The Mistletoe Pact follows Evie and Dan. Dan is the older brother of Evie's childhood best friend, Sasha. They've always kinda had crushes on each other but never really acted on them. We learn about their mistletoe pact, a deal they made that if neither one was married by Evie's 30th birthday, they would get married. It was made in jest but always hung around in the back of their minds. The story jumps around time-wise. We open on Evie's 30th birthday with Dan and Evie having had a true drunken one-night stand in Vegas and actually gotten married. Both so spooked by this and terrified to destroy their friendship, both panic and ignore having a serious conversation immediately getting the marriage annulled. We go back in time to get a sense of how their friendship started. We also jump to the year after their spur-of-the-moment wedding and annulment. Evie and Dan both have baggage from seeing their parents' relationships growing up. Evie was raised by a single mom who always had a new boyfriend of the month. She just wants to have stability with whoever she chooses to grow old with. While Dan watched his father cheat regularly and ultimately leave his mother. He's terrified to fall in love and having his heart broken.

This book is a fun, sweet read perfect for Christmas time. Once I picked up the book it just flew by. I could see myself just curling under a cozy blanket or sitting in front of a fireplace reading this, those are just the vibes this book gives off. I liked that you got alternating points of view, getting both Dan and Evie's perspective on what was happening. I did feel like this book left a lot of loose ends. I wish we had gotten more of what Sasha thought about Dan and Evie together. I wish there had been just one heart to heart conversation with either Sasha and Dan or Sasha and Evie with what was happening in their relationship. I feel like it would have really added a wonderful depth to the story. I also felt like Dan had a few too many problems. He had commitment issues because of his parents marriage, guilt over an accident with his brother, an unplanned pregnancy with an ex-girlfriend. Because there was so much going on, none of these issues got the full development they needed. some just felt unnecessary.

Overall, this is a fun book. It is a quick read, perfect if you are looking for a book to get you in the christmas spirit. Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

Loved Loved Loved. Such a beautiful story of will they or won’t they, of course all this is after they’ve actually gotten married. Genius!

When the clock strikes November 1st a festive Monica elf emerges draped in a holiday blanket with a festive hot chocolate in hand, skipping through the streets scattering red and green glitter at innocent passersby. I love Christmas. I am a proud cheesy holiday romance enthusiast.

So, I had high hopes for The Mistletoe Pact. It was a good story with remarkable (if not a tad wordy) writing and a charming romcom plot. The middle lost my interest due to the wordiness, but the final chapters saved this one for me and had me giddy by the end of the novel.

The Friends references and the “Mr. Rachel/Mrs. Ross” Vegas wedding vibes had me excited before even beginning to read.

Pros:
Coming off of a “People We Meet on Vacation” by Emily Henry hangover I enjoyed this familiar friends who secretly love each other theme, as well as the structural similarity wherein chapters shuffle between present day and the past. Alternating between characters as well as past and present encounters affords unique and intimate relationship building opportunities — I am a big fan of this on a novel framework level because you witness the relationship evolve through years of stolen glance moments, secret pinning, jealousy over other partners and the characteristic romcom unexpected, heated run-ins.

Main and supporting characters were exceptionally well developed with unique voices. I enjoyed the main characters and how they cared for each other even though I became frustrated with how long their denial of feelings lasted. The family storylines were an added bonus because they contributed added depth to the characters and overall story.

Cons:
This one fell slightly short because I believe the same relationship dynamics and plot could have been established in fewer words and chapters. I don’t believe it needed to be as long and wordy in several sections to still make an impact and execute the story well. I am a big fan of details — have you seen how long my posts are 🤪 — but this one was just a bit too detailed in some places.

Our main characters drove me a little crazy at times — Evie and Dan were very relatable, but denying their feelings and convincing themselves they weren’t a good fit (without truly significant reasons) started to drag on. That said, Evie throwing out Dan’s undies and drunkenly imparting wisdom on the night of their nuptials made me literally laugh out loud.

Final thoughts:
1—Drunk Evie is fantastic.

“She pushed her glass of blue away and it wobbled a lot on the edge of the table then spilled onto the floor. ‘Well, look at that.’ She pointed. ‘That’s amazing. It disappeared.’”

