Content Warning: grief, death of friend

I usually love Emma Lord books but I have to say this might be my least favorite of her books. Let’s start off with the things I did love. I loved when June and Levi finally get intimate with one another – the steamy scene was good. I also like this little beachside community that June, Levi and their friends grew up in – most of them stayed, some left and came back like June. But I liked that whole issue about leaving your hometown and maybe coming back after you’ve been out there in the world. Also, yes these people are in that time of their lives where they are settling down, or trying to figure out what their careers will be and all that, so that is relatable.

It’s got some fun tropes like fake dating and friends to lovers.

What I didn’t enjoy was the miscommunication between June and Levi which just created this huge riff between them. Life comes between them, they date other people, coincidentally they both get humiliated online and it goes viral – not sure how relatable that is, but Levi is still holding out for the girlfriend who cheated on him. That’s the current state of things in the story for most of the story which was frustrating. There is some fake dating, which gives us a chance to see the chemistry between them grow but honestly, I wasn’t feeling the fake dating and didn’t connect to the characters.

My Final Thoughts:

I’m bummed I didn’t love this one but I just wasn’t connecting with the characters and something was missing for me. I just wanted more from Levi at some points. The miscommunication trope has to be one of my least favorite in any book and it frustrated me in this one for sure. The story had some cute moments and even a good steamy scene but everything around that was complicated. Not my favorite but I’ll still be reading any books she writes!

“Something I’ll have to keep in check because there’s no point in denying it anymore. I can't help but enjoy while it lasts”. This book takes you on a nostalgic journey of childhood friends to lovers, a tale that's as heartwarming as it is relatable.

June and Levi, once inseparable as teenagers, find themselves in a shared struggle. June is fighting to keep her beachside tea shop afloat, while Levi is grappling with the disillusionment of a failed career and a broken heart. Their paths, once diverged, are about to intersect again, promising a chance at redemption and a rekindling of their friendship.

However, after both of them experience public, humiliating breakups with their exes, which spread like wildfire across TikTok rabbit holes and daytime talk shows, they accidentally create some juicy gossip of their own. A photo of them together has the internet convinced they're a couple. With many people rooting for them, they decide to put aside their rocky past and make a pact to fuel the fire. Pretending to date will help June’s shop get back on its feet and make Levi’s ex realize that she made a mistake. All they have to do is convince the world they're in love, one swoon-worthy photo opp at a time. As they embark on five sparkling, heart-pounding dates, they are determined that their hearts won't get involved. After all, everyone knows that fake dating doesn’t involve real feelings. Or does it?

June and Levi's journey, filled with ups and downs, had me completely captivated. Their struggles, their triumphs, and their undeniable chemistry made me feel every emotion. This book was a breath of fresh air, pulling me out of a reading slump. I'm grateful to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

As you probably know, Emma Lord is one of my favorites, so I was very excited to see she was delving in to the adult romance world with The Break-Up Pact. I was not disappointed! June and Levi were best friends growing up, until the day June's hope for more was crushed. Ten years later, they are reunited after they've both become viral after humiliating public breakups. This book has some of my favorite tropes- fake dating, second chance romance, along with a lot of soul searching and dealing with figuring out how you really want your life to be. Lord's writing transitions well into this more adult realm (definitely open door romance) but keeps the fun banter and deft writing that I've always loved. She continues to be an author I will always read in both genres.

A fake dating, second chance romance with a hint of tragedy, found family, best friend shenanigans, beach runs, scones, and all the butterflies. A perfect summer read with a HEA and plenty of antics to keep you laughing. I enjoyed the characters and all the layers between them over their years of friendships. It was a light, hopeful read. The FMC was relatable and someone you could imagine yourself being around while the MMC was at times a little mysterious, but always swoony. This does give love triangle vibes at times, but it clears itself up.

It looks like I might be in the minority, but I really enjoyed this book. This was my first by this author so I didn’t have anything to compare it to. I’m a sucker for a friends to lovers trope and I thought this one was done well. I’ll admit there were parts I skimmed because I just wanted to get on with the romance but I enjoyed it anyway. Thanks to Net Galley for an early peek.

I really loved the premise of the book, but overall it failed to capture me. I kept putting the book down in favour of others and found the characters frustrating. Most of all I found Amy as an off page, but very looming presence, off-putting and the biggest source of all of my annoyance, I think the book would have been stronger without her spirit/memory being a character.

