Love, Just In, is a contemporary adult romance, set in beautiful Newcastle, It cleverly combines the modern day dramas of a Sydney newsreader and her long term best friend, a paramedic who now lives in Newcastle, where she is sent to work in the newsroom. The usual will they, won't they goes between the 90's and modern times, showing when they first met as 14 year olds, and where they stand now. What is slowly revealed is what happened in between, and why is there now friction between them. An easy to read novel which explores a variety of more hard hitting issues, this book will be easy to recommend to lovers of contemporary romance.

This novel is so much more than a love story, so much more than an enduring friendship. This is about life .. the things that make us and also the things that break us. It shows us hope, it gives us hope, and how we all should have belief in ourselves.

The story of Josie and Zac, is very heartfelt, with both of them enduring their own issues and problems. I really enjoyed their journey together, it was brilliant the way the story went back in time to fill in the background and then came forward again to their lives now.

In the world today, mental health is a very real issue for more people than the world can even imagine. It can be extremely debilitating and very did to come to terms with, but the healthcare professionals are amazing these days.

This was a brilliant story about love, loss, friendship, reconnecting, personal growth but above all else it was a joy to read.

If you enjoy Emily Henry, Abbey Jimenez & Ali Hazelwood books I have no doubt that you’ll enjoy this.

Josie & Zac have been best friends since they are 13 years old. They have shared everything from first kisses to most embarrassing moments & everything in between.

Josie has stood firm that they are best friends and nothing more even when she gets unexplained jolts in her heart once in awhile.

After Zac tragically loses his fiance he pulls away from Josie and literally moves to put distance between them and Josie doesn’t know why.

When her job brings her closer to him 2 years later they finally face each other, their feelings and the truth.

All of this emotional turmoil takes place while Josie fights her own mental health & anxiety struggles. She constantly thinks she is dying due to previous loss of loved ones and her own PTSD.

To some, Josie & her wild health anxiety might seem over the top. But I relate too closely to her & this one hits hard right now.

I went for a mammogram this week & today received a call that they want me back to take a closer look at some things. This isn’t the first time. I’ve had 2 biopsies already. But this is for something different. And instantly I’m panicking. The struggle to stay off Google is incredibly difficult because someone online has the answers, right? Wrong…

As Natalie Murray says in her author notes “Stay off Google because I’m pretty sure that not all the five billion people on the internet went to medical school.”

The amount of times I have turned to my husband and said “I’m dying” because of A, B or C is countless.

I haven’t had specific therapy just for this but for anxiety in general and as bad as I can still be it’s nothing like it was.

So stay off Google and WebMD, get real answers from medical professionals & read more love stories!

Josie is moving down to Newcastle for a temporary reporter job for six months after an on-air panic attack. Her best friend, Zac just so happens to live in Newcastle and she asks him to show her around the area. The thing is, she hasn’t seen or spoken to Zac for two years since he moved down there after his fiancé passed away in a car accident. Zac and Josie try to build their friendship back and hide their attraction from each other while working through their mental health and careers.

I loved, loved this book. I did mark it down one star since the beginning was hard to get into because each chapter switched between the present and a past event of their lives. Fans of Emily Henry will love this book and I will be recommending this book for all my romance lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As much as I love a BFF to lovers romance, this one just didn't do it for me. The timeline jumped back and forth between too many time periods...8 years ago, 2 years ago, 15 years ago....it was so distracting trying to keep up. I also couldn't connect with the female lead character. I really liked the the guy, but I just didn't find her likable at all.

This book deals with some serious issues. There were tears of sadness and tears of joy. I thought the author did a great job of navigating the difficult topics and I loved the positive female support depicted. It would've been easy for some of the characters to be catty. Overall a good read!

