The break-up pact A novel

A slow burn between childhood best friends who enter into a fake relationship animates this fluffy contemporary from bestseller Lord (Begin Again). June Hart and Levi Shaw were best friends and would-be high school sweethearts before a miscommunication tore them apart. Ten years after they last spoke, they both happen to go viral online at the same time and for the same reason: someone filmed their devastating breakups from their respective partners. Now they're both back in small-town Benton Beach to recuperate from the humiliation. June takes over her late sister's struggling tea shop, while Levi decides it's finally time to write his novel. When internet sleuths realize their connection, the two decide to use the online gossip mill to their mutual advantage by faking a relationship. Levi hopes to make his cheating ex jealous, while June hopes the buzz will drive customers to her store. But what happens when real feelings enter the arrangement? The romance is set at a slow simmer, leaving plenty of room for June's and Levi's necessary character growth. The steamy scenes, when they come, are well worth the wait and grounded in a believable connection. It's light, feel-good fare that's perfect for the beach. (Aug.)

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. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.