This story about a young woman’s second chance at finding the love of her life is a wonderfully compelling blend of humor and heart. After two years of grieving the loss of her fiancée to a tragic accident, Sloan finally has a meet cute, but it’s with an adorable lost dog rather than a man. That dog’s human, Jason, turns out to be a sweet romantic hunk of a man who cares for his dog but has been out of town on an extended work trip, and has really bad judgment in dog sitters. The two start to connect on an elemental level over the series of phone calls and texts. By the time they meet in person, they’re already half way to falling crazy in love. The big catch is that he’s a famous musician who’s on the road for the indefinite future, and his lifestyle don’t allow for a proper relationship.

Figuring out how to navigate that situation and be together in a way that’s healthy for both of them despite the distractions and a myriad of hangers on threatening to pull them apart is the book’s real conflict. These aren’t the everyday issues most couples face. But if rock star romance is your thing or at least something you’re open to, The Happy Ever After Playlist is a great choice. It’s engrossing, original and sweet.

The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez takes place around two years after the events in The Friend Zone. Sloan is not herself, trying to figure out how to move on after her fiancé Brandon was killed in a tragic motorcycle accident. The universe continues to send her one challenge after another. A super awkward meet cute with her new pup Tucker is just the start for Sloan. Sloan is trying desperately to start this next chapter in her life.

Jason is a touring musician and he's livid to learn that his dog has been out roaming the streets of L.A. and not safely taken care of by the woman he left her with. He finally gets in contact with Sloan and the two enter a back and forth over whether Sloan will allow him to have his dog back. Slowly Jason starts to penetrate her walls and Sloan reluctantly agrees that when he comes back, they can co-chaperone Tucker on an outing and she'll decide whether he's worthy.

Jason returns to LA and instantly feels a connection to Sloan. Sloan isn't sure she can trust herself or if she should be feeling this strong attraction to Brandon's absence. Slowly Jason makes progress pushing his way into her head and her heart. Slowly, Sloan starts to wake from her morning and allow herself to enjoy time with Jason. Then Sloan discovers a secret about Jason and learns this blossoming new relationship may have an expiration date before it ever really gets started.

Jason and Sloan are amazing. Fantastic Chemistry and just great love. I loved this their story. I loved it even more than TFZ. Amazing banter between Jason and Sloan. Jason was so sweet and understanding and used his wit and charm to continue flustering her and sneak under her defenses. The story is so amazing, it fills your heart with all the feels. The story is big in understanding that life doesn’t happen on your schedule. That love is on its own time schedule. It also reminds us that sometimes you have to accept where you are before you can accept love at face value.
This book covers the trifecta of Rom Com, a hilarious Meet Cute, awesome banter, and a best friend who loves you but is also super quirky and the bonus of a dog!
Happily, Ever After Playlist is the must read of the spring. You will want to have this on your TBR List for sure! Do yourself a favor and preorder this today! Abby Jimenez is a rom-com goddess!

Special thanks to Read Forever for providing our copy of The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez in exchange for an honest & fair review.

I’ve been waiting to read The Happy Ever After Playlist since I finished The Friend Zone. Actually, that’s a lie.

I wanted to read The Happy Ever After Playlist as I was reading TFZ because this is the moment where I learned Abby wrote this book first! Once I knew more about Sloan, I had to read her story!

SAVOR THIS BOOK!
Estelle from Read Forever sent me a little note with the book encouraging me to savor this read. Well, I took her advice and I am glad I did. While I wanted to rip the pages apart and devour the book, I didn’t. I read it over about a week & really let the story settle.

Abby writes in such a binge-able manner. As soon as you read a few pages, you’ll want to do nothing else but live in her written world. Her characters are relatable, zany, wild, hilarious & memorable.

I feel like everyone has a thing for singer/songwriters, right? Maybe it’s just me. So when I found out Jason has a music career…cue the swooning. Songs, tours, performances, sooo good.

I also really like Sloane. She’s been through a LOT and Abby writes her in such a strong & favorable manner. She’s doing the best she can. Another thing I love is that Sloane & Jason COMMUNICATE. It’s an honest, vulnerable relationship from the very beginning. I connected so much with their love story.

THE VERDICT
Pre-order this book! Even if you don’t think you like romance, give this book a try. I have an idea with Abby is working on next and I’m ready!! All the stars!