Thanks NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this early! I’m always a fan of friends-to-lovers troupe and this one didn’t disappoint. Josie and Zac have known each other since school days and are now in their late 20s. She is a reporter trying to move up the ladder. He is a paramedic. She suffers from health anxiety and he is very understanding of it (as a reader, you can’t help but feel for her and everything she goes through). One part I didn’t understand: she’s dating a guy who exhibits alcoholic traits and she still gets in car and allows him to drive her home after he’s been drinking with her. For a character with anxiety, it surprised me she would find this “safe.” Especially since he causes an accident that ends up hurting her, but thankfully us the catalyst for making her notice what he’s really all about.

My favorite trope to read about is the friends to lovers mainly because of the slow burn, the whip smart banter and those ""just between us" looks and knowing experiences. I think what I love about this particular storyline is how we see how the chemistry was always brewing under the surface between Josie and Zac in the flashback scenes. The slow-burn is delicious if not out-right frustrating at times (which I secretly love). Zac is the perfect cinnamon roll MMC and the pain he goes through feels very real. Josie, at times was difficult to understand. She has severe anxiety and doesn't even talk to her best friend about it. Since almost all the book is told through her POV, we hear a lot of her thoughts. If she said any one of the many things out loud to those around her that love her.... there would be so much less conflict in her life but then we wouldn't have this story, now would we? Overall, I really felt that these two had some major chemistry on the page and I was rooting for them the whole time. I have a weakness for Australian accents so I hope this one gets an audiobook. I would listen in a heartbeat. I think there are two themes that this book is doing a wonderful job of shining a light on; anxiety and grief. The author provided two characters who didn't always make the right choices but you felt like it wasn't just for the sake of having a "conflict" to resolve but rather a real life reaction. I look forward to more from this author and I also want to thank NetGalley for the ARC to review for my honest feedback.

OMG I feel so seen.
And I might finally have a name for the fear of a bad diagnosis. Health Anxiety. Coupled with chronic catastrophising. Josie and I could totes be BFF's.
Every time I lose someone close to me, I go through everything Josie went through. I have even found lumps that I have catastrophised over.
I absolutely, thoroughly enjoyed reading this.
I loved the friends-to-lovers trope and I loved Josie as a character. She's funny and sweet and looks like so much fun.
Zac is just lovely.
If I had one criticism, it would be Josie's penchant for getting into cars with Lindsay after everything she and Zac went through. Yes, Zac lost Tara, but so did Josie to an extent and that's only touched on as a catalyst for Josie's anxiety.
The spicy scenes were well done and the right amount of heat for the people involved.
Zac's texting afterward was one of my favourite things.
I received a copy via NetGalley and I'm so happy I requested to review this. All opinions are my own.

This was a cute read! Emily Henry fans will enjoy this!
If you're looking for a really sweet friends to lovers/second chance romance, but also depictions of mental health struggles, dealing with grief and a cute puppy, this may just be your new book bestie.
I was honestly expecting a fluffy contemporary romance but was so surprised how great this ended up being.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgally for this advanced copy of Love, Just In

This book gave me major Emily Henry vibes but make it Australian

I loved the story although found Jose frustrating at times. I didn’t like the plot kind of making Zac cheat on Meghan. There were a few questionable scenes there likewise for Lindsey.

I liked the inclusion of health anxiety as this is not something you hear about often. It was interesting to see what it may feel like for someone to live with it.

This book doesn’t contain much smut which I enjoyed. There was only a few pages of this which felt necessary to the plot

Overall great romance book and will be keep an eye on this author for future releases

Also posted on Goodreads

3.5 stars = I like it but...

I like friends to lovers, so the basic premise of the story with the starring pair who were best friends from childhood, their friendship derailed by tragedy, reconnecting when Josie moves to Zach's new hometown for a job opportunity is my catnip. I liked the reconnection and thought the author did a good job of portraying long time friends and developing the sensual tension between them. I also liked the Australian setting a lot.

There are a couple places where I struggled a bit though. Josie seems a bit clueless about the fact that the guy she's dating has a drinking problem and doesn't handle the situation well. The other thing is that Josie's issues with health anxiety, while probably portrayed well since the author herself has personally dealt with the same issue, were hard to read mostly because of how she deals with events with real potential consequences.