“She poked Dan in his solid, muscly, lovely chest. ‘And that is a wise plan. It’s wisdom I have gained in my twenties. Ten years ago I didn’t know all this wise stuff.’”

‘“Oh. My. Goodness.” Evie said, trying to put her glass down. Weird. It was like the table had moved. She tried again. “There. Glass down.”’

2—Jo Lovett is a talented writer with a charming sense of humour. This was very cute story with several make-you-want-to-scream close call moments, a rewarding union at the end of the novel and an added holiday flair. Definitely a lovely holiday read if you don’t mind very descriptive inner dialogues.

Would love to hear your thoughts if you’ve read this one!

— Monica

FriendsReads was given an advanced digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second book by Jo Lovett that I read (the first one being The House Swap) and while the first one wasn't my cup of tea, I really enjoyed this one! It was a quick read and really reminded me of My Best Friend's Wedding meets Just Married, with some Hallmark magic sprinkled in there. I just wish that it would feel a bit more Christmassy, as it's called The MISTLETOE Pact and the cover is very Christmassy.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the author, for providing me with an eARC in return for an honest review.

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

*Semi Spoilery*

I had very high hopes for this book. A Christmas Eve marriage pact sounded like so much fun! I wanted to read a couple of Christmas books early to review this year. At the beginning of the book Dan and Evie wake up in Vegas married. I was looking foward to some funny erros as they navigated their new marriage b/c surely they would figure it out b/c they are meant to be together! I was disappointed. I HATE miscommunication trope. It really frustrates me and when I am reading a romance book I want to enjoy it. I hate reviewing anything negatively, but this book is sold on being a Christmas romance and there is honestly not that much Christmas. I didn't feel connected to any of the characters. I sincerely hope that this book finds its audience. Unfortunately it's just not me.

Thank you to Jo Levett, Bookouture, and NetGalley for the ARC which did not influcene my review.

I have to admit that my overall feeling’s about this book are still a little mixed, on one hand, I did enjoy aspects of the story, yet on the other hand, I still don’t know if ended up liking it or not. Confused? Yes, me too!

I loved the sound of The Mistletoe Pact from the moment I saw it, the cover enticed me in and the back blurb made me think of sweet little friends to lovers romance, a romance where after making a huge blooper they figure a way through to make the best of the situation. Then I started reading it and found that my expectations were shattered as I don’t think the actual story within the pages matches up with the cutesy back blurb.

I admit that I did like the overall concept or two people who haven’t been able to find ‘the one’ marry each other, both disregard this ludicrous plan as being a bit fool-hardy, only for every to go belly up and waking up in Vegas having done exactly that. Now, it’s this part that I did like, the start would make a great TV movie rom-com, but it’s what follows that fell short.

These two have loved each their entire lives, they are friends – incredibly close friends, they know each other inside out – flaws and all and still secretly love the other, this should have been the start of them finally admitting how they feel and work through this newfound relationship – but oh, no they want to divorce and go back to how they were before. Errrr? OK!

I just couldn’t seem to get to grips with the exploits after they rather rashly married in Vegas, and I think it’s that what has put a dampener on the overall book for me. I do think is a huge shame because the story has the potential to be a classic rom-com, but I just wasn’t feeling it.

What I did like was the clear love between Evie and Dan, just because they didn’t share how they feel with each other until pretty late on in the book, they certainly give the reader a glimpse into their minds and their emotions, which was a bright spot on entire book. I also liked them as individuals, even though I felt like screaming at them to grow up and look at what’s in front of them or just bang their heads together.

If your looking for a quick will-they/won’t they romance with a lot of Christmas feel and you love those TV Christmas movies then this is the book for you. I think it could have been so much better than it was, but I will read more Jo Lovett as I did enjoy her light and cheerful writing.

Gorgeous feel-good romantic comedy, centred around a lovely group of friends and their families in a small picturesque village in the Cotswolds. I was excited to read The Mistletoe Pact after really enjoying The House Swap and it did not disappoint ❤️

Evie secretly has a crush on Dan, who is the brother of her best friend Sasha. They see each other occasionally as friends when they return to the village for Christmas, but neither of them think the other is interested romantically.

