I’m always excited when I stumble upon a new author, but when I discover a new author that has written a phenomenal first novel, I’m ecstatic!

That’s exactly what happened when I read Abby Jimenez’s debut book, “The Friend Zone.” I was lucky enough to receive an eARC of it through Netgalley and Forever, an imprint of Grand Central Publishing, and although the book is categorized as romance and women’s fiction, it is so much more than that.

The book focuses on Kristen and Josh, who are to be the maid of honor and best man in their best friends’ wedding. The bride and groom – Sloan and Brandon – hope Kristen and Josh will have an amicable first meeting, but when Josh – a fireman who recently moved from South Dakota to Los Angeles – rear-ends Kristen – Sloan’s sassy, witty and unapologetically honest best friend – when she comes to a sudden stop in traffic, the two have a rocky start.

Recognizing how much time they’ll be spending together for the wedding, Kristen and Josh agree to a truce and friendship, but as the two begin to fall for each other, things become especially complicated for Kristen, who has a long-time military boyfriend who’s preparing to come home from his deployment and move in with her.

And Josh isn’t exactly making things easy on her. A brother to six sisters, Josh is incredibly perceptive and has a great understanding of women. Whether it’s getting Kristen her favorite food before she gets “hangry,” buying her tampons and pain reliever when she’s having horrendously heavy periods, constructing mini dog staircases for her business or bonding with her tiny dog, Stuntman Mike, it’s easy to see that Josh is a great match for Kristen – and he’s gorgeous to boot.

To Josh, Kristen is perfect:

“I’d found my person. She was the foundation. She was the thing that all other things are built on. Everything was secondary to being with her.”

But in Kristen’s mind, she’s damaged goods.

Unbeknownst to Josh, she has a medical condition that prohibits her from having children, and having a big family with lots of kids is something she knows Josh wants. Armed with this knowledge, Kristen pushes Josh away, but she’s not sure how much longer she will be able to keep her secret or deny her feelings for him.

This was such a real and relatable book, and it was anything but fluffy. With complex characters who deal with everything from emotionally abusive parents and loss to infertility, this book kept me hooked from the beginning to the very last word, and with an amazing mixture of humor, heartbreak, sarcasm and plenty of love, Jimenez had me both laughing and crying.

I read this 400-page book in less than 48 hours, and I cannot wait to devour Jimenez’s second book, slated for March of next year! This book is due to hit shelves June 11, so be sure to put it on your summer reading list and pre-order or reserve it at your local library as soon as possible; you won’t regret it! Thank you to Abby Jimenez, Grand Central Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an unbiased review!

This book has all the feels in it. From laughing to crying. Happy, sad and mad all rolled into 1 book. I kept putting off reading it because I didn't think I would like it. When I started reading it I didn't like the main character Kristen. She seemed like such a bitch but I ended up warming up to her. I have never had the issues she had but knowing me I would probably push the man away as well. Josh was so easy to like from the start,
Kristen has her own business making clothes and furniture for dogs. Because of her health it makes it easy to be home and her own hours. Josh is a hot fireman who moved to California after a bad breakup and to be around his best friend Brandon. Brandon and Sloan are getting married and Kristen is Sloan's best friend so it was great seeing the friendships in this book. The only thing that did irritate me a little bit was Kristen always turning Josh away but each chapter is told in different perspectives. Kristen and Josh take turns so you read what they are feeling and thinking, which made it more real.

No amount of words will sum up what this book did to me. It ripped my heart out, several times, and put it back together again, albeit missing a few pieces I'm sure.

What started out as a simple chick lit read turned into one of the most heartfelt, and heartbreaking, books I've read thus far. The Friend Zone will be in my top books of 2019, if not my life.

Kristen's character was hilarious; she's blunt, sarcastic, and slightly hangry, but she has the biggest heart of any character I've read lately.

Josh is handsome, courageous, and wears his heart on his sleeve. I rooted for him from the beginning.

A battle of "will they, won't they" WHY WON'T THEY, with a very serious medical scenario (or two) wrapped in the middle. The Friend Zone takes the very serious and heartbreaking battle with infertility and weaves a beautiful tale.

I received an advance copy; all thoughts are my own.

