction.

solid 3 out of 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Putnam for the eARC; all opinions are my own.

EXCUSE ME MR. CHIP PONS BUT WHAT MAGICAL SPELL DID YOU WEAVE INTO YOUR WRITING THAT HAD ME CAPTIVATED, ENCHANTED, SQUEALING, AND DYING TO EAT MOZZARELLA STICKS AND ICE CREAM.

This book is perfect. It has humour. it has vulnerability. it has kindness. it has family. it has determination. it has world travel (okay, I really want to know how they were able to fly across the ocean so many times, who arranged all the visas, etc because oh my goodness the LOGISTICS).

Asher and Theo are two of my all time fave couples now. Their meet-cute is so amazing - I mean, Asher asks a stranger (Theo) to travel the world with him pretending to be his boyfriend for a reality show and the stranger says yes?!?! amazing.
The two of them have zero time to get to know each other before they are thrust in front of the cameras and have to try to convince the viewers they are madly in love. Thank goodness they are actually attracted to each other and all that forced proximity really served up some tension and spice!

Please know that after I read the ice cream scene, I became obsessed with making ice cream so I went and made ice cream and it is delicious and I love this book. The romance community is better off for having Chip Pons not only as a reader, but an author.

It’s no secret that I love Chip Pons and everything that he does so it’s absolutely shocking to no one that Winging It With You absolutely did it for me.

The Rom-Com is very much alive and well and this book does it justice. Theo and Asher are swoon worthy in this lovable, fairly low angst story. Chips writing has grown leaps and bounds since his debut (which I also loved so that’s saying something)

Truthfully this story gave me a bit of cute aggression and not even mad about it 💙

Thank you Chip, NetGalley, and Putnam for the e-ARC!

5⭐️ 2🌶️

This was my first Chip book and I couldn’t get enough of it! I genuinely loved both Theo and Asher in this story. Their meet cute has to be one of my favorites that I’ve read this year and I genuinely loved seeing their relationship progress.

Asher’s personality was adorable and I loved how he worked through his past while having Theo show him all the things he was missing. I genuinely couldn’t get enough of Theos character and I loved how Chip described his smirks and dimples and the whole vibe was everything I love in an MM love story.

If you're lucky, home can be a person.

"Winging It" starts off with one of the most beautiful and heartfelt dedications I've ever read.

What follows is an entertaining and sometimes spicy rom-com that will put you through the full gamit of emotions. At it's core, though, it's one big, beautiful expression of queer joy.

"Winging It" is a slow burn that has several of your favorite tropes - fake dating, only one bed - combined with the sort of ridiculous challenges you'd expect from an adventure reality tv show.

Huge thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Random House, and author Chip Pons for the privilege of reading this eARC.

I already had it preordered, and can't wait for my copy so I, too, never have to say goodbye to Theo and Asher.

This was so fun!! I thought this was going to be another palette cleanser book but I ended up having such a good time reading this! Having both povs and getting to see what Theo and Asher think about each other was so cute. Their meet cute was also one of a kind and I really liked how spontaneous they both were to go through with something like this. The tv show plot and all these different challenges they had to go through was really fun and seeing how they started to care more and more for the other one was so heartwarming.
Highly recommend if you‘re looking for a fake dating story with a little adventure and adorable characters on the side! Im looking forward to the authors next book. Oh and Clint can go fuck off!!!
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc :)

Imagine you are at the airport about to take part in an epic around the world reality show, only for your partner/boyfriend breaks up with you at the check in counter. You then must find a partner last minute to compete in this show you've already agreed to.

Asher is sad and eating mozzarella sticks at the airport TGI Fridays when he meets Theo, a pilot who has been grounded for having too many flight hours. Theo agrees to pretend to be Asher's boyfriend and partner.

I absolutely adored this story - I love celebrating gay love.

I think this story showed how beautiful the love between two men can truly be and honestly how amazing it feels to find the right person. I fell in love with Theo and how he treats Asher throughout the story. Asher is a little grumpy but as a fellow grump I understood it.

I will read anything Chip Pons writes because my goodness this story was fantastic.

Winging It With You is a delightful romp across the world and uses the fake dating trope perfectly. Pons is a gifted writer and I can’t wait to see how he impacts the romance world moving forward!

This book was just okay for me unfortunately. I liked the travel aspectic and how the author built up their relationship with challenges outside of their comfort zone. Something about the pacing just felt a little off to me unfortunately. Certain sections felt super rushed. My favorite parts was the ending when the came together, that was done really well!

I struggled to stay engaged with this one. Asher felt emotionally closed off, while Theo was almost overly cheerful—it made their dynamic a bit hard to buy into. The writing style might’ve played a part, as it made me feel a little sleepy at times.

The alternating POVs didn’t feel distinct, and I often forgot whose head I was in until the other character was mentioned. The pacing also felt off—it somehow moved both too fast and too slow. They were falling in love within weeks, yet the story itself dragged a bit.