The story begins as they wake up in Vegas on Evie's 30th birthday with huge hangovers and the realisation that they drunkenly got married the night before. We then follow dual timelines from both Evie and Dan's perspectives as we learn more about their light-hearted agreement to get married if they are both single when Evie turns 30, what has happened in the intervening years, and how they cope with the fallout.

Interwoven with stories about other friends and family members and how events have interacted to bring them to this point, at times heartbreaking but overall a gorgeous and uplifting read which has left me a little bit in love with the characters.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas? Maybe not...

The Mistletoe Pact is a friends-to-lovers romance between Evie and Dan. Evie is best friends with Dan's little sister. The story starts out with the two waking up to being married to each other. The two end up getting an annulment after recognizing that it was a "mistake". Throughout the rest of the story, you have moments throughout time of Evie and Dan pining over each other.

I love friends-to-lovers romance stories (I am partial to all romance, to be honest) and was excited when I saw this. I was a little disappointed as I thought Evie and Dan would end up married, but try and to work it out. Typically they'd show the two figuring out their relationship as they worked on getting an annulment or divorce. I was expecting that but was surprised to see that it was short memories of the two throughout their years of growing up. I feel like there were a lot of memories over them pining over each other instead of the two sneaking off or engaging. There also was no conversation between Evie and her best friend aka Dan's little sister. This is something I feel is a typical thing when you're going to date your friend's brother. The characters, both main and supporting characters seemed very flat/one-sided.

I did enjoy the book but found myself reading it slower than I typically would. It didn't keep me wanting to constantly read it. I did enjoy that they finally got together. It just took a long time to get there.

ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

I was really excited about this one, the description really sold it to me, along with such a fabulous cover. I was getting strong Christmas movie vibes and I love a Christmas movie. However I found this didn't hold my attention for long, or give me that super Christmassy feeling. I ended up dnf'ing about 25% in. Maybe it gets better, I don't know but I just found it to be awkward. I cringed a bit actually.

It just wasn't what I expected, it had potential but it just wasn't for me

Ok it’s been a few years since I had read any Christmas romance and I missed it, so I jumped at the opportunity when I saw this book pass and I don’t regret it at all! The author takes us into a magnificent romantic story over several years, with the double point of view, allowing us to see the events of the past that brought the current situation of the two protagonists. I loved that the first chapter takes us straight into history and that we learn after the story of Eve and Dan.
We follow here the story of Eve who has for years a crush on the brother of her best friend, Dan, and following a Christmas party a little boozy, they make a pact to get married together if at the birthdays of her 30 years they are still single. So we meet them at her birthday, again after a party in Las Vegas where they got married. But rather than confess their feelings following this event they decide to cancel the marriage, but they then turn around for several years despite other relationships.
I appreciate that they each have feelings for each other but that we understand why they do not throw themselves on each other and see them become more mature and wait for the stars to line up to finally be together. I would have liked a little more time with them as a couple at the end but otherwise, it’s a perfect Christmas romance, to listen with a special Christmas song playlist quietly under a blanket.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. I really enjoyed this, it was easy escapism and I was invested in the characters and their story.

I went into this book expecting a fun, rom-com level Christmas romance…this book wasn’t any of those things. I didn’t even think the storyline matched the synopsis to be honest with you.

I really enjoyed that this story was told from both Evie and Dan’s point of view. The dual perspective added to the storyline. This book also jumped back and forth between the past and the present. Normally, I enjoy this in a book, but this time I felt it was lacking. The back and forth in the time line left me having questions about certain events.

I also feel like the lead up to anything of importance took WAY to long. Evie and Dan really didn’t get together in a significant way until there was 15%-20% left in the book. By that point, I didn’t even want them to get together.

I was expecting something completely different from this book and was pretty disappointed in what I was getting.

A friends-to-lovers romantic comedy that will make readers roar with laughter, Jo Lovett’s The Mistletoe Pact is hard to resist.

