I love me the concept of back-up romantic partners saying let's do this and promptly falling in love!
Mitch and Rosie's story gives us flashbacks and builds up their platonic relationship quite well - they have close relations and seem to fit nicely into each other's life. They were engaging, had nice push and pull lines and seemingly could have been on the right path for falling madly in love without any pact about having kids.
This is where I don't really know why this book wasn't one I was able to finish.
Mitch was a bit too much in the centre of the attention for me. He was the driving force behind the fateful decisions, while Rosie seemed less enthusiastic. I also am not really a fan of having side quest and romantic involvement with other people when two main characters are supposedly will fall in love in the near future. Call me old fashioned, but multiple love interests were never my jam.

I really appreciated the representation of women in STEM! This was a big plus point for me. The flashback scenes gave a bit of a better understanding and made the book more 'flavourful'.

I DNF"d this book so I don't necessarily have helpful feedback. I linked it in general, but I never got hooked in by the plot and had other books I wanted to prioritize more. There were some plot points/twists that just rubbed me the wrong way.

The premise of Eleanor Goymer's The Fallback sounded appealing - a friends-to-lovers romance based on a "fallback" pact between Rosie, who's secretly been in love with Mitch for years, and Mitch, who keeps jumping from one romance to another. But the reality of how the premise was written left me cold. I found the prose flat and clunky, and, worst of all, I couldn't stand either protagonist. There was a lot of filler and the story felt stretched out and draggy, and I simply didn't like reading about these two enough to enjoy these scenes.

Thank you to the publisher for the advance review copy.

Cute sweet romance! Super quick and easy read! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I was really excited for this one but unfortunately it just didn’t live up to the expectations. As much as I usually like friends to lovers this particular story was just missing something. The pace and characters didn’t grip me the way I thought they would. Rosie’s character felt immature and Mitch came across as annoying, which made it so much harder to get into the book.

I really appreciate the opportunity to review this novel and I am sure it is the perfect book for someone, unfortunately it just wasn’t for me.

I really wanted to like this book, but the characters were hard for me to love. The MMC seemed selfish and unyielding. There was a lot of plot that did not move the story along and seemed drawn out.

This story follows the friendship between Rosie and Mitch who if they haven't found there significant other soon they decide they will have a child together.
The book was very well written and kept my interest majority of the time. My main gripe was Mitch who seemed too 2 dimensional and selfish.

Would definitely read other books from the author in the future, just don't think the story got me invested in the characters which is why I've marked down the book.

This was my honest review for receiving a free copy from netgalley.

I'm so sorry, but this book wasn't for me. I really did try, but when I dislike the characters, I just can't rate this very high, and it felt like a struggle to get through.

The premise of 2 best friends making a pact to have a child if they don't find the love of their lives in a few months would have been better off if this took place over past and present where they make a pact to have a child in x amount of years as even if you meet someone to claim love of your life in such a short time seems un relastic.

Mitch was someone who I felt was unbelievably selfish and didn't leave any room for Rosie to discuss with him and basically steamrolls the situation, and because she has been in love with him for so long she seemed to have zero backbone to call him out.

I felt like there was alot of filler pages which made it hard to get through to be honest.

I do have some other Eleanor Goymer books to read so Il see how I get on with those.

cuteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee let's read more stuff like this pleaseeee ! thanks so much for the arc and this one was more than worth it

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

My favourite tropes, such likeable characters and my most favourite part - the reversal of the typical gender roles, where Mitch was more keen for family life! A great read!

I think the premise of THE FALLBACK is a good one. It seems a bit whacky, but I could see this happening in real life. Having your best friend as your fallback for a life together, with a baby.

However, THE FALLBACK fell very flat for me. Part of it is my own trepidations about the friends-to-lovers trope. In books they are often times boring.

But, mostly I just didn't like either character.

There was a lot of filler and I didn't think the side characters had a lot to offer, because their stories overshadowed the main romance.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter for an e-copy of THE FALLBACK to review.

I rate THE FALLBACK three out of five stars.

First of all thank you for approving my request!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The authors writing style had me hooked throughout this book.

