All Our Almosts

NASA #1

by Allie Moffatt

Two best friends ignite a long-buried attraction in this cozy winter romance. He's loved her forever, and she's the last to know.

Sophie Lindell is at a personal and professional interviewing for PhD programs that will either keep her in Boston with her tight-knit group of friends or send her to California on her own. Already preparing for big changes, Sophie has her world is turned on its head when a break up with her long-time boyfriend leaves her without a place to live. Fortunately, her best friend Andy Walsh has a spare bedroom—and a secret soft heart under his icy exterior.

The two make an unlikely Sophie is ebullient, disorganized, and optimistic, with big dreams for her future. Andy is a creature of habit, with everything in his life rigidly under control—everything except the way Sophie makes him feel.

As roommates, their near-decade of carefully drawn boundaries finally starts to crumble. But with big changes ahead in Sophie’s career, is now really the time to be thinking about romance, and with her best friend of all people? And for Andy, is confessing how he’s always felt worth the risk of potentially losing the person who matters most?

Genres: Romance, Friends To Lovers, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Amazon

262 pages, Paperback

Published January 9, 2026

About the author

Allie Moffatt is an indie author and lover of love stories.

Reviews

[Bella Pietrosanti]

No. Fuck no. Everything about this was annoying. I thought it could be cute and simple not a good book but still and then it just got bad. Why the fuck did she propose?? 6 days into the relationship after she broke up with her bf of 3 years 3 weeks earlier. Stupid bad not good. 2/10

[Ara Parikh]

I got to read this ahead of publication. It’s funny, endearing, really well written, and cozy. The characters are well developed, the Boston details are so spot on, and I laughed out loud so many times. Allie Moffat is also a master of the simile. I’m going to re-read it! Fingers crossed for a sequel!

[Bianca Crêtes]

I thought I would like this but I didn’t. The dialogue threw me off and I struggled to finish the book. And the proposal??? I’m still confused.

[Erica Canas]

I’m a sucker for a friends to lovers romance and this did the job for a quick easy read.

[Bianca Swart]

Booktok strikes again.

Heavy on the miscommunication trope.

Honestly don't even have the energy to list what I hated about this because there was so much but the main thing is the FMC was so annoying and the timeline made no sense. THE PROPOSAL??

[Kellie McDonald]

Booktok did me dirty.

[Hollie]

I was kindly given access to this book prior to publication.

This is definitely one for fans of Ali Hazelwood and the like. Well written and easy read. Well developed characters, funny/snarky and realistic dialogue. Also for those who enjoy friends to lovers, misunderstanding and mutual pining tropes.

I’m looking forward to more books by Allie Moffatt.

[Julia]

What an absolutely stellar debut novel. Listen, I read a lot of contemporary romance and admittedly, friends to lovers isn’t my favorite trope, but this is masterfully done. I really felt the genuine love and connection that Andy and Sophie had for one another, spanning a decade!

I loved the found family element of their friend group and how much comfort they both found in NASA. I also really appreciated the individuality they each had and their ability to stand alone as characters without disappearing into one another. Consider me a friends to lovers convert!

P.S. I absolutely need an Owen and Lia book, c’mon now!

[Ally Cee]

Booktok fooled me yet again because this was so bad. The FMC is beyond annoying and the romance was pretty non-existent. I found myself rolling my eyes because she’s complaining about how she loves Andy more even after the man said he’d move across the country for her. I usually love a friends to lovers but this was not it.

[Alice]

Have you ever started a book so bad that you forced yourself to finish it just to see how much worse it could get?

Not me, DNFed after reading some of the cringiest dialogue and sentences.

[Alicia]

I gave this book about to 15% but couldn’t get behind her continually talking to you as the reader.

[Greta]

Adorable!! Allie Moffat I will be anxiously awaiting the next ;)

[Courtney Hunter Grissim]

Too many instances of breaking the 4th wall, “by the way”s and over explanations set in parentheses. Big fan fic vibes. Time of death: page 4. Might be really cute but I’ll never know.

[Laura]

2.5-3 ⭐️ Potential to be better

[celene]

this was pretty good ngl like?? andysophie diairies you’ve made some points ngl ???

