⭐️ 4.5
🌶 Open Door, Mild

💌 Contemporary Romance
💌 Friends to Lovers
💌 Fake Dating
💌 Forced Proximity
💌 Slow Burn
💌 Cinnamon Roll Hero
💌 Workplace Romance
💌 Mental Health Rep
💌 ER Doctor MCs

I definitely enjoyed this book by Abby Jimenez. Yours Truly made me feel so seen. This is probably the most accurate description of anxiety I've ever seen represented in a book. Abby Jimenez has a way of writing real characters, and her stories are always full of feels. Yours Truly didn't disappoint.

Bri and Jacob start off on the wrong foot, but after Jacob writes Bri a letter explaining his struggle with social anxiety the two hit it off. They end up in a fake dating situation which develops into more. I loved the relationship between our two MCs. The side characters were also fantastic and hilarious. I really got a lot of Grey's Anatomy vibes from this book also.

I took off half a star for two reasons: miscommunication that should've been solved sooner and a spoiler I won't share, but it seemed way too unrealistic for two doctors in their 30s.

Yours Truly does feature characters from Part of Your World, but it can be read as a standalone. Overall, I loved this book and I highly recommend Yours Truly (and any book) by Abby Jimenez! Thank you Netgalley and Forever for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

TW (from author): Chronic kidney disease, divorced main character whose ex-husband cheated, depression, clinical anxiety, and mention of pregnancy loss and suicide.

“Yours Truly” by Abby Jimenez follows Briana and Jacob, 2 ER doctors who become friends after having a rocky start. Both are newly divorced and have not had the kindest experience with love. In a whirlwind of events, they start fake dating so Jacob can get his very concerned family off his back and prove that he is “totally 100% fine.”

This book was an absolute whirlwind of emotions from beginning to end! The author did an amazing job of writing main characters who were extremely lovable and easy to root for, but also flawed and human. The author takes a close look at mental illness and trauma, and beautifully and accurately portrays both.
The story has just about every single trope I could think of put into one book. Somehow she made it work and weave together perfectly to create a masterful layer of events. However, the miscommunication trope is always the hardest for me to get behind and I did find that there was A LOT of miscommunication here. With that being said, I still highly enjoyed the story and found myself rooting for these two from beginning to end!
Perfect for those who love workplace romance, friends to lovers, fake dating, hilarious families and side characters, and having that “writing love letters” kind of love.

I loved everything about this book. I cannot stress this enough. No one does witty back-and-forth banter like Abby Jimenez! Literally, no one compares. The depictions of the characters felt so real and how she accurately portrayed someone with anxiety was refreshing and wonderful.

I remember reading in the acknowledgments that they had to change the name of the novel at the last minute and now I'm dying to know what it was supposed to be before! She was also brave for speaking about her own health journey and how she overcame it.

All in all, a perfect book. I could read it again and again, and I think I will! If she ever has any more scenes from this book I will sell my firstborn for them.

4.5 Stars

I read Part of Your World and really enjoyed it, but the ending let me down a bit. But this book? This book didn’t let me down in any way. Jacob is a book boyfriend for life.

Trigger warnings: Long term fatal illness; depression; anxiety; kidney failure/dialysis

Quick Synopsis: Jacob is the new doctor at the ER where Briana works. Ready to get promoted, Briana is just waiting for her new job, until Jacob shows up and could become her new competition. An introvert with anxiety, Jacob uses letters to communicate with Briana and the two build a friendship exchanging notes until Jacob needs a girlfriend, and given everything Jacob has done for Briana, she’s more than willing to assist.

What I liked:
-There is a miscommunication trope. Do I love that trope? Nope. Did it work here. Hell yes. Jimenez used this trope masterfully.
-I loved these two characters together so much my heart hurts.
-There is a scene between Jacob and Briana, the beginning of the miscommunication, that just made my heart absolutely drop out of my chest. I’ll never forget it, because when the truth is finally revealed it is oh so beautiful.

What I struggled with:
-Nothing. I’m obsessed with this.