THE FRIEND ZONE ended on a bittersweet note for me because I felt so deeply sad for Sloan and what had become of her world when her happily ever after was crushed. Abby Jimenez takes us back to Sloan's world in THE HAPPY EVER AFTER PLAYLIST and lets the reader experience equal parts grief and joy along with Sloan as she slowly decides to try again at unexpected happiness. I appreciated the rollercoaster of emotions in this book, which made Sloan's eventual happiness something to truly celebrate!

I loved Abby Jimenez's first book, and this book is right up there with it. She's not just a queen of cakes, she's also a gifted author that writes beautiful love stories and characters that you love. She makes you laugh, cry, wish you could slap some sense into her characters, and then hug it all out in the end. Her books read like great rom-com screenplays.

We first met Sloan in The Friend Zone, as Brandon's fiancee and Kristen's best friend. She was happily in love, and then tragedy struck and she lost her fiance. It's been nearly two years, and Sloan is still just existing, not living. Fate has decided that she's had enough time to grieve and wallow, and it's time for her to start living again. Enter Tucker, a lost dog that forces Sloan out of her house and out of humdrum existence. Sloan has a goal each day, taking care of Tucker and reuniting him with his owner, Jason, a musician currently on tour. Sloan agrees to care for tucker, and keep Jason posted on his beloved pup.

Text conversations turn into phone calls and then into friendship, and then Sloan has to decide if she's ready to try for love again. Jason has to decide if he feels he can handle a real relationship while his music career is on the rise. Growing fame and lingering grief are tremendous obstacles to overcome on the way to building a true and lasting relationship.

Remember me screaming about my love for The Friend Zone?  Well this book takes place after that one... it can definitely be read as a standalone book but honestly... why would you ever skip The Friend Zone?

My blurb:
An amazing grieving girl falls for a famous world traveling boy...before she realizes she would have to travel all of the time too.

4.5 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5 steam level

What I really liked:
I loved this story! I read it really quickly... like in two sittings.  It had me hooked! I loved the love story and meet cute!  Revisiting Josh and Kristen from The Friend Zone added so much to the story!  The best part of this book was easily how in love Sloan and Jason were.  I kept thinking that the whole time I was reading it!  I think a lot of people who may not have bonded with Kristen as much in TFZ will love Sloan.  Jimenez wrote both characters really well and their personalities are so different from one another - I could just see a lot of people being #teamsloan.  I loved the closeness of Jason and his family in this book- that was a big highlight for me.  I hope to even see more glimpses of the family in future books!  (Hey, it's a three book deal! Maybe book three will be about his family!)

What I didn't like:
I think one takeaway from this book could be that the main couple was codependent.  It might be a turn off for some readers.  This was easily my favorite rockstar romance that I've ever read- in general that trope really doesn't hit home for me.  With that being said- there were still moments in this book that I wanted to hurry the rockstar drama along. 
There was a bit of mystery (strong word here... more like a plot point that is revealed later on in the story) regarding a character named Lola and I solved that really easily and early on.  It didn't take away from the storyline per say - but I felt it should be noted.  Overall this book had high drama.  I didn't love this aspect of it, but I adored the love story so much that it was able to drive the story home for me and still had me adoring this book.

While reading this book you should:
Do: Go through a car wash
Do: Make a new playlist!
Listen to: ...well the entire playlist that the author includes at the back of the book. but if you're too lazy to flip there I'll include one song... Keep Your Head Up by Ben Howard
Eat: A cupcake. And if you're close to Nadia's cupcakes - go there! (The author owns that bakery!)


Happy Reading,
Dux

Two years after her beloved fiance's death, Sloan is still recovering from the devastating loss. Her desire to make art has slowly come back to her, and just in time, because her house is beginning to fall apart. On her way to her fiance’s grave, the totally unexpected happens: a dog jumps into her car through her sunroof. After trying for weeks to contact his owner with no response, Sloan decides to keep the dog. When the dog’s owner finally contacts her, she reluctantly agrees to let him take his dog back when he comes back to the country in a few weeks. Through constant texts and phone calls, Jason and Sloane start to get to know each other and even develop a connection deeper than friendship. Jason is a big name musician who is going on tour, and Sloane isn’t sure she can take being separated from her significant other again, so they must work together to come up with a solution so they can try to stay together.

