The description of this book sounded so good, the cover was cute and the title was perfect to grab you. All around the book seemed to be off to a good start, however the story itself fell short. Personally I’m not hard to please when it comes to Rom Coms, so when it falls short I’m pretty disappointed.

The characters are a integral part of Rom Coms because honestly most of the storylines can be very similar to others you have read, so the characters have to stand out, in order to bring you into this specific story. So when I reflect, I think this was one of the biggest flaws.

The Main Characters were dynamically lacking and their chemistry needed to be built up stronger.

This was not a winner for me but Thank You NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC and share my feedback.

I wanted to live this story about exes in a second chance romance. Unfortunately it fell a bit flat for me. But I am always so thankful for these arcs!

Save this for your vacation read when you want something light that does not boggle your mind.

Levi and June, high school friends who drifted after school, coke together to fake date after going through viral breakups. A cute romcom of how friends become lovers.

This was a story of a couple of friends who were humiliated in public by their significant other’s in a break up. So what do you do, you get together with your best friend and form the breakup pack.. this was well written and had me engaged from the first page. I truly enjoyed it and look forward to reading more by this author!

June and Levi were best friends growing up until the day they stopped talking before Levi went off to college. Now, June is struggling to keep her tea shop open in their small hometown, while Levi works as a hedge fund manager while working on a novel. When the two each go viral for the way their exes dumped them in the same week, they cross paths again and decide to use their current fame to fake date to help get what they want. The social media buzz can bring customer’s to June’s shop and help Levi win his ex back.

This was such a cute story; I loved June and Levi and couldn’t help but root for them the whole way! This is overall a light beach read but with some heavy emotions – June’s sister died unexpectedly a year or two before the events of this book, and she has to deal with grief and moving on. If you like friends-to-lovers romance, check this one out!

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this advanced reader's copy and the opportunity to review. All opinions are my own.

June and Levi have always been best friends, until one day they weren't. Now June is struggling to make rent payments for her beachside tea shop created by her late sister, and Levi is a failed novelist living in New York.

But after two embarrassing viral breakups, a photo of them together has the internet talking. June and Levi decide to go with the rumors and pretend to date. This break-up pact will allow June's tea shop to get back on it's feet, and make Levi's ex realize she made a mistake and want him back.

I am giving this book 3 stars, because I had some trouble with the pacing despite my investment in the characters and fun beach setting. This was the first book I've read of Emma Lord's, and I really liked the writing. The Break-Up Pact had a friends to lovers and fake dating trope, with themes of determination and courage from the characters. I did connect with the characters, and thought June and Levi's story was so sweet. I loved the transformational journey that June goes through, and thought it was really realistic.

The Break-Up Pact by Emma Lord will be released on August 13.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I can always count on Emma Lord for a cute and light book. Levi and June were friends in high school and then they drifted apart. But then they come back because of their break-up pact. I found the characters lacking. I just wasn't that interested in them.

This was your classic fake dating genre with a bit of a twist. I did enjoy the beach vibes of this one and will read more by this author.

The Break-Up Pact was a super cute read and made me want to eat scones! Levi and June reunite as part of a fake dating plan, but slowly they realize that the love they’ve had for each other since youth is still there. But, can they work through the emotional baggage they each carry from the past decade? You can probably guess, but you should read about it instead!

2.5 ⭐️ Tea and scones on the beach?! Yum. This book could have used more depth to the characters and plot. I'm in my late thirties, so I might not be the target audience. Thanks for the ARC e-read from NetGalley.

Despite a promising start, The Break Up Pact did not do it for me.

Two old flames are newly single after their most recent relationships dissolve in very public ways.

What to expect:
✅ friends to lovers
✅ fake dating
✅ revenge exes
✅ miscommunication/unrequited love
✅ scones 🥐
✅ 1 🌶️ scene

I’ve thought it through and I think my main issue with this book is that it was entirely too vanilla. The FMC runs a tea shop she doesn’t love and bakes very basic, uninspired scones. The MMC is a finance bro who wants to get back to his roots and try writing again. The two characters were besties who…ran cross country together. This is the whitest book of all time

“This is all happening so fast that I think I might have main character whiplash. Yesterday, Levi and I were sad B-characters in other people’s romances. Now we’re hijacking the stage.”
<insert cringe emoji here 👀😬> Ma’am, I wish you wouldn’t.

I had a hard time connecting to the characters and can say that if influencing is part of the plot, then I’m out…

I have to admit that I did really enjoy a few chapters, but actively disliked it more often than not.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review date: 5/6/24
Publication date: 8/13/24

This book was a quick, fun read. But I did find the characters frustrating and some of the situations nonsensical and contrived. I would recommend this for a light beach read that fills the time, but you don't have to think too hard about.

arc received via netgalley for my honest review :)

I received this ARC from NetGalley, and am so happy I got a chance to read it! As soon as I started reading, I loved the characters. It was hard to predict how Levi and June would end up- there are several twists and turns even when you think you have it figured out. There are several layers to this story, making it a great read. Highly recommend to anyone who loves beach reads and romance!

