Ironically I was watching reruns of Friends when I started this book, and was not disappointed in the Vegas marriage parallels. Evie and Dan have been friends since basically forever. As Evie is Dan's sisters best friend, they have been thrown together for holidays, parties, etc many times throughout the years. While Evie has never known her father and has watched her mother fail at love many times over, Dan grew up with a philandering father of his own. Needless to say, both had hangups in regards to long term relationships. While we do start right at the morning after the drunken Vegas wedding, the rest of the story gives us the full picture on how their relationship grew over time.

Friends story connection aside, this was truly a lovely read! My first Christmas book of the Year, and yet it was so much more than that. I tend to shy away from most holiday reads as they're all very Hallmarky and have a set beginning, middle, and end. This story however actually has true depth and makes it clear that while Dan and Evie may eventually get their happy ending, love and relationships are thoroughly complicated and not always easy to maneuver. Secondary characters are also fun and add much to the story. Sasha, Evie's mother, Max, etc all have equally smart stories and hold their own. This is my second Jo Lovett read and most definitely won't be my last! Though you do have to wait until October 1 to read this one, it's most certainly worth the wait!

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄/5

Thank you to NetGalley, Jo Lovett, and Bookouture for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book is so cute and follows two friends who make a pact to get married, if neither of them are married in 8 years. Flash forward to a drunken night in Vegas 8 years later. I liked the dual perspectives of the two main characters, Evie and Dan, and I thought their chemistry was great! The rest of the characters were really great too, and you either love them or hate them, in the best possible way! While I enjoyed the dual timelines, they did get confusing at times. This started out with What Happens in Vegas and My Best Friend's Wedding vibes, but really shaped into a story of it's own!

Before I begin with the review, let me ask two questions real quick. Who the hell gets married to someone on a whim just because they got drunk in Vegas and a Chapel is offering its service? And how come their parents never even talk about it to them when they decide to annul said marriage? Like, what in the spoiled White kid's world?

I'm trying really hard to find something positive to say about this book, but I can't find anything at all.
There is no plot whatsoever, no story except for the main characters meeting/bumping into each other in almost every chapter and being obsessed over each other in a very weird way too. There's a lot of telling and no showing at all. The characters explain every single line they speak (and they're not very interesting lines either, mind you).

So in pretty much every chapter, one of the two MCs remember their "pact" (by which they promised to marry each other if they were still single when Evie turns thirty) and fantasise about kissing the other person but they don't talk about it to anyone, or act upon it until we get to the last 5% of the book. Seriously? This cycle goes on for ever and it tired me out. Apart from that, there was a lot of unnecessary jealousy.

Besides, there was no depth or "character" to the characters. *sigh* I really am disappointed. There are so many other problems, including how feminism was made a joke out of more than once and how toxic the feelings Evie and Dan (the main characters) have for each other are. I feel absolutely nothing at how they behave though, which shows how bland they are. I can't even talk about the side characters because I don't even know them.

This was a great romance featuring Evie and Dan who made a pact to marry on her 30th birthday if she was still single however a spontaneous drunken ceremony in Vegas was not quite what they envisioned. and panic at their actions quickly sets in. Told from the moment they woke up the following day in alarm to snippets of their time together starting back eight years when they made the marriage pact you can see how they both have strong feelings for the other but are both damaged by their own parents relationships which has always held they back from losing the friendship they have. They’re both lovely characters and they have been well shaped by their backgrounds which makes their hesitancy towards the other credible, there’s some great interactions and a lot of warmth which makes this a great seasonal read. 7/10

I adored this book!!
So basically Evie and Dan made a pact years ago that said if they weren’t married by thirty, she and Dan would marry each other. But what neither of them expected is that they actually got married on Evie’s thirtieth birthday, on one drunken night in Vegas.
This was so warm and cozy and adorable!
I really liked the characters and their interactions, always so flirtatious and cute, even though they annoyed me at times because Evie could be so oblivious.
The friends to lovers trope is not usually my favorite trope but the way their relationship and chemistry was written was, in my opinion, really well done because I actually felt it was authentic.
Loved the dual point of view chapter, it always makes the romance feel more genuine because we can understand and see both character's actions and feelings, instead of through the other eyes.
So if you want a fluffy and warm romance for this winter, THIS IS THE ONE!!!
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to review it.

Evie and Dan made a pact years ago that should Evie still be single when she turns 30 they would get married. When Evie and Dan get drunk in Vegas celebrating her 30th, they do just that but waking up the next morning they quickly work to undue their union. Which part was the mistake- the marriage or its dissolution? This was a sweet story about two people who have known each other for years risking it all for love. They are both a bit emotionally stunted which they attribute to their parents' poor relationships. At times, it was hard to not want to smack them both. Luckily they did bring out the best in each other. The book does jump forward and back in time and between both of their perspectives sometimes without clear transitions which could be confusing. My favorite thing about the two perspectives was reading the way they both saw each other whenever they were in a room together.

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

This book was really fun! I enjoyed Dan and Evies friendship and seeing it throughout the years.
I love the wake up in vegas married trope, so right of the bat I really did enjoy this.
Such a warm and fuzzy book that leaves you with that feeling of love and romance. Really great!

