Make Up Break Up

November 9, 2020
YA author Sandhya Menon (When Dimple Met Rishi) makes her adult debut, writing as Menon, with this fun rom-com between rival app developers. Romantic Annika Dev hopes that her app Make Up will offer struggling couples second chances by helping them find ways to communicate. Charismatic Hudson Craft is all about efficiency, and his app Break Up helps end failing relationships without prolonged emotional conversations. Their values and career goals couldn’t be more opposed—but Annika can’t stop thinking about the steamy night they shared in Vegas last summer. With Break Up’s popularity skyrocketing and Annika on the verge of bankruptcy, their rivalry kicks into high gear. Things heat up further when the pair go head-to-head at an investment pitch contest. Despite their constant clashing, Annika is irresistibly drawn to Hudson and she realizes he is much more than his shallow public personality. Though the abrupt ending offers a frustratingly meager glimpse of the lovers portion of their enemies-to-lovers arc, the witty banter and electric sexual tension throughout will keep readers hooked. This winning romance will especially appeal to fans of The Hating Game. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary.

January 1, 2021
Annika Dev is the 24-yeard-old CEO of Make Up, an app that helps couples communicate more effectively. The app is her passion, but development is taking longer than anticipated, and bankruptcy looms. Meanwhile, her nemesis is thriving and has just moved his office into her building. Before Hudson Craft created the Break Up app, which enables people to outsource their break ups, he and Annika met at a conference and spent an intimate week together. The Hudson she remembers is nothing like the infuriating person he is now, and she's ready to crush him at the investment pitch contest. Yet she can't deny the strong chemistry that still exists between them. This entertaining enemies-to-lovers romance marks the adult debut of the popular YA author, writing as Sandhya Menon, of When Dimple Met Rishi (2017). The narration solely focuses on Annika and is sometimes redundant, which makes for uneven pacing. But the sexual tension sizzles, and themes of familial expectations and financial stress add richness and intrigue. Hand this one to fans of Alisha Rai and Sally Thorne.

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