-it has some sitcom comedy vibes like himym vibes where the friend group was rlly funny and them being in the same group and being best friends (for 9 ~ 10 years, met at college, wc looove, loved it also we had some glimpses of their college selves, too good y’all poetic, cinematic excellence) to roomies to lovers. So in other words, their friendship is really beautiful and i rlly felt how, it’s not like just telling how good friends they are, it was pretty precious thing they have (dont at me but i like their friendship scenes more that when they were together sawry haha lol)
-it was funny at times, so rlly romcom vibes wc i rlly appreciate in romance books that lack comedy nowadays ?? a rarity like ?? thank u allie moffatt we love u ??
-had good emotional scenes (for the characters arc) but not too heavy, and like lowkey poetic cinematic excellence ngl like hello ??
-nolan, hello??? hes so funny pls, lol and pls lia??? her energy??? what she brings to the table pls she’s the friend we all need and she’s bi what lol and she’s next (I secretly hoped nolan to be next book but maybe save the best for last i guess lols, idk he reminds me of ben ackerman from the scheme lowkey shout out to my bae ??? but ok ig with lia and not andy’s brother owen being the li naur way haha, he don’t got me so far, let’s see, haha), lia and nolan being sibs is so funny as well their sibling banter is so funny, they’re so funny xd

anyways in spite some things i dont agree with how some things happened and like general flow bla bla but it’s just towards the end, but yeah pretty good for a debut and an indie romance at that!!! i love indie romances!!! (the scheme by cynthia ayman is one which is my all time fave romcom book!) anyways bye xx

[andrea nguyen]

first book i’ve read in a long time and it got me out of my slump!! honestly it was a 3.5 star, but i rounded it up because some moments made it very enjoyable

i love friends to lovers and this one was BEST FRIENDS TO LOVERS which i adore, the tension & years of buildup were the best + andy is genuinely a dream… eg PUNCHING HER BUM EX <3 + I LOVE FOUND FAMILY

but i just had to say the third act breakup definitely brought down the rating and also i thought the end bit was really rushed and i didn’t really understand the logic behind the breakup??? idk it was kinda boring at one point

[Richa Parikh]

LFGGGG
Wonderful debut written by a wonderful author!!! As someone who doesn’t gravitate towards a lot of contemporary romance, I truly still loved this! Can’t wait for a sequel…

[Jane]

Delicious. Delightful. Delovely. Where’s my Andy at?

[Mary Goldstein]

Sweet and Well Written Debut

I thought the writing was good for a debut. Sweet characters and looks like there will be more books about the friend group.

[Daniela Jimenez-Torres]

An amazing debut novel by Allie Moffatt. The story was well written and had me absorbed in Sophie’s life from page 1. The characters’ personalities were all well done and the bond between NASA was so sweet. All the dialogue and emotions felt so natural and real throughout.

Sophie and Andy’s journey was so captivating and frustrating (in a good way) the entire time and of course the ending was satisfying. I’m looking forward to future novels from Allie!

[Aly]

Not bad! It feels half-baked but the potential is there. It was cute

[cosette]

omg i just wanted to shake him for him to wake up!!!

[Emily Jane]

If you love the friends to lovers trope and close proximity—you’ll love this book. It’s fun and the author has a bubbly and bright voice.

[Kyana Brubaker]

boring as hell. thankfully it was short. i hate a miscommunication trope that drags on. also there were way to many parentheses with random thoughts? felt like a middle schooler wrote it

[Mora ؛༊ (sorta quit cause every book ends up ass)]

✦⚬───────────────────────────✧───────────────────────────⚬✦
ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛᴇᴅ/ꜰɪɴɪꜱʜᴇᴅ: 11 ꜰᴇʙ/11 ꜰᴇʙ
ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ: ɢʀᴜᴍᴘʏ x ꜱᴜɴꜱʜɪɴᴇ, ꜰᴏʀᴄᴇᴅ ᴘʀᴏxɪᴍɪᴛʏ / ʀᴏᴏᴍᴍᴀᴛᴇꜱ, ʙᴇꜱᴛ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅꜱ ᴛᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇʀꜱ
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Rating 2.25/5 | Spice 3/5 on the romance.io scale (1= Glimpses and kisses, 2=Closed door, 3=Open door, 4=Explicit open door, 5=Explicit and plentiful)

