When Ben Loved Jace

He Loved Him #2

by Jay Bell

I finally found my dream guy. My soulmate. Jace is handsome and tall, charming and kind. You should see him with his cat. They’re so adorable together! He might just be the man that I end up marrying… but here’s the thing: Jace has a complicated past. I know there’s more to it than he’s been telling me. And if I’m honest, my own isn’t all rainbows and butterflies. I’m still a little damaged from what happened back in high school, but if we can somehow heal each other, there will be no end to the love we share.

When Ben Loved Jace continues a young man’s quest for his heart’s desire. Steamy and unflinchingly tender, their story will make you crave each kiss and cherish each embrace.

348 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 3, 2025

About the author

Jay Bell is a proud gay man and the award-winning author behind dozens of emotional and yet hopelessly optimistic stories. His best-selling book, Something Like Summer, spawned a series of heart-wrenching novels, a musically driven movie, and a lovingly drawn comic. When not crafting imaginary worlds, he occupies his free time with animals, art, action figures, and—most ardently—his husband Andreas. Jay is always dreaming up new stories about boys in love. If that sounds like your cup of tea, you can get the kettle boiling by visiting www.jaybellbooks.com.

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting concept, rewriting these books from a different perspective. It was still a very good book but I liked the first telling better. Ben comes off much more selfish in this one. Still would recommend though because I love these characters.

[Nick Vallina (MisterGhostReads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this series continues to be a first-person-Ben-is-finally-telling-the-events-HIS-way of the Something Like... series that starts with Something Like Summer, it is ever so slightly different from the originals.

This is due, per Ben, to the fact that Jay Bell (lmao who is 'real' in the series and that's so funny) gets some stuff wrong. I think these books are honestly a bit better but it is weird to see things like Jace meeting Jason together with Ben. I love it, but its a bit weird.

Honestly my favorite part of this retelling series is that this book was CHOCK FULL of my book boyfriend Jace Holden. (He's literally the only fictional man to come remotely close to my ultimate fantasy Oliver Blackwood from Boyfriend Material.) CHOCK FULL. Rather than just a portion of Summer (and then his POV in Something Like Autumn) this whole ass book is his relationship with Ben. I would have read THREE books of their whole relationship. I still hate Tim in this portion of Ben's life and I'm a die-hard Jace lover (though I come around to Tim in the future of the series).

Its a bit hard to talk about this book without some light spoilers. I won't spoil things but there is this expectation that Tim is the Long Game for this series (and you're right) but don't write off the impact that Jace has on Ben (and me. I can't reiterate how much I love him)

Also did I sob last night while finishing it despite already knowing how these books go? Yes. I love these characters so much and I will never not cry while reading about them.

Seriously, if you're my friend on here and you vibe with the books I vibe with, read these!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still love Jace…still hate Tim 😂

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jay has done a wonderful job enriching this chapter of Ben’s life in the retelling. He’s also changed it up a lot, adding drama and intrigue. But that’s often at the cost of continuity for those attached to the “Something Like…” series and its rich connections. This is Ben’s retelling of events later in life, so it makes sense, if often jarring for one as familiar as I am. The spirit of events is maintained but major changes include…

(SPOILERS FOLLOW)

-Many characters from “Something Like Autumn” appear in sizeable roles, with Ben developing his relationships to them much earlier and in more depth than before.
-The timeline appears to be different - no marriage legal drama, more cell phones, social media and “current” world type references.
-Ben never lived in Chicago before moving to be nearer Allison - I don’t like that one.
-Ben’s first meeting with Jace isn’t as a passenger - also don’t like that, or that their first date skating is missing (but I guess sameness is the enemy of relevance in a rewrite)
-Eric, rather than Ben gives Chinchilla to Tim - also huge change to the dynamics and significance.
-Eric and Ben meet. Eric does not die until after Ben and Tim’s first reunion and separation.
-Ryan and Ben interact much more… it’s juicy.
-Ben still learns the truth about Victor at thanksgiving, but in a different light and at an entirely different point in their relationship than originally presented in “Something Like Stories Vol 1”.
-Ben meets Marcelo again after his birthday party, but before their original next meeting after Jace’s death.
-And many more.

