What a cute summer read. I really did enjoy the book it made me laugh, and cry. There were some parts that felt rushed and could have been expanded. The choices that Levi makes in the book a didn't agree with but I understood them.
I enjoyed the topic o dealing with losing a love one. June's choice to do everything on her own kind of bites her but in a way I think she needed to have it happen.

Emma Lord shines in her adult contemporary romance debut, The Break-Up Pact!

June and Levi were connected summers ago by one person: June's sister Annie.. With Annie's death, June is now running the family tea shop and trying to stay afloat in the coastal town. While she's got some help being known as the one dumped and crying on social media, it won't last her forever. Cue in Levi, who's back in town working on his novel after also being publicly dumped and left for someone else. June needs the funds and publicity to keep her tea shop alive and Levi wants an ex back for good. What better way to solve both issues than with a "break-up" pact.

I adored reading The Break-Up Pact and could not put it down. The humor, the little nods to Emma herself and the scenes pulling at my heartstrings had me flipping the pages to find out how both June and Levi's story unfolds. I adored the side characters and the overall setting, feeling right at home in the small coastal town. I was rooting for June to find herself and honestly, for Levi's portion of his "pact" to downfall because ew, his situation. Fans of romantic "beach read" comedies will adore Lord's debut adult romance and want more from her as soon as possible!

The Break Up Pact is Emma Lord’s first real voyage into adult fiction, and I was excited to see how her style would transfer. I am a huge fan of her YA books - she writes such fun, lovable, witty teens & as a high school English teacher, I love sharing her books with my students.

However, I’m not sure this one really worked for me. The characters, despite being in their late 20s, read way more like late teens/early 20s. I felt this way about her college ages characters in her book Begin Again as well; there is something not quite transferring well for me when it comes to her attempting older characters.

I am also a little disappointed that this book is pretty similar to many of her others. The main female character feels like a slightly different shade of many of her other MCs from past books. There are some repeating patterns of her work that I love - the repeating dessert motif is one I hope she continues in every book tbh it’s a fun touch - but I would like a little more nuance in her characters.

Overall, this was fine. It just didn’t feel like a new book with new characters, and I’m not sure Lord pushed herself enough into the adult fiction genre. I will still read whatever Lord writes next, but perhaps with a little less enthusiasm than I have in the past.

Readers should go into this thinking of an adult contemporary, romance book. While the writing is very Emma Lord-esc, the content is more mature than her previous work and has more serious themes than the cute cover might imply.

That said, I enjoyed this book a lot. Two childhood friends who never admitted feelings to each other have lost their friendship in the past ten years but reconnect and start to fake date. As they date they are both processing why their most recent relationships failed, how to move on, and realizing they have not been living the life they want for themselves. Readers follow along as together they figure out what they want and how they can support each other through the changes.

I was given a free copy of this book; I’m leaving an honest and voluntary review.

“Take that picture and I will throw your phone so far into the ocean you’ll start getting texts from Poseidon.”

The Break-Up Pact is a fake dating M/F romance featuring a pair of high school friends who lose touch until they both have very public, viral relationships end.

“I march out of the shop with all the indignation a woman who just managed to carve a hole in rock bottom can possibly muster. “

June’s sister Annie died two years ago. Annie’s best friend, Levi, is back in town after his fiancee leaves him for a TV personality. June has become a meme for her sobs after her ten-year boyfriend broke up with her on a reality TV show. The two quickly find themselves in a fake, mutually beneficial relationship, dubbed the Revenge Exes by the Internet. It goes without saying the two have a history and that the fake part of the relationship is hard to keep up.

“Is that why you’re here? So we can form a Benson Beach viral breakup support group? Because I don’t really have time for niche extracurriculars right now.”

The duo eventually must confront not just their issues in their former relationships, but also their own history. There’s a lot of drama here because losing a sister or best friend so young is not a common nor easy thing to accept.

𐙚 ‧₊˚ ⋅
rating: 4.5

Overall Thoughts
The amount of time it took me to finish this book (6 months..) does not reflect how I feel about the book. The book started off with such a good idea and throughout the book it stayed really consistent with the plot. I loved all the plot points and tropes in this one, which is what initially made me want to pick it up and drove me to finish it. I liked the realness I felt throughout the book and the emotions it made me feel. This was my second Emma Lord book, the first being tweet cute which was such a cute young adult book but this is catered as adult fiction and WOW.... it blew my mind the range she is able to deliver. I LOVED the topics discussed in this one and how deep it could get in terms of grief and how to navigate it. As someone who has experienced a loss and will forever understand grief I tend to eat books like this up. However even without the grief plotline it covered so many other important topics such as doing what's right for you, not holding yourself back for a partner or significant other and the importance of appreciating what you have right now, in the moment. It was such a strong, adorable and fulfilling story that I really enjoyed and hope that others who decide walk away with the same heartwarming feelings I did.