I didn't want it to end, a book I really couldn't put down.

"The Fallback" by Eleanor Goymer is a refreshing and heartfelt novel that expertly captures the complexities of love, loss, and second chances. Goymer’s characters are richly drawn, making their journeys both relatable and deeply engaging. The novel explores what happens when life doesn’t go according to plan, and the resilience it takes to find new paths forward. With a perfect blend of humor and emotion, Goymer crafts a story that is both uplifting and thought-provoking. "The Fallback" is a beautifully written tale of rediscovery and the unexpected turns that lead us to where we truly belong.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK – One More Chapter and Eleanor for gifting me a Netgalley copy of The Fallback.

The Fallback is a cute, slow-burn rom-com featuring a friend-to-lovers story about two best friends who discuss a pact to be each other's backup option to marry and have kids with if they can't find their soulmate within six months after years of disastrous dating and bad relationships.
The story is well-crafted and has plenty of twists and turns. Some plot points are a little predictable, but I loved the STEM vibes and the stereotypical role reversal of having the man want kids and worrying about his biological clock ticking. Eleanor Goymar writes to life a bustle and vibrant summer London – which reminded me of times I worked in the city and got to go out with friends and colleagues during my stays. At times, in my imagination, I felt I could hope on a train and walk into the locations where Rosie and Mitch meet and socialize throughout the book.

Many flashback scenes threaded through the plot give us insights into the friendship between Mitch and Rosie. Tumultuous behaviour throughout the story could have all been easily avoided with some common sense and communication. People are allergic to having conversations about their feelings across the globe. It feels like in the romance genre. I wanted to tell Mitch and Rosie to grow up and pull themselves up by their bootstraps.

I liked Rosie - she was an intelligent, strong career woman with uncertainty about having babies and grappling with the pressure to have them in your mid-30s. It's a very relatable issue in women's lives today for anyone over 30 who is breaking the mold of what society deems a successful life should be and how a particular stage of life should settle us. I actually couldn't like the main male character, Mitch. Throughout the story, I thought he was manipulative, selfish, and a jerk, especially in his interactions with Rosie. He behaved so childish, like that boy who likes the girl in the schoolyard and decides to be mean to her and pull her hair. A different love interest would have gotten another star from me.

Some parts of the plot are far-fetched for The Fallback; however, it was an entertaining, quick read with good chemistry between the love interests. However, I think more development and better traits could have been poured into the characters to make them likable.

I really wanted to love this book as the start of it had me hooked but as the story continued it sort of just got lost, it was longer than it needed to be, the characters and story could have lead to so much more

This book is long, much longer than it needs to me. To begin with I was really invested but then I the plot took what I thought was a slightly ridiculous turn and the characters became extremely annoying. Not the beautiful friends to lovers romance I was expecting. Not for me I’m afraid.

OMG, friends to lovers sign me up. Mitch and Rosie met in a pub one day Mitch had a spare room and Rosie desperately needed somewhere to stay. from there they were flatmates, coworkers, and best friends. Fast forward 10 years they are both in their thirties, Mitch looking to settle down and enter the fallback plan.
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I could not get enough of this book, I adored Rosie and Mitches friendship. I'm not always a big fan of the slow burn or miscommunication tropes but I did not mind them at all in this one I felt they just added depth to their relationship. I loved how close Rosie was with her family members, especially her sister-in-law Jasmine, I love how well they both rallied around each other through the trials they both went through. Overall I really enjoyed this one and am looking forward to what Goymer will write in the future.

Thank you Harper Collins UK for the ARC. Love this premise; a marriage pact is a classic, 5 stars for DNF as I cannot comment on the overall quality of this book.

The Fallback by Eleanor Goymer

I just finished this sweet friends to lovers romance and I liked it a lot!

Rosie and Mitch have been friends for a long time. They have even lived together as friends. Both are still single and they make a pact. If they haven’t found someone by the next Christmas party, they will be together as a couple and have a child.

They both agree to make an effort to find someone. But it’s not easy when you secretly have feelings for your best friend.

This was a perfect slow burn romance, exactly what I wanted.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for the opportunity to read this eARC.