Great, light hearted read, with humour 👍

Loved it.... Cara who's desperately trying to find a match on a dating app, between wanting to find 'the one', also to find someone to accompany her to family gatherings doesn't want to turn up alone. Matches finally run out, leaving Cara with the thought she'll have to go to them alone, until the night she meets Millsy in a bar.
Cautious at first, this soon turns into a great friendship, where they make a pact to be each other's plus one, to all upcoming events.

This book is lighthearted, full of humour, thoroughly good read, didn't want it to end. Cara and Millsy's family gatherings attended together often had their memorable incidents, which only builds their bond more.

I've not read any books by this author before, definitely would do again, great read, t'll make you laugh and smile.

Portia Macintosh is one of those authors that I see often when searching for a new book but for some reason I've never actually got to know. Man, I regret that now.

It seems to be a record week as this is the second book this week that if read that is in first person and absolutely loved!

I think praise is always due when a book is written well in first person narrative. One of the reasons in not a fan of it is because I just find out difficult to engage with anyone in the story when everything is only from the point of view of one single person. But when it's well written. Wow. When I forget that it's in first person, I forget that I'm only seeing it from one person's perspective, when I just want to read and not put the book down, THAT is when it's well written.

I loved everything about Cars and Millsy and I definitely loved Oliver (yes, my man). Don't get me wrong, this book was fairly predictable and tye storyline wasn't necessarily unique but it was just so well written that I want to go back and read it again and again.

Off to read everything else by thus author!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'The Plus One Pact' is a classic easy-to-read romance - perfectly predictable in plot but the sort of happy, easygoing novel that's great on holiday or when you're in need of a pick-me-up. It follows Cara, about to be the wrong side of thirty and with everyone around her getting married and having children, has a chance encounter with Millsy, a serial womaniser who needs someone to make his family believe he can be serious with a woman. Cara has a fantastic idea - the plus-one pact, where her and Millsy accompany each other to all their social events over the summer to get their families and friends off their back about dating. What could possibly go wrong?

As a character, Cara wasn't someone I could really relate to but I imagine many women will. Her frustrations felt real and her relationship with her family was delightful. She regularly claimed not to care about her appearance yet constantly seemed to think about it or change it - an insecurity common to so many. By the end, I was rooting for her even as I cringed at some of her decisions - a clear sign of character investment.

Joe Mills, known as Millsy, didn't appeal to me in the slightest. I liked his unusual job but, to be quite honest, he regularly came across as not a great guy. However, I loved his relationship with Grandma Iona, and his constant antics and mishaps with Cara were great fun to read about. It was also nice seeing a healthy portrayal of close male-female friendship with him and Ruby, and how this didn't bother Cara in the slightest.

Overall, this is a solid romance with a likeable main character and plenty of everyone's favourite tropes. (Fake dating? There's only one bed? Friends to lovers?) There are no surprises and fans of the genre are likely to enjoy this. A great read when you just need something easy.

The first 2/3 of the book felt kind of slow, with the last 1/3 very fast-paced and a little bit rushed to make up for the rest of the story. The main character spends a lot of time explaining things, especially early in the book, and it didn't feel necessary, since the bulk of the story was meant to be about the pact Cara and Millsy make, rather than Cara's life otherwise or her relationships with other family and friends. I did like the ending, and the story in general was fun, but overall the book just seemed to have very odd pacing.

Another great book from Portia! The plus one pact is a sweet amusing feel good book, i devoured it in an afternoon. Definitely worth reading.

It's never a good sign when the beginning of the book is the main character being defensive about being judged by her college woke brother. Just call him a mansplaner to end the conversation.

Cara needs a date to her cousin's wedding. In a very magical way, she meets Millsy who after knowing her for one night gets her a free makeover, becomes roommates in his perfect apartment with her, and becomes a plus one for all of her and his family events. Millsy is too good to believe that I was waiting for him to be part of a prank. But no, this magic godmother of a man is real. The only problem with him is that his reputation isn't clean regarding women.

Millsy is a big problem I had with this book. He's too good. Too perfect. Cara and he are cute as friends but there wasn't a spark for them to be more.

Review based on a ARC from Netgalley I received to make an honest review

****The Plus One Pact is a humorous story about two people who band together to get through several months of respective obligations as each other’s plus one. It was supposed to be as friends, but can a man and woman really ignore budding awareness? Fat chance even with all the obstacles placed in their way. This American reader enjoyed the exposure to British slang and humor. The characters are defined and the story moves along nicely. This book was cute and fun and worth a read. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley.

Just look at the beautiful cover of this book. It instantly grabs your attention and screams "read me". The story inside is just as gorgeous.
Now it's absolutely no secret, I am a huge fan of Portia's books, they never fail to disappoint and I am always gripped from the very beginning. This book has been no different, after my little happy dance when receiving the advanced copy of the book. I got stuck straight in, I feel as tough I have been awaiting this one for a while.
Wow! Not only I have I started this one today, I've finished it. I have devoured this as though watching a movie play out in front of me. Portia is amazing at making you feel as though you are right there with the characters. I have loved Cara, she is a fantastic main character, likeable and realistic. However, we find that she is unhappy her cousin has invited the ex boyfriend to the family wedding.
I have a slight crush on Joe from this one (I imagine him as a cross between Jamie Dornan and Nicky Byrne) he is outgoing, confident and exactly what Cara needs. As they "date" I've wanted to shake them to open up their true feelings. I have literally been rooting for them from the very beginning.
This book will make you laugh and cringe, especially when Joe tries to chat up Cara's boss on her wedding day. This will also make you want to cry at times but overall this is an absolutely magical read which has been a great escape. I would say that this is my favourite of Portia's books- but I say that about all of them. This is without a doubt a five star read by a hugely talented author.

******Public links to follow on blog tour**********

A fun, fast-paced read. The perfect escapism! One of my favorite tropes has always been, "Please be my plus one oh, oops, now I'm in love with you," and this book serves up that delicious trope alongside a great helping of comedy and swoony romance. Five stars!

Are you single, with a never ending series of family and friends events where you have been told you can bring a plus one? Ever get sick and tired of the expectation that you will have someone to drag to these events?

If so then you should be able to easily identify with both Cara and Millsy's situation and the pact they make as new friends to accompany each other to a whole host of gatherings.

I loved how they were both adamant they weren't even pretending to be fake dates, and just purely a respectable plus one for each other, and how a real friendship built up between them.

With each event this pair goes to, something appears to go wrong, and it was great fun seeing how they got themselves out of various situations. I also loved both Millsy and Cara's jobs - both quite different and in the case of Cara's especially not one I've come across in books before.

This is a really amusing story that entertained me greatly in my garden in lockdown. Another joyous read from the always enjoyable Portia MacIntosh.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.