I was quite excited when the author announced that she was writing an adult romcom because despite adoring her YA novels, I seem to prefer the adult books more these days. So I was very happy when I got the arc very early.

The writing is very easy to breeze through, it’s fast paced and so easy to find myself lost in the story. The signature Sandhya’s charm and banter is all over in the dialogue, which I really enjoyed. I liked both the main characters Annika and Hudson too, though I would have preferred a dual POV. Only seeing everything through Annika’s eyes felt a little dissatisfying, especially when she got on my nerves a little. Hudson seemed to have lot of shades to himself and it was interesting getting to know him better. I also adored the side characters June and Mr. Dev who were so supportive and just there for Annika at all times. The romance could probably be called a slow burn but there is also a yearning aspect throughout, which kept me on my toes. I never could guess how the next scene would go - if it would be more flirty banter or aggressive rivalry - and that helped me finish the book very quickly.

To conclude, the book was definitely enjoyable with a good set of characters but it just wasn’t very special. I also didn’t like the way the issues between the main characters got resolved towards the end - it felt like a cop out and I was quite frustrated. But it’s also not a bad book, just something that is entertaining enough to read once.

Make Up Break Up is a rom-com based in the STEM field. It is nice to see more and more books with main female characters working in various STEM companies.

Annika is the CEO of a company that is working on developing an app based on AI that gives individuals a second chance at love. Annika's supposed reason for developing this app felt weak to me. She said that it was because of the deep love between her parents but Annika's mom died when she was a young child and her dad never dated since his wife had passed.

Hudson Craft is a CEO of a second company that has developed an app that helps individuals break up with their significant others. Annika finds the concept of this app to be abhorrent.

There is some good tension between the two main characters. I actually liked Annika's best friend and business partner even more.

This book was a very slow read and I did not really get into it until more than halfway though. Many friends who read it DNF, but I was intrigued enough. I thought it was predictable, but all of my predictions were wrong. I think this book has to be for the right person, who can believe in just the right amount of disbelief.

I am a huge fan of Sandhya Menon’s YA books, particularly When Dimple Met Rishi, so when I saw that she was expanding into writing adult romance under the name Lily Menon, I was thrilled.

Make Up, Break Up is the story of Annika Dev, an intelligent, ambitious young woman who has designed an app called Make Up to help people in relationships communicate more effectively. Inspired by the romance of her parents, Annika has a vision of making the world happier, a vision she shared with Hudson Craft when they met in Las Vegas at a tech conference. And then he stole her idea. And twisted it.

Months later, Hudson has created his own, wildly successful app called Break Up, which is designed to break up with partners for people to save them the heartbreak and inconvenience of those conversations. Then, just as Annika is realizing that she may not have enough money to keep working toward her dream, Hudson moves into the office across the hall, rubbing his success in her face.

I appreciated Menon’s messages here about women so much—and, particularly, women of color—in tech fields and how difficult it can be for them to get a break, and the premise of two relationship apps with opposing goals is clever. Unfortunately, I felt from the beginning that it was pretty obvious that Hudson did not steal Annika’s idea, which meant that the conflict felt manufactured from the start. Annika’s reactions to Hudson and his success were difficult to get past. Also—and I’ll avoid spoilers here—I felt as if the resolution of the novel required growth and change in the wrong direction for the wrong character in this relationship. While Annika and Hudson have plenty of chemistry, the happily ever after they reached at the book’s conclusion didn’t quite convince me.

I admire Menon so much, and her track record means that I will certainly pick up whatever she publishes next. I’m afraid my expectations were just too high for this one.

DNF

I initially really enjoyed this one but as the story went on, I really came to dislike the main character. That plummeted my enjoyment of this novel and so I made the decision to DNF it. I also wasn’t the biggest fan of the romance.

I still think this will be a great book for romance readers! Just not a pick for me.

