Who doesn't love an enemy to lovers novel?! And this one coming from typical YA romance writer, Sandhya Menon!

Annika Dev is developing an app, "Make Up" that will save failing relationships. She also falls quickly but her relationships are short-lived and normally don't go further than the first date. So when she has a week-long romantic endeavor with Hudson Craft, she expects this relationship to be the same as the others. This relationship seems to go as expected (no contact) except almost a year after their time together she realizes Hudson has stolen her idea for an app, "Break Up" that helps people break up with their partner with seemingly zero repercussions. And he's gaining all the fame, money, and attention she deserves. When he moves into the office right next to hers and they're both vying for the same investors into their newly developed apps, all bets are off.

Such an easy-flowing, fast-paced novel! The chemistry between the two characters is fantastic. However, it did fall short for me in two areas. One, I didn't connect with the main character Annika as much as I would have liked to. It was hard to warm up to her and she seemed judgmental and kind of bratty. It was obvious that Hudson was into Annika and I just wanted to shake her and tell her to quit fighting it!! Two, I think the book ended sort of abruptly. I wanted an epilogue at least to know how it all ended up!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sharing this ARC with me in exchange for my honest opinion!

This was a bit cliched, predictable and there were times when both the lead characters were being immature, but I still really enjoyed it. I could honestly give it 5 stars for the gut-wrenching familial drama and fantastic chemistry.

The story revolves around two app rivals, Annika and Hudson. Annika is the founder of Make Up, which aims to bring exes back together or fix broken relationships and give couples their happily-ever-afters. Hudson, on the other hand, is the CEO of Break Up, which is known as the "Uber for break-ups". Two young developers that once shared seven intimate nights in Vegas, starting up two totally opposing dating apps, about to constantly outsmart one another in this delicious hate-to-lovers romance.

I gotta admit, I wasn't a big fan of Sandhya Menon's YA books. But this one worked wonders for me. I thought she did a great job writing both Annika's and Hudson's characters, and even the secondary characters were amazing. I loved that this wasn't just about the back and forth competition, but also about a father-daughter relationship and two women trying to make a name for themselves in the tech industry. The only things I didn't like were the many times Annika couldn't seem to control herself whenever she's in Hudson's presence (especially during very inappropriate moments) and the rather abrupt ending.

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the earc! This book comes out on February 2nd!

A cute romance to snuggle up with on your weekend. I especially loved the Indian American connection and the dad who keeps pressurizing Annika to get a "real" job. That's so, so real :) But that said, Annika could have been a touch nicer as a person...

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

I really wanted to like this book! I loved a good enemies-to-lovers, as well as a workplace (or in this instance, work competitors) romance, but this book was honestly a mess. Like so many other reviewers have said, the plot is full of holes, assumptions, missed opportunities - the narrative just didn't really make sense. I also felt a real lack of connection or tension between the two main characters, which is a shame, because I think the set-up could have lent itself to some great banter. I liked the woman in STEM/development angle, but also thought it was a little underdeveloped. The whole time I found myself wishing I was reading The Hating Game or The Right Swipe instead.

This book truly had some flavor to it. Sometimes one sided enemies to lovers can be hit or miss, but this one was definitely a hit for me. I thought it was hilarious how right Annika thought she was, and I enjoyed how Hudson could be petty in return.

There was definitely some cringing and second hand embarrassment reading what Annika did sometimes, but the humor and tech part of the story really made it interesting and well worth it. The sexual tension and pining between them was just *chef's kiss*. Two words. The bath.

Overall, I had a fun time reading this one, and think it's a good book for those who like their romances to have a solid plot outside of the romance.

First off—I love this cover! Unfortunately that's kind of all I really loved. The dialogue was very cliche and redundant. A few times it felt like the characters were having the same conversations over and over again, down to the exact same sentence phrasing. So many major cheeseball moments—the ending being especially a big eye roller.

Annika only has a few weeks until a major presentation that can make or break her funding for her app, Make Up. The app was in dire need of money, however Annika insisted on having an office in downtown LA for her and her and her business partner, where all their work was being done on the computer. The amount of money that they could have saved would have probably helped them get out of some of their loan debt. Instances like this that felt like common sense really annoyed me.

