I've always been a sucker for Casey McQuiston so no surprise here that I love their newest book, but I'd forgotten just how much I fell in love with their characters every single time. I cared about Kit and Theo very deeply in all their awkward, miscommunicating, bisexual, horny, glory and I loved watching them find their feet together again. Every step they took towards reuniting was lovely to read, despite it taking a pretty unconventional route for a romance novel, and involving a heavy dose of angst as they face their mistakes. There's a lot here that probably shouldn't work for me; the writing is sometimes flowery enough to be cheesy, second chance romance is not easy to pull off, and I honestly thought sommeliers were scammers but somehow I just stayed absolutely hooked by the heart here. This book believes deeply in good people, not just in the protagonists but in every side-character along the way. The Pairing is in some ways their simplest romance novel, no politics, princes, teens or time-travel, but it still feels ambitious in representing characters who absolutely revel in being their messy, queer, and completely normal selves. Thank you to netgalley for a reading copy of this book

This is definitely my favourite Casey McQuiston novel! Theo is instantly such an enigmatic character and I was drawn into their narration immediately. The story is cliche, flowery and cheesy, but the way it is written Almost makes you gloss over it (almost) and turns it into a heated rollercoaster of a romance and I loved it. McQuiston knows their characters and always has done, but Theo and Kit feel especially well created. Theo narrates the first half in their perspective whilst Kit narrates the second through his, both have a unique character voice and are fun to read and draw you in. As I said, it’s cheesy, so the ending was expected, but it didn’t make it any less romantic! I honestly just adored the characters, from Theo and Kit to the background characters we meet once or twice. McQuiston has written a great, queer romance. Thank you to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for the ARC!

This book is an absolute gem, filled to the brim with humor, sensuality and queerness. Like all of McQuiston’s books, this one made me laugh out loud, and the main characters were complex and really likable. The first half is Theo's perspective and the second is Kit's, this is something I really enjoyed about the book as it can sometimes get confusing when each chapter is a different perspective. I adored every moment of "The Pairing" and found myself completely swept away by its beautifully crafted imagery of Europe. Basically, if best friends to lovers to exes to lovers again sounds like a great time to you, definitely pick this up as your end of summer read!

after the come to jesus for myself that was red white and royal blue, i was fully expecting casey to tear me open and reveal every raw edge of my personality with the pairing, but somehow I still underestimated the extent to which they would do it. theo and kit break up on a flight to london and four years later find themselves on the same trip of europe - the trip they’d planned to be on together before it had all ended. what follows is a gut-wrenching, sensual, soulful trip around the foodie sites of europe that keeps them in forced proximity (one of my favorite tropes), and pushes the two to face what it was about their relationship and breakup that led them to be where they are. it’s hard to give more of a detailed description without giving away anything else of this book, but all i can say is that this should be on the must-read list for anyone identifying as queer (and anyone who *loves* someone who is queer).

So, I consumed this imminently after receiving a copy. I have so many feelings right now. The predominant one being Damn, I love this book. The sheer, flawed perfection of Kit and Theo's love story kept me hooked from page one. I love both main characters and their raw, obvious love for one another. Their unhinged pining for one another had me giggling and kicking my feet at the cuteness of it all. I loved how messy and flawed both characters were and how underneath it all, they're just two overgrown, horny teenagers in love. I also really loved the setting - I now want to go on a European coach trip. The author has such a beautiful way with words and paints a gloriously rich picture of the countries visited. Not only through visual descriptions but also through depictions of food and drinks, art and love. I loved the side characters: Fabrizio and Orla, the Callum's(!!). I want a book featuring the Callum's and their adventures in realising they secretly love one another (this isn't cannon, I'm just hopeful). How does Casey McQuiston continue to make me fall in love with every character and every aspect of their novels?! They must be hiding some sort of magic in their books. One final thought: the humour and relatability of these characters? *chef's kiss*