A cute rom-com for when you want something light. I have enjoyed some of Emma Lord's other books, which were YA. This one definitely felt like her style, but also had the spice that her YA books did not have. I was just not hooked on the story and kept wanting the main characters to just have a conversation that would solve some of their issues.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

My favorite rom coms hit me right in the feels while also cracking me up. The extremely cute premise of this book is reminiscent of that ouevre, but instead of the delightfully escapist fluff that typically hooks me, the pacing of this book felt very slow, and the back and forth between the characters was drawn out with a grimness that didn’t hold my interest. Nonetheless, this book was very tender and heartfelt, and I’m sure it will resonate with other romance readers.

The Break Up Pact by Emma Lord is a RomCom with a second chance love, enemies to lovers, fake romance tropes.
June has gone viral and “The Crying Girl” after her now ex boyfriend Griffin posted her crying and hysterical after he dumped her. At the same time Levi has been made famous when his girlfriend cheated on him with a celebrity, making his humiliation public. Levi returns to his childhood town, where his ex best friend June is trying to save Tea Time. Tea Time was created by Junes sister Annie and one of Levi’s best friends who has passed away. June is still trying to deal with grief and the range of emotions that her sisters loss has created, as well as the strong possibility that the business her sister created is also about to close. She is having a hard time keeping the last part of her sister going, with foot traffic to her small beach front business being minimal, unless it’s people coming to photograph her, relishing in her recent humiliation.

Enter Sana. She’s a budding writer for “Fizzle,” and she comes up with an idea that is brilliant. She suggests June and Levi pretend to date. But Sana doesn’t just stop with the idea, she lays out a complete plan to make the ruse believable.
“Haven’t the two of you ever watched a rom-com before? If you’re going for the fake dating trope, you’ll need a plan. You’ll need rules.”
She even suggests limits and what they are willing to do.
“You need to decide what kind of Instagram-bait outings you’ll take together. What you’ll say when people inevitably ask you questions about each other. Plus, like, protocol on the actual romantic bits.” Sana starts listing off intimate gestures with the nonchalance of someone who has orchestrated a dozen other relationship ruses. “Hand holding, snuggling, kissing, getting all lovey-dovey. If there’s anything on or off the table, you’re going to have to include it in this break-up pact of yours.”
So they agree to become the Revenge Exes, with cute romantic pictures, dates, and little things posted to change both their images. I liked discovering that they have a past beyond just sharing Annie. This was a cute second chance romance, and I liked seeing their past.
The book is a slow Rom Com in the beginning but picks up in the center. It’s mixed with a revenge trope. I liked the chemistry between them for the most part, although at some parts it fell flat. Overall the characters were good and can’t wait to see what Emma Lord comes up with next for Sana.
I disliked how slow the first few chapters were, but somewhere in the middle the story picks up. Once it picks up it gets better with a bit of steam. I didn’t like the reason they broke up in the beginning, and felt the reason was just a What? I also disliked Levi and his entire attitude and responses in regards to Kelly. I’m a little confused as to why Levi and June were planning someone else’s wedding without either of the grooms making any choices including the cake.

Overall it was a quick easy read, even though nothing really stood out. The book was a three to three and a half star read.

This book was like the perfect scone: sweet, but not overly sweet. I’ve loved Emma Lord’s YA novels, and her first (I think?) adult novel did not disappoint. So much depth (grieving her sister, recovering from unhealthy relationships, etc) and so much fun (witty scones, the Instagram account dedicated to Mateo’s vests, the art over the bed game, etc.) at the same time. I zipped through this book; it was addictive in the way some of June’s scones sound like they must be. I won’t be purchasing this for our high school library probably, but I’ll be recommending it to friends.

Emma Lord does an amazing job in telling the story of Levi and June. The wonderful story of childhood friends who find themselves back in their hometown dealing with the grief of lost relationships and June's sisters death. It is a story of love and loss and how the mess can be beautiful, how grief hits at unexpected times and how you walk through it to find yourself. How all of you with the grief and journey can be a part of how you truly love someone else. Loved the banter and loved the challenge in the relationships. It’s a great read.
Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

I REALLY enjoyed this book. The idea of friends to lovers always sort of bores me, but when it is done right, it can be fantastic. The miscommunication within the story really sold me. Don't get me wrong, sometimes I really felt frustrated with the actions of the characters. Like, why would you go back on the show with your lying ex?!?! Nothing good can come of that!! Or why can't you freaking communicate Levi?! Ffs. Buuut, that's real life. People make those mistakes and it felt like I was watching my own friends go through these things. I enjoyed it.

I think this is my favorite Emma Lord book ever. I was thrilled when I was given the chance to read an ARC from NetGalley, and it truly did not disappoint. Just a heads up, this book does have mature content. I loved June and Levi. I enjoy the friends to fake dating trope and I was sucked into this book early on because of it. There is an added layer with grief woven through the book that added some interesting depth to the story. I absolutely spent too late at night, too long in the morning, and extra time on the couch when I should have been doing other things so I could finish this one. I know book likes are personal, but this one was a win for me! Can’t wait until it comes out in August to buy it and read it again!