I get that this book is a debut, and I was going to be a bit lighter on some things that I usually wouldn't, but the ending (before the epilogue) is so stupid that I just don't know what to say...I'll spoil it right here because it's my main reason for disliking this book: After 1 week!! of dating MMC and only 4 weeks post breakup with her ex, FMC PROPOSES!!!! to MMC right after their 3rd act breakup. What the fuck??? It's especially dumb because this whole book, we and FMC, realise she just grasps any opportunity at love and that she can't be single, and then she does someting so fucking drastic?
Moving on from that, the writing is technically fine. I found the overexplanations quite annoying, as if FMC was talking to her diary or so, but alas. The book is quite of a slow burn despite it also being kinda insta-love, I don't know how to explain it.
These people are 26 and 28 yet they read and behaved very juvenile. Besides the job part it would've been more believable if they were like max 22 with the way they acted.
I would've forgiven quite a lot about this book if the ending didn't happen, but that just ruined it fully for me.

⊹₊ ˚‧┈┈┈┈⋆ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴇʟᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱʜɪᴘ ⋆┈┈┈┈‧ ˚ ₊⊹
What can I say? I liked the idea of this, and like I said above I liked that it still moved quite slow. It could've worked, but it didn't.
FMC was annoying all throughout the book. She can't live without being in a relaionship and she just takes whatever bit of love she can get, she is aware of this too. She defends her ex in the most dumb moments.
MMC is also kind of meh. He has been in love for 9 years and just never said a thing. He turned FMC down once (for a good reason) and just never decided to speak to her about it? Come on. Meanwhile he needs to grow a backbone cause he tells FMC it's fine if she brings dates over. No it is not??
When the book decides it's time for MMC to admit his feelings it's so sudden and underwhelming.
They are together for a short while and then it also sorta ends (a break) because FMC decides that she loves him more so she needs time alone??? And she doesn't want MMC to agree to move with her to a new city because "it's too fast" yet when MMC tries to fix their relationship FMC out of nowhere proposes to him, having been just single 5 weeks only. As if THAT isn't fast??.
I guess I get that they fell in love, that part isn't insincere, things just didn't happen for ages, and then suddenly everything happened too fast.
All in all, FMC needed therapy, not a(nother) relationship. It just showed us that FMC didn't change at all.

⊹₊ ˚‧┈┈┈┈ꨄ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴍᴜᴛ ꨄ┈┈┈┈‧ ˚ ₊⊹
Open door but not explicit. Things are described like "where I want him the most". There is basically just 1 scene with a short extension the next morning. It was very tame.

⊹₊ ˚‧┈┈┈┈୨୧ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀꜱ ୨୧┈┈┈┈‧ ˚ ₊⊹
MMC
About: Andy Walsh, 28, developmental editor
Appearance: Dark brown hair (between wavy and straight), dark eyes, tall, slightly crooked too-big nose, glasses
FMC
About: Sophie Lindell, 26, Project Manager at the Boston Museum of Science
Appearance: Straight brown hair, hazel eyes, freckles, glasses

⊹₊ ˚‧┈┈┈┈✦ ꜰᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇꜱ ✦┈┈┈┈‧ ˚ ₊⊹
Standalone
HEA
Vanilla smut
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[Paola Bianco]

This reads like the fanfics I used to read when I was a teenager. The narrative is so messy and the story doesn’t really follow a logic timeline, like “oh, I got into this program, but don’t worry about the details because it’s not important for the romance”, “oh, I broke up with my boyfriend of years and I was just with him last night, but I don’t want to say why because it’s not important for the story”. It lacks a lot of detail and the redaction can improve. I’ve read bad books before but the reason I’m lashing out is because this was recommended by multiple tiktok accounts (adults! I would understand if a teenager recommends it), and I refuse to believe they all have bad taste so it has to be they are getting paid to promote this.

It’s good if you are 16 or younger I guess.

[Beth]

The way Sophie knows Andy 🥹 the way she reads his facial expressions and shifts in his body language without him saying a word was absolutely beautiful. The kind of intimacy that only comes from years of loving someone.

And Andy...oh I am completely obsessed with Andy! Caring men that can cook are already my downfall but him preparing NOTES so he doesn’t forget what he wants to say and makes a list of his ten favourite things about her 😭

Such a perfect friends to lovers book!

[Butter Bagel]

Gosh, I really wanted to give this 4 stars! Some of the characters really pissed me off though and that kind of ruined the experience.

I love how the whole book was nothing but yearning. You get teased a lot by scenes that feel as if Sophie and Andy are going to kiss or confess their feelings only to have something get in the way. If you're into that, I think you will absolutely enjoy this book despite its flaws.