Trigger warnings: There are several deaths in the past which impact the characters, and mentions of cancer, deaths from cancer and a scene with a character in the final stages of cancer. Also: alcohol use, drunk driving and survivor's guilt.

Overall, I like this, but it is not the light romance read I'd expected from the cover - but it's all there in the cover blurb that I must not have read.

ARC courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley. Expected publication January 3, 2024. This is an unpaid review.

Special thanks to Natalie Murray, Allen & Unwin and NetGalley for the eARC!

This definitely gives me Emily Henry vibes but I absolutely adore it being set in Australia!! It's so nice to have a book like this set in areas I actually know and can just imagine it 🥰

But for real this was such a lovely story and I really enjoyed it, definitely recommend if you're into Emily Henry 😊

Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy. This story was definitely Australian and used some terms that I didn't understand, but it didn't slow down the flow of the story too much. I wanted to have more sympathy for the main character, but found it hard going at times. As each back story unfolded, it made it a bit easier to understand where she was coming from. Liked the setting.

I'd like to start by thanking the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read "Love, Just In" by Natalie Murray before its official release. This book is a mix of humor and heart in a friends-to-lovers romance, but it has pros and cons.

The story delves into some heavy stuff, like loss and mental health issues. It's important to mention this, as it might be a bit much for some readers.

The book has moments when it jumps back to show us the characters' pasts. However, these flashbacks feel rushed and could have been more thoughtfully integrated into the story to give us a deeper understanding of the characters.

Another thing to note is that the characters often speak like teenagers, even though they're in their late twenties. This can make some parts of the story feel a bit awkward and take away from the more serious moments.

The book’s pacing is all over the place, making it difficult to get into. Some parts move too quickly, while others drag on. It's a rollercoaster in that sense.

Despite these issues, "Love, Just In" offers a cute and enjoyable romance. Just be prepared for a few bumps along the way. Natalie Murray has crafted a story with its ups and downs, but it doesn't quite hit the bullseye in the romance genre.

Thanks #netgalley for this ARC copy of such a cute book. Josie and Zac are about the cutest things ever. This book is a great combination of all my favorite chic lit things: the love story; a real topic, and witty banter.

You may be asking yourself why I only gave it three stars. The reason, this story had two alternating timelines and quite frankly by 30% in the book I found I didn't like the flashback montages timeline and began skipping them. So for 70% of the book I only ready every other chapter. That's my main down side and then there were I believe two fairly graphic sex scenes that with a bit of editing could have been perfect.

I always get excited to read books about journalists as a career for characters and this one was no exception.

Zac and Josie have been best friends through childhood and into their 20’s when a tragedy rocks their life and sees the pair estranged.

Josie gets a temporary job and ends up rekindling her friendship with Zac - but does it turn into something more?

They have to navigate this new dimension to their friendship while Josie deals with her career and health problems.

I really enjoyed the book, it was easy to read and flowed well. It was also centered around an important topic which affects a lot of people - health anxiety.

Highly recommend, it was engaging and funny without being corny.

This is a fresh read. First read for me by this author and will not be my last. This book takes you through the ups and downs of two childhood friends and navigate their relationship to adulthood. This book also deals with anxiety panic attacks. This book has it all, romance, friendship, trials, wrongs that are righted. Heartwarming read. Recommend. I was given an advanced reader copy of this well written book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

Love Just In is a deeply emotional friends to lovers romance. Josie and Zac have been friends since childhood but when Josie moves to Zac’s town for work, the pair both have their fair share of trauma. Josie has severe health anxiety and Zac still struggles from the loss of his fiancée.

This is not a sweet romance but an emotional slow burn as both characters try to navigate from friends into something more. I cried several times reading this and I really couldn’t wait for Josie and Zac to finally get their happily ever after!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two stars. This was totally not the book for me. It is written in the present tense, which I hate, and it goes back and forth between the present and the past, which I also hate. The main character is totally obsessed with herself and can't see past her nose. I read the first 30%, then skipped to the end. It did get better as I worked my way backwards, but truly, it was not enjoyable to me. This was a free copy from NetGalley, and someone else will probably love it.