Two years ago, Sloan’s fiancé died suddenly in a motorcycle accident, and Sloan has been depressed ever since. But when a dog abruptly enters her life, things start looking up. Jason is a musician on the cusp of stardom. After a two-week backpacking trip, Jason is surprised to find a barrage of voicemails from a stranger on his phone. He immediately calls her back, but she’s already in love with the dog, and he’s still stuck in Australia for a gig for a while longer. And so Sloan manages to keep Tucker the dog for a while longer in exchange for daily and flirty phone convos— and a date with Jason upon his return to LA. Finally back in the States, Jason and Sloan quickly and fully fall for one another. The problem: Jason has bit the big time and is leaving for 14 months for an international tour. Can their relationship handle the stress of celebrity, long-distance, and tabloid conjectures?

The titles bugs me. The grammar is wrong, and I was tempted to knock down to two stars just for perpetuating adverb abuse. It should be The HappILY Ever After Playlist.

The focus on how beautiful Sloan is hurt the amount of sympathy I had for her / my ability to identify with her as the protagonist. It was annoying how often it seemed to come up, especially considering how unimportant it was to the story as a whole.

The emotional high of the first half was freaking awesome. And then the conflict came, and it seemed too much like Jimenez was trying too hard to manufacture conflict for moving the story structurally forward. Sloan getting upset about the Lola/red carpet happenstance was blown way out of proportion. Like, how could Jason tell what happened before others did when she was already asleep when he came home after the party at 2am!?

Thank you to the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Two years after the loss of her fiance, Sloan is still working to get back to feeling like herself - or feeling like doing much of anything. But when a dog decides to literally jump into her car one day and she takes him home she starts to feel like things might be okay. After a couple weeks of unanswered texts, Sloan finally hears back from the dog's owner. But Sloan has no intentions of giving him up.

The Friend Zone was one of my favorite romance reads of 2019 and I have been anticipating the release of The Happy Ever After Playlist ever since. As soon as I got this in the mail I knew I had to read it immediately and I finished it in about a day. What happened to Sloan towards the end of The Friend Zone broke my heart and I'm so happy that we get to read her story now.

I absolutely loved the banter that started immediately between Sloan and Jason through their texts and phone calls and how they started forming a friendship. What I particularly enjoyed about this book was seeing the journey that Sloan went on both personally and in her relationship with Jason. Jimenez is able to handle a variety of issues and topics all wrapped up into an enjoyable romcom and I am excited to see what she writes next. The only thing that didn't really work for me in this one was that I wanted more of Sloan and Jason together and could have done without a couple of the dramatic subplots.

4.5/5 stars

I wasn’t sure where this book was going at the beginning, but once I got a couple pages into the book I was sucked in and couldn’t put it down. It was nice to read more about the characters from the Friend Zone and see their stories resolved in this book. Hopefully, we are introduced to some new characters so this story continues or we hear more about their lives where the story left off.

The Happy Ever After Playlist picks up a couple of years after the heartbreaking death of Sloan’s fiancé, Brandon. She’s having a particularly rough day when an adorable dog jumps into her car and also gets her a ticket (quirky combination, no?). She grows quite attached to him as the owner continues to ignore her messages and after two weeks, she decides to just keep the little fella as he’s reminded her that there is still some happy in this world to be had. When Jason returns home from a cell-free trip, he’s furious to find that his troublesome ex has not only lost Tucker, but also neglected to look for him and left town. The two come to specific agreements regarding Tucker, and you’ll swoon the entire time watching them fall for each other. Five star read for me! I loved it! Thank you to both Netgalley and Forever Publishing for the opportunity to read.

I liked this better than The Friend Zone because I thought Sloan was a much better character than Kristen. I still have issues with the decisions Jimenez has her characters make, though. It takes away from the romance and reeks of desperation and obsession. It started off great, with the back and forth banter over text but it went from zero to a hundred way too fast. But after what Sloan was put through in the first book, I feel like she did at least deserve some happiness, even if I didn't agree with the way it played out. 3 stars.

