All the stars! This was a debut?? Friends to lovers. Dual timelines. Second chance. Cozy fall vibes! My only issue is Adam was perfect and June was a bit insufferable at times. One of my favorite reads this year for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Ballantine, for letting me read an eARC of this book! This book comes out on September 30, 2025.

In this book we’re following our main character June Wood who is an aspiring actress. She’s living in LA pursuing her career when she gets an email compelling her to come back to NYC. When she arrives, she finds herself in a meeting with her old roommate, and her old best friend, Adam Harper. This meeting essentially kicks off the plot of this book, and we follow both June and Adam as they try to navigate life and seeing each other again after 5 years of no contact.

This book was such an emotional, yet fun fall read! The vibes for fall were there as we follow June and Adam during an NYC autumn, slowly putting the pieces of their relationship back together. They did a bunch of fun fall activities and it felt like such a cozy fall read. Not to mention how emotionally invested I was!

This story is told in the present day and we also get flashbacks to their relationship when they were living together. We got to see how they got closer and closer the longer they lived together, and then we saw how distant they were at the start of this book after 5 years of not seeing each other. It was quite an emotional read seeing them repair that bond that they had, and learning what exactly happened between them all those years ago.

This book was beautifully crafted, and told such an amazing story of friendship, love and loss. (Not necessarily in that order lol) I adored this book and can’t wait to see what Joss Richard writes next!!

This is such a great debut! If you are looking for a cozy romance to curl up with this fall, you need to add this one to your TBR. This is a dual timeline, close proximity, second-chance romance. If you are a fan of NYC, you will love how this story transports you there. A good part of the story takes place in a brownstone 😍 and the FMC is a broadway actress. The MMC is a chef and all of the food descriptions had my mouth watering,

The chemistry between the MMCs was on point and I really enjoyed seeing how their relationship developed over the years.

Just a heads up that the miscommunication trope is a big part of this story. I don’t love this trope but the believable characters and cozy setting absolutely won me over.

Thank you to Penguin Random House for inviting me to read this and to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

You’ve Got Mail, 13 Going on 30, While You Were Sleeping, Sleepless in Seattle & It’s Different This Time… top tier romcoms, stories that melt your heart, and leave you feeling that everyone will find true love. June and Adam were exactly what you wanted in a second chance romance with fate knocking at their doors. Chloe is the best friend everyone wishes they had. This honestly has taken the top spot on romance novel favorite list! I could reread this as often as i rewatch You’ve Got Mail! Bonus that none of those have, it gets SPICY just when you need it. I absolutely loved this book, it will be my new romance recommendation for everyone!

This was a joy of a book. I resonated with June, feeling disconnected from her family. And one's family just not understanding your career! I enjoyed the plot and felt like it was really cute. Getting left a $6mil dollar home and having to split it with, essentially, an ex?!?!

This was a great debut by Joss Richard! The second chance romance was heart wrenching and I loved following both timelines. I read most of this in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down!

That was the perfect fall romance in New York. I loved the dual timelines. And I felt so deeply entwined in the main character’s love for eachother. I read this in one sitting with my best racing just begging these two to work it out because it was so clear how much they loved eachother. Seriously, brava. This is a staple in fall romance books.

I absolutely adored this book! I kicked my feet so hard, I almost knocked myself out 😅.

Some of my favorite things in a romance book include friends to lovers, past to present timelines, and it’s always been you. This book delivers on all accounts and does it well. I’m pretty picky with this genre. It’s been many months since I’ve truly loved a rom com. Additionally, the pacing and writing were very good. It’s impressive that this is Joss Richard’s debut novel. I think fans of Emily Henry, Abby Jimenez, and Christina Lauren would eat this up!

This book was well on its way to a 5 star. There was some unnecessary extra miscommunication at the end. I think it was just a way to drag it out. We just didn’t need that part in my opinion. Especially, when it felt like it was wrapping up so nicely.

Still, an amazing rom com that I would recommended if you love a good bit of longing and a NYC fall setting. 4.25 ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine/Dell Publishing for the advanced reader copy of this second chance romance.

This is told in a duel timeline from the female main chatacter's POV. We have a present timeline in which our female and male main characters, who haven't spoken in years, have inherited a brownstone in NYC from their landlord of 15 years prior. Then we have a flashback timeline of when the characters first met and the subsequent years that they lived in the house together.

The writing could be a little confusing at times. It was hard to tell what was the internal monologue of the charcater verses what was actually being spoken at times. Because the plot is heavily dependent on miscommunication, the characters came off as immature and annoying, and I lost interest in the plot. The miscommunication caused the pacing to be extremely slow as well.

This wasn't a bad book. It was just a combination of many things that were just not for me.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the early copy of this book.

If you love 90s romance movies this book is for you. A heartfelt story of June as she navigates her journey to self-discovery, and finds a second chance at love along the way. You’ll be rooting for her at every moment and feel as if you’re in the story right beside her. The perfect book for fall.

