I had high hopes going into this one, mainly because it has one of my favorite romance tropes of all time, one that is rarely ever done: THE MARRIAGE PACT! Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the way this trope was handled. Hannah's best friend from college who she's since lost touch with, shows up at Hannah's door randomly, down on one knee, with a ring, after not talking for FIVE YEARS! This is exactly where I was taken *out* of the book. Perhaps the marriage pact trope was taken too literally; I wanted a story where the pact is covered in more-so of a realistic way.

(I also did not understand why Will & Hannah had any reservations to being together physically. There was no real reason for them to not be together while they were "pretending" to love each other in the marriage pact!)

this book was so precious! i highly recommend this book to anyone that loves a good escape story! it was just so delightful to read and i enjoyed every single second! thank you again, netgalley!!!

This book was super cute! It took me a little bit to get into it but once I did there was no going back. I just wish someone had been upfront about something because it was giving me anxiety the whole time.

Hannah and Will were best friends in college. When they graduated, they made a marriage pact. If they weren’t married by thirty, they’d marry each other.

Years passed and the fell out of touch… so imagine Hannah’s surprise when a knock on her door on her thirtieth birthday reveals Will! With a ring! What would you do?

For a variety of reasons, Hannah said yes. They are from different backgrounds fa and trying to get everyone to believe in their romance was a joint venture. Watching their fake romance turn real was an enjoyable ride. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, and, while this was a marriage of convenience, there was definitely some overlap. This felt realistic to me. I also loved the musical side of Hannah’s job. I enjoyed Will and Hannah. I appreciated their strengths and flaws and how they persevered.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This novel is well written with sweet, relatable characters- even the villains elicit sympathy. The banter between the characters felt very authentic. The steamy scenes were also perfectly done, not too explicit and not too dry. I actually haven’t read many friends-to-lovers romances as I didn’t think I preferred it as a trope, but I am reconsidering this given how much I liked When We’re Thirty.

Readers around my age may also feel a strong sense of nostalgia given the great music, TV and movie references. Bonus: the author has a Spotify playlist of songs that helped her write the novel.

When I started reading I thought this was going to be a light, fluffy romance ( partly because of the cover ).

OH, this book was so much more! I did not want it to end. I fell in love with the characters. I did see the turns just before they happened - they were amazing. I really enjoy characters that have a past. I would have given five chairs, except I prefer the closed door romances.

This was a heart warming story that felt real to me. I want to read Casey's next book.

As my first Dembowski novel, I'm super impressed! I had no clue what to expect, so I was very pleasantly surprised by the time spent developing the characters, the world, and the plotline. The characters felt genuine, fleshed out, and 3-dimensional so the different levels of angst and drama that happened in this romance just really worked for me. Madison was the only character I felt was a little one-dimensional, but I was totally ok with her not getting a ton of time in the book. My only "disappointment," if you can even call it that, was the lack of steam/chemistry in the story. I love a good clean romance, and this definitely hits that mark, but I also didn't feel any true chemistry between Will and Hannah outside of their verbal sharing of their love for one another. A few tingles, accidental touches that caught their attention, just something to show that they were physically attracted to one another and not just emotionally connected. At one point they apparently had makeup sex and I didn't even realize the story was going that way until h said something about the makeup sex...I thought we were still celibate. lol
This is a 4-star read exactly as it's written, so please don't see my one suggestion as a reason not to read the story...just a forewarning that you'll be doing the heavy lifting to get any physical connection out of the story. I will be researching to see if Kate gets a story!!

When We’re Thirty is a fun romance between Hannah and Will, college best friends who made a pact to marry one another if they weren’t already married by the time they were thirty. This is a quick, light, enjoyable read with likable characters that you’ll definitely find yourself rooting for. I’d recommend this one to anyone who enjoys friends to lovers, fake marriage, or second chance stories.

“𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴.”― 𝖢𝖺𝗌𝖾𝗒 𝖣𝖾𝗆𝖻𝗈𝗐𝗌𝗄𝗂, 𝖶𝗁𝖾𝗇 𝖶𝖾'𝗋𝖾 𝖳𝗁𝗂𝗋𝗍𝗒

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗼𝘁
-Hannah is about to turn 30 and living in New York City, working as an entertainment journalist, in a dead-end relationship, and just 'getting by' financially.

-The day after her 30th birthday, she opens her apartment door and is surprised to find her college friend, Will, down on one knee holding up an engagement ring.

-Hannah and Will made a marriage pact one drunken night in college, and Will has shown up to fulfill his end of the bargain. And Hannah has some reasons why she's considering accepting his proposal.

