The Break-Up Pact was a cute, cute, cute summer rom-com. It was predictable and a little Hallmark-y for my tastes. This one is a good comfort read and a good background listen.

This was such a fun, beachy, summer romance! I’m a sucker for the friends to lovers trope, and it was done so well here. The banter between June and Levi was flirty, funny, and sweet, and the history between them was a great start to build on throughout the story. The found family/friends as family aspect was really nice, and I loved seeing how supportive this group was of one another. The book also touches a bit on grief, and I thought this balanced out the levity of the rest of the story nicely. The beach town setting was perfect for this time of year, and all the small town charm that came with it. The only small problem I had was with the miscommunication/lack of communication in a couple of parts, but other than that, I really enjoyed this one.

Emma is back with another romance story The Break-Up Pact!
My fifth novel by Lord and I swear I’ll never get tired of her writing!
This is her adult romance! And I absolutely loved everything about it!
I think I loved this book more than her previous works!
She has such a fantastic way of writing fully formed characters that you can’t help but root for, love and connect to.
I loved this book and I look forward to adding it to my bookshelves.
It deserves all the stars because I’m still reeling over it!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I really love Emma Lord's writing style and I read all of her books. I was introduced to her through Reese's Book Club picks and though I don't usually gravitate toward YA, instantly fell in love with her writing. I was thrilled to see her venture into adult territory and The Break-Up Pact did not disappoint. Great story, light and entertaining

This was a cute childhood friends to lovers, though not one that particularly drew me in. A fun, summer read for those looking for something light.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St Martin's Press/St Martin's Griffin, and Macmillan Audio for gifting me both a digital and audio ARC of the latest romance by Emma Lord, with the audio wonderfully narrated by Natalie Naudus. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

June and Levi were best friends as teenagers—until the day they weren’t. Now June is struggling to make rent on her beachside tea shop in homage to her sister, and Levi is living in New York, working at a job he hates while failing to be a novelist like he dreams. They've barely spoken for years, but after both experiencing public, humiliating break-ups with their exes, they decide to make a pact to fuel the internet fire that they are a couple. The pretend dating begins, with the hope of reviving the tea shop in the process.

This is Emma Lord's venture into more adult romance, although I loved The Getaway List geared more YA. The Break-up Pact a light, humourous, second chance romance but with undertones of dealing with unresolved grief. I liked the best friends when younger theme, with that spark still bright after growing up. There's a lot of social media influencing here - probably more than small town people would gather, but it's part of the fun. And the scones - loved the names!

I’ve read a few of Emma Lord’s young adult books and really enjoyed them so when I saw that she was publishing her adult romance debut, I was really excited! Unfortunately, The Break-Up Pact felt very different from the writing I’ve come to expect from her.

My main issue was that the characters and relationships felt severely underdeveloped. I knew nothing about the main character, June, except that she was grieving the loss of her older sister Annie, she’d had a crush on the love interest Levi in high school and was scared of losing him again, and she wanted to save her failing tea shop. As for Levi, I knew he used to be very open with his emotions but was more closed off as an adult and that he wanted to get back together with the fiancée who cheated on him despite it clearly being an unhealthy relationship and despite him obviously returning June’s feelings. I couldn’t name a single other trait, interest, or motivation for either one of them. The side characters were even more flat to the point where it’s not even worth describing them because I would completely fail. As a result, I never connected to anybody, and it’s difficult to enjoy a romance when you don’t care what happens to the characters.

To expand on the romance between June and Levi, they shared some cute or romantic moments and it was clear they were attracted to each other and had mutual feelings. However, as mentioned there was no development between them so I never believed in their connection. At the very beginning of the story, they see each other for the first time in years after having had a falling out and after June yells at him in anger once they instantly just fall back into a comfortable friendship. I often find that childhood friends to lovers stories omit genuine relationship development in favor of simply telling the reader there’s a history between the characters and that was definitely the case here. Their reconciliation and subsequent romance arc took off so abruptly I felt like I’d accidentally begun reading at the 25% mark. Additionally, they seemed to be in lust far more than they were in love.