I finished this book in one day. I could not put it down so I ended up staying up to finish it. This was my first 5 star read in a while. So blown away by this book!
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When I first saw the title I thought it would be a cute friends to lovers romance and it was, but it was also a heartbreaking journey of self love and loss. Told in dual perspectives we get to know Josh and Kristen. They meet when he accidentally bumps her in the car but then they realize that their best friends are going to be get married to each other.
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I loved the interactions they had together. Josh is the ultimate book boyfriend and Kristen is witty and tells it like it is. I was worried that it would turn into a love triangle but I’m glad it didn’t go in that direction. Josh wants kids and broke up with his ex because she didn’t want any. While Kristen does want kids the possibility that she can have some is low. It is because of this that she pushes him away even when he tells her he loves her. I’m not going to lie, I really wanted her to come clean and tell him why she insisted on being “just friends”. I was blown away at how caring and patient Josh was with her even after he learned the truth. Swoon! What I took from this book was that even if we feel “broken” we still deserve love. To love ourselves. Also, to embrace every moment you have with your loved one because you never know what can happen.
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Thank you to @NetGalley and @readforeverpub for my review copy! It will be available June 11th! I can’t wait for the second book. I’ll be sure to have some tissues.
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Description in the Blurb: "The Friend Zone will have you laughing one moment and grabbing for tissues the next as it tackles the realities of infertility and loss with wit, heart, and a lot of sass."

I am very clearly with an unpopular opinion here. This review will have a non-spoiler and a spoiler section.

Non-Spoiler Review

Positive:

- I loved Josh. He was indeed a nice guy. He was completely and frustratingly Friend-zoned.
- Kristen was sassy and funny in some instances. Some of the punch lines in the book had me laughing out loud.
- The writing was flawless.

Negative:
- The book had a love triangle angle. No, it's not a spoiler. For those of you who don't like love triangles, this is a warning. I wouldn't have picked up the book had I known this little fact. This Arc is not major. But it is a fairly important part of the plot. Was there cheating? (view spoiler)
- The book TOLD us that Kristen was straight-forward, no BS person. The book SHOWED otherwise except if it were for sassy comments and pranks on others. For personal life, no.
- I don't support the ending.
- There were other issues that were added that I feel were unnecessary and did not contribute to the plot for me.

Kristen is helping her best friend Sloan, plan her wedding when Josh enters her life. They met after a near fender bender, only to meet later at work, and realize their respective roles in their best friends’ wedding. In short, these two have it bad for each other, but Kristen doesn’t see a happily ever after.

There are so many things I can say about this book, but I won’t risk any spoilers. It made me laugh, it made me cry, and when I thought I knew where things were going, it broke my heart, and I cried some more.

I understand why some might have thought this was a light romantic comedy but a central theme of this book deals with something that might be triggering (heavy periods, infertility, etc. ).

I can’t believe this is Abby Jiminez debut. I know there is a second book following, and I can’t wait to see what she does with that story. So glad I discovered to have discovered such a talented writer.

I was given an ARC of this book and voluntarily give my review. This book has everything a romantic comedy should, a sweet story, hilarious moments, witty banter, but it is also surprisingly real and relatable, with heart wrenching moments that brought tears to my eyes. Abby Jimenez writes about challenging issues that don't often get a voice in the romance novel world. This might be my favorite book of the year so far. I loved that it took place in my neck of the woods (Burbank, Canoga Park and Los Angeles) I could picture the locations that were mentioned vividly, because I have been there. I also felt that the push and pull between the hero and heroine was realistic. She didn't fall all over him because he demanded it, she made her own decisions, and they weren't always the ones the reader wanted her to make, but not once did I roll my eyes and think "That would never happen".... I take that back, getting from Canoga Park to Malibu during rush hour would definitely take more than 45 minutes ;)
Lastly, without giving away spoilers, I need to say that the Author's Note at the end of the book was beautiful and caused some tears because I was able to relate to parts of this story very strongly.

I vehemently encourage everyone with a soft spot for love to read this book.

The Friend Zone was an absolute joy to read and so hard to put down. Abby Jimenez aced the feels and real life situations with this one and had me laughing and crying from one page to the next.

I absolutely adored this book! I loved everything about it. I cried, sobbed, laughed and fell in love with every character. (Well, almost every character. I wasn't a fan of Kristen's mom.) But I am so grateful to the publisher for the opportunity to read this and I have to say that this is one of my favorite books of 2019.

Kristen and Josh were just awesome narrators and I just didn't want their story to end. I was so upset when it was over that I had to take a walk with my own dog to clear my head. This book has turned me into a solid fan of contemporary romances. I'm so happy that I gave this genre a chance because I love that the characters feel like they could be real people. To me, they were real. This is why I fell in love with reading so long ago. To get lost in a story. To laugh and cry along with the characters.