𝗜 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁
-This friends-to-lovers / marriage pact / fake marriage romance was a lot of fun to read, and I enjoyed the character development in this story. There are the usual romcom-like miscommunications, but their chemistry is palpable.

-They both have relevant real-life challenges that a marriage of convenience could solve. The couple soon learns that adhering to their own set of "rules" plus fooling their families that they are actually in love is more challenging than they thought.

-The book is told through dual POVs, and the author has created two people you'd love to be friends with. As they navigate the waters of family dynamics, they will need to deal with hidden secrets.

-This debut novel is a book you want to move to the front display row at the bookstore because romance lovers and those looking for a light and heartfelt story will love this one!

Thank you Lets Talk Books Promo and Casey Dembowski for an arc of When We're Thirty in exchange for an honest review. With books like this one, friends to lovers is quickly becoming a famous romance trope. Hannah and Will are old college friends who've lost touch over the years. When they were in college, they made a marriage pact that they'd get married if both were not married by the time they turned 30. Despite this, they have a lot of affection for each other, more than either realizes when they agree to the pact I think. Their friendship quickly blossoms into more. There are of course, issues and secrets that they have to work through, but they come out stronger in the end. I really enjoyed their easy friendship. The book was very engaging and a quick read that I didn't want to put down.

When We Were Thirty is a fun friends to lovers story following the idea that what if your college crush who you made a marriage pact with comes back to collect?

I zoomed through this book. For me, When We Were Thirty was the perfect mixture of romance and drama. I found myself loving the main characters, and also seriously questioning some of their life choices.

One of my favorite aspects of the book was honestly Hannahs career. While it’s a relatively important plot point, I found myself more engaged with that aspect then the love aspect. I loved reading about her opportunity for advancement, as well as her fight for better benefits.

I thought Dembowski also gave the characters the PERFECT amount of conflict. At no point did I think that the obstacles were overkill. I also really liked that she made the conflict last the entire book. There were no tiny obstacles they were moving through quickly, but instead big obstacles that lasted until the very end.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a quick and cute friends to lovers/fake marriage romance.

When We're Thirty explores the marriage pact made between friends, Hannah and Will. They haven't seen each other in years, but a mysterious bouquet of her favorite flowers and a knock on Hannah's door the week of her birthday turns they're lives upside down. Or right side up?
This is a fun read and dives into some serious drama, mostly with their families. The pact intitiates a snowball effect of will they/when they. I loved their solid friendship and trust they held for the other. It's so unique to see characters immediately plan to try for real in a fake relationship rather than ignore compatibility. Secrets have a way of coming up though!
I would love to see more of Kate and Will's brothers (even if Jon is a butthead).
Thanks to Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for the e-copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

Thank you @letstalkbookspromo and @casey_dembowski for the #gifted ebook.

This is the second time recently where, halfway through the book I decided I wanted to add the authors backlist to my TBR, only to find out it’s a debut!

This was SUCH a cute and fun read. My favourite trope is friends to lovers and this took a slightly different spin on it which I loved. I found myself smiling while reading more than once. I really cheered on this couple from start to end.

The only thing I didn’t love was Will’s father, I can’t go into detail without spoilers but I found his character contradictory.

Fans of romance should definitely read this one!!

Marriage pact! Sign me up. Also isn't Hannah Abbott a character name in Harry Potter, I really really enjoyed this plot so much. I haven't read a marriage pact story in forever, and this was just so fun and cute. It had a great plot and fantastic character development.

On Hannah’s 30th birthday her college best friend Will comes back into her life to invoke a pact they made years earlier. Hannah is in a relationship that she knows won’t go anywhere, working at a job she loves but struggling to get by and unable to take care of medical needs due to a lack of insurance. Will is working with his family, super successful and rich, and fresh out of a relationship where his girl friend cheated on him…with his brother. So naturally, these two (Hannah & Will) both find reasons for to go ahead and follow through with this marriage pact.

What we get as a result is a sweet, slow-burn, friends to lovers/second chance romance story that has you cheering for these characters at every step of the way. There’s just something about the chemistry between these two characters that pulls you in and doesn’t let you go…even once you’re done reading your left wanting more!

