This is a pretty cute little rom-com. There were quite a few funny moments. (OMG that nerf gun! Hilarious!) It's a competitive, argumentative kind of love story - with lots of chuckles, a really great friendship and two interesting apps for dating. One app helps with communication, one app helps with breaking up and trying to not create an ugly scene. Definitely cute to read their conversations and watch them compete. Loved the rose scene, loved the story behind Pluto. Just an all around fun, easy story! I liked it!

2.5 stars. This book was... not a great fit for me, if I'm being honest. I wanted so badly to love this, but I found myself so bored through most of it, and in the few moments where I wasn't super bored, I was extremely frustrated by the actions of the characters and the undercooked plot. I'm sad :c

CW: car accidents, terminal illness, death of a loved one

Make Up Break Up tells the story of Annika Dev, an app developer who is determined to make her app succeed, even if her budget is quickly running out. It doesn’t help that her recent fling from last year’s tech conference in Vegas is now the darling of the app world.

I loved everything about this book. From the characters to the story, every moment of this book was excellent. Menon has the ability to write a plot that’s unpredictable, but flows so smoothly. Like all of her books, the characters are so lovable that you can’t stop rooting for them, even while you’re cringing at what they’re doing.

Great romance book and finally having romance of what happened a year ago. Loved that there is still an attraction there and both in the same business of relationships. Great romance and sexy times.

This was an entertaining read. While it does not add anything unique to the romance genre, it is an engaging and solid read.

I confess to having slightly mixed feelings about this book. I liked the concept - an enemies to lovers/second chance romance featuring two rival app developers, and it was good to see a young female protagonist striving to succeed and develop her business in the fiercely competitive world of tech. It was an easy read and I read it quite happily, but ultimately it fell a little flat for me.

Annika at times seemed very immature and it was at times hard to feel sympathetic as she made a number of questionable decisions. As the book was entirely from her point of view, Hudson's character felt very underdeveloped and rather one dimensional - dual points of view might have helped to bring him to life and bring out the supposed chemistry between the two. Their relationship seemed rather unbalanced - it revolved around miscommunication but the hate seemed to be coming almost entirely from Annika. The miscommunication did seem to drag on until it all wrapped up a little too quickly at the end with a resolution that didn't seem entirely believable..

Overall a fun read but one that perhaps didn't entirely live up to its initial promise. Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book just wasn't for me. I liked the premise and the writing and Hudson had potential to be my next book boyfriend but I found Annika thoroughly unlikable. For someone so into yoga, she was very angry!

Thanks to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for this copy to review.

Months ago, Annika and Hudson had a one-night stand at a conference in Vegas. Now, they're competing for the same grant to fund their app development companies. Amid the sabotage, hurt feelings, and misunderstandings, can they find their way to love?

This is a delightful novel—witty and charming and fun. It reads like YA but with the characters in their twenties.

I received an ARC from the publisher, and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Make Up Break Up is Lily Menon's first adult novel and it reads as such. I have been a long time fan of her YA work and I think she has the potential of being a great rom com author as well. There were two issues with this book that, if fixed during the editing process, kept it from being a great read- the female lead, Annika, is immature and hard to like and the entire premise is based on a misunderstanding that could have been fixed with one conversation. I'm a little disappointed but will read her next one.

3.5/ 5 stars


Make Up Break Up is YA author Sandhya Menon's first adult romance written under the pen name Lily Menon.

Make Up Break Up is a romantic comedy that takes place in Los Angeles, California. The narrator is 24 year old Annika Dev (3rd person POV). She has created a new app called Make Up. Her arch rival Hudson has created a new app called Break Up.

I really loved the idea of this book. I loved that Annika and her best friend June were creating a new tech business. I adored June. And I also really liked Annika's dad.

I'm less sure about the trope used in this book (enemies). The story was cute. And I think that many people will enjoy it. But I just wanted more. Something less predictable.

There were parts of this book that were cute. And honestly there was nothing wrong with the book. It was an easy read. And it was enjoyable enough. I just don't really like reading about people hating each other. And I spent most of the book not caring about the romance.

I loved that Annika was Indian American. But I wish that aspect and been a bigger part of the story. I honestly didn't realize her ethnicity until I was quite a bit into the book (although her last name was a clue).

Overall, the end was good. It left me with a pretty good feeling about the book. But the last chapter felt very rushed. And the last lines were a bit cheesy. But it was a cute romance.