The main characters were stubborn, and not in an endearing way. I thought the best friend/business partner was pretty one-note. She agreed with every Annika said and never challenged her to see another perspective. I did enjoy the relationship Annika had with her dad, who raised her alone for most of her life.

I really wanted to enjoy this, but it lacked a lot of substance.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Enemies to lovers is one of my all time favourite troops, throw in a bit of angst, sarcasm, laughter and romance and you have a fantastic book...
I always go into a romance book with the same perceptions, it will be warm and fuzzy and everything in between, there will be a happy ending and it will leave me smiling. This book was different in that some of the plot was a little bit different but in the best possible way, it wasnt just the normal run of the mill rom com it was much more than that and i loved it, i especially loved the writing style and rooted for all the characters.

Loved it

An enemies to lovers romance with competing apps! Annika and Hudson met and spent a steamy week together in Vegas- where she confided her plans to start an app to help couples mend their relationships (Make UP). Now, several years later, Hudson's got an app too- Break Up- which does the obvious opposite. He's, sadly, doing a lot better than she is and now they're in competition for funding AND he's moved in next door. You know how this is going to go but Menon does a nice job with the trope. Hudson isn't as odious as he seems at first glance, which Annika knows, in her heart if not her head. There's good dialogue (and some giggles) as well as an optimistic outlook. I liked Annika and Hudson and found myself rooting for them. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A fast fun read.

I’m so disappointed! I was so excited for this book. It sounded like it would be such a good romcom. But 100 pages in, I knew it wasn’t for me.

To start off, Annika was infuriating. She was childish and petty and just an overall brat for pretty much the entirety of this book. She never got any type of development or growth, in the end everything just worked out exactly like she wanted it to. Also Annika goes from accusing Hudson of stealing an idea she had for years and told him about the first time they met to telling him she had this idea partly because of him? What? What is the truth? That made no sense!

Hudson wasn’t much better either. He just had no personality, I had absolutely no interest in him. His excuse for why he created such a terrible app was so stupid... you knew her for 7 days! get over yourself. He annoyed me so much from the very first few moments he showed up. He says he has been in love with Annika since their first meeting but I just did not see that all with the way he treated her/acted (and his excuse of doing that because he wants to have her close? yeah, I’m sorry but did not buy that. At all).


Both of these characters treated each other so badly. They were so damn childish with their fights and trying to one up each other. There was absolutely no chemistry between them at all. The enemies to lovers aspect was anticlimactic at best, there was barely any development. I couldn’t stand any of their scenes together, they literally sounded like children. There was no spark between them at all.


Honestly, I didn’t even care about the side characters either. They weren’t bad or anything like that, but at the end of the day they also were not memorable at all either.


The only reason I’m giving this 2 stars is because I enjoyed the girl power in this book quite a lot. If there is one thing I admired about Annika is how she didn’t give up and how she was so focused on her business and on her dream, and how she made sure to inspire young girls to do the same. That was a positive in the story for me.


Overall, this was a let down. I’m disappointed as i was so excited for the book and happy when I got the opportunity to read and review it early! But it just wasn’t for me.

Loved this storyline, from the characters to the overall premise, it was written really well! I loved the interactions and chemistry between Annika and Hudson, and thought their relationship evolved really well.
I do have to agree with others though, on the point that the author's YA novels are more impressive. They have super swoony scenes that I didn't quite feel as much in this book. Nonetheless, Menon is a great author!

Ahhh! This was one my most anticipated reads of 2021, and I was so excited to be approved for an arc. I’m so sad to say it didn’t quite live up to expectations. This is Sandhya/Lily’s first adult romance book after her very successful YA books and this book shows she can definitely bring the heat ; ) The problem I had with the book though was that I really didn’t like the main character until over halfway through the book. If you don’t like the character it’s hard to be engaged and invested in the love story and the happily ever after. Ultimately I enjoyed the ending, but reading the first half felt like a chore.

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. That is how Annika feels. She brings couples closer together with her upstart app Make Up. She made it so lost lonely people could come to believe in the power of love again. And ends up in direct competition to her one, well seven, night stand, Hudson and his new app, Break Up, which allows you to send someone to break off your relationship.

