A first book for MA Binfield, and if Not This Time is anything to go by it will be the first of many

Lovely story with a little bit of a angst.

I liked the characters of Sofia and Madison, although I did get a bit frustrated with Madison, I felt she was trying to hold Sofia back, whereas if she had loved her she should have given her room to grow and nurture. A little bit of emotional blackmail going on there.

Throw in some secondary characters and we have an enjoyable emotional roller-coaster of a story

Would I recommend, Yes if you're looking for that sweet and easy romance to read

The things I enjoy most in my spare time are reading and listening to music, when an author wraps that all into one I am bound to enjoy it.

Sofia is a pop star who seems to have it all, the pop star boyfriend, great musical success, a happy life. But all of it is fake, Noah and Sofia have a contract to pretend to be a couple, Sofia is tired of touring and no one listening to her, tired of lying, just tired in general. Sofia is planning to have her new house in Miami redecorated so it can truly be a home for her. Sofia wasn't involved in hiring the company to do the decorating, at the first meeting at her house she is truly surprised to see her old bandmate Madison. Their biggest secret is that they used to be in love. Their love affair ended when Sofia left the band, and they were both left with shattered hearts. Now, 5 years later, there are some unresolved issues, but their attraction is still there. When Sofia collapses on stage, Madison seems to be the only one that cares about Sofia's health and her state of mind. But Sofia is keeping a lot of things from Maddie, while Maddie just doesn't want to be sucked in again.
Not This Time, is the title of the book, but also a song title. The song Sofia is releasing, something she believes in, and at this point in her life has never been more meaningful. Having Maddie back in her life is all she ever wanted, but their past is hard to forget.

The author is a self-professed romantic and I think this book is an example of that. It is an easy romance with some angst. But also the description of the music industry, even the sorted one with fake boyfriends, is romanticised. I don't mind it, it makes me feel good. I like reading these books on a rainy weekend. At times I did find the angst, especially with Maddie a bit too much, it was getting to be a bit repetitive. I do really like the ending of the book, that is the hopeless romantic in me I guess. There is no real character development, of course some, but not a lot, somehow I didn't mind it one bit. This book is a certain improvement over MA Binfield's One Small Step. I enjoyed that one as well, because it made me feel good, but I liked this one just a bit more.

Four and a half stars, because I was surprised that this exceeded my expectations.
This might now be one of my favourite second chance romances, because even within their past, we aren't confused about how the characters felt for each other. My biggest pet peeve is when all of the drama happens because the characters don't communicate enough. I know, I know, it's not realistic for any couple to lay all their cards on the table. But as readers, we often see the thoughts of both sides, and it gets frustrating when something that could be minor causes a major issue. These characters really feel like they were in a healthy three-year relationship before the split, making it so much more pleasant to root for them. Of course, their tendency to be honest with each other when it counts means that the obstacles—*cough* certain third parties manipulating them to get what they want—seem a little ridiculous.
I would have liked to see Sofi done better justice. I thought that her faults contribute less to the problems than aforementioned external factors, or even Maddie. (Maybe there's a little deception at one point, but she's also on a contract.) Nobody wants to give her a chance to explain her side, and it bothered me that all of her friends were willing to turn on her without even asking for further explanation? Daya was hostile, and made a lot of decisions on Maddie's behalf, which I didn't think she should have done. Even if Sofi deserved to be shut out, Maddie might have found closure by hearing her out one last time? In any case, there was so much opposition from literally everyone that Sofi or Maddie talked to: not a single person seemed to think that they were a good match, until Ashley switched camps with no explanation. Shouldn't these people be better judges of character? What about loyalty?
Other than that, I enjoyed myself. They're a sweet couple, and the pace worked for me. It seems that MA Binfield deserves more recognition.

This was a very enjoyable read, the story unfolds very organically and both Maddie and Sofia are characters to root for without being too flawless to be believable. The banter and the chemistry was also very well developed and the kid was adorable.
Usually books about pressure to hide artist’s sexuality in the music world tend to portrait the labels and handlers as cartoonishly evil, it was refreshing to see them portraited not as homophobic but simply greedy. I also appreciated the dig to the misogynistic masculinity of the hip hop culture.
The only criticism I have is that the secondary characters were a little underdeveloped and the villain downfall was off screen (Noah was truly despicable and a I would have enjoyed reading about his troubles....)
This was the first work from this author I’ve read and it definitely peaked my interest in exploring more of her bibliography.

This book fell flat for me. I can see where a relationship would struggle when one person essentially breakup a band to go solo, but after the first chapter, I did not really care for either of the main characters. It was a struggle to read it since they weren't likable to me.

