As a romance, The Break-Up Pact left me underwhelmed. There was a lot of miscommunication and indecision between the love interests, making me question whether they really were “meant to be”. While I didn’t buy the romance, I fell for the setting. Lord’s descriptions of the beach town where this book takes place were beautiful, saving this title from being a total flop.

This is a super fun read. There is actual conflict and story development that keeps you engaged and interested without being too predictable but still being what you want.

Thanks to @netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the chance to review The Break-Up Pact by Emma Lord. I absolutely adored this SUPER sweet second-chance love story. Levi and June have been dumped in completely embarrassing, viral ways. In order to get back at their exes, or to get their exes back as in the case of Levi, they pretend to be dating. Levi is a broody writer and June has a bakery - they were the best of friends when they were running cross-country together. Everyone around them, so I said they would end up together… So fun.

I initially read this book a few months ago, and was so excited to get the chance to listen to the audio version. I will listen to Natalie Naudus read pretty much anything, and she delivered yet again. Her diction, pace, and voice changes are perfection.

3.75/5 stars rounded up.

This was my first Emma Lord book and it will not be my last.

I really enjoyed her writing style. She has a way with words that paint a vivid picture of the characters and scenery in my brain. I was right there with June and Levi on the beach, on the boardwalk, in Tea Tide… The story felt like a movie playing in my head, and I loved every second of it.

The only problem was that I didn’t really connect with the characters, especially June. They were well fleshed out and believable, but some of their actions and reactions felt so dramatic and unnecessary. I know that there is almost always a big conflict in the third act of a romance book, so I was expecting one here, but it really got on my nerves because it felt so immature on June’s part. And, I get it, she had past relationship traumas she needed to get over, but I could not help being frustrated when Levi was trying to talk things out with her and she just kept shutting down and pushing him away.

Still, the ending tied everything up in a pretty little bow and redeemed the messy middle for me a little bit. And made me want to eat some scones.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy of this audiobook. I liked the narrator and thought she brought great energy to the story. Emma Lord is a new-to-me author. The premise of this contemporary romance is two childhood friends who haven’t spoken in ten years pretend to date after break-ups with their respective exes go viral, I enjoyed the small town beach setting and June's scone shop, and that the author also explores the topic of loss. Unfortunately June and Levi have difficulty communicating and there's a lot of indecision. As a result I never bought that these two people should end up together. I'm completely indifferent to them as a couple. Overall I think fans of Emma Lord will enjoy this book, but to me it didn't rise above an average rating.

This was a quick easy read. It was overall enjoyable. Unfortunately, I didn't feel connected to the story. The characters didn't have much depth and the slow burn didn't really burn.

First, I'm endlessly grateful to St. Martin's Press and MacMillan Audio for early access to the ebook and ALC of this story! These are my honest thoughts!

I enjoyed listening to this book SO MUCH. I was drawn in by the narrators and while I enjoyed reading it, I think I actually loved listening to it even more! The audio performance gets 5 stars. It felt like watching an old favorite rom-com, with so much energy and ridiculousness and fun and serious all mixed in the bag!

This story is tied together with tragedy, with June's sister/Levi's BFF passing away, but not before she causes a chasm to form between June and Levi right out of high school. Years have passed, and yet these two haven't managed to reconnect. However, they both are facing public humiliation in the form of their exes publicly breaking their hearts for all to witness. Rumors start rolling, and these two form a break-up pact in order to ward off the public interest in their love lives.

The best part of this whole story is Levi coming to June's defense. He's best friends with her brother still, and his intentions are pure. When all their history finally comes to the surface, you see Levi as the sweetheart he really is.

This is a childhood-friends-to-strangers-to-fake-dating-to-lovers story, with a lot of emotional turmoil in between. It's sort of second chance (they both had crushes in high school). There's grief. There's embarrassment. There's failure. And then there's a lot of fun, too. And the spice was... brief but spicy all the same!

I'm excited for this one to be in the world. It vibes sort of like a spicy Sarah Adams romance novel, and I'm glad Emma took the leap from YA, making The Break-Up Pact her contemporary romance debut. A solid 4-star read for me!

I read the arc for this book and it was a DNF for me. Once I saw the audiobook I figured I’d give it another try if I could.
It was good and cute. But nothing extraordinary

ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕞𝕒𝕥: 𝐸-𝐵𝑜𝑜𝓀 & 𝒜𝓊𝒹𝒾𝑜𝒷𝑜𝑜𝓀

ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨: 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌-𝑼𝒑 𝑷𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐞𝐚, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲! 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐧, 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞. 𝐈 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭-𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲, 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐧. 𝐈 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝!

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐋𝐞𝐯𝐢, 𝐀𝐊𝐀 “𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐄𝐱𝐞𝐬.” 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤-𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞. 𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐥, 𝐋𝐞𝐯𝐢 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐮𝐩 𝐢𝐧, 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐭𝐞𝐚/𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐬.

𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝑜 𝐸𝓂𝓂𝒶 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹, 𝑀𝒶𝒸𝓂𝒾𝓁𝓁𝒶𝓃 𝒜𝓊𝒹𝒾𝑜, 𝒮𝓉. 𝑀𝒶𝓇𝓉𝒾𝓃’𝓈 𝒫𝓇𝑒𝓈𝓈, & 𝒩𝑒𝓉𝒢𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒜𝑅𝒞! 𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓅𝒾𝓃𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓌𝓃.

I picked up 'The Break-Up Pact' by Emma Lord hoping for a fun, easy read, and that's exactly what I got - nothing too groundbreaking, but not disappointing either.

The book revolves around June and Levi, two high school friends whose messy breakups become social media sensations. When a rumor spreads online suggesting they're a couple, they decide to go along with it for their own reasons, leading to a rekindling of old feelings.

I'm a sucker for the friends-to-lovers trope, and the setting of a beach town added a cozy touch to the story. However, I found the constant emphasis on the characters' physical attraction and connection to be a bit overdone. It's like, okay, we get it, they're into each other—no need to keep hammering that point home.

My main issue with the book was June. Right from the start, her judgmental attitude grated on me, making it hard to fully get into the story. It's tough to enjoy a book when you can't really connect with the main character, you know?

That said, there were still some sweet moments in the story that I enjoyed, and overall, it was a decent read. If you're in the mood for a light-hearted romance with a beachy setting, "The Break-Up Pact" might be worth checking out.

I usually really like Emma Lords books and this one was no exception. The protagonists were best friends growing up, but have grown apart. They both get broken up with by their respective partners and their break ups are now viral. What could go wrong if they fake dated? Quite a bit but in the direction you’re hoping for! What I was a fan of was how fleshed out and realistic (well as realistic as possible) the characters felt. However a LOT was left for the ending and for them to untangle themselves from the mess was a journey in itself, which I didn’t quite enjoy as much as the rest of the book! And yet, it was quite fun!

What a sweet, sweet friends to lovers story! Levi and June’s history was slowly revealed and I enjoyed every second.

The beachy, small coastal town vibes of Emma’s tea shop were the perfect backdrop and I loved every single part of her family and story!

Natalie Naudus was fantastic as narrator.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Thank you to Net Galley and Macmillan audio for this ARC.

"You have all of me," he says. "However much you want."
And my throat aches almost as much as the rest of me then, because it's one thing to know it, but another thing to hear it. Sweeter than dreams. Sharper than hope.

Former best friends June and Levi both have problems. June is about to lose the tea shop she runs in honor of her late sister, and Levi wants his ex back. To top it off, both of their most recent breakups went viral. They won't admit that they miss each other, but what they can admit is that both their problems could be solved if they pretended to date. June can attract new customers to the shop and Levi's ex will see what she's missing. Old feelings have no place in this arrangement...right?

tropes:
second chance-ish
friends to lovers
fake dating

steam:
one explicit scene, some scattered inuendo throughout.

content warnings:
cheating (side characters only)
sudden death (off page, before story begins)

what I liked:
Okay, is it just that I'm a permanent sucker for friends to lovers? I actually loved this book. The writing was eloquent (I loved this author's writing style!) and story points were consistent throughout.
It's got rom-com vibes that aren't trying too hard to be funny but did also actually make me laugh a couple times throughout.
"Take that picture and I'll throw your phone so far into the ocean, you'll be getting texts from Poseidon."

I liked the way inclusivity and diversity were handled throughout. It distinctly did not feel to me like the author included token characters, but that she did have characters who just were gay or weren't white. It felt natural to me.
This book was more than a lil romance novel. It's a story of grief and growth and friendship.
"Back then it felt like the grief would swallow us whole. It's different now, more like the waves at our feet; constantly ebbing and flowing. Swollen one moment and quiet the next. A tide I can dip my feet into and let myself feel, or a swell that will hit me from behind when I least expect it."


what I didn't like:
their initial conflict really annoyed me. So much. I was going to take a star off for it, but I liked the rest well enough to only take off half a star in the end.
Actual rating: 4.5 stars rounded up.

Narrator:
I loved this narrator! She read so fluidly, like she was telling her own story, not reading a book. She placed emphasis where it was natural and kept the pace lively.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!
(Because I listened to the audiobook, my quotes are formatted as best as I could. Any flaws in the grammar belong to me and my poor transcription skills--not to the author.)

June and Levi were best friends....until they lost touch. Ten years later and after a fake dating adventure - they'll be friends again, at least.

I will keep saying it as it is so true - fake dating is such a fun trope to read! The shenanigans between June and Levi were so cute that I couldn't help but cheer them on as I read. Fake dating someone you already know takes the process to a whole new level and I love how both our characters already knew the other inside out. I have been a fan of Emma Lord's work since Tweet Cute (such an amazing book!) so I'm pleased to see her branch out into adult fiction. I think she's knocked it out of the park with The Break Up Pact. I was fortunate enough to listen to this one on audio while I read along and highly recommend the audiobook as the narration was extremely well done.

