There were many things I enjoyed about this book. I love the fake dating trope, and the childhood friends/second chance element. The premise had me expecting something purely entertaining and fun but I was not expecting the added tenderness of processing the grief of a loved one, which was a significant part of the plot.

I haven’t read anything else by Emma Lord yet, but I was expecting a little more from the romance aspect. I’m a huge fan of a friends-to-lovers story, but theirs seemed overcomplicated at times. Based on the premise of their “break up pact” alone, the Levi-Kelly situation dragged a bit for me, and Griffin seems so terrible and self-centered that it’s hard to imagine June spending 10 years with him. However, the rest of the plot worked well for me. I really enjoyed the growth of June and Levi’s friendship/relationship, and their personal growth throughout the book. I felt very invested in Emma’s tea shop and how that would all play out. The romance almost seemed like a sub-plot, but I’m glad they finally got together and I did really enjoy the book overall! I look forward to reading more from this author.

I liked this one, but I didn't love it. It was a cute story, a friends to lovers story, but these friends had been separated for awhile, so it was also a reuniting story. June and Levi were good together, you could see that right away, but they were both coming off of a very public breakup so they needed to sort that out a bit.

There were baked goods, a beach and some great supporting characters that helped make the story delightful. I think for me, the biggest issue was the pace. It didn't suck me in and make me keep turning pages to see what happened. But again, overall a really solid story that was very enjoyable!

Thank you, thank you, thank you NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book!!


So, unfortunately, this book did not seem to be for me. I enjoy the fake-dating, second chance, and friends-to-lovers tropes, but it just didn't seem to work together for me. These two best friends, Levi Shaw and June Hart, haven't seen each other in 10 years due to a miscommunication (which I'm not very fond of in books) and haven't spoken since then. He comes back to their hometown and they agree to fake-date to get back at the awful exes that publically humiliated them online. The internet dubs Levi and June as The Revenge Exes.

My issue with this is I didn't feel any chemistry between the characters, nor did I believe that after a DECADE of not speaking to each other, they were suddenly okay with helping each other out? I'm sorry, it just seemed unrealistic to me.

I still rate this a 3 star because I enjoyed the epilogue a lot and I liked her best friend Sana (she gets a whole star herself) and I had a good time reading it. I would recommend this to people, but I won't read this again myself.

ahhhh this was such a sweet yet deep love story. june and levi are so adorable and lovable, and i was rooting for them the whole time.

This was a very slow burn but ended up enjoying the characters and love story in the end! It did seem a bit long in the middle but the ending bumped up my rating to a 3.5 rating!

Honestly, as a cute, easy-to-read, stand-alone novel — this very much works. It had its cute moments and good lines, and I loved the fake dating during the first half.

But overall, this book was not what I was expecting. There was so much going on that I don’t think any of the plotlines were done super well, and all of the character and relationship development felt kind of rushed. The ending felt rushed. It was at times hard to connect with the MCs as a couple. The FMC was really contradictory and annoying sometimes with some of the things she said, thought and did (I kind of got frustrated with her near the end).

Midway through the book it kind of stops being a Rom Com and becomes more of a contemporary fiction, which I didn’t love. I wish we had gotten more of the fake dating, more build-up of their relationship and looks into their past, or that it had been more of a finding yourself fiction story throughout. So the plot as a whole wasn’t my fave, but still had good parts here and there. There were some good themes and lessons expressed at the end.

🌶️.5 = for one open-door scene in the middle of the book. Otherwise, it is fine.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Break-Up Pact is a book about two ex-best friends who both recently had their break-ups go viral and decide to fake date to drum up business for June’s shop and make Levi’s ex realize what she’s missing. I was very excited about this book as I love fake dating and second chance romance tropes. However, I feel the cover and plot description are a bit misleading. I was expecting a light-hearted, fun, summer romance when, in fact, this book focuses on two characters who are struggling with grief and regret and are grappling with their careers.

During the first half of the book, I had a hard time connecting to the main characters as I didn’t feel they had much chemistry or motivation to be fake dating. In the second half, I felt more connected to the characters but there were so many side plots it was distracting. Besides fake dating the main characters are also dealing with the consequences of going viral videos, helping June’s brother and his fiance plan their wedding, trying to save June’s business, and Levi’s uncertainty about changing his career. Although this book dealt with hard topics and had a spicy scene the writing felt a bit YA to me.

Overall, I don’t think this book was a good fit for me. However, I would recommend it to people who like romances that are a bit more intense and deal with heavier topics and people who like their romances to have other plotlines running throughout that are not related to the romance. I think this book could also be a good first adult romance for someone who is looking to transition away from YA romance into adult romance. One thing I appreciated was how the author was able to keep up the tension and stakes throughout the book without having a cliched third-act breakup.