Enemies to lover trope alert. We have two characters battle each other when they both enter the same competition. 
I do not know why I did not connect with Make Up Break Up but the plot felt too familiar to me. That's the problem with enemies to lover tropes. It's either the same plot or something wicked. I already knew what was going to happen that I was doozy off mid-read. It's a cute story but it's the same plot as the typical enemies to lover tropes. I know someone else will anticipate the book than I do.

This book has been compared to The Hating Game (like lots of books now!), but the similarities are superficial at best, and so reader beware that this book lacks the charm and wit that really elevates Sally Thorne's novel. Annika and Hudson are rivals in the same industry, and both secretly harbor an attraction to each other that is derailed by their work competitiveness. Both Annika and Hudson devise apps to make dating convenient and more successful. While Hudson focuses on how to break up with someone more easily in order to find true love (flashbacks to Carrie Bradshaw getting a post-it note from her scoundrel-beau), Annika is portrayed as the sensitive soul who wants people to be able to plug in key data to more quickly determine compatibility. The story is partially marketed as "girl power" given her representation in STEM and the excitement everyone in this story feels about her app: i.e. we're supposed to accept that there's so much heart involved in wanting to find true love that has supportive scientific data. There is even a scene where Hudson gives her a standing ovation with plenty of vigorous clapping, as she discusses her belief in girl power in front of an audience. Hudson's app is actually though the more successful one for much of the book, even while it classifies him as cad from page one. His defense that breaking up should be quick and efficient has some merits if one buys into the belief that love needs to be reliable and *convenient*. This isn't a book that dwells in ambiguities. Hudson is defined as the cad in Annika's eyes, and since it's her perspective that shapes so much of this story, I felt a disconnect between her portrayal and my response to her and my response to the conflict at the center of the book. In short, I didn't ever buy into the belief that these dating apps had much functionality, and I failed to believe in the morality supposedly attached to them.

As much as I wanted to enjoy Annika's character, I more or less didn't. Like many heroines, she's unreliable in that she can't see the obvious feelings the hero carries around for her. Hopefully romance authors can portray with charm a character's obliviousness about the object of their affection's feelings, but in Annika's case, her lack of awareness leads her to be kind of mean and even cruel at times to Hudson. Most of his actions are viewed in the worst light possible, and even when he tries to fix problems, she still somehow manages to be the victim. For instance, the novel begins with an interesting concept, which is that told in flashback the main characters had a brief affair at a Las Vegas conference and for reasons unknown, separated after a week long "one night stand" never to see each other again until they find themselves working in the same office building next door. We wait until the final pages of the novel to find out why Hudson was so hurt by their affair and why Annika felt victimized by it, and the reasons are so flimsy that there was simply no way to vindicate the heroine's self-righteousness that propels her through this story. There is also a disconcerting aspect of their present-day relationship that never sat well with me, which is that Hudson wants to attempt a relationship with Annika even though they are industry rivals, but Annika cannot be with someone whose product is morally problematic or who might take that morally problematic product and defeat her in their competition. I can imagine that it would be difficult to be in a relationship with a rival, but I also couldn't help coming away from this story without feeling that Hudson is the more mature and wiser person and deserves better. His sacrifices along the way to win the woman of his dreams left me with a decidedly hollow feeling.

Secondary characters here were more charming and fun to read, and I found that I was looking forward to the secondary romance between the main characters' best friends. Otherwise, this book was a push to get through.

Annika and Hudson met and had a summer fling in Las Vegas. Now they run rival apps. Annika's app Make Up is to give people a second chance at love. Hudson's app Break Up helps people break up. Hudson's moves into the office right next door to Annika's and both of them are competing in an investment pitch contest. They keep clashing. Do they "hate" each other or is it love?

My expectations were too high. It wasn't a bad book. It just wasn't the book for me. I couldn't connect with the characters. I thought Annika was too harsh on Hudson. They clearly still had feelings for each other and were attracted to each other. Annika hated Hudson for "stealing" the idea of her app and making it the opposite of what her app does. Both of them "hated" each other and started their businesses because of lack of communication made them think the other person didn't feel the same way and channeled their heartbreak into their apps.

I adore a story about smart, business owning, STEM woman! This was a well paced enemies to lovers romance. I enjoyed the office setting and the conflict made sense. There were great side characters: Annika’s best friend and business partner was funny and smart. Her Dad was just so endearing - loved him to death. Hudson was really so sweet, loving and talented.