There are serious issues here. Issues of infertility, self-esteem and family dynamics. Life is not perfect and love is not always easy.

I can't wait to read Sloan's story in 2020! I will be recommending The Friend Zone to everyone who loves romance novels, especially to readers who have given up on this genre in the past.

Always trust Stuntman Mike!

Title: The Friend Zone

Author: Abby Jimenez

Genre: romance

June 11,2019



Kristen Petersen doesn't do drama, will fight to the death for her friends, and has no room in her life for guys who just don't get her. She's also keeping a big secret: facing a medically necessary procedure that will make it impossible for her to have children.



Planning her best friend's wedding is bittersweet for Kristen--especially when she meets the best man, Josh Copeland. He's funny, sexy, never offended by her mile-wide streak of sarcasm, and always one chicken enchilada ahead of her hangry. Even her dog, Stuntman Mike, adores him. The only catch: Josh wants a big family someday. Kristen knows he'd be better off with someone else, but as their attraction grows, it's harder and harder to keep him at arm's length.


My thoughts

Rating: 3

Would I recommend it ? yes

Will I read any thing else by this author ? maybe

while there was times times it did make me laugh , there was also times it made me want to cry , and there was times when I just didn't like Kristen ,in fact there was more times I disliked liker her then I actually liked her because of how she treated Josh, so it did take me a while to like her, Now Josh on the other hand I loved from the very start , and he was the reason why I kept reading the book otherwise I would have stopped reading it , there was just some thing about his character that i loved. So in my case Josh character saved the story for me because it wasn't until almost the very end and I started to like Kristen, yes she had her reasons but still to treated him like she did that was just wrong , and that's other reason why I'm glad i finished the book , because it got me to see that Kristen was willing to change and make a go of it with Josh, with that said I want to say think you to Netgalley for letting me read and review it .

Oh wow! I read the synopsis once a while back when I requested The Friend Zone, By the time it closer to release date for me to read I definitely forgot what it was about, which turned out to be a good thing. If I would have known that this book was going to make me cry I might not have requested it, which would have been a huge mistake.

The Friend Zone starts off funny with lots of banter and fun quips. It's super easy to like both Josh and Kristen. The chemistry they have is off the charts. There is just one tiny problem, Kristen will not be able to have children, and Josh wants a baseball team. I felt that Jimenez did such a great job of addressing everything related to Kristen's medical issues (be sure to read her note at the end about it) and how to handle that as Josh and Kristen's relationship progress. I definitely teared up through Kristen's struggles before she finally told Josh the truth, and as they dealt with the ramifications of loving each other and having to come to terms with how it effects their future.

There is some other stuff that happens in this book that I don't want to spoil, but it absolutely broke me. I cried like a baby, and I HATE crying. It's so worth it though. I will be recommending The Friend Zone to quite possibly everyone.

The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez is a rom com with an emotional depth that is not often found in this particular genre. Fresh, surprising, and utterly original, this one will have you laughing and sobbing in equal measure.

Kristen and Josh feel a mutual attraction from their very first meeting. Brought together through shared friends, the two very quickly exude a palpable chemistry. But, as is often the case, the path to love is not without its obstacles, and Kristen and Josh have them in spades. Kristen is suffering from a gynecological condition that will have a life-altering impact on her future with Josh, and the pair must determine how much they are ultimately willing to sacrifice for love.

This is a clever reimagining of the traditional romance in that it is unafraid to tackle the gritty realities of contemporary relationships with honesty and humour. I absoutely adored the witty banter and good-natured snark between Kristen and Josh, and would love to see their story continued.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this ARC.

I saw this book announced last year and I eagerly awaited it’s arrival. I started following Abby on social media and was curious to know if the book would be as funny as she is online. In early 2019 I started seeing bloggers and bookstagrammers get ARCs and I waited patiently. I started to see 5 stars reviews for the book from big name publications and still I waited for a sign I might get the ARC. I also avoided all reviews of the book. Until one Friday in early April, I finally got the ARC widget. Then I had to decide to read right away or wait. The book pubs on June 11. I am notoriously bad about writing a review when the book doesn’t come out for months. I took a chance and started the book the next day on a Saturday night. I stayed up until 4 am reading this book. That’s how good it is. I kept doing the I will just read one more chapter, but well we all know how that works out.

Content Warnings: infertility, difficult menstruation, death, love triangle. Please review these content warnings and proceed with caution on the review and the book.