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @dilemmalord for sharing a physical arc for #talkingtomybookstravelingarc to devour, mark up, highlight, tab, doodle on, and drool over. Okay, I hope no one did that last one. Thank you to @Netgalley for the ebook. All opinions are my own.

The Break-Up Pact is Emma Lord’s adult debut and I’m hoping she gives us not-so-Young Adults more to read in the future!

Childhood friends June Hart and Levi Shaw recently both had embarrassing (read: very viral) break-ups. They need something to get the masses to forget about them, to stop feeling sorry for them, and/or to use their situation to their advantage. Here comes a plot of fake dating, Revenge Exes, joint wedding planning (not theirs) and plandids, a new word for me. It’s not all fun and games- we have dealing with grief and worrying about the future of June’s shop, Tea Tide. The small town, sea-side setting is ideal, and the side characters are A+, except the ones that are supposed to be F-.

I am the slowest book-reader in the world, and I cruised through this one. The Break-Up Pact publishes August 13, 2024, and I recommend you pre-order now!

QOTD: Where is the cutest little sea-side town you have been to, or want to go to? I’ve been to Seaside,FL the pastel-colored town in the Truman Show. So charming!

4/5 stars
Open door
Location: Benson Beach, NY

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. 🫶

My thoughts -

I liked the idea of this book, and some parts were cute, but it just overall wasn’t for me.

I didn’t have a connection with either of the main characters and I also felt that parts of the story were rushed. It was a short read which normally I like, but I wish there was more to Levi & Junes story. I feel like I didn’t get the closure I needed even with a HEA.

2.5 stars rounded up.

I just couldn’t with this book. I disliked it the entire time I was reading it. Except Sana - she was a delight. Luckily, it was a short, quick read.

I found June to be annoying and immature. She avoided conversations like no other. And Levi kept making excuses for his ex in the beginning. The fake dating happened so quickly that it made no sense. The third act break up was so prolonged I thought we’d never see the end of the book. I was drawn in by the synopsis of this book but just finished it feeling let down and glad
It was over.

But, just because it wasn’t my cup of tea doesn’t mean others won’t enjoy it!

Thanks to the publisher, author and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Well, I'm disappointed. Emma Lord's YA books are usually either 5 or a very high 4 star for me, but her adult debut, The Break-Up Pact, is a miss.

Pact has a lot going for it--some of the best tropes (small town romance, second-chance romance, friends to lovers, fake dating), a beach setting, and fun date ideas--but it just felt sort of meh. The miscommunication abounds and is made worse by June literally wanting to pretend like bad things didn't happen. Despite Levi's ex's horribleness, he still wants to get back with her, which felt gross. June's brother falls to the wayside as June gets caught up in the fake-dating stuff. None of it feels unique or interesting in any way.

That being said, I did really like Tea Tide. I like Annie's initial idea (Annie is June's decreased older sister), I like June's dreams for the shop, and I love the scone of the days flavors. Coffee places abound, but I'm a tea drinker, and I would love a little local tea shop to eat a fancy scone while I read my book and listen to the waves.

But overall, Pact was really easy for me to put down and forget about. It's not bad, it's just, as I said, not all that different from dozens of other generic rom-coms I've read. Hopefully Lord will bump up her adult offerings or stick with YA.

I didn't like this one. I am hot and cold with Emma Lord. I actually didn't finish this one. I had too many other books vying for my time and this one didn't make the interest cut. I read just under half the ARC. Too many moments of rolling my eyes and I didn't really like either of the characters.

I was really excited when I got an ARC of this book because I adore Emma Lord's YA books. Her characters and plots are so unique, and each of her releases has a distinct feel to them that keeps me on my toes. This was certainly a unique Lord release, not only because it was her first adult novel, but also because it sadly didn't connect with my the way her books have previously. While I liked June and her struggles running her shop, I never fully understood or connected with Levi. The pace of their relationship felt off at times, and I think the relationship development was bogged down by miscommunication. On the other hand, this was a quick and engrossing book, and I imagine that others might enjoy it as a beach read! While this installment is not my favorite Lord release, I am confident that she remains a great writer with much potential for a stellar adult romance that will connect with me. So, my hope remains!

