Casey McQuiston - A Voice of Our Generation

    Casey McQuiston is a nonbinary queer author best known for their romance novels featuring LGBTQ+ characters and relationships.

Casey McQuiston (6)

    Growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, McQuiston attended a Christian school. Living within such a conservative environment would go on to affect their exploration of sexuality, which later lead to a main goal of their writing being normalizing the discussion of queer identity (1). After graduation they would go on to attend Louisiana State University, getting a degree in journalism. McQuiston started their career in freelance writing and magazine publishing (1). McQuiston's first big novel, and the best known, was published in 2019. Red, White & Royal Blue immediately rose to fame, setting off their career to the success it is today. McQuiston currently has six published books, with many more to come. 

Theo & Kit

The Pairing (10).

    The Pairing a 2024 romantic comedy follows characters Theo, a bisexual character who identifies with nonbinary pronouns, and Kit, a bisexual man, two childhood best friends, who discover they share feelings for each other. Books That Slay explains, the pair of 22-year-olds begin a relationship, two years into the relationship they go for a romantic getaway to London, but during this trip Theo discovers that Kit has been planning out his life, in which he will move to Paris to open a restaurant, without consulting Theo. This results in Theo ending the relationship on the spot. In the following four years, the two go on to live their own lives only seeing each other again when they both try to prove they have moved on by attending a preplanned Europe trip together. Throughout the trip, they both find themselves discussing the past and reflecting together. Ultimately, the two work together to get past old wounds and choose to love each other despite the doubts they might have (8).

    The Pairing was a successful book with some rave reviews from many well-known people. Leslie Murphy, the founder of a popular blog, She Reads Romance Books, writes about how this was one of her most anticipated reads of 2024 and it lived up to her expectations (9). One of the most known quotes for her review that I have found is, "This book deserves the most epic charcecuterie board to be devoured while reading it as well as several bottles of wine to consume" (9).  I personally love this quote due to how perfectly it fits the story and how much food is discussed throughout this novel. Another review that stuck out to me was from an article by What's Emily Reading, where not only McQuiston's impeccable writing is addressed but also how much research they had to complete to make this story as accurate as possible (7).  

Chloe & Shara

I Kissed Shara Wheeler (2).

    I Kissed Shara Wheeler is the first YA, young adult, the novel by McQuiston, that follows Chloe Green, an openly queer woman, and Shara Wheeler, a closeted queer woman. The novel follows Chloe as has she tries to discover why Shara runs out of prom after kissing Chloe (3). Chloe goes on a scavenger hunt type mission following the notes Shara leaves them along the way. Throughout the novel, Chloe meets friends along the way and discovers that they also have kissed Shara in the past. The novel ends with Shara coming out on an Instagram live video, where she admits that she is in love with Chloe. Conquering the judgments of the school, the two stick by each other through it all ending. The novel ends with the girls going off the college both out as their true selves (3).

    The Lesbian Review discussed the novel calling it their "best read of 2022"(4). The reviews go on to say, "This story is everything that my queer, nerdy heart has ever desired, and I felt so connected to these unforgettable, authentic, and easy-to-love characters" (4). Overall, this review had little bad to say about this novel and raved about how much it was loved by them, even earning the book "Aprils Favorite Lesbian Book"(4). The Newspaper, The Prowler, had an article where editor Bee Sackett wrote, "While it may not be their best book, certainly it lives up to its much-deserved hype" (5).  Sackett also goes on to say that besides it not being the best book from McQuiston she would recommend the book in a heartbeat as she felt it was an amazing place for someone to start their journey with McQuiston's work (5). While this novel might not have been as successful as some of their other stories, I feel it is very important seeing as it was their first book in the style of YA. 

Overall Thoughts

    I myself have only ever read one of Casey McQuiston's novels, Red, White, & Royal Blue, so I wanted to take this opportunity to explore more of McQuiston's work. I'm happy with my decision to look into more of their works. I love them as an author and am glad I chose to look into them for this blog. 

Work Cited

1. People, Notable. "Casey McQuiston - Notable People." Notable People, 2019, https://notablepeopleproject.org/casey_mcquiston. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

2. McQuistion, Casey. I Kissed Shara Wheeler: A Novel. Wednesday Books, 2022, https://www.goodreads.com/fr/books/show/58756420-i-kissed-shara-wheeler. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

3. McQuistion, Casey. "I Kissed Shara Wheeler Summary." Www.BookRags.Com, 2022, https://www.bookrags.com/studyguide i-kissed-shara-wheeler/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026. 

4. April. "I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuistion: Book Review - the Lesbian Review." The Lesbian Review, 15 May 2022, https://thelesbianreview.com/kissed-shara-wheeler-mcquistion/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026. 

5. Sackett, Bee. "I Kissed Shara Wheeler: A Review." The Prowler, 2023, https://rchsprowler.com/opinion/2023/03/20/i-kissed-shara-wheeler-a-review/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

6. McQuiston, Casey. "Teens Read the 2025 National Book Awards - National Book Foundation." National Book Foundation, 4 Aug. 2025, https://www.nationalbook.org/events/teens-read-2025/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

7. What Emily's Reading. "The Pairing | Book Review." Substack.Com, What Emily's Reading, 14 Oct. 2025, https://whatemilysreading.substack.com/p/the-pairing-book-review. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026

8. Slay, Books That. "The Pairing by Casey McQuiston Summary, Characters and Themes." Books That Slay, 2 Oct. 2024, https://booksthatslay.com/the-pairing-by-casey-mcquiston-summary-characters-and-themes/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

9. "The Pairing by Casey McQuiston: My Book Review." She Reads Romance Books, 3 Aug. 2025, https://www.shereadsromancebooks.com/the-pairing/. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

10. McQuiston, Casey. The Pairing: Liebe 1st Geschmackssache | Casey McQuiston Meldet Sich Zurunk Mit Der Heibesten Romanze Des Sommers! Knaur eBook, 2025, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/199440249-the-pairing. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.