A super quick, fun, light hearted read that’s a perfect addition to your summer reading tbr!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I really wanted to like this book, and I've seen so many great reviews, but it fell a bit short for me. It was probably just me, but keeping a secret so big from someone who is supposed to be your partner feels like forced drama. Then there were the familial issues, on both sides, and both exes, and work issues; it basically felt like it wasn't much of a fun story at all. I can see what the author was trying to do, and while it was easy to read, I wanted to see more relationship development.
2.5 stars

4.5/5

What on EARTH is this incredible, heartwarming, funny debut romance I just read?! When We're Thirty by Casey Dembowski is apparently a debut but it sure didn't feel like it to me. This was an emotional roller coaster that had me laughing out loud throughout and brought tears to my eyes about just as much. I loved Hannah and Will and they might actually be my first favorite couple in a romance that I will actually remember. I loved the romance between the two including the sudden marriage and there is definitely more than one trope hiding in the novel. There are some shall we say sexier scenes, but these aren't really steamy or all that descriptive which I for one am perfectly fine with. They gave me just enough steam without there really being STEAM, ya know? I think this would make a great audiobook, but it was just as good reading it and a super quick read at that.

The narrative switches between both Will and Hannah and I don't think I had a favorite viewpoint between the two. I loved both of them equally, and I especially loved that you got to see some family/friend dynamics through both of their POVs. Both of their stories were pretty emotional, and their family members would make me so mad at times, but also had their redeeming qualities. At least some of them did... This is a romance, but it really focuses on family and friendship as well and I loved that about it. I also think it would make a fantastic movie! The music aspects were so fun, and I was a little obsessed with Hannah's job. She also had a cat and I loved when Dembowski would mention him since I am a total cat person after all. When We're Thirty was completely adorable while also focusing on some heavy topics which created the perfect mix. I highly recommend this book to romance and women's fiction readers, but also anyone who just wants something that is fun and on the lighter side.

Thank you to the author and Let’s Talk Books Promo for my free copy. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

I LOVED this book!!

Where to even start with this one…
Let’s try this: friends to lovers, a marriage pact, second chance romance, marriage of convenience, sabotaging family members … this book seems to have ALL of the tropes!

I loved Hannah and Will’s friendship – even if they hadn’t seen each other in awhile. Both of their exes were terrible and those relationships needed to end. There’s the typical romcom miscommunication issues, but I wouldn’t have wanted to share the details of that baggage either, in all honesty.

With so much at stake, Hannah and Will get married – and they both have things to gain from this, but they also have so much they could lose.

This book had me hooked on every page. It’s one I read as an e-ARC and will definitely be buying to add to my shelf.

Disclaimer: I received a free digital ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.


I'm a sucker for the fake relationship/marriage trope, so I truly enjoyed this book.

There are so many things I liked about this story, but one of my favorite things was the characters. Both Hannah and Will are very likable characters, and while they end up in a fake marriage, they both seem to care for each other a lot. They are great friends not only to each other but to some of the secondary characters as well. We get a pretty clear idea about how lovable they are. Both of them have rounded and well-developed arcs. They come out as truly likable people, so I was rooting for them as the story develops. Will's ex is a fantastic villain in the story, and while I hated her, she made a great antihero to progress the conflict and keep the story interesting.

The plot is predictable but very engaging, and I was satisfied with the ending. Like so many other friends-to-lovers stories, we learn early on that while Will still has feelings for his ex, he was also in love with Hannah in college. Thus, as their relationship progresses, his feelings for her resurface. Hannah develops feelings at a slower pace, but she is also learning that the crush she used to have on Will is still buried deep down in her heart. There is also a colossal conflict that will test their marriage, and while it was heavily foreshadowed from the beginning, I still was surprised about how it went down.

Most of the plot is focused on Hannah and Will's interactions as a newlywed couple trying to convince their skeptical families that their marriage is real. Because they haven't seen each other in years, we get tidbits of information about their current lives while they are getting to know each other as adults. The story is told by Will and Hannah's POV, so we get alternative chapters in which they fill the blanks about everything we need to know before their reunion. There are also several flashbacks to their college days and how they ended up making the pact.

In addition, we get many other sub storylines such as the upcoming wedding of Will's ex, Hannah's growing friendship with his brother's fiancee, and their attempts to convince everyone in their lives that their marriage is real. It is a fast-paced and easy read, and every single sub storyline flows nicely with the main plot. It was truly captivating from the beginning even if somewhat predictable.

'When We're Thirty' is the story of two friends who made a marriage pact in college, then lost contact. On Hannah's thirtieth birthday Will reappears with a ring, wanting to make good on their pact. Even though it's a predictable trope, it's one that I usually still enjoy. And this story is no exception.

Hannah and Will have their own reasons for a hasty marriage, and both have what they think are unrequited feelings for the other. Dembowski builds their relationship nicely, although there are some frustrating parts that feel like they are only in there for the inevitable conflict in the final act. But overall, they don't detract from the sweetness of the romance, and I enjoyed the story of Hannah and Will.

*Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to leave an honest review*

I have also left a review on Amazon UK but am awaiting moderation