I can’t wait to read the rest of Jimenez’s novels because if they in anyway resemble this novel I will absolutely love them.

Dearest Reader,

The art of writing letters is almost lost. In the modern age we live in, with communication literally at the tips of our fingers, it’s easy to utilize the quick and easy methods of conversation and the short-hand that we all have succumbed to at one time or another. The instant gratification of a fast reply is more satisfying than slow building anticipation. However, there’s a time and place for letter writing that will hopefully continue to remain, even in the midst of the digital age. Love letters.

“Yours Truly” by Abby Jimenez follows Briana Ortiz, the best friend of Alexis Montgomery from “Part of your World”. Briana is going through a divorce and not her best self. I can assure you, Reader, there have been a few times in my life when I have not been my best self, so immediately I could relate. After a bad day and a health scare of a loved one, Briana literally runs into her newest colleage Dr. Jacob Maddox. Her words are short, his are cold, and they get off on the wrong foot.

Briana and Jacob don’t start out writing love letters. They hardly know each other! Their letters are everything else: apology letters, getting to know you letters, advice letters. Getting ideas down on paper is sometimes the best way to organize your mind. Sometimes, taking a breath to choose words carefully makes all the difference. Jacob would agree. His first letter to Briana explains his intentions and his thoughts behind their first encounter, and it makes Briana see things in a different light.
There’s an indescribeable feeling for when you start to know someone via letters or their own words. Maybe that’s why online dating is so popular. Sure, there are always going to be people looking for a quick hook-up. There will also people hoping beyond hope that their words, thoughts, dreams, and motivations will speak loudly to someone who values those as well.

Dearest Reader, please know that “Yours Truly” also has one of my most favorite tropes – fake dating. As much as I hate secondhand cringe, I LIVE for it with fake dating because it all ends up leading to the Happily Ever After. Would you agree? The best interactions are with the fake daters and their exes, who they inevitably always end up running into. “Yours Truly” doesn’t disappoint in this area.

Ultimately, Reader, I love love, and Abby Jimenez knows how to write love. Jimenez makes me crave each next page. I can’t stop thinking about her characters. I want to be their friends. Would Briana want to go hiking with me? Could we get Nadia Cakes afterward as a reward? Would Jacob let me play with Leiutenant Dan? I’d like to think they would. I hope “Yours Truly” becomes one of your favorite books, because it certainly has become one of mine.

Regards,

Val

This is such a wonderful book. There is something truly special about hand-written letters and I love how these two develop their friendship.

🐾 Second Chance at Love
🐾 Workplace Romance
🐾 Friends to Lovers
🐾 Fake Dating
🐾 Only One Bed
🐾 Slow Burn
🐾 Anxiety (Autism)
🐾 A 3-Legged Dog

ALL the tropes. But they worked, I promise.

This is an ode to Jacob 😆😍 sometimes I have a hard time reading about anxiety… it tends to make me anxious. This book wasn’t like that at all. I fell head over heels in love with Jacob. I strongly believe Jacob is autistic (because I’m totally qualified to diagnose such things 🙄🫣 I’m not. But from my personal experiences with people I love… this is what I’m choosing to believe) and I adore everything about him. His kindness, his selflessness, and the way he learned to deal with his struggles. I love how he showed up. Even when it was hard. He is top tier. Jacob is my favorite Abby Jimenez character ever written.

I went back and forth on Bri. I had moments where I absolutely loved her and other moments where her past experiences had her making decisions I couldn’t agree with. Bri was just her own worst enemy. I got really frustrated at times but I loved the two of them together.

Overall, this story was wonderful. These two complemented each other perfectly.

Abby sure knows how to write soft mmcs and I fall in love with them every.single.time. She did such an amazing job talking about anxiety throughout Jacob and how difficult it can be for caretakers like Bri. I loved how the characters found each other, how they completed and simply understood each other. They were exactly what they needed. I have no doubt in my mind that they're meant to be. I am not a big fan of slow burns but it was done so well that I didn't feel this one at all. And Bri is so FUNNY, I love her sense of humor and how she always found a way to make the people she cared about laugh when they were feeling down.