This book relies heavily on the enemy to lover trope, which is not really one of my favorites. I really wanted to love this book as it is reminiscent of 90s rom coms, but it is missing something to make it stick out. It will appeal to many as a cute, charming romance.

This was a really cute book. I loved the concept of two competing dating app developers pitted against each other, and the name of the apps was creative too. I didn’t initially like Hudson, but he grew on me as the book went on. Annika was a character I loved and was rooting for from the beginning. The side characters in this book were really likable, and I would love to see a book on June and Ziggy in the future! A great escape from reality.

I often try not to compare an author’s previous works when reading their current works, but in this case, it’s hard not to.

I sadly found this story lacking the heart that comes hand in hand with Menon’s YA novels. But I will say this was a fine enough story if you just want a romance to take your mind off of things. I guess I was just expecting a bit too much.

I was lucky to get a free eARC of this book to review. This is a great rom-com story, with crazy shenanigans and the cheesy adorable moments that one looks for in a contemporary romance. I have loved everything that I have read previously by this author, and this is no different.

I think my favorite thing about this book is how well this story is written. This is Menon’s first step into adult romance, and it was so much fun to see how she can craft a story without being contained due to a younger age group. One thing that I have really noticed while reading is how well she can write tension! It is strong with our main characters, and I loved every minute of it.

I was hooked by this story, and devoured this book in two days. Menon can really grab your attention and make you want to do nothing except read the stories that she crafts. I can’t wait to see what other books she continues to write. She has a fan in me, for sure!

Make Up Break Up is about Annika Dev who created the app Make Up and Hudson Craft who developed the App Break Up and how they become rivals months after they spent a week together in Vegas.

I liked Annika, Hudson and the secondary characters, but have to say that this book was a bit drawn out. Also in the last 20% more stuff happens with a small plot twist. I think adding or exchanging some chapters with Hudson’s POV would maybe help shorten the story and help understand why he was doing things the way he was doing them.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher St. Martin for this ebook arc in exchange for an honest review.

this was a fun story - i originally decided to pick this up even if it was outside my comfort zone because i wanted something cute and fun. i haven't read anything by lily menon in her dimpleverse so after picking this up i'm definitely intrigued to check them out. the writing style is very easy to get into and this just encapsulates a fun story with slow enemies to lovers relationship so if you want something that's quick and easy to read and will give you feels.

Make Up Break Up was one of my highly anticipated reads for 2021, unfortunately the story did not work as well for me as I hoped. I really struggled with the heroine’s behaviors, at times she felt much younger than she was supposed to be. This was a DNF for me.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A quick glance at her backlist will tell you that Sandhya Menon loves the opposites-attract trope, and that has not changed with her adult debut under the pen name Lily Menon. However, while the trope has worked well in her YA books, particularly her three Dimple and Rishi books, Make Up Break Up feels like a poor imitation of that book and a lack of understanding of what made it work.

The one positive is the heroine, Annika. She isn’t always the most likable, but I admired her drive and her dedication to her company. If the book had focused more on her growth in a more women’s fiction direction or had a more compelling love interest, I would have said this book was much better.

I can’t tell you one unique thing about Hudson. He runs a rival company and he and Annika hooked up in the past. Big whoop.

And they also have radically different approaches when it comes to love. Oh my gosh, was this hammered in so much. What makes an opposites-attract or enemies-to-lovers work is the gradual realization that they have something deeper in common. But when the common denominator is lust, and one participant isn’t well defined on top of that, it just got old fast.

I don’t think this is a completely horrible book, and if you’re looking for a light read to engage you for a grief period, you can’t go wrong, as it is very fast paced and engaging, in spite of the issues that prompted frustration. And it’s entirely possible that my bias for her YA books has tainted my perspective, as there are others who’ve read the book and enjoyed it far more.

Thanks for a copy to review of this book I liked this book I wanted to love it because I love this author and her other books I loved so much and I love some enemies to lovers so much but this one fell a little flat for me I felt like the characters had a lot of miss Communication and they were very petty and mean but I still liked it didn’t love it but I will continue to read this author