The Pairing
| Fandom | |
|---|---|
| Name: | The Pairing |
| Abbreviation(s): | |
| Creator: | Casey McQuiston |
| Date(s): | August 2024 |
| Medium: | Novel |
| Country of Origin: | USA |
| External Links: | Goodreads Page |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Pairing is an upcoming queer new adult romance novel and Casey McQuiston's fourth novel. It was announced in October 2023 and will be published in August 2024.[1]
ARCs were made available in March 2024, and fanworks started appearing on the archive two months later, in May 2024. The first work was published for a Voiceteam 2024 challenge.[2]
Canon
Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other's lives once and for all.Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It's in the past.
All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately.
It's not until they board the tour bus that they discover they've both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they're trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It's fine. There's nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition?
But sometimes a taste of everything only makes you crave what you can't have.
Tropes
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fanfic
- No Ordinary Friend by chamel (Blond Calum/Ginger Calum, 2024)
Podfic
- (Podfic) No Ordinary Friend by KiwianaPods (kiwiana) (Blond Calum/Ginger Calum, 2024)
- Steep my senses in forgetfulness written by kiwiana with accompanying podfic by Amanita_Fierce (Kit/Theo, 2024)
- A Prince in the Pâtisserie written by kiwiana with accompanying podfic by Amanita_Fierce (Crossover with Red, White & Royal Blue: Kit/Theo, Alex/Henry, 2024)
Links & Resources
- The Pairing - Casey McQuiston works on AO3
- the pairing tag on Tumblr