However, there is a little miscommunication issue where Abby misinterpreted a situation that impacted a lot of the storyline which annoyed me. I wished she would just directly talk to Jacob and not assume so many things but i did understood why she did.

LOVE LOVE LOVE. I couldn’t get enough of this novel & had a hard time putting it down for breaks! Loved getting Bri’s story (and an update on Alexis & Daniel for all of you Part of Your World lovers out there!) Also found it very relatable to modern dating and having anxiety. Goes to show how much basic communication matters and without it, you truly don’t know what’s going on in the other person’s head & heart. Can’t recommend this enough.
Thank you to Forever, Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC!

Abby Jimenez does it again! She is quickly becoming a favorite author. This book was so well written and had such good characters…even the side characters were loveable! I loved Jacobs family and how easily Briana fit in with them. This book really has it all and I will definitely be recommending this to everyone!

4.5 rounded to 5 stars

I had the pleasure of stumbling across Abby Jimenez last year when I picked up Part of Your World (which I just realized I didn't write a review for). Now normally I am not a big romance reader. I'm still learning what I like. Abby Jimenez delivered with Part of Your World. It is now my favorite romance book of all time.

When I saw she had a new book coming out focusing on a bad ass Latina ER doctor I knew I had to get my hands on it immediately. For those of you who have read Part of Your World the main character will sound familiar. It is none other than Briana Ortiz, Alexis's best friend. Briana's divorce is being finalized, her brother is seemingly running out of time as he struggles to find a kidney donor and there's a new ER transfer who she is not getting along with until ...

He writes her a letter. Jacob transferred from a different hospital after a recent break up. His ex and brother are now engaged and they both happen to work at his previous job. Jacob is also an introvert who struggles with social anxiety. The transfer was supposed to be a new opportunity but things keep going horribly wrong and his anxiety is preventing him from connecting with his new co-workers. After a run in with Briana , who is loved at the hospital, he decides to write her a letter and apologize for their weird encounter. One thing leads to another and eventually they start fake dating which leads to something more.

Something I really enjoy about Abby Jimenez's books is how real her characters feel. They are multi-faceted and super relatable. I personally also enjoy reading romances where the characters are in their mid-20s or older. Briana Ortiz is a new favorite character of mine. She is hilarious and loyal and kind and will also fight to the death for the people she loves.

The budding romance between Briana and Jacob feels so natural. It is apparent they belong together. I will say some of the banter got a bit too cheesy for me at some points but it was counter balance with the heavier topics Abby Jimenez decided to tackle.

The book does feel a tad bit repetitive at the beginning namely because Jimenez is making the connections from her previous book into this one. Once the set up is over the plot has a really nice flow to it.

I loved it and highly recommend if you loved her previous book.

Buckle up for some a fake dating, friends to lover story that will tear your heart apart and then put it back together again.

Thank you Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is EVERYTHING! It’s the kind of book you stay up reading and lose track of time reading until your baby wakes up in the middle of the night crying and you’re forced to put it down. It’s the kind of book that makes you dread the book you’ll read after because it won’t live up to what you just read. And it’s the kind of book that you know you’ll have a book hangover from and won’t do justice in a review so here goes..

A second chance at love for two people who struggle with mental health and broken pasts (specifically anxiety and abandonment) done perfectly, with laughable and cry worthy moments throughout.

I adored the main characters in this book and their chemistry (plus, you can’t forget the pup!) It was a slow burn which kept me sucked in. I loved the family and friends and their relationship to Bri and Jacob. The fake dating trope has been done so many times but it didn’t feel overdone here; it was new, fresh and had great depth. There wasn’t anything to dislike about it! Totally lovable!

Abby’s author’s note also brought it home. There’s nothing like an author pouring her heart into a book and then explaining what pieces of her life are shown in/inspired her work. Truly beautiful and done with such grace.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an eARC in exchange for my honest review! This may just be my new favorite Romance!

This was another winner from Abby Jimenez! I’ve been a huge fan of her books since 2020, and this was another amazing book from her with so much heart, humor, and emotion. I loved it so much!

