I expected a sapphic rom-com but really didn't get the feels for that!

The cover gives you the impression that the story will centre around romance however it relates more to friendships. There wasn't even much apprehension in the break-up between Rowan and Edi. I also would have hoped for a lot more chemistry between Edi and Fred.

That said, the book had me reading to the end, I did find myself rooting for Edi and Fred. I also enjoyed the friendship dynamics and felt that they was built on quite well throughout the story.

Not quite a romcom but a light read to pass some time if you're looking for something easy going.

I. Loved. This. Book. Just amazing. The concept isn’t new, Rowan asks his fiancée EDI for a 3 month break to make sure that they are doing the right thing. Edi really isn’t keen but feels she should go along with it. From this premise we hate Rowan and yet have to keep a bit of care in reserve in case they get back together. EDI is just lovely, she is makes mistakes but is real and we absolutely want her to make the right decision whatever it is. I read this all in one go and I can’t see how anyone couldn’t. The girlfriends surrounding Edi are also fabulous and suitably snarky, loving and great support for her.

Edi Parcell thought she had life all planned out, but when her fiancé proposes a three-month break to date other people, she's shocked. With the help of her friends, Edi sees this as an opportunity to think what she really wants from life and love.

By reading its blurb, The Break Up may seem a sapphic romcom, but it's not exactly that. This is the journey of a woman, who thought to know everything about herself, finding out her true character from a very challenging situation. It's an easy book to read, quite light-hearted despite the painful topics, with funny characters and a nice fast rhythm. The main character is lovable and cute, I felt sorry for her because, well... little spoiler: her fiancé is a dick (also a bit homophobic). But I also cheered when her mental health started improving and she got more confident and determined.

I also really like the energy between Edi and her five (!) best friends, even though it was a bit difficult to distinguish them. Still, reading their chats and dynamics was fun. The male characters in this book are... disappointing (with the exception of maybe one or two), but I expected that. The relationship between Edi and her new love interest Fred is sweet, they have a good chemistry, unfortunately it's mostly just a few flirty lines and it doesn't go too deep. But it's fine, as this book is more about Edi's growth with the support of her friends, her parents and her therapist. And that I really enjoyed.
4 stars.

* I'd like to thank Charlotte Barnes, HQ Digital and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This wasn't really what it was advertised as. I did enjoy the friendships, but would have wanted a lot more emphasis on the romance. I guess it really was about the breakup. I wish the born matched the story better.

A book about strong female friendships, finding who you are and what you want from life.

Edi has been with Rowan forever. So getting married is the obvious next step, but as soon as they announce their engagement the doubts start Edi has to work out what -and who - she wants.

A funny yet empowering book, full of friendship and love. I loved it.

Edi and Rowan are childhood sweethearts who have just got engaged. When a few weeks after the engagement and after a visit to his parents, Rowan suggests a break so that they can see what's it like to see other people, Edi reluctantly agrees.
With the help of her friends, Edi is thrown into the world of online dating and all the trials and tribulations that come with it. When she meets Fred, her feelings are thrown and her whole world is rocked. She questions if Rowan is the right person for her.
With the back of her sisterhood group she navigates her feelings and some home truths to find her own happiness.

This was not at all what I expected. The title and the description sounded like it might be my kind of book but it quickly became evident it definitely wasn’t. This is a story about Edi and her boyfriend Rowan and what happens after they get engaged. They have been together for years so when they announce their engagement Edi expects to be planning a wedding when Rowan announces he wants an open relationship before they get married. Edy reluctantly agrees to this and they draw up a list of rules. The whole premise of this book is weak. The chances of anyone agreeing to get married one minute and then agreeing to an open relationship the next seems unlikely. Edi was part of a friendship group of six women. It was difficult to differentiate between them as they all sounded the same and also very unlikeable. The whole book felt like sex was a meaningless act and it actually felt a bit sordid. Definitely not for me and by the look of other reviews I am not alone in my opinion. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me an ARC of this book.

I am so pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! The writing style was easy to read and the chapters were the perfect length. I read the entire book in less than a day and was hooked from start to finish.

Edi and Rowan have been together forever. After recently proposing, Rowan suggests a 3-month break to see other people and to get everything out of their systems. Initially opposing this break, Edi eventually branches out, meets new people, and discovers there’s more to life than Rowan.