It seems like "The Breakup Pact" had some interesting elements, but perhaps fell short in fully engaging the reader with its characters. The lack of connection to Levi and June might have hindered the emotional impact of the story, making it difficult to become invested in their journey.

The ambiguity surrounding Levi's intentions and June's sudden notoriety from a meme may have left some unanswered questions for readers, making it challenging to fully understand the characters' motivations and actions.

However, it's commendable that the book delved into deeper themes such as grief and the struggle to maintain one's own dreams in the face of loss. The exploration of these complex emotions added a layer of depth to the story, offering a more meaningful reading experience than a typical romance novel.

While "The Breakup Pact" may not have resonated as strongly as hoped, it's clear that the attempt to infuse the narrative with substance and emotional complexity was appreciated. Perhaps future works by the author will further refine the storytelling and character development to create a more impactful and engaging read.

It might be that Emma Lord just isn't for me. So far I haven't connected with her stories however I know many people love her books. This may be a new favorite for you.

The narrators did an incredible job bringing the characters to life. I would listen to other books narrated by them in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for this advanced listener copy. My review is voluntarily My own.

Let me start by thanking NetGalley and the publishers for sending me this ARC for my honest review.

The Break-Up Pact is a cutesy rom-com, perfect when you need something heartwarming.

The story follows June and Levi, former besties until a falling out at the end of high school, causing them to drift apart and essentially stop talking. Present day, June is the owner of a struggling tea shop and bakery that her sister started. Levi is back in town to escape his life in New York, and hopes to finish his novel. Both just had very messy, very public and humiliating break ups. After running into each other, a picture goes viral of them being friendly, causing the internet to think they’re a couple, dubbing them “the revenge exes”. It weirdly brought more customers to the dying bakery. Junes current bestie Sana jumps on this saying it would be such a fantastic idea if they played this out, and fake dated. Levi is surprisingly not against this, and thinks this can help him get his ex back. Which hello, she cheated on you, WHY???

Anyways. The story follows them through dates, helping June’s brother, who is also Levi’s former bestie, plan his wedding, and slowly working through the grief of losing June’s sister, Annie, who was Levi’s BEST bestie, unexpectedly a year prior. The more time June and Levi spend together, the closer they get, and the more June thinks this isn’t going to end well, due to her feelings for him that never went away.

Well guess what? He’s been in love with her for forever too. But there was a huge miscommunication back in high school, which figuring out and trying to work through present day is kind of messy. But that’s okay, because they figure it out and we get our HEA.


This book has a huge miscommunication trope that makes me so sad for the main characters. The way June didn’t want to feel like she had a say in Levi’s feelings, and the way he just wanted confirmation, it was pretty relatable tbh. I really enjoyed the comedy in this, it had me LOLing irl. I loved seeing Levi’s journey in realizing he’s been staying too much in the comfort zone and letting others make decisions for him, and he’s ready to take charge of his own life. June’s character growth is a lot slower because she’s so stuck on her grief, but eventually something clicks, and she’s able to work on it and come more into herself as well. This book brought out a few different emotions that make me appreciate it a little more. The flash backs to their childhood and younger interactions compared to present, it’s like, duh these two were meant for each other. They were the support that each other truly needed in life.

All in all, I rate this a solid 4/5.

The Break-Up Pact was my first book by Emma Lord, and it won’t be my last. Very cute “fake revenge dating” trope. Overall a fun Summer Romance read with interesting characters and scones.

Natalie Naudus does a great job as the narrator.

Thanks NetGalley and MacMillan audio for an early listening copy. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio copy to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

I don't read a lot of romance, but when I do Emma Lord never disappoints. There are some tropes that i always adore and fake dating is one. This was so entertaining and real and raw. A perfect book for anytime, but definitely for beach reading (I mean it takes place in a beach town - summer all the way!).

This was an easy, typical read. It was kind of hard to get into and I didn't feel any type of connection with either of the main characters. I kept thinking that the likelihood of two childhood friends becoming so famous separately as grown ups was hardly believable. Predictable.

The Break-Up Pact was a super cute romance. Maybe call it a second chance? May friends to lovers? I'm not sure.

June and Levi were best friends through school but an overheard conversation and some unspoken feelings lead them in different directions. Now, years later, they've met again. Both have just had really embarrassing public break-ups that lead them to confide in each other. What starts as a little revenge dating turns into more.

I enjoyed this story. That building owner really agitated me. It felt like she could have explained her situation better and not been such a B, but whatever.

Natalie Naudus did a really good job of bringing this book to life with her narration. Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and the author for the opportunity to listen to and review this book.