Heartwarming and Emotional Second Chance Romance

What you need to know about “The Friendship Pact”:
✔ Sunrise Cove #2
✔ Third Person, Multiple Point of View
✔ Second Chance Romance
✔ F/M Contemporary Romance
✔ Tae Holmes, FMC
✔ Riggs Copeland, MMC
✔ Disability rep
✔ Can be read as Complete Standalone

This is my first time reading a book by Jill Shalvis. I really enjoyed “The Friendship Pact” so I know it won’t be the last. This is the second book in the Sunrise Cove series but can be read as a complete standalone. This is an emotional and heartwarming book about love, friendship and family.

Tae and her mother, April, are close as April had Tae when she was just fifteen years old. They’ve made a promise to each other to try dating again. Tae is an event planner and she’s at an event when an elderly man tells her he knows her father. Tae is shocked and confused because April told her that her father died when Tae was a baby.

After the event she runs into Riggs Copeland, an old friend and ex from high school. They have a disastrous time of it on the way home to Tae’s and afterward when they are a little beaten up and tending to each other, they have a “moment”. Riggs stops and tells Tae that they should be friends again like they were in high school.

Riggs isn’t intending to stay in Sunrise Cove so, even though he is attracted to Tae, he feels like friendship is for the best. Tae and Riggs make a friendship pact for the summer. This is for the best as Tae is going to be working with him at his and his brother’s company.

The book follows Tae as she searches for clues surrounding her father as well as following her relationships with Riggs, April and Riggs’ relationship with his brother Jake. There’s also an emotional support dog named Grub and an old cantankerous cat.

The Friendship Pact is a pleasing second chance romance about family and finding love. It also includes some great disability representation with Jake and Riggs’ company Adrenaline HQ. The company's purpose is to make adventure sports accessible for Wounded Warriors and disabled kids and adults.

I received a review copy of this heartwarming romance and this is my honest review.

There is nothing I love more than curling up with a new Jill Shalvis book. She is my comfort author and I will never NOT recommend reading her books.

Riggs and Tae have a history but their chemistry is clear from the get-go. Riggs is dealing with his seperation from the military and guilt about not being around for his older brother when he needed him the most. Back home to try to convince his brother to slow down before he heads off for a new life in D.C., Riggs keeps running into to Tae and it's really throwing a wrench in his plans to stay disconnected. Tae is dealing with questions about her father while trying to protect her mother after they basically grew up together, her mother having had her as a teen, and avoiding Riggs because he'll only break her heart. They quickly learn that the pull between them is too strong to fight but just as things are getting good, the past blows in and messes things up for everyone involved.

I loved the connection between Tae and Riggs and how they tried guarding their hearts but their feelings were just too strong. It was kind of a slow-burn with just a hint of angst and an awesome addition to the Sunrise Cove series of standalones.

*I received an ARC from the author for voluntary review.

I loved this book so much and think it’s the absolute perfect beach read. I loved the setting of Lake Tahoe, the small town feel, and all of the characters.

Riggs and Tae knew each other as teens and meet again years later. Their initial re-meet cute was hilarious and my worst nightmare

Good book about two people who have put up walls around their hearts to keep them safe. For Tae, it's been her and her mom against the world her entire life. April was only fifteen when she had Tae, so they sometimes seem more like sisters than mother and daughter. Life has been challenging, but things are finally looking up. April has a good job as a receptionist with Adrenaline HQ, which provides activities/adventures for disabled kids and adults and wounded warriors. Tae has her own event planning company, which is finally taking off thanks to a contract with that company.

Tae worries about that contract when she feels her first fundraiser for them is a failure, even though Jake, the owner, is satisfied with the results. Tae is a worrier, and I loved how Jake tried to ease her fears. He tells her to go ahead and leave, and she mistakes another car for her Uber in her rush. To her dismay, the car's driver is Riggs, Jake's brother, and her high school one-night fling. She hasn't seen him since he left for the Marines shortly after that.

Riggs has left the Marines and come home for the summer before starting his new job. He's part-owner of the business but leaves it to Jake to run. But Riggs worries about Jake, one of those wounded warriors he tries to help. He's always adored his older brother, who stood between Riggs and his abusive father, and he fears that Jake is putting himself at risk. He promises to stay around for the summer and help expand the company.

I loved watching the rekindling of the relationship between Riggs and Tae. The sparks between them are instantaneous, but neither wants anything to do with them. Riggs is leaving at the end of the summer, and after everything she witnessed with her mother, Tae refuses to give a man any power over her life. So they make a pact to ignore the sparks and keep to friendship only. By keeping the physical out of the mix, they've allowed themselves to get to know each other as adults. I loved the time they spent together helping with the activities and the quieter times when they just talked. It was amazing to see how well they understood each other as both recognized kindred spirits in the self-protection game.