Friends, Jimenez strikes a near perfect balance between funny and sad. She wrote a story that centers on the heroine’s infertility but did it in such a way that felt so realistic, honest, and incredibly raw but also hilarious.

Kristen is a “salty bitch”. She’s 24. She’s struggled with difficult periods for 12 years. She’s seen doctors and done all the things to help. It hasn’t. She decides to get a hysterectomy. But won’t have the surgery until after her best friend’s wedding. Kristen is in a relationship with someone else. It’s pretty clear though early on that he isn’t a true love interest for her.

Josh has 6 sisters and isn’t afraid to buy Kristen pads/tampons when she gets her period. This made me swoon. Josh and Kristen have a “meet disaster” when he accidentally re-ends the truck she is driving. They exchange some banter. They are unknown to each other. They soon meet again and realize they are the best people in their best friends wedding.

Kristen and Josh have amazing chemistry. Although Kristen is in a relationship with someone else, she can’t deny her physical and emotional attraction to Josh. She does not act on her feelings with Josh until the other relationship is ended.

Josh comes from a large family. He wants a large family. Kristen is having a hysterectomy and believes that she will never be able to conceive a child/children biologically. So she decides she can be friends with Josh and even have sex with Josh, but that she can’t have a relationship with him. This drives the bulk of the conflict. Typically when a character makes a decision like this it makes me bonkers. But it worked for me. I think perhaps because Kristen’s motivation came from what she believed to be a good place.

During the time period where they are “just friends who have sex sometimes” it is very clear that Kristen and Josh have such a deep connection. That connection and chemistry is what really made this book wonderful for me and kept me reading until 4am.

Here are some quotes I pulled that I think show the connection that Kristen and Josh have.

“Good night.” I could tell he was smiling. I gave up my struggles and tried to relax. The rise and fall of his chest moved rhythmically against my back, and with every exhale, I sank deeper into him, like I belonged there. Like I was loved. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to push the feelings down.

“Don’t smile at me.” She gave me a warning glare. She’d been feisty from the moment she woke up. It was adorable.

This. Could not. Be. A. Relationship. He pushed up from the sofa. “All right. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” He didn’t look at me before he left. I buried my face in my hands. What the fuck was I doing? I had to cut him loose. This was torture. This was ridiculous. I just wanted to be normal with him. I wanted to treat him the way he made me feel. Give him all my attention and kiss him and hug him. Tell him I’m in love with him.

Josh and Kristen are caretakers. Josh takes care of Kristen when she needs it, Kristen takes care of her best friend Sloan when she needs it. Things breakdown when Kristen needs care and Josh isn’t there.

SPOILER

This book contains a tragedy to a secondary character. It was heartbreaking. I could feel the pain and grief of all the characters. It was hard to read but also I couldn’t not read it. I read this book a few weeks after reading the Rebecca Yarros book with the death of the child. In my opinion, if there is a good way to kill a character, Jimenez did it in The Friend Zone. It didn’t feel forced. It felt like a thing that could actually happen. And it didn’t happen at the 93% mark. It happened earlier so you could actually see how the characters grieve and then move forward with their lives. Kristen and Josh were a mess. But they worked through it. Slowly. And eventually together. Again, I swooned.

I first read this book in early April but didn’t immediately write my review. I re-read it in mid-May and it held up that time around. I wanted to make sure my immediate excitement wasn’t completely skewing my opinion of the book. There was a small amount of “not like other girls” thrown in the book. But it was very mild and I was so invested in the story I was able to move on from it. I was completely invested in Kristen and Josh finding their HEA together. I fully believed it from the beginning to the end. I absolutely loved Jimenez’s voice and how she blended humor and tragedy. I am already invested in the characters for book two, out in 2020 (sad face). I strongly recommend this book.

Grade: A
Goodreads l Amazon

This is a fun engaging romance that distinguishes itself with the specificity of its characters. Josh is a Marine veteran, firefighter, hunter and gun owner, a guy that is surely common in real life, but not always explored in this type of novel. Kristen has a gynecological disorder I'm certain I've never seen in a romance novel. The story has some surprising turns and unexpected depth, but still carries the DNA of a romcom. That tone is a difficult one to pull off, but I found it to be mostly successful. I hesitate to give anything away, but I think there is a lot in there for many readers to relate to and be moved by

Wow. I’m emotionally wrung out after reading The Friend Zone. I went into this book without reading the synopsis to refresh my memory and wow again.