For Someone Who Likes꒰ᐢ. .ᐢ꒱
𖹭 Friends to lovers
𖹭 Fake dating
𖹭 small town/small business representation
𖹭 romance not main plot but features other topics
𖹭 deals with grief

I have read every book that Emma Lord has written. I've come to expect a well developed story with expertly crafted characters with witty dialogue. 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊-𝐔𝐏 𝐏𝐀𝐂𝐓 (PUB 08.24) is her first adult contemporary rom-com. While I enjoyed this solid 3-star read, I should have managed my expectations more. I am confident that her next adult title will be even better. Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the early copy.

𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝:
- Easy read
- Beach town and tea shop
- Childhood friends to amore
- Second chances
- Slow burn/One open door scene
- Delivered on the Com part of rom-com

𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤
- Overuse of the word scone. so.many.scones.
- Story meandered with uneven pacing.
- Lack of communication.

Long review coming

Loved this so much more than her YA reads! The scones and baking aspect was adorable and the fake dating was chefs kiss. Loved the spice as well. It was light hearted and funny and made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I felt like I could taste the baked goods while reading her descriptions. This was such a great read

The Break-Up Pact is the perfect adult novel with an open-door, second-chance, angsty romance. The chemistry between June and Levi is amazing, making their fake dating journey both entertaining and heartfelt. Despite their long-standing romantic feelings, they manage to fake date convincingly while navigating their complicated past.

The story delves deep into their personal struggles, particularly overcoming the death of June’s sister, Annie. It’s amazing to see how, despite past miscommunication, longing, and pining, they are able to rekindle their friendship and perhaps even something more. This book is a delightful blend of humor, romance, and genuine emotion—an absolute must-read!

Thanks to Emma Lord, St. Martin's Publishing, and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy!!!

I DEVOURED this book!

The Break-Up Pact we follow the relationship of June and Levi. They were best friends in high school but due to a misunderstanding before Levi leaves for college results in a falling out and they had lost touch. Now they are both going through viral break-ups that present a unique opportunity to give them both what they want for June to turn Tea-tide around and for Levi to win Kelly back.

I may be biased but the fake-dating trope is probably one of my favorite. I loved the character growth throughout this book especially June’s. Being around the same age she took change and hardship and allowed it to help her grow.

I know Emma Lord is normally a YA author but I really enjoyed this transition into contemporary romance. I hope readers can see the undertones of this as they read it instead of it being a super witty rom-com.

I loved this book and am excited for what is to come from Emma!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for an eARC of this new romance novel.

3.5⭐️ (rounded up)

June is now a viral meme after a public break up. Her childhood best friend and former crush, Levi has just returned to town after his own public break up. The two have not seen each other in years but decide to start a fake relationship to profit off of their current fame. June’s tea shop has been struggling financially and Levi wants to make his ex-fiancée jealous so it’s a win-win situation. But what happens when their fake dates start to feel real and June’s crush on Levi returns?

This was such an adorable, summer read! I loved the first 2/3 of this book and I was rooting for June and Levi, but I will say that the last 1/3 of the book dragged on a little. There were also times where I was annoyed by Levi, but overall I enjoyed the book! Emma did a great job with the fake dating trope and I was literally kicking my feet and giggling at times. This would be a great read if you are looking for a cute and quirky small town romance.

What to expect:
🩵 Romantic Comedy
🩵 Fake Dating
🩵 Friends-to-Lovers
🩵 Second Chance
🩵 Small Town

Thank you to Emma Lord, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Emma you had me routing for June and Levi the whole way! The banter was hilarious and I loved their small little beach town and childhood friend vibes.

The ideal beach read!

I had such a good time reading The Break-Up Pact! June and Levi were so well developed and I loved the drama of it all. This was a fast paced, tension filled, wild ride. I blew through it in one sitting solely because I couldn't get enough of June and Levi's banter and how ridiculously perfect the whole childhood friends to strangers to fake dating on a reality show situation was.

