From the Publisher
Emma Lord’s adult debut is an absolute homerun! It has the very best of fake-dating (with some delicious meta-commentary on the trope), revenge, second chance, a grumpy hero to die for, and the perfect amount of tea! Emma Lord brings on the steam, and her voice is engaging, hilarious, and an utter pleasure to read. The Break-Up Pact is a fantastic romcom!” - Ali Hazelwood, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“The Break-Up Pact is like your favorite Taylor Swift song on repeat—romantic, heartbreaking, and utterly enchanting. I laughed, I swooned, I sobbed my eyes out. The perfect blend of Emily Henry and Nora Ephron, Emma Lord is your next perfect summer read!” — Ashley Poston, New York Times bestselling author of The Dead Romantics and The Seven Year Slip
"The Break-Up Pact is an emotional, delicious, warm hearted story and I loved it from the very first page. Emma Lord writes so well about love, grief, growing up, and giving people—including yourself—second chances. A perfect book to read on the beach or at a corner table at a cafe, as long as it makes plenty of delicious baked goods!” - Jasmine Guillory, New York Times bestselling author of Drunk on Love and Drop, Cover, and Move On
"A breezy, beachy read filled with lovable characters and a simmering slow burn. With plentiful laughs and Emma Lord's trademark charm, The Break-Up Pact is a new romance favorite. I'm not sure what I'm craving more — Levi Shaw or one of June's scones." - Rachel Lynn Solomon, New York Times bestselling author of Business or Pleasure and The Ex Talk
"An immensely charming adult romance debut from Emma Lord! With its lovable characters, quaint seaside setting, and gorgeously insightful prose, The Break-Up Pact is a joy to read. This estranged-childhood-friends-to-fake-dating-to-lovers story is as delicious and warm as one of June's specialty scones. Humor and heart at its best I loved it!" - Sarah Adler, author of Mrs. Nash's Ashes
"At turns sharply funny and deeply affecting, with hope and healing serving as its emotional heartbeat, I blazed through The Break-Up Pact, a story about being brave enough to go after the life—and love—you truly want. Emma Lord's writing is effervescent and poignant, an addictive mix that made it hard to say goodbye when I got to the last page. I absolutely loved this book!" —Jessica Joyce, author of You, With A View.
"The Break-Up Pact combines fun, clever dialogue with the trifecta of romance- sweet, sexy, & sentimental- an excellent read." - Sophie Sullivan, author of A Guide to Being Just Friends and Love, Naturally
"A heartwarming group of childhood friends support the friends-to-lovers couple in a funny yet sentimental story. What starts with an outrageous moment when the heroine "goes viral" for all the wrong reasons quickly gets deeply emotional as the characters rediscover their lifelong love for each other." Jayne Denker, author of The Rom-Com Agenda
"Drenched in small-town beachside charm, The Break-Up Pact is both a banter-filled fake dating romp and a poignant meditation on what it takes to shake off the expectations, hurt, and mistakes of the past. With chemistry that’s as real as it comes, Levi and June are a couple worth falling for." - Ava Wilder, author of Will They or Won't They
"Light, feel-good fare that’s perfect for the beach." - Publishers Weekly
"A relatable rollercoaster for anyone who has ever found themself at an impasse in life...a charming story about the power of second chances." - Kirkus (Starred Review)
"The perfect small-town romance for summer...for fans of Sarah Adams and Emily Henry." - Library Journal
"A treat for readers who like their romance to carry some emotional heft." - Shelf Awareness
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2024-06-15
Two friends agree to fake-date each other after their respective breakups go viral.
June Hart never thought she’d become a meme, but when her boyfriend of 10 years ambushes her on a reality show, her crying face leads to the wrong kind of attention on social media. Suddenly, her beachside tea shop is earning all manner of lookie-loos, with every influencer trying to get a glimpse of her in person, but June’s most unexpected customer turns out to be a blast from her past. June hasn’t spoken to her childhood friend Levi Shaw in years, but it turns out he’s navigating his own very public, very viral breakup, and their combined internet fame could be what they both need to change the conversation. When a candid pic of the two of them winds up online, it sets comment sections ablaze with speculation that they’re moving on with each other—so June and Levi decide to lean into the rumors and pretend to date. They’ll both benefit from the headlines, after all, since June is hoping the additional business will save her shop from going under and Levi wants his ex to take him back. As any aficionado of the romance genre knows, however, relationships that begin in the most dishonest of circumstances soon lead to the discovery of very real feelings. Lord’s adult debut has a strong emotional core, grounded in the weighty history of its main romance and the complexity of navigating long-buried love. The whole book is narrated by June, who has a lot to deal with, and it’s a relatable rollercoaster for anyone who has ever found themself at an impasse in life.
A charming story about the power of second chances.