As for the storyline, the fake dating plot was enjoyable and some of the “dates” June and Levi went on were pretty cute. The plots regarding their respective exes and public breakups were interesting at times as well although I feel like they were a bit underutilized. It felt like they were used more as tools to advance the plot rather than being plot points themselves.

This book’s strongest asset was its portrayal of grief. Lord did a great job of depicting how much the loss of a loved one changes and continues to affect every aspect of a person’s life even years after that loss occurs. Both June and Levi’s grief over Annie (who was not only June’s sister but Levi’s best friend) were written with nuance and care and I strongly appreciated that.

Overall, I don’t think this was a bad book by any means. The writing was fine, the pacing was quick, and the romance had its moments. If you’re looking for a surface level summer romance, you might have a great time with this one. However, if you want to become invested in a story with fleshed out characters and a well-developed romance, I wouldn’t recommend The Break-Up Pact.

This book, unfortunately, was just missing something. I felt like the characters had no connection, and while it started off strong and had a great storyline, it just fell flat for me. It’s hard to read a story when you feel like the characters have no connection because it’s a rom-com and you want to be routing for them.

From the outset, The Break-Up Pact seems like the stuff of romcom dreams – two former high school friends are broken up with in big, public ways that go viral online, find themselves both back in their hometown, and decide to make use of their 15 seconds of fame by fake dating for revenge. And though all the ingredients were there for this to be great, I never felt like we got to know the characters deeply enough for it to really make a real emotional impact. Though I did appreciate that the breakups affected these characters differently – one realizing she was better off for it, while the other thought perhaps this was just a growing pain before settling down – I wish there had been more tension around this and between the characters as they get to know one another again, years after high school.

Overall, I wanted to like this more than I ultimately did. But, it does make for a good palate cleanser or quick read for late summer trips.

This was my first Emma Lord and maybe because it was her first adult novel but I just did not connect with the characters at all. They felt so superficial and kind of annoying. And I felt like I’d read this story before? I haven’t read her YA novels yet but still plan to give them a try!

Emma Lord is one of my favorite YA authors so when she announced she was coming out with an adult romance I was so so excited!

We have a lot of tropes in this one—fake dating, estranged childhood friends to lovers, sort of second chance romance.

There was also an undercurrent of “it’s always been you” which I wasn’t too crazy about because both were in serious relationships with other people. But there is no cheating BY a main character. A lot of cheating ON the main characters lol

This author usually does single POV and I just wish I could’ve seen the pining in Levi’s head. I got l frustrated with him because he wanted to get back with his ex for a lot of the book…

I will say once the ball got rolling on the romance I was very invested. That’s how a good slow burn works for me.

Overall, I give this 3.5 ⭐️

Emma Lords YA books are mostly a hit for me so I was anticipating her adult romance debut of THE BREAKUP PACT. Sadly, this one didn’t work and I had to force myself to finish it.

The relationship/friendship and backstory between June and Levi didn’t make sense to me. When they finally got together I just wasn’t feeling the chemistry between them nor did I love any of the other friendships.

It pains me to say, but I would skip this book of Lords. She has too many other great books that you could better spend your time reading.

Emma Lord’s charm and storytelling shine in this new summery take on second chances, fake dating, and falling headfirst into love.

Growing up, June and Levi were inseparable, best friends, partners in crime, but never anything more. Now, after ten years and two humiliating and insanely public breakups, Levi is back in their hometown, and his proximity brings back all the conflicting, unresolved feelings June has for him and their friendship. When a photo of them goes viral, they hop on this opportunity by telling the world they’re dating, but what happens when sparks fly and, this time, June can’t brush the inevitable romantic pull to Levi aside?

I absolutely LOVED the small-town beachy setting with the shops on the boardwalk. It made me feel so nostalgic, warm, and giddy since the beach was one of my happy places growing up. I also adored all the dynamic relationships in this book—from siblings to best friends to romantic love, each was written with care and affection.