What I loved:
✍️ the letter writing!
✍️ the hilarious anecdotes from both Jacob and Briana 😂 I LOLed more times than I could count!
✍️ Jacob’s family was the best. Especially grandpa and his sneaky cigarette smoking 😂
✍️ the way that Jacob and Briana’s relationship grew so naturally. They started as enemies, but then that quickly changed to friends to lovers (even if they were trying to convince people it was all fake)
✍️ the way Abby tells a story makes it sound like you’re listening to 2 friends talk and share their lives.
✍️ chronic illness and anxiety representation was refreshing to see
✍️ the theme of “love shows up” 🥰
✍️ Jacob’s grand gesture at the end? Swooon 😍😍

The only thing I didn’t care for? Briana continually pushing Jacob away. I know she had her reasons for it, but it got frustrating after it happened 3 or 4 times. I wanted to scream, “HE LOVES YOU!” so many times.

All in all though, this was a fantastic read that once you start, you can’t put it down. Yours Truly releases April 11!

✨Y O U R S
T R U L Y✨

🅶🅴🅽🆁🅴—𝒞𝑜𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓂𝓅𝑜𝓇𝒶𝓇𝓎 𝑅𝑜𝓂𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒
🗓ℙ𝕦𝕓 𝔻𝕒𝕥𝕖—𝔸𝕡𝕣𝕚𝕝 𝟙𝟙, 𝟚𝟘𝟚𝟛

✂️ P L O T L I N E
ER doctor Brianna Ortiz has just finalized her divorce from her cheating husband, her brother is experiencing kidney failure, and to top it off, there seems to be a lot of drama with the new ER doctor at the hospital, Dr. Jacob Maddox . She decides to tell Dr. Maddox what she really thinks of him and in return he writes her a sweet handwritten letter explaining his situation and what his true intentions are.
Jacob turns out to be the perfect match for her brothers kidney transplant. To express her gratitude, Brianna agrees to go as Jacobs date to his brothers wedding. Will her trust issues with men get in the way of her finding the happiness she deserves, or will Jacob, a man who craves a quiet and simple lifestyle be the one to make her want to give men another shot?

💭 ⓂⓎ ⓉⒽⓄⓊⒼⒽⓉⓈ
My favorite type of romance books are those that have the happy ending, yet also have deep and difficult topics that allow you to learn, relate, reflect, and feel empathetic. I fell in love with this story from start to end. Each character was brilliant. Sweet sweet Jacob was so real and I appreciated his story line so much. It was refreshing to see a male who suffers from severe social anxiety. I loved the entire Maddox and Ortiz family. There are so many times that I was laughing while reading this book. I also shed a few tears. This easily would have been a 5⭐️ read for me, but the amount of miscommunication between Bri and Jacob was a tad repetitive for me. I just wanted them to talk it out!! Regardless, I absolutely loved this book!

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
💫Fake dating/ work place romance
💫Laughing out loud reading
💫Well developed characters with a cute dog feature
💫Discussions around mental health

⚠️Trigger warnings: Infidelity, chronic kidney disease, clinical anxiety, depression, mention of pregnancy loss.⚠️

📝𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾📝
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

💕Q U O T E: "𝒲𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝒶 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝒷𝓇𝑜𝓀𝑒𝓃. 𝒲𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒶 𝓂𝑜𝓈𝒶𝒾𝒸. 𝒲𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝒶𝒹𝑒 𝓊𝓅 𝑜𝒻 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝓌𝑒'𝓋𝑒 𝓂𝑒𝓉 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝓌𝑒'𝓋𝑒 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝓇𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽. 𝒯𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓅𝒶𝓇𝓉𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝓊𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓁𝑜𝓇𝒻𝓊𝓁 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒹𝒶𝓇𝓀 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒿𝒶𝑔𝑔𝑒𝒹 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒷𝑒𝒶𝓊𝓉𝒾𝒻𝓊𝓁. 𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝓅𝒾𝑒𝒸𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝓎𝑜𝓊. 𝐸𝓋𝑒𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑜𝓃𝑒𝓈 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝒾𝓈𝒽 𝒹𝒾𝒹𝓃'𝓉 𝑒𝓍𝒾𝓈𝓉."