Despite the romcom(ish) cover, I’d say this book is firmly contemporary romance due to all of the angst and emotion. Sure there are laughs but this ain’t your standard sunshine and roses romcom.

I adored Josh and Kristen right away. Kristen is one of the best heroines I’ve read. She’s honest and doesn’t play games. She’s loyal, witty and super smart. Josh is just... sigh. He’s that perfect book boyfriend who you’ll never find in real life. Charming, funny, sexy and because he has six sisters... in touch with his emotions.

Their meet cute is anything but sweet but friendship is a fast follow. The tension is great and their banter makes turning the pages easy.

Kristen does have a long term boyfriend who I really liked as a character but he’s not a central figure and this is NOT a love triangle. Her emotional war within herself kind of begins the angst that doesn’t stop.

As the synopsis suggests, infertility plays a big role in the plot of this story. As someone who deals with infertility in real life, I found it hard to read at times due to the emotional honesty of the characters and the personal feelings being brought to life for me. I think the author did a lovely job portraying a disease that so many women suffer from and are insecure about. The laughs are much needed to lighten the heavier content.

There are some great side characters I fell in love with and am looking forward to reading more about. No spoilers but get your tissues folks. I cried as much as I laughed which is a lot. I might have changed a little bit of how it ended but as the author says... it’s not how it ended, it’s the journey of how the characters, particularly Kristen, gets there and it’s fiction. I’m happy to give this five stars.

Thank you @readforeverpub @authorabbyjimenez and @netgalley for advanced readers copy of The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez. This book will release on June 11th.

I finally got my hands on one of the most anticipated reads of 2019. I have seen this book everywhere and I can honestly say its a good debut novel.

Kristen is a woman who knows what she wants but she’s also dealing with her health issues and infertility. When she meets Josh the man who will serve as the best man at her bff’s wedding. He’s everything she’s looking for but Josh has expressed the desire to have a large family. How do you grapple with your hearts desire and what you know is best decision for the person you care about?

I really enjoyed this story. I liked how frank it was about Kristen’s issues with her period, fibroids and infertility. I loved everything about Josh he’s the perfect book boyfriend. The book had it lighthearted moments but also some pretty heavy discussions too. What I really enjoyed is that as much as it was about Kristen and Josh’s relationship it was also about Kristen’s journey. I enjoyed the relationship between Kristen and her bff Sloan. I love reading good female friendships. I also appreciated the authors note too. I do wish their was more diversity in a story set in Los Angeles.

Can’t wait to check out this authors next book!

This title was so melodramatic. I like that a sensitive subject was brought to light, but the handling and writing was not up to par. I also didn't like that a miracle occurrence happened. It didn't seem realistic and seemed to minimalize the issue that was being highlighted. Overall a very frustrating read.

This is one of the best books I have read so far!I devour it, it was fast paced and mostly I have a smile in my face!I fall in love with the characters and their relationship through the story.It has everything I wanted and even more!It has humor, it was fun,sweet and romantic.


I find it addictive and in the end I wanted more.It has great dialogues and the relationship between Kristen and Josh was unique.I fall hard for both of them.Kristen is the best, I loved her, she was sassy and I could relate with her.

This is a friends-to-lovers romance, it was full of emotions!I highly recommend it!Abby Jimenez did an amazing job and I can't wait to read more books from her in the future!

Holy crap, y’all. Talk about a mother-trucking book hangover. THIS BOOK. I’m actually scared to pick up my next read because I feel like anything I read I’m sabotaging because I’m just going to be comparing it to this book even though I don’t mean to.
THE FRIEND ZONE is about so much more than infertility. It’s about believing you are worthy of love, of friendship, of good things in your life, no matter if your body isn’t perfect or if it’s broken or if you’re moody or high maintenance or sick or sad or angry or anything else. If you’ve ever felt unworthy of being loved or feeling like you don’t deserve the good things or people that are in your life, read this book.
It’ll make you laugh and cry and won’t let you go even after you finish the last page.
It’s officially been more than 24 hours since I finished it, and I still can’t get it out of my head. It’s broken me and wormed its way inside my head and I don’t think it’s going to come out anytime soon.
This one will stay with me for a long time and is one I’ll most definitely be recommending nonstop. Preorder this now (I have 🙌🏻). It’s out June 11th and I’ll have my full review up closer to that date. Thank you to Forever Romance and Estelle for the eARC!

One of my absolute favorite reads for this year. So amazing that I want to recommend it to everyone.