This book was also really funny! I loved Lord’s sense of humor and the depth she brings to her romances and stories. There was so much beneath the surface of this novel than a love story, but the romance was still a prominent part of the book. By the end, I definitely teared up and was rooting for June in all aspects of her life.

The only reason this wasn’t a five-star read was because the romantic conflict didn’t pan out the way I was hoping, but I am SO excited to read more adult romances from her in the future!

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

I've really enjoyed the previous Emma Lord books I've read, and her foray into adult romance here did not disappoint. The old best friends fake dating trope is a new favorite. I especially loved how much they pranked each other and made fun of each other the same way you would a childhood friend. They had just so much genuine fun with each other, so it wasn't all angst and pining—though that was there too, and was also enjoyable. The third act breakup was a bit drawn out and weird—like I wasn't sure what was going on with them and whether they were together or not for a bit—there was no clear break and it was all a bit hazy and confusing. But, in the end they were so cute together and I enjoyed myself and the beach town setting and all their little inside jokes and their adorable friends and family in the background. It was a sweet, cute story all around.

This book is more serious than the cute rom-com cover suggests. June and Levi were best friends as teenagers until a misunderstanding separated them. If you like that trope, you’ll probably like this book. I enjoyed the characters and the story.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

This is my first book by Emma Lord and while I normally love the second chance, friends to lovers set up this one just fell a little flat for me. I liked the set up, the characters were likeable though June irked me from time to time with her negative self talk; but after the third act big reveal, and Levi's inability to show strength or any sort of backbone, it just flatlined. The ending was what I'd expect from a romance but as I was finishing it I realized that I just didn't care where they ended up. Emma Lord is a good writer, the pacing of the book was good so it is probably just not the right timing for me to love this book.

Thank you SMP for the gifted ARC.

June and Levi, who grew up together, are both publicly "dumped" and when Levi returns to their hometown, they are seen together and pictures of them online dub them revenge ex's. The attention is good for June's struggling boardwalk business and Levi may benefit by making his former girlfriend jealous enough to make them get back together. Good story.

There was something about this book that didn’t quite connect with me. I have been trying to put my finger on it & I think it was the fact the the two main characters, Levi & June, were such good friends but let it just lapse for a long time without communication. There was also a really slow burn throughout the story. I enjoyed the side characters, like Sana & Mateo. I want to visit the cute town. I didn’t care for the exes of June & Levi, & I didn’t care for how much grace they were given by them. This was just an okay book for me.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for advanced copy and I give my review freely

Levi and June were friends in high school, secretly harboring crushes on each other. Until one day they weren’t anything as Levi left their hometown of Benson Beach for New York City. When they both experience humiliatingly public break-ups, Levi and June find solace in each other. A photo of them together goes viral and they find themselves branded the Revenge Exes. Fake dating each other will help them both get what they want so they go for it with some help from friends. It isn’t long before the very real feelings of their past come bubbling to the surface.

The Break-Up Pact is Emma Lord’s adult contemporary romance debut. I’ve read and really enjoyed several of her YA romances and I’m so glad she took the leap into adult! I really enjoyed this one and found it to be super bingeable and easy to read. I love a long time crush coming to fruition and I was really rooting for June and Levi the whole time.

It’s important to note that two of the core themes of this book are grief and infidelity. Levi had been best friends with June’s older sister Annie who died unexpectedly. Both June and Levi’s break-ups included being very publicly cheated on and it comes up often.

I think this one would’ve had the potential to go from like to love for me if it had been in dual pov. There were so many moments where I wished I knew what Levi was thinking and I think having that perspective would’ve really gotten me all in on this romance.

This book follows June and Levi who were high school friends who had a falling out. While they occasionally kept in contact over text, they run into each other in their hometown when both are dealing with public humiliating break ups. Together, they make a pact to date to help June’s scone shop sales and help Levi’s ex realize the mistake she made.

While I only know author Emma Lord in the YA space, her new adult romance novel had everything a romance fan needs. I enjoyed this friends turned lovers novel with some hints of spice. This is a fun summer beachy read and I was rooting for June and Levi from the beginning.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Check out this book releasing next week and I can’t wait to see where Emma Lord takes us next.