Annika and Hudson meet in Vegas and their first week of knowing each other is spent having a summer fling. Outside of their summer fling, they're both CEO's of dating apps with innovating technology. The only hitch? Their dating apps couldn't have more different company goals and morals and Annika is convinced that Hudson stole her idea when they met in the summer.
Overall, this book was a cute and quick read but I don't think I would recommend it to a friend. While some parts were immature (i.e. calling her vagina her "sex"), this book is definitely not appropriate for young adults with some of the raunchy scenes. I'm not sure if I would call this book a "romance" either considering how it was essentially all build up and then it was just over!

This had some potential but in the end feel really short. This story would have been fine if the main characters were teenagers and instead of companies, they just had ideas they wanted to pitch. But in an adult romance book, I expect way more. Since of the rivalry pranks were downright sabotaging and I simply cannot accept that in a professional stage, be it as rivals or lovers.

Another thing that really bothered me: I could not see the chemistry between the main characters beyond lust. Sexual attraction plays a HUGE role in this book and frankly overpowers everything else. A relationship is much more than that and we barely had the relationship truly develop beyond sexual attraction.

Overall, I was disappointed.

I'm disappointed to say that I didn't enjoy this book. I had high hopes for it after seeing the eye-catching cover and reading the description, but the story didn't live up to those expectations. The writing felt juvenile (an entire backstory was squished into the very first chapter), and the main characters were unlikeable. This one wasn't for me, although I would still try other books from this author.

The premise of this book was so promising. However, the characters did not have enough development or chemistry to make this a satisfying romance for me. Hudson was especially problematic for me because his communication was minimal, and when he did speak, I perceived it as condescending or evasive. It was difficult for me to read this one. I will not be reviewing this on any other platforms.

Actual rating: 3.5 out of 5


Wow. I DEVOURED this book. This is such a fun, roller-coaster read! Honestly, it’s more like the ride where it’s a boat going back and forth, up and down.

Make Up Break Up is probably the best description of the Enemies to Lovers trope. Continuous bickering? Check. Sabotaging each other’s daily lives? Check. Saying THERE’S NO WAY you could have feelings for the other? Check. And then kissing them the next minute? HUGE CHECK. I honestly almost got tired of the back and forth between Annika and Hudson except I’m such a trash for books that makes you say, “Just say you love each other and kiss already!!!” Slow freaking burn, ILY.

We are given two main characters; one is Hudson, the CEO of Break Up and gorgeous faces (lol just kidding), and the other is Annika, the CEO of Make Up. One of the things that hooked me to the book is reading about Annika and June’s progress on Make Up. A business owned by women??? Sign me up please! I badly wanted to see them succeed. I loved the romance aspect, but I really didn’t want the focus to be on just that. The book did give the right attention to that part of the story, but I still felt like it was lacking.

I really wanted to read from Hudson’s perspective. I usually don’t mind single POVs but for this book, I wanted to know Hudson’s thoughts and the things he did on his side of the story. Especially whenever Annika was being super hard to like. Hudson’s such an interesting character and I feel like I didn’t get to know him as much as I wanted to because the book is only told on Annika’s view.

finding out one of my favorite young adult authors was writing an adult romance under a pseudonym was a great surprise!

the premise for this book reminded me of "the right swipe" by alisha rai and i was intrigued! a book about social media, dating apps specifically, is always interesting. i need more of these stories. the banter, the chemistry, the friendships; everything was perfect. i adored annika's relationship with her dad and her frienship with june; we all need a friend like june.
despite how fast things happened, i liked the way the romance blossomed. the semi fade to black scenes were just... wow lily did really well for this being her first adult romance novel. it took a while, but i'm glad i was eventually able to enjoy the story and all it's characters and their flaws.

i am looking forward to more adult romances from lily!

I really enjoyed this one! Will be a great recommendation for anyone looking for an enemies-to-lovers story. I can't wait to see what else Lily Menon comes out with.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillian publishing, and Lily Menon for this Advanced reader copy of Make Up Break Up in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 3/5
Genre: Romance

My Thoughts: I loved the enemies to lovers concept of this book. I especially liked that Annika and Hudson had history-making the reasons why there were enemies make sense and fit into the plot well. Thought the chemistry between the two main characters was steamy and the angst was the just right amount. I loved the plotting and scheming was fun in the beginning but got bored with it about midway thru.