On Christmas Eve eight years ago, Evie and Dan made a pact: if they weren’t married by the age of thirty, they would marry each other. Neither one of them took their Yuletide promise seriously as they were both sure that they would find ‘The One’ before they hit the big 3-0. Even though the two of them have always been drawn to one another, Evie and Dan never had the courage to confess the truth about how they really felt. Still, the likelihood that the two of them would become Mr and Mrs by the time they turned thirty was so far-fetched…or was it?

Eight years have passed and Evie and Dan find themselves in Vegas…married! The two of them must have taken leave of their senses and they vow to put things right and go back to how things were and forget they were ever this stupid and reckless. But when a quickie divorce proves out of the question, they have no other option but to start their lives together as a married couple!

Can they at long last find the courage to admit how they really feel about one another? Will Evie and Dan be together for the rest of their lives? Or will their fears and insecurities end up costing them everything?

Jo Lovett’s The Mistletoe Pact is a heartfelt and hilarious Christmas romantic comedy perfect for fans of Love Actually and The Holiday. Funny, fast-paced and feel-good, The Mistletoe Pact will melt your heart with its blend of humour, hilarity, emotion and mischief.

A lovely read that is a joy to curl up with, romantic comedy fans are going to enjoy Jo Lovett’s fantastic The Mistletoe Pact.

I have this book a 3/5 rating. It was a light and easy read that followed two characters that made a fallback pack to get married on Evies 30th birthday. I like how it went back and forth in time. I wasn’t invested enough to give it a 4/5 and my kindle kept messing up the page numbers by saying there were 4000 pages which annoyed me but it was a cute romance.

A light and easy read with an interesting premise set mainly in the Cotswolds and London with a trip to Las Vegas thrown in.

Evie (who has a Christmas Eve birthday) had always had a crush on her best friend's older brother, Dan. At a Christmas party in their village in the Cotswolds on Evie's 22nd birthday, the two of them kissed under the mistletoe and made a pact to marry each other if they are both still single when Evie turns 30. After a drunken celebration with friends in Las Vegas, Evie wakes on her 30th birthday to the realization that she and Dan had married the night before in a Vegas wedding chapel. They quickly take steps to annul the marriage and the plot then moves in alternating timelines between "Then" the time period between the Mistletoe Pact and Vegas and "Now" the time period after the quickie Vegas wedding and annullment.

The Mistletoe Pact is an entertaining friends to lovers romance but since the plot jumps around over several years, it wasn't set as much during the holiday season as I was expecting. Still a nice start to my holiday reading!

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

Thank you netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my completely honest review!
To be honest I didn’t really enjoyed this book. There wasn’t so much Christmas vibes. I thought it was a super duper Christmas read but unfortunately it wasn’t. It just didn’t feel that magical. What I really enjoyed was the slow burn in this book. That’s the reason this book is getting a 2/5 stars.

At the age of 22, Evie and her best friend's brother make a Christmas Eve pact to get married if they are both single at 30. Neither of them thought it would happen but cue a drunken night in Las Vegas on the eve on Evie's 30th birthday, they wake up and find themselves married!!
Will they do a Ross and Rachel, and get a quickie divorce or will it end up being a 'happy ever after'?

I loved this book and high praise to Jo Lovett :)

I gave this book 2 out of 5 stars. I was feeling generous. This is an easy read and despite some minor things I hate, the story is overall entertaining. At least it didn't make me cringe. If you want something easy to read, give this one a try. Don't expect too much holiday stuff though.

The full book review for this is on m,y blog.

This is an adorable rom com. I loved how easy it was to read and how quickly I was able to get into the story. I thought that Dan and Evie had great chemistry and I could tell from the beginning that they were soulmates even though they could not believe it themselves. Every time they would say that the other did not like them, I wanted to bring them together, sit them down, and tell them that their feelings for each other are there. I hated that they did not take their feelings seriously because they had been friends for so long and that Dan is Evie's best friend's brother. People in friend groups get into relationships all the time, so I did not understand why it was so awkward for them when they had so much chemistry. All in all, it was adorable and I loved how the chapters went throughout the timeline of their friendship and realization that they were meant to be.