Also, the male characters were great. Andy was swoon-worthy and awkward. Nolan was a chill, dedicated friend. Owen was the estranged older brother, developed fairly well for only being brought into the story part way.

I even liked Elliot- Sophie's friends crapped on him so hard that I really sympathized with him. We are supposed to hate him for two reasons: one, he freaked out when he saw Andy and Sophie together at the club after their breakup. But Sophie literally told him there was nothing between them while they were dating which was so obviously a lie and I'd be pissed too seeing them together. Two, he made a comment about how he's not attracted to "hot girls", aka girls that are meticulously dressed up and self absorbed. He meant it as a compliment to Sophie meaning that she's more normal. Everyone seems to act like he was saying he didn't think she was attractive. No, he meant he liked her because she wasn't a "hot girl".

Sophie's character also fell a bit flat for me. I couldn't picture her in my head. Sometimes she's described as average, sometimes pretty, sometimes beautiful, sometimes hot. She has brown hair and freckles and wears the most generically average sounding outfits. I just wanted to picture her in my head because the author seemed to change her mind all the time on whether or not Sophie was quirky, or sexy, or pretty, or awkward that I just gave up trying to figure out which version was real.

I don't think Sophie deserves Andy. What kind of mid-20s woman has no money to offer for rent. I know you're friends but this man cooks for you twice a day and moves his whole home office for you to have your own bedroom and all you do in return is help clean. Which you should be doing anyway you twat.

Lia. Omg. If she was replaced by a different female best friend, this could have easily been a 4+ star book. Wtf is wrong with this lady. I have literally never read another book where the best friend we are supposed to adore is such a selfish b*tch and I don't say that lightly.

Gripes aside, I would actually recommend this as a romance, as long as you enjoy yearning and tropes like miscommunication, grumpy/sunshine. It's not perfect by any means but those aspects were done well and were quite enjoyable.

[Brindley Rowley]

Ugh the YEARNING.

I was not ready for this book to consume me like it did. I’ve been trying to get out of a reading slump and was in desperate need of a story that would suck me in and captivate my attention during every chapter, and this DELIVERED. Literally finished it in mere HOURS.

First, one thing I struggle with in romance books is the miscommunication trope, because for goodness sake, just TALK. But something so refreshing was the approach to this best friends to lovers story. The characters know each other inside and out, so there isn’t miscommunication per se. It’s more their own projected shortcomings that make it difficult for them to accept that they could be loved by the other. And, good hell, I will eat that up every time. I’m only human.

Second, the way the POV shifts is so artfully done. The majority is told through the FMC’s perspective, but every few chapters, it shifts to the MMC’s. Sometimes when reading these shifts in other books, it’s hard to tell the difference between who is talking, but the author made their inner voices so distinctly *theirs* and I loved it. She was more rambling and impulsive, he was more methodical. It seeped from their actions into their monologues, and it was exciting to really see these characters come to life.

Overall, I will be sharing this book with my friends. It’s thoughtful, but not heavy, and I’m gonna be wishing for a hot best friend to fall in love with all thanks to Sophie and Andy.

[Pamela Shrewsbury]

📚 ALL OUR ALMOSTS
Allie Moffatt
Publishes 10/14/26
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to @simonstream.books, @netgalley, and @allie.moffatt.author for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⸻
After a sudden breakup, Sophie Lindell is trying to start over while preparing to leave Boston for her dream PhD program in California. With nowhere to stay for the winter, she moves into her best friend Andy’s spare bedroom. The complication? Andy has been in love with her for nearly a decade.

Living together makes all those almost-moments harder to ignore. Between sleepy mornings in the kitchen, evenings on the sofa, and snowy nights, Sophie and Andy have one last chance to figure out if their friendship could become something more before California calls.

⸻
This was a sweet, easy-to-read romance with cozy winter vibes and a friends-to-lovers setup I was happy to settle into. I especially liked the quieter moments between Sophie and Andy. Their long history felt believable, and Andy’s feelings led to some genuinely sweet scenes.

I did wish they would be more open with each other sooner. At times, the hesitation felt repetitive, and the middle dragged a bit. I was hoping for more emotional depth and a stronger sense of urgency as Sophie’s move got closer.

Still, this was a comforting read, and I’m glad I picked it up. If you enjoy forced proximity, longtime friends, slow-burn chemistry, and a snowy winter setting, there’s plenty here to enjoy.