From the cover of this book I was expecting a fun story, based in the summer, where two friends agree to be each other’s plus one for the wedding season and they fall in love. And I was exactly right! I find it rare that a cover and title can cover the story that well!

This was an enjoyable light book and just what I was looking for. Cara and Millsy meet when she is stood up in a restaurant. In a Cinderella-ish makeover from Millsy’s friends, she gets better clothes, makeup and hair and starts to embrace standing out instead of always blending in.

There were the classic forced proximity and misunderstandings in this book that one expects, but they worked. The characters were fun and you could see how they would fall for each other.

In a time of chaos when I just don’t want to read about heavy topics, this was the perfect summer read.

Cara and her new friend Millsy make a pact to be each other's Plus One to various upcoming weddings and family events on both sides. Just as "friends" of course. I'm sure you can guess where the story goes from there.

I normally enjoy a good fake dating trope. Cara was funny and so normal but in comparison, Millsy was weird and hard to connect to. Not once throughout the book did he say or do anything to make you think he was interested in Cara as anything more than a friend, which made the ending seem a bit forced. I also didn't like at the start of the book how he made Cara undergo a full makeover and get a new hairdo.

This is a feel-good, fun and light read. If you're looking for a breeze-through book with a guaranteed happy-ending, look no further! I wish the author played up the romance a little bit more, it felt a little too platonic to me, but overall I liked how fast the book moved.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this romance. It was funny, sweet and sexy. What more can you want in a summer read? Cara's plus one pact is not an new idea in books (in fact I read a similar book a month ago) but it was by far the best version that i've read. I loved the friendship between the two main characters and the genuine warmth that was there, not only between them but with their families too. I also loved the mishaps that happened each and every time they went anywhere. In fact I was laughing from Cara's first disastrous date to the final line and i'd love a follow up to these two characters. Definitely a great read and I will most likely re-read this in the future as I enjoyed it that much.

I enjoyed this novel tremendously. The plot was well crafted and the characters were people I could relate to and empathize with. Definitely recommended.

**Disclaimer: I was given a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.**

Title The Plus One Pact

Author Portia MacIntosh

Release Date May 21, 2020

Description from Amazon

What if your plus one could be the one…?

Cara has officially run out of men. Her most recent dates have gone from bad to worse, and when her dating app informs her there is no one left in her area to choose from, she is at a dead end.

But with a summer of events ahead of her, she needs to find a solution, fast; someone to keep her company at the never-ending weddings, family gatherings and gender reveal parties that she can’t face going to alone. So when she meets handsome, confident, Millsy on a night out she may be in luck. They could not be more different in personality, but he too has a summer of events ahead and is desperate to get his family off his back about finding a ‘nice girl’. What if they made a pact to help each other out and be a plus one for the summer? Just as friends of course…?

Initial Thoughts

I loved the idea of this story. Friends who decide to become each other’s plus ones for events – super fun. Obviously, this is an HEA rom-com so I knew where this was heading, but I thought it sounded good nonetheless. Also, I really loved the last Portia MacIntosh book I read.

Some Things I Liked

Cara and her job. I loved that Cara had an unconventional job. It made her a more fun character to read about.
The realism in Cara’s falling out with her high school friends. I thought Cara’s story was really open and honest about her struggles as an almost-thirty year old woman in the modern age. Again, I really liked her character.
Some Things I Didn’t Like

Millsy’s name. I just hated it. I don’t know why but it really perturbs me when adult men go by a goofy nickname. It’s fine if it’s like just your friends from childhood but who introduces themselves as their silly nickname? I say this with a total biased opinion because I saw an email signed “Woody” at work one day (and I work in finance). I just couldn’t take him seriously with that name.
The romance was totally undeveloped. Also, Millsy’s backstory was relatively undeveloped. At the end of the story, the reader learned that several assumptions we had made about him (from things other characters had said) turned out to be untrue. I wish his story as well as the romance had been fleshed out more.

Series Value

This story feels pretty complete. There were no side characters that I felt would merit a spin-off or side story. I would definitely keep reading Portia MacIntosh’s other books, but I don’t think I would read another book about these characters.

Final Thoughts

I wasn’t super crazy about this book. The ending really saved it for me but I had some major issues with the development of the romance and overall story. I think this book had a lot of potential, but it fell short in several places.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommendations for Further Reading

Christmas at Frozen Falls by Kiley Dunbar – although this is a holiday story, the vibes are so similar. If you like stories about revisiting the past in order to discover what your future has in store, try this holiday story by Kiley Dunbar. It also features a makeover that the main character feels much more herself after receiving.
The Move by Whitney Dineen – if you like clean, rom-coms about starting over in a new place with hilarious, sometimes over-bearing parents, try this book by Whitney Dineen.
Make or Break at the Lighthouse B&B by Portia MacIntosh – if you liked the writing style here, try this 2020 release by the same author. (I really enjoyed this one).

The synopsis of this story really hooked me. I’ve read a few wedding date pact type novels before and enjoy them despite them being very predictable.

I was hooked very quickly by this book. The opening chapters were interesting and gave you a general feel for the characters pretty quickly.