If you have not read The Friend Zone, go and read it ASAP!! I loved TFZ and was excited to read Sloan’s story. I was hooked on the first chapter. ⁣
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This book is so much than a romance. It depicts such raw emotions as Sloan deals with grief and her healing process. I love the strong the friendship that Sloan and Kristen have and is an integral part of the story. This book made me cry, made me literally LOL and have all the magical feels of finding love. ⁣
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Abby Jimenez is beyond awesome!! She DM along the way to chat about the story. Go and preorder this, I promise you it is a book you will want to read again and again. ⁣

Thank you so much to Abby Jimenez and Netgelley for the ARC copy.
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A great follow-up to The Friend Zone! This book was just as unputdownable to me as the first in the series. While this could be read as a standalone, I highly recommend reading The Friend Zone first. (As one of my most favorite books of 2019, you won't be sorry you did!) I really like how this author writes about real experiences and struggles of everyday women. Jimenez's books are witty and fun, but will still tug at your heartstrings.

I was devastated for Sloan after she lost Brandon. Seeing her process her grief and find her way back to happiness was an emotional read, but so worth it. We even get another adorable dog in this book. I'm still on the fence about Jason (or at least his Jaxon persona) but I did fall in love with his family.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my review.

A special thank you to Hachette Book Group Canada, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

On her way to visit the grave of her late fiancé, artist Sloan Monroe nearly hits a dog when he dashes out in front of her vehicle. When she stops to check on the dog, he jumps onto the hood of her car and then into the car through the sunroof. After getting a ticket for obstructing traffic, a visit to the vet, several unanswered calls to the number on his collar, and posting his picture everywhere with no response, Sloan decides to claim the dog. He turns out to be just what she needs to distract her from her grief.

Jason Larsen, dog owner, is off the grid in Australia and is shocked to receive Sloan’s many messages. After proving that Tucker is indeed his dog, and that he didn’t abandon him (his sort of girlfriend was supposed to be looking after him), he negotiates for Tucker to stay with Sloan while he finishes up his trip.

The two begin flirty texts that morph into long phone calls with the promise of a face-to-face meeting. When Sloan discovers that Jason is actually Jaxon Waters, the singer of "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," she's completely blindsided. This is the song that Sloan couldn’t stop watching the animated video for after her fiancé, Brandon, died. Jaxon's music haunted her, it spoke to her soul, and it brought her so much comfort during the darkest period of her life. Could this be fate?

Utterly charmed by Tucker, and Jason’s patience and kindness, Sloan falls in love. Plus he's super hot! But Jason’s label has other plans as to who he should be dating now that he is on the cusp of superstardom and embarking on a major tour. Touring with Jason also means that Sloan will have to abandon her art that she has just started getting back into.

Is Jason worth the sacrifice? Can Sloan handle what could seemingly be another heartbreak?

Opening with an epic meet cute, Jimenez sets the tone for the perfect rom-com. However, after starting the book, I quickly abandoned it to read Jimenez’s debut The Friend Zone and I’m glad I did. because I was able to fully appreciate the back story. Fans of Kristen and Josh will be thrilled with this book. The couple get lots of page time because they are Sloan’s support system as she navigates her grief and her new relationship.

What I loved was how Jimenez pens Sloan so carefully—she is a character that is completely broken by grief and is simply existing. I encourage you to read the incredibly touching inspiration for this book in the acknowledgments.

The whole crazy ex subplot did not work for me. At times it felt a little clichéd and overly dramatic. I'm wondering if Lola will be the subject of the next book which is why she was given such a big part. I also found that the first half of the book was much stronger.

This book has all the feels, it is emotional, raw, and just plain funny. I adored the witty banter and Jimenez has an impeccable ear for dialogue. The Happy Ever After Playlist is heartfelt, flirty, and fun.

Can I just say, I have never been so excited to be granted access to an ARC (thank you Estelle❤️). I was afraid to read it because I LOVED The Friend Zone sooo much. I didn’t know how it would compare.

Best believe, this book BROUGHT IT. Abby did it again. First, she is excellent at dialogue between love interests. I felt the chemistry between Sloan and Jason straight away just through those initial texts.

Sloan’s story was absolutely heartbreaking in TFZ. I was so pleased to see how Abby handled the effects of grief and the way it manifests into every facet of your life. Read the author’s note at the end, which gives some further insight. I absolutely love the way it was handled.