Sometimes you get a second chance. At least that is the case for Adam and June. They haven’t spoken for more than half a decade and yet now these two former roommates (and more) have been brought back together and must confront their past. Told via dual timelines, Joss Richard’s delivers a second chance romance in It’s Different This Time. The set up to the story is fun if a little wild, the characters generally likable, the chemistry and banter felt quite real. Impressive debut. I’d like to thank Ballantine Dell, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of It’s Different This Time.

This book felt like a movie, like a hug. For a new release, it has an unexpected nostalgic quality that kept me fully engaged. It’s a true love story, impossible not to root for June and Adam! Plus, the writing is amazing.

Years ago, June and Adam were always more than friends. They both knew it, but refused to acknowledge it for fear of ruining the friendship and their ideal roommate situation.
Presently, June temporarily returns to New York after being informed she’s inherited the house her and Adam lived in years ago. Since they have to wait. a couple of weeks for the property to be theirs, June takes advantage of the free housing to explore a career opportunity that might get her back to broadway, a dream she gave up when she moved away. In the years she was gone, Adam’s career as a chef has really taken off and he has found a lot of success. Living with June again is a choice for him, but he’s hoping to reconnect with her by being roommates again.

Adam and June have to finally face their unresolved feelings for each other and the consequences of the choices that find them still at the metaphorical restaurant after years. Told through flashbacks, the story builds up as we see the details of their former friendship shaping the way to their eventual estrangement. Highly emotional moments and frustrating cowardice make up a relatable story that’s impossible to put down.

Even with the all of the back and forth between them, and the existing insecurities that still linger; in the end, it all felt necessary for a satisfying resolution. They were just two imperfect people afraid to lose what’s most important to them. Facing the fact now that the fear lead them to lose each other anyway, they have to risk taking advantage of the opportunity to do things differently this time around.

I loved this book and can’t wait to see it get its flowers this season. Something about the setting and the storytelling made the story feel so timeless. And on top of that, with how beautiful that cover is, I can already tell this is going to be one of those books we recommend for fall every year!

This was such a cute story of two people living in NY. The characters had great chemistry and I did enjoy the story. That said, it definitely got a little spicy at times and there was some miscommunication that was a little much but overall fun story. Thanks to NetGalley for the arc.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

June Wood left NYC and her roommate Adam Harper to pursue her acting career in LA six years ago, but with a recently canceled TV show and being out of a job, an email about inheriting her previous NYC residence brings her back to NYC and Adam to confront all of their history and unresolved past.

I’m just going to be yelling about It’s Different This Time by Joss Richard from here on out. I would like to give it all of the stars – because it deserves them. What do you mean this is a debut book?!? When I saw Sarah Adams blurbed this book, I immediately went to see what it was all about and was hooked by the premise of the book, and let me just say it did not disappoint, no notes, pick it up immediately to read! This is perfect for the girls who love second chance romance, friends to lovers (even though they’ve been estranged for 5+ years), all the pining/yearning and unresolved feelings, flashbacks, fall/Autumn vibes, NYC, and Les Mis. The flashback scenes were absolute perfection, even knowing that they hadn’t spoken in years, when I got to the scene that led to their estrangement my heart was physically hurting for them and I really just wanted to yell at them for being big dumb dummies. This book just straight up took ahold of me and has me in a chokehold, and I now want to pack my bags and head for a fall trip to NYC. Honestly, the writing and story were soooo good, I forgot I was reading and it was like a movie/TV show was playing out in front of me. Absolutely loved June, Adam, their friends and this book in general – I don’t know that I can truly express how much I LOVED this book.

Can’t wait to see what Joss Richard writes next, because I will be reading it.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided to me through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Joss Richard and Ballantine | Dell for giving me the opportunity to read this book!

Thank you, Dell for the E-ARC of this book!

Debut author? I would have never guessed that a newbie on the scene wrote THIS book.
It has everything you would want from a romance novel. Banter, friendship, chemistry, sexual tension, pining and angst. Second chance and friends to lovers are my favorite tropes and Joss Richard took them, sprinkled them with swoon, and make a damn near perfect fall romance.

The best novels are where you want to be best friends with the MFC- Check
Fall head over heels for the MMC- Check
Want to shake the characters to make them see what's right in front of them- Check
Think about befriending your landlord so you too can inherit a multimillionaire dollar brownstone-in progress.


Easy 5 stars and sign me up for whatever Joss Richard writes next.

Thank you to Ballantine and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!
----------
Reeling from the cancellation of her hit TV show, June Wood has nothing left to lose when a mysterious email lures her back to the New York City brownstone she once called home before she moved to Los Angeles. Thanks to a clause in the former owner’s will, she and her old roommate, Adam Harper, now own the multimillion-dollar property—or at least they will in a month, once all the paperwork is signed.