The spicy scenes were confusing, too. Their first moment felt brushed over, and later scenes didn’t seem to build naturally from it.

Overall, the book had potential, but the execution didn’t quite work for me. I can see why others might enjoy it, but it wasn’t my favorite.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher (PENGUIN GROUP Putnam) for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

It’s The Amazing Race—but make it gay, and add the kind of sexual tension that could short-circuit your e-reader.

Chip Pons absolutely nails the fake dating trope (and yes, there’s a one-bed moment), but what really sets Winging It With You apart is the emotional depth behind all the sizzling chemistry. Theo and Asher’s journeys feel real and raw, with contrasting arcs that make every twist in their relationship hit harder.

The travel competition setting raises the stakes and adds momentum to their story—each new city feels like a new test for their connection. And Pons doesn’t hold back when it comes to the heat. The intimate scenes are hot and the slow burn is just the right kind of agonizing.

At its heart, though, this is a story about vulnerability, unexpected connection, and what happens when you open yourself up to love in the most unlikely places.

Highly recommend for fans of queer romance, fake dating, high-stakes travel drama, and characters who earn every inch of their happy ending.

I had THE BEST time reading the eARC for 'Winging It With You' by @booksovrbros 🩵 Like I wanted to forgo adulting to keep reading this book!

Seriously, this book had it all:
• two main characters, Theo & Asher my beloveds, are simply wonderful — each in their own way
• a set of colourful supporting cast (Jenn, Ellie, Arthur, Elise and Jo — i love them all!)
• dreamy locations (all over the world, literally 🤩)
• fun(ny) shenanigans (no spoilers, but just trust me on this)
• 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (I’m still thinking about some of those scenes, Chip 🥵)

I read it on @netgalley but it comes out soon-ish and you should preorder it or rush to your local bookstore on June 10 or put a hold on it at your local library or libby app, whatever it is, you definitely wanna read this one!

Holy cuteness! Asher and Theo have my heart forever and always 😭 the deep connection they formed was amazing. Truly I have never seen so much communication between two main characters (until the end, iykyk lol) but their love was so real and you could feel it coming off each page! The angst and the pining had me gnawing at the bars of my enclosure. Chip Pons is officially a insta-buy author going forward. I can’t wait to read other books by him! Run, don’t walk to read this book when it comes out!!!

This felt extremely romcom. Super quick read. A fake dating trope that almost felt plausible. We love.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary eArc in exchange for an honest review.

I've never read anything by Chip Pons, and to be honest, I don't generally read male authors much, but the premise of this book looked really fun. I am a huge fan of romance- this girl loves an escape, especially these days- but I REALLY need it to be funny, clever or heartfelt. Winging It With You was all of that and more.
Dual POVs are always great in romance, because I love to read both sides yearning for the other. On one hand we have Asher, a biomedical engineer, who agreed to go on a contest reality show with his boyfriend only to get dumped at the airport on the way to begin filming. Enter Theo, the gorgeous pilot at the other end of the bar, who has just found out he has to take some forced time off to get some balance in his life. A bet over mozzarella sticks goes Asher's way and next thing we know, Theo is on a plane with him, and they will be fake dating while traveling the globe for the next few weeks for the purpose of the show. What could go wrong?!
I just loved this book. I really did. Both characters are so genuinely written, and are working through heartbreak of different kinds, and the author handles it all so realistically, and I was cheering for Asher and Theo the entire time. Thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and Netgalley for the digital ARC of Winging It With You. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good, heartfelt romance.

I was graciously provided a copy of Winging it with You by Chip Pons from Putnam Books for review.

Guys, this book was adorbs.

Asher is left at the ticket counter as he and his now ex-boyfriend are about to embark on a Amazing Race-esque reality show. He's worked too hard to give up the opportunity to win and fund a LBGTQIA+ Science program. So Asher pushes ahead and tries to figure out how he can still go on.

Bottomless Mimosas and the last order of mozz sticks to the rescue. Because obviously, all great love affairs start at TGI Fridays in the Airport.

Enter the dreamy pilot Theo. He's been grounded. My dude needs some work-life balance. Airline has told him that he needs some time off and a hobby. Right there at the Fridays' bar sits a man with Mozz sticks and a need for a travel partner. There has never been a bigger sign from the universe. Theo agrees to Ashers insane ideas and together they embark on an adventure together.

I really liked this book, it had the same depth of characters and warmth that Chips first book had. It was fun and sometimes nerve-wracking watching two people compete as though they were long time partners but had just met the day before. Putting on the show for the cameras became less acting and more truthful as the story unfolded.

The spice was definitely spicy. Even the secondary characters were fantastic. It was so easy to fall in love with both main characters and root for them all the way to the end. All-in-all another win for Chip!