Did Pacey Witter Ruin Us for Real-Life Romance? (Yes.)
It’s giving Pacey, Joey, and peak 2000s romance energy, plus the books (and maybe a rewatch) to match.
The Weekly Insider is your weekly bookish roundup for romance, mystery and fantasy recs, plus all the bookish content you won’t want to miss.
#28: 🎬 Creekside Feelings & Fictional Boyfriends
Hi friends,
The internet has been losing its collective chill recently (and honestly, so have I) because Katie Holmes and Joshua Jackson are filming a movie together. There are paparazzi pics. There’s a stroller. And if you’re a fellow Dawson’s Creek elder millennial like me, you already know: this is peak Pacey and Joey in their alternate-universe happily ever after.
Cue me dusting off my Dawson’s Creek nostalgia (and my admission: I used to run a very popular DC fan site in the late 90s). And because I can’t help myself, I’ve connected my Creek love to the real pressing matter: Pacey Witter is the blueprint for the book boyfriend.
🛶 This Week’s Creekside Reads
Why Pacey Witter Is the Blueprint for the Book Boyfriend: I break down the traits that still have us swooning decades later.
Books Like Dawson’s Creek: If you’re craving small-town drama, complicated friendships, angst, and that slow-burn romance.
Romance Authors to Read If You Like Dawson’s Creek: A mix of nostalgia and romance with the same emotional punch.
Musing of the Week
Am I the only one who thinks Taylor Swift might be very Dawson’s Creek coded? The poetic heartbreak, the extra angsty vibes, the yearning? Someone put folklore over a Pacey/Joey montage and tell me I’m wrong.
And here’s where it gets dangerous for my free time: I’m seriously thinking this is the perfect excuse for a full Dawson’s Creek rewatch, episode by episode. I might even bring you all along for the ride! Are you in?
Whether you were Team Pacey, Team Dawson (we can talk about your questionable choices later), or just here for the 2000s fashion flashbacks, I hope you find something to make your TBR just a little more dramatic this week.
And be sure to hit reply or comment below and let me know: which team were you?
Until next time,
Francesca 💙
P.S. Should I dust off the Dawson’s Creek fanfic from my old fansite and see the light of day again? 👀
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Sharing our love for books as Under the Covers Book Blog since 2011, running the Romanceopoly yearly reading challenge since 2019 and hosting the Reading Under the Covers podcast since 2020. Launched Mysterylandia in 2025.
Don't boo-hiss me, but I was so into police and crime drama for years that I utterly missed Dawson's Creek and several other hit shows of this period. But, I am glad you get to experience a revival and revisit. :)
this was a fun post.