A review by ekreadsbooks
Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book was a really fun read! It’s set in medieval times and follows Gwen and Arthur, who are betrothed to one another, though they hate each other.

However, this plan takes a turn when Gwen sees Arthur kissing a boy, and Arthur snoops in Gwen’s diary to find that she’s in love with a female knight. They make a pact to cover for each other, which gets difficult as they both find themselves falling in love.

I absolutely loved the characters in this book and found them very fun, though I wish I got to see more of Bridget, the knight. It was a very fun plot filled with shenanigans and hijinks. My favorite part of this book wasn’t necessarily the romance but rather the reluctant friendship that forms between Gwen and Arthur. They may not be in love in the way they were supposed to be, but they do love each other by the end. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Homophobia, and Death of parent

Minor: Violence, Blood, and War

There was some homophobia in this book. It was a part of the plot and was in no way aggressive or violent.

Gwen’s mother is stated to not be happy that Gwen likes girls, and her brother (who was figuring out his own queerness at the time) does say some awkwardly homophobic things. Arthur also is implied to have a homophobic father.

One of the characters has a mother that died when he was young

Gwen’s father dies at the end

There is violence and blood as knights fight in a tournament. Someone gets beat up very badly outside of said tournament, and

there is a battle at the end that results in many wounded and few dead.

None of this is described in heavy detail. There is a battle and talks of uprising.