Now let’s talk about Jason Larsen (my new top 3 book bf). I didn’t think any man could match up to Josh Copeland. But I think I actually love Jason more? Don’t ask why. I really have no explanation. Jason needs his own post on my blog entirely (coming soon).😅😍

Misc things I loved: The music and the playlist (available on Spotify) was also spectacular! Highly recommend. Also, can we talk about the Epilogue!?? ❣️❣️❣️This is what dream romance epilogues should be. Seriously. Authors, please take note.

Anyway, I’m ending this review here because I’m going to talk about this book for days, weeks, months, years, forever and ever. You must pick this book up in April when it comes out 🙌🏼❤️

My review: a Solid 3.5

After reading The Friendzone, I just knew I had to get my hands on this book. I needed to have the follow up with Sloan and the peek back into Kristen's life as well. I love Abby's writing style as she grabs you and sucks you into her story-line and make you fall in love with all the characters. Coming back to Kristen and her life was an added plus. Everything was going great. The story was great meeting an amazing guy and a whirlwind romance is just what the doctor ordered. I loved the Easter eggs that were left from The Friendzone as an additional plus. The first half of the book is a complete goldmine, however, I was just left a bit disappointed. I feel like some things were rushed to finish. The transitions weren't executed the way that would completely satisfy me. I needed more, I felt like the maybe I built myself up for this amazing book and dying to get my hands on it was just kinda a let down just based on the ending. I look forward to more books by Abby Jimenez. Just an additional note: As her actual first book its pretty amazing and showed what an amazing writer she became on the second book she wrote and The Friendzone checked all the boxes for me.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review.

I was lucky enough to read this book before it even came out. I’ve been waiting for it since before Abby’s first book came out. Man it did not disappoint!! It’s everything you would expect from her and more. I just wish they were longer because now it’s gonna be even longer before the next one.

This last year my family went through a big loss, my aunt who is my moms twin was taken from us. It was her second cancer diagnosis and we knew it would be fatal. We had 7 years from her diagnosis but knowing it’s coming doesn’t make it any easier. Everyone in my family is grieving but nobody wants to talk about how to move on. I read all the time but to have something hit so close to home at such a desperate time is exactly what I needed.

I feel like I’ve been stuck in-between for a while and Sloan showed me that it is okay to feel stuck. It’s okay to move on. Jason is everything that you need in a time of healing and I didn’t realize that my husband was being that for me until now. It’s easy to understand why people grieve but hard to understand why it takes so long.

Abby took a horrible tragedy and was able to turn it into something so beautiful. Even when you aren’t looking for hope sometimes it still finds you.

Full review to come. Initial thoughts based on the preview:

What a great start! Well paced, with spot-on-humor, The Happy Ever After Playlist is instantly engaging and I am thrilled to read the full book. The premise, Sloan and Jason meet because of his dogs antics, is fun and fresh. By the third chapter, I was already laughing out loud and full invested with both main characters. Loving it so far!

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰⁣
Rating System: •5: loved it •4: liked it •3: just ok •2: did not like it •1: really did not like it •0: DNF ⁣
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“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭” 𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐲 𝐉𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐳 ⁣
𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: April 14, 2020⁣
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: #fiction #romance #contemporary⁣
𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬: see comment section⁣
𝐂𝗪/𝐓𝗪: self harm, alcohol/drug abuse, bereavement ⁣
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️/5 ⁣
𝟏-𝗪𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: phenomenal /fəˈnämənəl/⁣
𝘢𝘥𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦⁣
1. 
very remarkable; extraordinary.
2. 
perceptible by the senses or through immediate experience.⁣
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5.0/5.0⁣
Y’all... say hello to my 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 5 STAR READ IN 2020! For lovers of The Friend Zone, Abby Jimenez has done it again. I laughed, cried, cheered, audibly groaned and ultimately fell in love with The HEA Playlist. This book finds our character(s) two years “post Friend Zone” with a focus on Sloan. ⁣
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Jimenez, once again, delivers the most relatable characters in the midst of a heartfelt tale of romance that is 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘺 vivid and real. The narrative and banter is witty, hilarious, and will leave you wishing these characters were your best friends. (𝘕𝘰 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴- 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 😘.)⁣
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Yes, this is a romance, but it is also a story of loss, friendship, personal growth and selflessness. ⁣
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Thanks to @readforeverpub @netgalley for providing me with this ARC. ⁣
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𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Everyone. Preorder this NOW, thank me later. 💕