Will be recommending to all my reality show loving friends!

4 ⭐️ 1 🌶️

Read As An Arc

🤳🏼 Fake Dating
🤳🏼 Childhood Friends
🤳🏼 Second Chance
🤳🏼 Secret Feelings
🤳🏼 Friends to Lovers
🤳🏼 Small Town Romance
🤳🏼 Slow Burn

June and Levi are two characters I really enjoyed reading about and getting to know. With how these characters are delivered, they are truly adulting, faced with challenges anyone can relate to in the real world, and I ate that up!! Lots of things that I could relate and connect to.

The characters are well developed and how their relationship evolves being perfectly matched as if they were fated. The other characters are also developed adding well to the plot and to the main characters.

There are some weird aspects to this book with the writing and certain areas of the plot of where it fits, but I tried my best to ignore it since I was excited for it. If it hadn’t been for that and with the lack of spice (because we know I love that), this would have been an easy 5 star read for me. You also have to really push through the first 2-3 chapters and then it picks up. I feel it can easily be a DNF if not pushed through since it was a slow read to start and then became a quick read with how great it gets.

Overall, I was invested in the reading, it just needs that extra something to give it the extra bump. This won’t affect the read at all. This book is a great beach read and one you’ll love.



* Thank you to NetGalley for the arc!

This had all the makings of a good beach read - fake dating, old boyfriend moving back to town, etc. I thought it was good, but not great. Something about it felt a bit rushed and other parts felt went on too long.

I love Emma Lord’s YA novels and was excited to read her debut adult romance. It has some of my favorite tropes (and my least favorite), but it was just ok for me and I was expecting so much more.

*fake dating
*second chance romance
*sister’s best friend
*miscommunication (I find this trope so frustrating)
*kick-ass bestie

THE BREAK UP PACT

June and Levi were bffs but haven’t spoken in 10 years. They both recently went through their own respective humiliating breakups that went viral and when a photo of June and Levi goes viral and everyone assumes they’re dating so they decide to go with it and pretend they’re dating.

Pick this one up if you’re looking for:
🤫fake dating
🌶️some spice!
⛱️small beach town setting

This was a cute summer rom com! I liked it and alternated between audio and physical but I can’t say it was a fav for me since I just didn’t feel very connected to the characters and don’t know if it will be super memorable in the long term. If you’re looking for a quick and easy romcom this one may be for you!

First, thank you to NetGalley for an e-ARC of a book I've been so excited for.

[book:Tweet Cute|45045129] is one of my favorite YA romcoms and I've really enjoyed everything else I've read by Emma Lord so far. I was hoping her transition into adult romcoms would be awesome...and it wasn't for me.

While the viral nature of social media is an absolutely believable storyline, there was just so much of this that wasn't believable to me. Mainly...<spoiler>that June would ever agree to go on Griffin's show and have it out with him. She's a 27 year old woman who clearly uses TT and Instagram and knows that won't go well for her, so why in the world would she put herself in a situation that is CLEARLY going to end badly? Also, Levi would never have told Kelly about his and June's situation, because she's the woman scorned and of course she's going to use that to her advantage. All of that just lost me and made me so disinterested everything that happened next.</spoiler>

I didn't feel a lot of chemistry between June and Levi, they were just thrust together after 2 minutes of not seeing each other for years, and the explanations about their ailing friendship seemed shallow to me.

I really liked Sana, Dylan, and Mateo, and I'd read more about them!

One thing that was super weird was that every time June had a beer, she only called it Blue Moon, like there was some sort of product placement happening. It felt out of pocket and weird.

Overall, I was just disappointed by this one, although I won't base my future enjoyment of Emma Lord's books on this one.

I really enjoyed this one!

This was the perfect book for anyone who wants a lighthearted read about two former friends who decided to fake date after both having viral breakups where they were dumped. Sound crazy? It was a little, but in a fun way!

This was my first book by Emma Lord, and it was a cute one!

Perfect for:
🫶tea lovers
🫶friends to ex friends to friends to lovers
🫶 faking dating
🫶social media references
🫶 slow burn (one 🌶️ chapter, easily skippable if desired).

Thanks you to St. Martin’s Press and the author for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book! It's about reunited childhood friends fake-dating after experiencing separate viral breakups. It has great side characters and banter, the viral moments throughout the book were fun, and the discussions around grief and regret were heartfelt and relatable. It takes place in a beach town, which makes it a fun summer read! Highly recommend!