On Christmas Eve, Dan and his sister Sasha's friend Evie make a deal that if she is still unmarried at thirty, they will marry. After one too many green drinks, Evie and Dan wake up together in the honeymoon suite at Evie's thirty-first birthday celebrations in Las Vegas. They acquire a quickie annulment after laughing the marriage off as a drunken adventure.
I really enjoyed this book because it gave me warm and fluffly feels. Evie and Dan were a wonderful match, however Evie irritated me at times because she was so goddamn clueless, which frustrated me at times, but I believe she was redeemed in the end.
Overall, this was a lovely read and I want to read more by Jo Lovett in the future.

With grateful thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest opinion.
An easy read problems with time line, it did not feel very consistent,and lacked atmosphere and depth.
But was an nice easy read

The Mistletoe Pact by Jo Lovett, is a cute holiday read! The book jumped between timelines, telling the story of Evie and Dan - lifelong friends who make a pact on Evie’s Christmas Eve birthday that if they were both still single on Evie’s 30th birthday, they would get married. This book includes Christmas celebrations, a 30th birthday trip to Vegas, difficult and interesting family dynamics, and two individuals, with a great need to work on their communication skills.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A wonderful feel good story. Evie and Dan are lifelong friends - Dan is Evie’s best friend, Sasha’s brother - and then one Christmas Eve they wake up in a hotel, with a hangover in Las Vegas, having got married! They had made a pact eight years previously that they would marry each other of they were both still single on Evie’s 30th birthday……. But did they mean it….. and what happens now??
Fun, sweet and romantic fiction, perfect for Christmas. I loved it!

This was a ~meh~ read for me. The jump between timelines got a little bit too much at one point, trying to keep up with what was happening and who was in a relationship with whom. I felt that the interactions between the main characters were not enough? They barely spent any time together. I skimmed through some parts. It was a good story, but the feelings did not come across as they should have I guess.

Arc provided by Netgalley and Bookouture in exchange of a honest review.

Wow, this was such a cute and refreshing read! I love nothing more than a holiday read and this one definitely left me craving more holiday reads!

This book definitely gave off major Normal People vibes. Evie and Dan could’ve solved a lot of their issues by just communicating better, but being able to see inside their heads this way was what made it an interesting read.

I would recommend this book to anyone in the mood to start their holiday reads early!

This book was warm and fuzzy which I adored. Evie and Dan were perfect for each other although Evie did annoy me at times cause she was so godamm oblivious which did frustrate me at points, but I feel like she was redeemed in the end. One little thing I would change about this book is having year each chapter is in at the top of each chapter because this book is set over multiple timelines and goes back and forth and some of the chapters don’t have the year the chapter is in on the top which did confuse me sometimes cause I wasn't sure what time the chapter was set. But all in all this was a fantastic book and I’d love to read more books by Jo Lovett

Three and a half stars.

Dan and his sister Sasha's friend Evie make a pact one Christmas Eve that if she is still single when she is thirty, they will get married. Fast-forward to Evie's thirtieth birthday celebrations in Las Vegas and she and Dan wake up together in the honeymoon suite after one too many green cocktails. Laughing the marriage off as a drunken escapade they get a quickie annulment.

Told partially in flashback over the years and looking to a near future without COVID, we see Evie and Dan dancing around each other at family parties, weddings and Christmas celebrations in the past and in the future, can they ever stop being just good friends?

I enjoyed this book, when have I never loved a Jo Lovett book? But I have to say I didn't really engage with either Evie or Dan, the chapters alternated between their POVs but their 'voices' weren't different as I was reading the book.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Evie and Dan have been friends for years and there has always been a bit of a spark there if they are honest. They made a pact under the mistletoe (a mistletoe pact) that if they are both single when Evie turns 30 that they will get married. But neither of them had actually been serious and so when they wake up next to each other after getting married on a drunken night in Vegas they are both mortified.
Evie and Dan both want to remain friends, but it isn’t going to be as simple as they hope as they are forced to confront the feelings they have kept hidden all these years.
There are so many things I want to say about this book!
Firstly, I knew I would love this book based on the author. I adore Jo Lovett’s writing style and her ability to make you feel like you are there in the story living it with the characters.
It was also utterly hilarious, the dancing, banter and general silliness between the two characters is wonderful.
I loved it-it had everything and gave me all the feels!! And Christmas thrown in for good measure-stunning!
I could not put it down and I cannot wait for the next book by Jo Lovett, but I will be re-reading this one for sure!

What a gorgeous book, got to be a favourite read of this month.
Two single thirty-year-olds. One marriage pact. And a night in Vegas that’s about to change everything…

On Christmas Eve eight years ago Evie and Dan made a pact: if they weren’t married by thirty, they were going to marry each other. Of course, neither of them took it seriously, even if Dan has always been mesmerised by Evie’s beautiful smile, and Evie has always fancied Dan, her best-friend’s brother.

But then “it” happens. They wake up on Christmas Eve, the night before Evie’s thirtieth birthday in Vegas… married. In a honeymoon suite filled with hundreds of heart-shaped pillows, they realise too late what they’ve done – just like Ross and Rachel.

Surely if they just get a quickie divorce, they can go back to the way things used to be, right? If it wasn’t for the alcohol and Susan-with-the-huge-beehive-hairdo who just wouldn’t take no for an answer, none of this would have happened. They can just go back to being friends.

Except moving on is easier said than done when you've secretly loved each other forever… but if one of them doesn’t admit that, what happens to their friendship? If they don’t get together this time, what happens to the pact? Are they really ready to let it go for good?

WoW! WoW! WoW! What an absolute mind spinning, beautiful story this was! Top marks ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️