I have always loved Emma Lord's books and was excited to read this new rom-com by her!
The story is a fun, flirty, cute...and sometimes steamy....story of fake dating/friends to lovers/second chance romance...a bit of all three!
I enjoyed watching the love story unfold, Levi is so super sweet with June! And their fake dating trope to get their exes back is well done, exciting to watch and at times hilarious!
I also loved the side stories and characters...June running, and trying to keep afloat, at a Tea Shop, Levi and June planning a wedding...and even them sharing grief over the death of Annie...June's sister and Levi's best friend.
It sounds like alot going on, but it is do well written that it is exciting to read and very easy to keep up with and follow!
This book had a bit of everything and I loved it all!

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC of The Break-Up Pact. Emma Lord has become a staple for readers who enjoy heartwarming and humorous contemporary romances that also deal with tough topics. However, while The Break-Up Pact delivers on the promise of a sweet and fun story, it doesn't quite hit the mark as one of my favorites from her collection.

Plot: The two main characters both find themselves at the spotlight of two very public breakups at the same time, after 10 years apart they come back together and decide to use the publicity to their benefit and pretend to date while the MMC takes a break from city life.

While The Break-Up Pact was good, I think there were too many tropes being explored in one novel. There's Friends to lovers, second chances, fake dating. Overall the characters didn't work for me and the story felt rushed and too slow at the same time.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book! I thought that the plot was nicely set up. I did find myself wishing that it wasn't as abrupt with such a large gap of them meeting. I thought that the dialogue was good, but found that it wasn't for me at the end.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me this free ARC to read and review before the publishing date!

June and Levi are childhood best friends that reconnect after a decade long falling out. Both of their break ups have become viral social media moments. They agree to a truce and a mutually beneficial alliance that says they will fake date for the internet in the hopes that they will each get their heart’s deepest desire; June wants to keep Tea Tide alive, her boardwalk cafe that is struggling to stay afloat after the sudden passing of her sister; Levi wants his ex back; the one that cheated on him and left him for a movie star- hence the public break up. While going on fake public dates in the hopes to control the narrative, June and Levi realize that there may be more to their ten year long cold shoulder than they initially thought. What if they want their terms to change? What if what they originally thought would give them happiness and satisfaction, isn’t what they want at all anymore?

I was excited about this ARC after reading the description and seeing the cover, but I think that those two factors do not accurately portray this book. Based on my first impression of the book, I thought that this was going to make me swoon over their reconnected love story and have me laughing out loud. But in reality, this book was on the more serious side and I felt that we spent less time on the promise of romance and more on June’s internal monologue, that often times felt repetitive. Instead of the narrative being plot driven, reading about silly fake dates and a blossoming love story, there were many paragraphs and blocks of passages that we did not see the story advancing but instead just read about June’s thoughts and feelings; I found my eyes wanting to skip ahead until I found quotation marks signaling dialogue, and then having to go back to ensure I didn’t miss anything. There isn’t anything wrong with a book written like this, and I am sure that for some, reading about grief over the loss of a sibling would be healing and helpful, but I wish that the cover and description showed that more accurately.

I do not think I would recommend this to my friends in the book community. I sadly had to drag through this story and it took me about a month to read because I kept wanting to put it down and read something else. I am giving this ARC 3 stars because I can tell that Lord is a talented writer and I am happy with how she tied up the story, it just wasn’t for me and I am disappointed about that.

DNF @ 62%

The premise was promising, the setting was great, but the characters and the romance was flat.

The fake dating had me expecting angst and longing but there wasn't much of that. They got together relatively quickly and then I was over it and felt like the book was finished. There was no slow burn, no real romance, just insta-love.

The representation in this book needed some work. I am tired of the diverse BFF to the main character only being included to have representation and diversity. Work it in better!

I expected more because i enjoyed Emma Lord's YA books.

The romance is adorable! The small ocean town setting was perfect and reading this book felt like a little vacation. Also really made me want to bake scones and tell my family and friends how much I love them.

This was fine! Emma Lord’s books are hit-or-miss for me (LOVED Tweet Cute and Begin Again, meh on the others) which bodes well for her next. This is certainly her steamiest romance, which she handles well. And if there’s one thing Lord nails every time, it’s a sense of place & home. You can’t help getting swept up by the idyllic, wish-fulfillment worlds/found families she creates. Can't wait for her next!

I've enjoyed Emma's YA romances, so I was excited to see what her adult debut was like, and it lived up to my expectations! The writing was great, her characters were well developed, and she handled the grief in the story very well. There were a few pacing issues, and it was missing a little something I can't quite pin point, but overall I really enjoyed this and hope she will continue with adult romances.