Unfortunately, I feel this book fell a little short in some of the storylines. At times it felt like I’d fallen into Bridget Jones (Daniel Cleaver saying Mark Darcy had slept with his fiancée) and other books I’ve previously read (ex wants her back, romantic interest turns up at end to declare love etc etc). I was secretly hoping that Millsy would turn out to be a pig and Jay would be the hero. Or, another twist to make this unpredictable. However, despite my moaning, I really did enjoy this book and couldn’t put it down.

The author has a great writing style, one that grips you, engages you and makes you feel like you’re there. The characters are realistic and well described.

Thank you NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book 📚

I'm a fan of Portia's stories so was delighted to get my hands on this one. I loved this story! It wasn't completely predictable and I liked the way the relationship between Cara and Miilsy grew. This is a great light read to have with you on holidays!

Cara Brooks has not had the best luck in dating: on real life, with apps. Really anywhere. A chance encounter leads her to Millsy and a summer of plus on fun. But could it be more?

This was a very cute story about almost fake dating? Almost... Cara is utterly hilarious and has a wit that made me actually laugh out loud multiple times. She is honest with herself and with Millsy’s help smashes her way out of her comfort zone and into a different version of her. I am never sure how I feel about Millsy and since we never read from his perspective sometimes I couldn’t really tell what he thought about Cara or in general. Cara though is a great character and there are some great family moments that makes this a great easy going book. There are some hilarious hijinks that make you think - and groan - about all those family obligations we love to hate.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Plus One Pact-
I’ve read most of Portia MacIntosh’s books in the last few weeks and I absolutely love them(I’d highly recommend Drive Me Crazy and Honeymoon for One if you’ve not read any of Portia’s work!)
After reading Truth or Date I was so excited to hear about Millsy and his love life, safe to say I was not disappointed. This book follows Cara on her journey of finding her true self with the help from her new best friend Joe ‘Millsy’ Mills. They decide to help each other out with the multitude of events taking place that summer and become each others permanent plus ones, where they help each other get into all sorts of trouble. This is a lovely, funny read filled with friendship, self-love and of course... romance! A very uplifting read, I would definitely recommend!

I would like to thank Boldwood Books for providing me an ARC for #ThePlusOnePact via #NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Plus-One Pact by Portia MacIntosh is a cute, rom-com novel about Cara, a young woman who befriends a man named Joe (aka Millsy) after being stood up. They quickly become friendly enough to decide to be each others plus-ones for all the events they have to attend in the summer.

I thought this book was rather sweet. It kind of falls in that "fake date turns to real love" category, but not really, as they truly go to these events as friends, and not pretending to be in a relationship, which I found refreshing. In fact, there wasn't even hints to romantic feelings between them until closer to the end of the book, which gave two strangers time to become best friends, and get to know one another.
The story flowed really well from chapter to chapter, and was consistent. Even better - it wasn't predictable. My only complaint was the writing style. I typically like stories written in first person, which this one is, but a lot of the time it felt like I was reading the rambling thoughts in Cara's head.

I really liked the characters in The Plus-One Pact. Cara and Millsy's chemistry is great, and while I usually like more adult content in the books I read, the relationship between these two characters helped me get over the skipped over steamy scene. I liked that Cara was just an average woman, kinda dorky, and hey - her job is designing escape rooms. I love escape rooms. Millsy is just a total frigging sweetheart. Who doesn't like a male protagonist who does everything he can to make the woman he is into happy? Even if it means not getting what he wants, he just wants her happy. Add to that he is funny, and kind, you can't help but fall for him.

In the end, I recommend this book to anyone who loves romantic comedies, and those who likes innocent romance stories. It's a sweet love story that I am sure you will love.

After one heck of a week of reading — memoirs, self-improvement, epic YA historical fiction/fantasy series — I was in dire need of a romantic, comedic, pick-me-up to shake up my reading habits a bit.

*Firstly, thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Plus One Pact was far more enjoyable than I was expecting it to be and the crazy scenarios Joe “Millsy” Mills and Cara Brooks found themselves in had me laughing out loud, right to the final two or three sentences in the book. While this love story is your typical Hallmark Channel-esque narrative trope (my favorite), I couldn’t wait to see what accidental trouble those two would find themselves in next. It kept things wildly refreshing, fun, and light for a plot readers have heard time and again.

Sidebar: Millsy totally swept me off my feet.

I admit that I usually frown when I begin reading a book and find that it’s in the first-person present tense; it’s simply not my favorite POV and I find it too irritating to be involved in the protagonist’s every whim and action. However, this didn’t bother me as much. The story was really about Cara and Millsy, and because Millsy occupied nearly every one of Cara’s thoughts and scenes, I felt MacIntosh captured the big picture and the silly, unbeknownst-to-them “coming together” of two friends.

A fun, brisk read that will be a staple poolside accessory this summer!

This book follows Cara, a 29 year old with an interesting job, who absolutely cannot find a man suitable enough to date. After striking out and getting stood up, Cara meets Millsy at a bar. Despite being complete opposites, the two strike up a quick friendship, agreeing to making a plus one pact. Each will attend the functions of the other, as friends. The pact works, but the closer Cara and Millsy become, the more they begin to wonder if they really are just friends.