Four weeks, then June can return to her life in LA and forget about New York City and everything she left behind. Sure, the fact that June and Adam are estranged and haven’t even spoken in five years, and that their friendship didn’t exactly end on good terms might complicate matters, but this is an opportunity of a lifetime.

As the autumn leaves fall around them, through shared meals and late-night conversations, old wounds and long-buried sparks resurface, and it becomes strikingly clear: June and Adam have unfinished business. Confronted with the consequences of their choices years before, they must now navigate the minefield of their past the best way they know how: together. Second chances are always a risk, but maybe, if they get it right and are finally honest with each other and with themselves, it could be different this time.
----------
This debut from Joss Richard had a lot of things working in its favor for me. I am a huge fan of New York City in the fall. I love Broadway. I am a bit of a foodie. And I always love a good second chance romance. Therefore, I went into this book expecting to really enjoy it, and I am happy to report that I was correct, and this was a great read for me. I really liked all the characters and enjoyed getting to know them. I am a huge fan of found family stories, and this book had plenty of that. The only thing that didn't flip this over into a five-star read for me is that one of my least favorite tropes factored heavily into the storyline, and that just made it a little less enjoyable for me. However, this was a really solid first novel from this author, and I look forward to reading more from her in the future!

Instagram review: June has left her life in NYC behind and is now living in LA, pursuing a career in TV and film. But when she gets a surprise call that she might inherit the brownstone she used to live in, she’s swept back to New York—back to her old apartment and her former roommate and ex-best friend, Adam.
June and Adam were strangers first, then roommates turned best friends, and almost something more—except June was always too afraid to risk losing him. After things ended on bad terms, being back in their shared space forces June to confront what she really wants. Full of fall in New York City vibes, second chance romance & a friends to lovers dual timeline, this was a fun September read!

First off I want to thank NetGalley for the ARC!

This book was everything! Adam and June I think have become my favorite couple. This truly has Fall book written all over it especially since in the book they describe fall in both LA and New York.

Falling in love with your best friend sounds amazing but for June it’s one of the scariest things. After so many years June is brought back to the house that started not only this amazing friend with Adam but also the heartbreak that follows. June and Adam have been given the house they first rented together when the old landlord dies. They haven’t seen one another in years. Not since June packed up one day for LA to start her career and didn’t come back.

Adam is such a sweet loving soul. The way that they love one other is truly what you should have in a relationship. A best friend. Watching them open up again and fall in love all over again like no time ever past is what makes this book so heart warming. They just work so well with one another.

You can feel all the feelings they are having. I understand being scared to love your best friend in a relationship way. Being scared to lose that person. I love that even with these big things happening for themselves it’s not truly what has made them happy.

Five stars truly doesn’t give this book justice

This was a beautiful romance, but definitely not a light hearted one. June is an aspiring actress who needs a place to stay in NYC. Her friend finds an amazing brownstone that June falls in love with, but the rent is just slightly out of her budget. So June does something crazy and asks the guy she just met at the bookstore to share the place with her. But we don’t find this all out until partway in. The book starts years after their meeting where June and Adam meet again for the first time in years when they discover they are inheriting the brownstone. The book goes back and forth between the present and the past unraveling their relationship and all that happened, and what is happening now. This was a great second chance romance with a lot of tension and angst. The book also covered some very deep topics with sensitivity (cancer and parental abandonment), so read this second chance romance with caution if those are triggers for you. I received an ARC and this is my honest review.

2.5⭐️

Man I'm not gonna lie I struggled really hard with this book. I could not connect with the FMC, June. She was whiny, rude, selfish, and unlikable IMO. I think there is a balance in creating a character that has been wounded and becomes guarded, but is still likeable. Unfortunately, I don't feel like this was ever achieved. I liked the MMC, Adam, way more than I liked June. I forced myself to keep reading this book since I received it as an eArc, and while it got a little better towards the middle end, I then became frustrated again with the FMC and the plot line and wanted to chuck the book against the wall 😵‍💫

I thought based off the cover there would be more fall vibes, but you could honestly read this any time of the year because it mentions that it takes place the beginning of fall and then talks about the weather once or twice. There wasn't anything atmospheric about the book to lend to it being a cozy, fall read.

It wasn't a terrible book, but I wouldn't read it again or recommend it to anyone. For being "best friends" these two sure do suck at communicating and being truthful. I can see immaturity, as a 20 year old, being the cause for the lack of communication initially, but after all that time had passed and they were reunited, the only one who had done any maturing or growing was Adam. June was still acting like a child with her lack of drive, not being willing to have an honest conversation, running away, etc. I was left wondering what Adam even saw in her if I'm being for real. She was one big red flag after another.

I thought the writing in this book was done well, so I will definitely try another book by this author. I just did not like the character in this one. I would have DNF it if I hadn't received the arc.

*friends to lovers
*forced proximity
*grief from losing a parent

Thanks to NetGalley, Ballantine, and Joss Richard for an eArc to read and review.