The sparks of attraction didn't take too long to overcome the friendship pact. Though they say it's just a fling, neither one wants to admit their hearts are involved. Tae knows she's falling for Riggs and will end up hurt, but she doesn't want to give up a minute of their time together. Riggs is a harder nut to crack. His walls are thick, and his head even thicker. I loved the conversations between him and Jake, who tries to break through Rigg's walls while Riggs fights him (sometimes literally) every step of the way.

At the same time all of this is going on, Tae is going through a bit of an identity crisis. For her entire life, April has told her that her father died in the war. But Tae recently encountered someone who claimed to know her father and that he was alive. Tae is hunting for the truth without involving her mother, whom she protects. I ached for Tae and the confusion she felt. Though she's determined to investigate on her own, Riggs involves himself in the search behind her back. While his intentions were good, his execution created the potential for disaster. Tae's feelings of betrayal by everyone were understandable, and I didn't blame her for her anger. There's a lot that goes on surrounding the truth that is revealed. In the long run, relationships change but grow stronger. Tae's anger at Riggs is especially strong as she pushes him away. I liked that he admitted he was wrong. He also finally realized the truth of his feelings for her. I loved the conversation between Riggs and Jake, as Jake tries to make him see what he'll have to do to win Tae back. "Use your words, idiot!" The light bulb moment was satisfying; I liked seeing them finally come together. The epilogue was a terrific wrap-up.

#netgalley

This is the second book of the Sunrise Cove series but can totally be read as a stand-alone. The characters are different just the setting is the same (Lake Tahoe).

This story is primarily told through the POVs of Tae and Riggs, who were once HS sweethearts and are brought back together when Riggs returns back to Sunrise Cove after being in the marines. Both characters have had tough pasts and hide their vulnerability through their tough exterior, but they are the MCs you’ll want to route for, especially as they begin to break down their walls.

The second plot focus on Tae and her mother April. As April had Tae when she was only 15 and her father was never in the picture, they’ve had a pretty codependent relationship. In this story, their relationship hits a rough patch (don’t want give any spoilers), and their chapters dive into the complexity of this mother/ daughter duo.

As a whole, I liked this story a lot and found it to be the perfect balance between dysfunction family drama and a second chance romance. Great dialogue, witty banter and a great HEA for all!!

3 1/2 stars.

Tae and her mom April are not only mother and daughter but also best friends. April was young when Tae was born and they pretty much grew up together. Tae thinks her father abandoned her mother when she was young, but it’s the one subject April doesn’t talk much about. But a random conversation causes Tae to question the father she never knew. Then when Tae gets a new contract for her event-planning business, she reconnects with Riggs, a guy she knew in high school. April doesn’t know it, but Tae may flip their entire world upside.

This was my first Jill Shalvis book and I loved how beautifully written the characters were. They all were relatable in some way and my favorite part was April and Tae’s super close relationship. Also, the small-town feel to this book was comforting. It is book #2 in the Sunrise Cove series but reads easily as a stand-alone book. If you enjoy character-driven stories and their journey towards a potential happy ending, you will enjoy this book.

Thank you to Getredpr, William Morrow and Jill Shalvis for the ARC! “The Friendship Pact” is out now!!

Jill Shavis's 'The Friendship Pact' is told from three points of view - prickly Tae, her high school fling Riggs, and her mother optimistic April.

Tae is fiercely independent having grown up with a mother 15 years older than her, living place to place and witnessing how relationships and love do nothing but hurt women. Yet she yearns to know more about her father after discovering that he might be alive.

For April, getting pregnant at 15 left her without a family or any support, leaving her co-dependent with her daughter, getting into relationships with men just so they had a home. She also has been hiding information about Tae's father.

Stoic Riggs, is allergic to committment and relationships, having left his alcoholic father's home to join his brother in the military. He's returned for the summer to help his brother run their business, only to find himself just as attracted to Tae, whom he had a brief fling with in high school.

At first this book had me frustrated with the pace of this story. While I loved that Tae was prickly and had excellent reasons for why she did or didn't do things it completely slowed down the story line for her refusal to take action on information she's learnt. Same with April and Riggs. While I understood and empathised with them this 'negative motivation' didn't move the plot forward.

However once this book overcame those hurdles I was really invested and by the end went 'wow'.

This book was a heartwarming and poignant look at family, and learning to trust in yourself and others.

Thank you to Headline and Netgalley for ARC.