A review by hailslynn
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston

5.0

Oh. my. god. The people who thought RWRB was spicy are going to swoon like a victorian lady over this. For starters: wow what a great exploration of queerness in the modern age. It’s so beautifully and realistically done. It shows the whole other world to queerness that many mainstream gay books today get wrong or leave out. It had me crying at so many times I’m so glad I read it on my kindle instead of a physical copy. Second: Their one liners are back and better than ever. It takes a lot of skill to have a memorable quote that people will forever associate with your book, and Casey continues to prove they've got the mind to do it. Here’s a handful of the ones I’ve decided are the ones for THE PAIRING:
1. Maybe [they] feel so familiar and so new to me now because I’d heard the beginning note but not the completed chord.
2. "Not every problem can be solved by sleeping with it." "Not with that attitude!"
3. "Nobody's straight on a European vacation."
4. Jack of all trades. Master of Cunt.
5. Being attracted to you that has always come from another place entirely. Or maybe everywhere at the same time.
6. Everywhere we go, I want to experience it entirely. All the way out to its edges.
7. It’s not slutty. Its European.

This book is so well crafted and researched; you can tell Casey put their whole ass, heart, and soul into this book. The characters are so raw and real I felt like I was making new friends as I was reading their story. Casey describes and visualizes like no other that it feels like you are on that food and wine tour sitting right next to Kit and Theo and placing bets with Fabrizio on when they would hook up again. Everything about this book was great and Casey remains my favorite author 🫶🏼 like it was ever a competition 😉 Sluts forever!