But the big one…

-Ben meets Jason when Jace does. And the two of them go through the motions of starting to foster him. This is gonna have huge ripple effects on the next rewrite “When Ben Loved Jason” and I’m living for it.

As with the last one, this will go down best for:
-those new to Ben’s story.
-fans who haven’t read the original series in a while.
-and those who readily embrace or enjoy alternate timelines.

[jandro · Rating 3 out of 5]

another fast read. writing is better than Nora’s but still not adept. however, raw & a reminder of love.
ok, my MLM book desires have been quelled.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished this a while ago as a Patreon first-read, and as a big fan of Jay Bell and someone who circles through a few of his books per year, the ability to revisit the golden era of Something Like Autumn/Spring while having the ability to deviate and through Ben’s pen revise the story is well taken-advantage-of. Pulling Eric into the storyline earlier, to recognize the importance of literature through the characters, and some changes to Allison’s character are wonderful character beats. Recommended highly.

[alys · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unexpectedly my very first book in 2026 cuz I'm really curious about this series lol. Actually, I’m not into this one as much as the first book, maybe because I can’t really bring myself to like Jace the way I loved Ben with Tim. Even though Jace is the greenest flag of them all lmao my heart just wasn’t there (I mean everyone have their own taste, so...)

At this point, I think I’ve become pretty familiar with the universe of this story and I know what I’m getting from it. So I’ll be honest, what I was really looking for in this book were the Ben and Tim moments again. That tension, the thrill of whether they would get back together or not, made everything feel hotter. I did feel very bad for Jace, but… hell yeah, whatever. I still read every Jace moment and tried to like him, but for me it was just so-so. The part where I truly felt for Jace was definitely near the end, iykyk. I won’t say more because spoilers, but that part did hit.

Overall, I still like the book, but the content didn’t really do it for me. I know this is just a part of Ben’s life, especially since we’re getting the third book later this year (hopefully). I also understand that this is an important part of how Ben and Tim grow, but personally it felt kind of like filler.

The funny thing is, after finishing this book, I couldn’t hold myself back and ended up reading the last parts of Something Like Summer and Something Like Winter. I only discovered Jay Bell through When Ben Loved Tim and the last part of Something Like Winter gave me the scene I wanted. Part of me thinks that scene might be included in the next book of this series, but another part of me didn’t want too many spoilers. Because of that, I couldn’t bring myself to continue with Something Like Spring and Something Like Forever even though I originally wanted to.

I also realized that I prefer Jay Bell’s writing style in this series much more than the third-person POV in the Something Like series. In the end, I decided to just wait for the next book instead of reading everything else!

[Jake Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll come back after I finish the book. But I am writing this to ask others, who have read the Something Like... series and this new retelling first person version of these great stories, do you find it strange the details of certain events have been changed. For example, I don't think Ben ever met Eric in Something Like Winter. But in this version Ben does. Eric had died already when Tim runs into Ben... I find it strange. I'm going back to Something Like Winter to confirm this.

[Ben Pound · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keep them coming!

I hope that Jay Bell keeps writing these new versions of the stories based on the original Something Like... series because they are absolutely fantastic. The in-depth look at the love story of Jase and Ben is deep and moving. Jay is still one of my favorite authors and I can't wait for the next installment.

[Daniel Ruiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laughed AND cried!

[Alan Villafana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of Jay Bell and truly enjoy the different versions of his Something Like characters, and this book did not disappoint. While a few changes to the timeline may catch longtime fans like myself off guard, it is overall a great revisit to this universe, especially with Ben and Jace.

[Regis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot stand Ben in this book. He's incredibly selfish, takes Jace's love for granted, and can't stick to any decision. All right, now that I worked through my anger, let's talk about the good stuff. JACE! So incredible to spend time with him again, but just as heartbreaking to lose him. Hope this is the last book that he dies in. Don't know how many more times I can go through this. Anyway, decent story overall, with good narration.