This novel is marketed as a romance/rom-com but I believe it to be more heavily suited towards general or women’s fiction. The story follows Edi herself, with a slice of romance to go with it.

Edi’s friends were an asset to the story and the author excellently created a sense of comfort surrounding the friendship group. Each friend was as supportive as the next, and it was so refreshing to see women supporting women under all circumstances, even when they didn’t all necessarily agree with one another.

From the moment Edi meets Fred, sparks fly, and the author did such a good job at creating such authentic chemistry. I especially loved how supportive Fred was of Edi.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HQ for providing this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review! :)

Just disappointing. Not the kind of romance book it markets itself as, no relationship progression or exploration with Fred and full of hate and homophobic rubbish. I stuck with it as long as I could but it was a DNF for me.

This was sold to me as a sapphic rom com. Well, it's not really very funny, and to be honest it isn't very romantic either. I'm not sure that going in with different expectations would have helped me to enjoy it more, but it probably wouldn't have hurt.

I'll start with the things that I did like. I liked the focus on Edi's friendships, and the way that the group of them love and support each other. I think that this story is less about romance and more about friendships, so if that's more what you're looking for, this book might be for you. There are some really cute moments, both between Edi and her friends, and between Edi and Fred.

Now onto the things that just didn't do it for me. The plot is definitely more about the break up of the m/f relationship than about the new f/f romance. I found that I was left wanting more about Edi and Fred, and less about Rowan, who honestly just annoyed me. I was so angry during the whole 'taking a break' conversation, I just wanted Edi to straight up leave him. If you're interested in reading about the break down of an m/f relationship, this book could be for you. If you want sapphic romance, it probably isn't.

Overall, I think I just didn't get what I wanted from this. I would have liked to see an actual exploration of open relationships, and what it means to be polyamorous, even if things don't work out overall, but it wasn't really explored. I also wanted more angst, since things got so bad between Edi and Rowan, but even the angsty bits were just a bit bland.

And finally, there's the transphobia. Now, I think the author has taken onboard some criticisms (one line that other reviews have mentioned is not present in my copy), which is good, but in my opinion the whole scene felt a bit transphobic and the joke just isn't funny.

**ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

Damn well this was definitely a book. Like I actually did enjoy some parts of it, I finished it! Like the writing was actually pretty good and kept me engaged the entire story, but god this story idk man…

It felt like a gayish romance written in the straightest, millennial way. Also Edi really was getting on my nerves in every part of her personality. Never saying what she means with Rowan. Literally every sentence with italics next to it meant she was saying the exact opposite of what she was thinking. Also I think I can count on my fingers the amount of times she actually answered directly when someone asked a question.

“Would you like to talk about it or not?”
“Aw babe you’re such an amazing friend for asking”

WHAT IS IT YES OR NO?

This friend group also sounds so fucking insufferable. I would never want to be friends with the girls in this group and not even stand in the same room as a guy like Rowan. While Fred seems nice I definitely think she and Edi are a terrible match as well though. And also it didn’t seem very realistic in general.

Just urg not my thing, very British to the point of annoyance and also very millennial to the point of annoyance.

Soon after being engaged 💍 to her long term boyfriend back to early school days even, it was always assumed the question when not if. But the surprise he new Fiancée suggests a time of exploration with other people as in they get to date other people, well they've only dated each other. Edi is not happy but agrees.

The story is centered on Edi and she is a very strong character despite appearances and Rowan is the fool (in my view that is) and he had a group of friends he lives with, but Edi had a geek if friends that are so close you're surprised they don't live in the same house. But in this age WhatsApp and the likes you don't need to be in the same room. The Ladies as their not teenagers or been so for several years have a bond that is incredible, and they come 1st they are there for each other and yet they have freedom probably because of the safety net they have due each other.

Is this realistic yes I believe it is the whole novel is believable and I loved every minute of it. There is self discovery some twists and some truly great moments you will have to read for yourself and enjoy the experience unspoiled by any give away as I did.

I did get a free copy in return for a honest review and I hope you get to enjoy it because my honest view is this is a novel that's well worth reading and I find to be a 5 star read. Great characters well worked storyline no over the top extras just a great relaxing escape from life and we all need that from time to time. It's a lot better than the news.