My only issues were that nothing about this book stood out on a big way and I wanted MORE romance!

I've enjoyed my fair share of enemies-to-lovers stories and when I read the blurb for MAKE UP BREAK UP, I found the concept of rival app developers falling for each other intriguing. Unfortunately, I soon found myself cringing. Annika was not what I expected. Sure, I expected her to hold a grudge towards Hudson but she was rude and condescending. That's not to say that Hudson played the role of the victim here. Pfft! I didn't like them at all. Did they really have to resort to pettiness and unprofessional behavior? I don't get it. Which is why the romance didn't work for me. The more I read, the more I disliked and the less invested I became in the story. there was no connection or chemistry, unless you counted their insults and unethical behavior as flirty banter? IDK. The story and characters didn't work for me.

Make Up Break Up is a cute romantic comedy with great characters.

Annika is developing an app called Make Up that allows couples to have a second chance. Hudson recently developed an app called Break Up that allows someone to send a Break Up employee to break up with their significant other. Annika and Hudson had a fling while in Vegas for a conference. Hudson just moved into the office next to hers. They soon develop a rivalry pranking each other. Soon they start to spend more time together. Will these enemies turn into lovers? Also, Annika’s company is on the brink of bankruptcy. Can she win a grant or will she have to give up her dream of developing the Make Up app?

Make Up Break Up was the perfect light read. I loved the characters and was entertained from the first page. Annika is very independent and will do anything to save her company. However, she will not take money from her family or employee. Developing the Make Up app is her passion and she won’t let anyone convince her to give up. She is convinced Hudson is a bad person because of the Break Up app. However, Hudson is always there for her and except for their friendly pranks is always nice to her. Annika struggles with her dad not supporting her dream and pushing for her to go to medical school instead. Annika doesn’t let this discourage her. Hudson is a kind person and his reasons for developing the Break Up app are not as cruel as Annika assumes. Hudson has many different sides that are shown throughout the book but he always has integrity. Hudson has other passions besides Break Up but with Break Up’s success he spends most of his time on that. This story was cute with many funny parts. I liked the emphasis on following your dreams in this book. I recommend Make Up Break Up to fans of romantic comedy novels.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for Make Up Break Up.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review on my blog. I found the language to be wrong straight off -- the book was supposed to be set in Los Angeles and, yet, no one spoke as if they were American. I could have moved past this had the premise been slightly more believable and the characters slightly more than mere cardboard. Thank you for your consideration and the opportunity to review this book.

Make Up Break Up by Lily Menon is about relationship apps, love, second chances.

Annika Dev is smart, innovative, and hard working. Nothing stops her from trying to accomplish her goals in making her app successful. This particular app involves a second chance for relationships and finding one’s true love.

Her rival, Hudson Craft, is successful, ambitious, and charismatic. His app does the complete opposite of what Annika’s for which a third party person helps end failing relationships to save on time and potential blow out if it was done in person.

Before there was such animosity and rivalry between each other, Annika and Hudson spent one week together in Vegas in the past. Though their time with one another was passionate, nothing happened after that. Where one has since gained all the success, the other is barely staying afloat. An upcoming pitch contest is Annika’s last chance to make it.

The banter which is seen with Annika and Hudson is amusing yet also frustrating. There wasn’t real any real surprises in the storyline. If you are in the mood for some light, romantic comedy, this is the book to read.

I love this recent surge of romance novels set in a tech world, the modern take on finding love is endlessly fascinating for me, and when it features a badass, strong woman in the tech world, I’m even happier. Annika was all of that and more and I just loved her as a character, in fact she’s what made me like this one so much.

If you like both second chance romances AND enemies to lovers this one has both, so fun! Annika and Hudson had a steamy vacation romance that didn’t work out and then when he seemingly steals her app idea he goes from lover to mortal enemy. I loved the way these two tortured each other, think silly pranks and their chemistry was fantastic. This is a true slow burn, nothing physical happens between the two until late in the book, but for me this was worth the wait. Besides their great dynamic Annika’s best friend, June was a delight and I also enjoyed her relationship with her father. Overall a fun and entertaining romance read for me.

This book did not end exactly how I thought it would, but I sure did enjoy reading it. Annika and Hudson had serious chemistry, and a history, and plenty of professional competition. This was a fun one!