But I feel a tad conflicted about the book because I found Annika unlikeable. She took things too far.... especially with the sabotage. I think Hudson was having fun but you could tell deep down he cared about her. whereas Annika just was too self-absorbed, judgemental, and obsessed with beating Hudson she was oblivious to his feelings. I just could not connect with her as a character. I especially did not enjoy the ending as I feel it shows growth in only Hudson characters and none in Annika's

I also was not a big fan of the techy aspect of the book. Felt there was a little much time spent on the app and the whole logistics of the Make Up app was confusing as to how it would help people. Just thought it didn't add much to the book.

But nonetheless, I do think the book was entertaining, great writing and a great venture in adult romance. Think this could be a fun movie.

A fun enemies to lovers book!
I love when a hook up becomes more. There was a lot of hate since they are both trying to get their apps at the top and since both are different it made their banter even better.

The secondary characters helped make this story a little bit better since you can connect with them.

I wish the fall out at the end was better. He deserved a little more than what he got.

I thought this was a fun quick read.

What I liked: strong women in successful STEM careers, Hudson was swoon worthy, Annika's relationship with June and her father

What didn't work for me: Annika was SUPER judgmental of Hudson the entire time and would not relent to consider a viewpoint other than her own. It is actually surprising that he would hold out for her so long with how mean she was. There seemed to be other ways to solve the company's financial issues rather than wagering all on one competition.

Enemies to lovers is not one of my favorite tropes, but I didn't mind it Make Up Break Up. Hudson as a character is what kept me reading this book; I enjoyed learning more about his character and motivations as the book went on. Overall I think if Annika had been a more fully developed/ not black and white character this book would have come together much better.

If you enjoy

Enemies to lovers
Second chance romance
Reading about women in STEM
Books about entrepreneurship

this book may be for you!

Unfortunately, and I feel truly sad saying this, MAKE UP BREAK UP by Lily Menon fell flat for me.

Here’s what didn’t work for me:

> I feel the protagonists’ animosity towards each other was rooted in a failure to communicate;

> I felt Annika and Hudson’s behaviour was immature and I thought the pranks they pulled on each other to sabotage each other’s businesses bordered on being juvenile. Not the behaviour I expect from two highly educated smart adults;

> I was really skeptical about their business models. An app that allows you to hire someone to break up a relationship for you? An app that tells you how to fix communication issues with your loved one? I didn’t buy it;

> Most of the story did not add up. Supposedly, Annika’s business was financially struggling, yet she’s spending a fortune on lavish office parties throughout the book?

Overall, the book just wasn't for me.

Thank you so much @smpromance for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I really wanted to like this book! The premise seemed a lot of fun, unfortunately, there was an overwhelming amount of immaturity, mostly from the protagonist. DNF.

NetGalley provided a free copy to read and review.

Make Up Break Up by Lily Menon follows Annika Dev, a CEO of a dating app, who's app is described as “Google Translate for failing relationships". Meanwhile the CEO of a rival app, Hudson Craft, stands against everything Annika believes in. When Hudson moves into the office space next door from Annika, the two rival app developers clash again and again. Soon, Annika finds herself drawn into Hudson Craft’s fast-paced, high velocity, utterly shallow world. Only, from up close, he doesn’t seem all that shallow.

This book was a really fun, fast read. I didn't really enjoy the main character, Annika. Throughout the book, she became a little more bearable but I found it hard to relate to her. I did however love Annika's relationship with her father and her best friend/developer. Overall, I would recommend this to readers who enjoy the enemies-to-lovers trope.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The blurb caught my attention, but sadly this book didn't work for me. I couldn't connect with the characters and their relationship, Annika annoyed me for most of the book and their conflict was a bit childish.

for a first adult romance I am throughly impressed! i understand that the author has wrote many YA books (which are on my TBR) but this book just told me how amazing they are at storytelling.

I definitely had some issues with the main couple with their attitude & some of the stuff they say which again leads to the main conflict being lack of communication/miscommunication. I still enjoyed their dynamics and this does have my favorite trope in it which is rivals to lovers so i truly loved it.

overall it was such a great first read of the year!! full review will be linked soon!!