This book was a fun romance to read. Everyone can relate to reminiscing of your first love. Unfortunately, timing was not in the stars initially for June and Levi. Fast forward 10 years, everything has changed. A very dramatic social media break up leads to a series of "fake" dates to get revenge. What to do you do when all those old feeling bubble to the surface... you'll have to read and find out!

The description sounded so fun- two former best friends who haven't spoken in years meet up again one summer. June and Levi each suffer a viral break up and decide to fake date in order to get revenge on their exes. Unfortunately, it just wasn't all that I hoped it would be. The chemistry was not convincing and the storyline didn't move very quickly.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review and opinion.

I really liked this story! June and Levi have a fun and bittersweet reunion. their mutual public breakups bringing them together for a "revenge ex" story was a unique, interesting, and fun plot to read! I really liked their chemistry with each other, having a past that ties them together, for bettor or worse. they both have known grief and heartache in life and I liked how it was handled throughout the story. I wish there had been better communication between June and Levi during the years they spent apart-- it always bugs me when immaturity of teenagers leads to years of silence between two people who have a deep friendship and that was the case here. however, I understood the various reasons life got in the way of an earlier reconciliation between the two. I loved seeing them form a truly strong connection to finally have their happily ever after together. overall it is a fun, unique, touching, and at times, bittersweet story. thank you for the arc!!!

The premise of this book really sounds amazing, but I just don't think it was pulled off well enough for it to become a go-to recommendation for romance fans.

Emma Lord is masterful at writing young adult romances, and I feel like it shows in this novel. It tried to be adult with adult characters and adult plots and adult romantic scenes, but it still felt juvenile somehow.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This starts out slow but once the story picks up I couldn’t stop reading. great spin on childhood friends to lover.

This was absolutely adorable! The author did a wonderful job of capturing the emotion and beauty in this story without being overly dramatic or wordy. It came out absolutely perfect and I enjoyed this story immensely! Can’t wait to read more from her, she rocked this!

To be honest this book was a slow start for me but picked up about a third of the way through. I loved reading about Levi and June’s past and what they had before while they day dreamed of days long ago. Overall 3/5 cause I did get a little bored toward the end but definitely a light, flirty, and fun read.

With a fake dating trope, The Break-Up Pact offers a second chance at love between two childhood best friends. Throw in the fact that they’ve been thrust into the viral social spotlight after each were brutally dumped from their significant others, their lives are complicated. Adding to the already tense situation, both are still emotionally recovering from the loss of June’s sister, Annie. #emotionaloverload 🤯

While the premise of this book had all the makings of a solid romantic comedy beach read, the banter and tension between the FMC and MMC fell short, which made connecting with the romance a struggle. Also, the humor just wasn’t there for me. It was over descriptive like the author was trying very forcefully to be funny. 🥴 Although a slow start, the book does pick up in the middle and ends up being a quick read. It overall missed the mark for me, but I do think there’s potential with the right audience.

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This was my first Emma Lord book. I thought it was an overall cute read. I'll admit, at first I was a little turned off by the synopsis because of the mentions of TikTok and social media. The Break-Up Pact turned out to be a lot deeper than I anticipated. The main character, June, is coping with the death of her sister, Annie. She and Levi have a deep relationship from the past, so it almost feels like a second-chance romance. It did get a little cheesy at times, but the ending was very sweet.

I was excited to read this book, and it did not disappoint! This sweet romance included childhood friends, fake dating, and second chances. I enjoyed watching June and Levi's story unfold as their relationship developed. The insecurities and quirks, as well as growth throughout the book, make these characters relatable. The secondary characters provided a great cast with humorous moments and more scheming. The adorable tea shop on the beach makes it a perfect beach read!

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with this digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This book is about two former bffs- Levi and June- who find themselves in similar circumstances following breakups with their significant others. The two enter into a pact to pretend to date to get redemption from their individual public breakups. The pact rekindles an old unspoken flame and their story is heartwarming with a side of humor. I enjoyed the characters in this book and would read other titles from this author!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review..

I enjoyed parts of this book, there were some cute moments and I found the cover stunning. I did struggle a little bit with their chemistry and didn’t love the entire book. I would still recommend to the right person

Thank you to NetGalley and St.Martin’s Griffin for the eARC. This book included some of my favorite tropes: fake dating, revenge, and childhood friends to lovers. I was so excited to read it with those tropes in mind as I love a good romcom.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t a fan of the characters, particularly Levi and his behavior and the lack of response from the FMC. He was obsessive about his ex and even basically justified her cheating? What was going on there. I couldn’t get into this after that and even though I finished the book I wasn’t invested. This wasn’t my cup of tea.