This book was sweet! Well-written and very funny. It had so many great lines and quotes I wanted to save and come back to. I loved Cara's character although I did find her slightly immature for her age, especially at the end. I think the book was quite predictable, and came together at the end extremely quickly and somewhat unexpectedly- I did think there was going to be more twists. However, it was still a very sweet, fun and light story! I loved all the adventures the two characters got up to and how they handled them, lots of laughs! I enjoyed it.

You'll find yourself alternating between laughing at the hijinks Cara and Millsy manage to get into and wanting to throttle them for being so blind at times! This is a fun, fast-paced, light-hearted read, and I didn't want it to end...but Portia MacIntosh's books are always that way. That's why they're so great!

A lovely, funny story.
Cara, after being stood up on a date which she met on a dating app finds herself being asked to go to a club by Joe who sees her where she’s supposed to be meeting her date.

They agree to attend their upcoming functions together, as friends.
Cara’s aunty and cousin are always finding things to put her down and Joe’s family too think he’ll never find anyone to be serious with.

Along the way things always happen at these functions but somehow, they find ways to put them right before anyone twigs.
At a party Cara meets Jay and Joe’s not too happy about it but Cara can’t understand why.
Then she goes on a date with him without telling Joe and realises why Joe was warning her. She tells Joe she went on a date and things change between them.
Joe leaves for his meeting and Cara goes to her parents to help with the wedding preparations where she meets Lloyd.
At the wedding they clear the air and misunderstandings.

Great, light hearted read, with humour 👍

Loved it.... Cara who's desperately trying to find a match on a dating app, between wanting to find 'the one', also to find someone to accompany her to family gatherings doesn't want to turn up alone. Matches finally run out, leaving Cara with the thought she'll have to go to them alone, until the night she meets Millsy in a bar.
Cautious at first, this soon turns into a great friendship, where they make a pact to be each other's plus one, to all upcoming events.

This book is lighthearted, full of humour, thoroughly good read, didn't want it to end. Cara and Millsy's family gatherings attended together often had their memorable incidents, which only builds their bond more.

I've not read any books by this author before, definitely would do again, great read, t'll make you laugh and smile.

Portia Macintosh is one of those authors that I see often when searching for a new book but for some reason I've never actually got to know. Man, I regret that now.

It seems to be a record week as this is the second book this week that if read that is in first person and absolutely loved!

I think praise is always due when a book is written well in first person narrative. One of the reasons in not a fan of it is because I just find out difficult to engage with anyone in the story when everything is only from the point of view of one single person. But when it's well written. Wow. When I forget that it's in first person, I forget that I'm only seeing it from one person's perspective, when I just want to read and not put the book down, THAT is when it's well written.

I loved everything about Cars and Millsy and I definitely loved Oliver (yes, my man). Don't get me wrong, this book was fairly predictable and tye storyline wasn't necessarily unique but it was just so well written that I want to go back and read it again and again.

Off to read everything else by thus author!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'The Plus One Pact' is a classic easy-to-read romance - perfectly predictable in plot but the sort of happy, easygoing novel that's great on holiday or when you're in need of a pick-me-up. It follows Cara, about to be the wrong side of thirty and with everyone around her getting married and having children, has a chance encounter with Millsy, a serial womaniser who needs someone to make his family believe he can be serious with a woman. Cara has a fantastic idea - the plus-one pact, where her and Millsy accompany each other to all their social events over the summer to get their families and friends off their back about dating. What could possibly go wrong?

As a character, Cara wasn't someone I could really relate to but I imagine many women will. Her frustrations felt real and her relationship with her family was delightful. She regularly claimed not to care about her appearance yet constantly seemed to think about it or change it - an insecurity common to so many. By the end, I was rooting for her even as I cringed at some of her decisions - a clear sign of character investment.

Joe Mills, known as Millsy, didn't appeal to me in the slightest. I liked his unusual job but, to be quite honest, he regularly came across as not a great guy. However, I loved his relationship with Grandma Iona, and his constant antics and mishaps with Cara were great fun to read about. It was also nice seeing a healthy portrayal of close male-female friendship with him and Ruby, and how this didn't bother Cara in the slightest.

Overall, this is a solid romance with a likeable main character and plenty of everyone's favourite tropes. (Fake dating? There's only one bed? Friends to lovers?) There are no surprises and fans of the genre are likely to enjoy this. A great read when you just need something easy.

The first 2/3 of the book felt kind of slow, with the last 1/3 very fast-paced and a little bit rushed to make up for the rest of the story. The main character spends a lot of time explaining things, especially early in the book, and it didn't feel necessary, since the bulk of the story was meant to be about the pact Cara and Millsy make, rather than Cara's life otherwise or her relationships with other family and friends. I did like the ending, and the story in general was fun, but overall the book just seemed to have very odd pacing.

Another great book from Portia! The plus one pact is a sweet amusing feel good book, i devoured it in an afternoon. Definitely worth reading.