Reviews - The Break-Up Pact

1.65k reviews for:

The Break-Up Pact

Emma Lord

3.45 AVERAGE

abigail_p4's review against another edition

3.25

funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

mama_bookworm_'s review against another edition

2.0

slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Book 92 of 2025 finished 28/8/25 ⭐️⭐️

After ten years of silence, June and Levi find themselves back in their beach hometown. They are both nursing broken hearts and avoiding their pasts. June’s tea shop is on the brink of closing, and Levi can’t go two feet without hearing gossip about his ex-fiancée. A chance run in sparks an idea and they hatch a plan to pretend to be a couple.

It’ll get tongues wagging, drive Levi’s ex crazy, and hopefully bring foot traffic to June’s shop. Easy. Harmless. Totally fake.

But as staged kisses and small-town spotlights blur the lines between acting and honesty, June and Levi start to wonder whether the spark between them isn’t part of the plan?

My thoughts: small town, second chance, fake dating, miscommunication, sibling’s best friend.

I found this one tough to get through. There was very little romantic chemistry between the main characters, which made it hard to invest in their relationship. Levi enters the fake dating arrangement with June primarily to make his ex jealous, and that motivation really undermined any potential for emotional connection later on.

Both characters are grieving the loss of Annie (June’s sister and Levi’s best friend) which could have been a powerful source of depth and connection, but unfortunately it didn’t feel fully explored. The grief element was there, but the character development felt surface level, and I never truly believed in their relationship.

Overall, this one was a miss for me. I struggled to connect with the characters and didn’t feel the romance was believable or earned.

allykoerner1413's review against another edition

2.0

2.5 ⭐️This felt very disjointed. I didn’t feel super invested in any of the characters. The background as to why they stopped being friends felt insignificant. Levi was all in trying to get his ex back, almost in a pathetic way, and the poof- he decides he wants June? I don’t love a MMC who is spineless and Levi gave that vibe. The ex was such a colossal jerk that I was annoyed that June even entertained that reality show follow up- that whole plot line was so ick. I felt frustrated by the two main characters for the majority of the book.