* I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

I think MA Binfield has a great potential as a new author. Her previous book was great and I really liked this one as well. Both MCs were flawed but really likable and their chemistry was insane, I couldn't help but root for them hardcore.
The one thing that didn't work for me was the reason that Sofi was hiding the truth about her and Noah for the best part of the book and i just knew that when the truth would come up, Maddie would feel betrayed all over again. Still it was a totally recommendable read.

I was drawn into the story from the first page. It’s a novel about two young band mates who fall in love, and then are torn apart by life. Five years later they reconnect, and It seems the whole world is against them. Nevertheless they are drawn to each other, but still can’t seem to get on the same page. It’s a sweet novel with a happy ending.

Craving a fun, new adult romance to delve into- i was ecstatic to be approved for this book, not only because this book was romantic but also because it had a lot of musical themes that i appreciated.

the protagonist was adorable and relatable and her chemistry with the love interest was equally as adorable and I enjoyed watching them fall in love.

I found another new author that I love and I will be buying her other books. Madison and Sofia were perfect. I’m not one that usually likes books where the MC’s are exes because sometimes those books drag and get tedious. But the tension and the chemistry were perfect. The secondary characters were more of a drag, no one wanted these two together but when it’s meant to be then it’s meant to be. If I didn’t already say it, then I’ll say it now, I loved this book.

hmm. this is well written and interesting, however, this remind me of fan-fiction for one specific band. I saw many similarities " names, hometown, Sofia's mom, heck even the sister's age difference, the way the depart happened...ext" and the author maybe took them as inspiration. For me making that connection made me feel uncomfortable. and lost the joy i had when i started reading. Furthermore, Madison was so annoying. with her fast judgment and her uncalled for accusation. Made me hate her in away. introducing her kid made 0 sense to me as well.

Overall, I highly recommend this " I think they would also make the connection as fast should they find this book, since they're still shipping them "

This was my first MA Binfield book and it definitely won't be my last! Sofia and Madison were bandmates and lovers for years but were forced to keep their relationship a secret. When Sofia decided to strike out on her own, she not only lost Madison but also her other friends. When an unexpected meeting between the two occurs, they found that lies were the reason they were kept apart. What follows is a really sweet story of two soul mates reconnecting and trying to navigate their way back into one another's hearts. I really enjoyed this book a lot and look forward to this author's next book!

Sofia is tired as much as she loves her career she tired of what comes along with it and when she collapsed she realize she needs time for herself and decides to rest at her beach house.

Madison is happy with her life she has her son and her business as interior design is going well yes she lonely sometimes although she not looking for love but if the universe send it her way she won’t let it walk by but if she knew the universe was going send her the one person she never thought she see she would’ve never listen to the universe.

Sofia and Madison were both in a well known band together what was amazing the public never pick up on them being lovers but that stop the moment Sofia wanted a solo career yes I still think they could’ve work it out but with hurt feelings and pride being in their way they went there separate ways now years later they come face to face and those feelings they had is still there.

Will they give their selves a second chance at a life together or will they leave what they still feel behind them I enjoy the read because it was low on angst which I love don’t get me wrong I love angst because it makes me root for the couple more with this couple the angst was just right that you got both POV.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Sofia and Madison were part of a well-known band and meanwhile, unnoticed by the public, lovers. When Sofia wants to leave the band, the two break up. After 5 years they meet again, now in their early thirties. Maddie lives a reclusive life with her 3-year-old son, Sofi is a famous solo artist.

The book "Not this time" by MA Binfield is a wonderful second-chance-romance in the music business. The main characters are both likeable and you wish them only the best. I devoured the book in two sittings and gave myself completely to the story. All in all, a definite reading recommendation from me.

I received a copy from netgalley in exchange for a an honest review.

Not This Time by MA Binfield is a sweet and heart warming love story. I don't really love second chance romances but because I really liked author's debut novel, I was excited to read this.
I liked the main romance and there was definite chemistry between the two women. The author described both of their sides in an interesting way. But I think that the misunderstanding that caused their romantic breakup/band break should've been explored more. I wish we were shown a few flashbacks of the past. It would've helped me connect with the characters better. The book was pretty low angst overall.
I really enjoyed the first half a lot but there were some things that annoyed me in the second half. Like when Sofia didn't tell Madison the truth about her and Noah and gave flimsy excuses for it.
I didn't like this book as much as I did the author's first one but it was still good. I will definitely be looking forward to author's next book

I received an ARC from the publisher for an honest review.