It took me a while to get into this story but once I did, I really liked it!

A tale for 'not settling' and for making time and space for yourself - totally my bag. I loved the close group of friends and how they supported and cared for each other, even if they didn't always agreed with each other!

Edi has a strong ring of girlfriends who all have an opinion on her relationship. Edi only ever had on boyfriend, but now Rowan has itchy feet and wonders what he is missing. Edi has no alternative but to agree to a short break. Follow Edi’s awakening to life without Rowan.

Sadly, this book didn’t do it for me. I really thought it was a sapphic romcom but it wasn’t. The author tried to tackle topics but ended up just grazing over them.

CW: Transphobia.

this is not what I expected when I picked this one up.

Expectation: F/F storyline
What you get: M/F break up story line

You completely lost me after the transphobic comment. There was no need for it. Please don't do this. It's not humorous.

If I could give a 0, I would based on that comment alone.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for this ARC. My opinions are my own.

From the cover and blurb, I thought this was going to be a sapphic rom-com. It’s not. It’s Edi’s journey to realizing her fiancé is a jerk and accepting that maybe she’s not straight after all. The publisher isn’t doing anyone any favours by comparing this book to the likes of Written in the Stars and marketing it as funny and romantic.

The story opens with Edi and Rowan getting engaged. Soon after, Rowan suggests they open the relationship for three months and see other people, since they’ve been together forever and were each other’s first. At first, Edi is mostly mad at him, then she meets Fred, a woman who makes her rethink how she sees herself.

When I realised the story wasn’t what I thought it would be, I was worried for a while, especially after reading reviews, but I still wanted to read till the end. Earlier reviews mention a transphobic line that’s not in the version I read so hopefully that was fixed. There are a few offensive takes on other topics, most of them from Rowan, establishing his jerkness. I don’t know if they were all necessary but they did the job, I hate Rowan, I don’t understand why Edi stayed with him for so long. At first, she appears very meek but she’s a work in progress, and I like some character growth in my books. The book delivered on that, Edi isn’t the same person at the end of the story as she was at the beginning.

The best part of the book is the group of friends. They argue and disagree and support one another unconditionally. I also really liked Fred, she’s gorgeous and exciting and kind. She’d make an interesting MC in a real rom-com.

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

This one really wasn't for me.

Edi and Rowen are engaged. He requests a break to date other people. During that period Edi meets Winifred, and questions what she wants from life, and who she wants to be.

I like the idea of having a queer romance, easy read type story. The challenge is though that it has to be aware of the world in which the book is produced, and have some element of reality, and pushing boundaries. The 'coming out' scene was particularly painful to me, as it felt like something that would happen in the 1990s, not 2022. I am almost certain a group of 20 somethings today but not bat an eyelid at someone having a same sex relationship. In the whole friendship group in particular felt generally immature, and just unlikeable.

I think I also struggled with having so much time devoted at the beginning to the heterosexual relationship. It tried to make me care about them as a couple, which just served to make me dislike Rowen when he asked for the break. I think starting with them going on the break may have been something that resonated better with me.

Overall this was just a bit of an annoying book. What could have been queer chick lit, fell flat.

Thanks to Net Galley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review

Based on the synopsis I expected this to be a break-up novel and/or sapphic rom-com and was really excited for that. Unfortunately, the book somehow ended up being neither ?!

Most of the book actually focuses on Edi and Rowan. However, I really, really disliked Rowan, so I didn’t care about Edi’s relationship with him.

The female love interest, Fred, doesn’t really come in properly until half way through the book and we don’t get to spend enough time with her at all. During the short moments we get, there was hardly enough romance there to make me feel invested.

Also, quite early on in the book there is a transphobic comment (it is being referred to as ‘next-level deception’ on a date) which was somehow completely ignored by the protagonist. That comment and lack of a response felt super unnecessary and left a bad feeling for the rest of the reading experience.

However, I do have to say that this is quite a quick and easy read and I liked Edi’s friend group and the emphasis on female friendship.

So I think if you go into the book with different expectations, you might enjoy it a lot more than me!!

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book. Really loved it. I loved the friendship group, I loved the MC finding herself, I loved the author being confident to give her an alternative love interest. Not going to lie I REALLY wanted Edi to end up with Fred but for me the book was a great read and i really wanted it to continue. More please