🙏Thank you NetGalley, Forever, and Abby Jimenez for this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts 💕

Briana is an ER physician (friends with Alexis from Part of Your World) who is struggling due to her brothers illness and divorce from her cheating almost-ex husband and the new cute ER doctor (Jacob) trying to steal the job that is rightfully hers.

Bri and Jacob have to be two of my favorite characters of all time. They are so loveable and fully human and I appreciated that SO MUCH. The anxiety/mental health representation in this book made me feel so seen (rewatching shows is my go to thing!). The side characters and random pets (one of Jimenez's signature moves) only added to my love of this book!!
The miscommunication in this one was a little messy, and the other trope that will not be named isn't my favorite BUT it was well done and I was already won over from that point so as usual this one gets ALL the stars from me.

Some of my fave things:
-Schitt's Creek mentions
-"I get to bleed for a week without the sweet release of death"
-"Im giving up. Im cancelling my bikini-wax appointments. Just gonna let the forest reclaim the land, succumb to my inner swap witch."
-"If I rewatched a show, there were never any surprises."
-"When people go low on me, I go lower."
-"Jacob, I don't even know what your penis looks like."
-"I have to feed you or you get crabby and nonproductive."
-"So now I'm locked in a room with a man that I'm half in love with and extremely attracted to, who wants to have sex with me and I'm sorry, but I have about as much willpower as a piece of broccoli."
-"If you die you die."
-"I was going to let this man snap me in half like a glow stick when we got up to the room."

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader.

There aren’t two people better suited for each other! I loved this rom com so much! The authors depiction of anxiety is spot on and I identified so much with these characters. Their struggles and challenges were so really and difficult that you couldn’t help but cheer them on along the way! Also this was the best representation for the fake dating trope that I’ve ever seen! If you are someone that struggles with mental illness or has a partner, friend, or family member that is struggling then this is the rom com for you! Fantastic representation all around! Cannot recommend enough!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This was my first time reading a book by this author and I can't believe it's taken me this long, consider me on the bandwagon! This was such a sweet story, I found myself taking my time reading just to savor it a little longer. I liked how Brianna was comical and Jacob was genuine and laughed out loud a few times at their banter. Plus, who doesn't like a 'let's pretend we're dating' story from time to time.

Disclaimer: I love Abby Jimenez's books. They always make me feel ALL of the feelings, and this one was no exception. I loved Jacob and Briana's relationship. I was there for the hatred, the love, the in-between. The medical parts didn't make me feel lost (which can sometimes happen when a book gets too medical), but the characters still felt like doctors. I thought it was great that Jacob was the one who struggled with anxiety, and that we saw him struggle. Briana had her own things to work through, but it was nice to see the woman be strong. I thought this was a very enjoyable book, and fits well with Abby Jimenez's other books. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this ARC!

Love how Abby Jimenez's books can be light and heavy all wrapped up in a perfect novel. She is the queen of contemporary romance! Loved the characters and plot.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Jacob Maddox - ∞/5

I laughed, I cried, I screamed in frustration - it’s been weeks since I finished Jacob and Brianna’s story and I keep coming back to it

Brianna Ortiz has gotten the short end when it comes to the men in her life from her absent father to her cheating soon-to-be ex husband and now a new ER doctor standing between her and the promotion she wants. After a first day that went from bad to worse, Jacob puts in the effort to remedy Brianna’s decidedly poor first impression with a letter. Olive branch accepted, Jacob and Bri are exchanging letters, having lunch dates, and spending a whole lot of time together.

“Love shows up,” and Jacob and Brianna absolutely show up for each other and the people that matter to them. I was a huge fan of the mental health representation in a male lead and the way that Brianna took Jacob’s social anxiety and met him where he was with the way she showed him love. I loved everything about Jacob, his vulnerability, and the ways he made space for Brianna in his life.

These characters were likable, lovable, and relatable. It’s always great to see familiar friends in a series, so I was excited to catch glimpses of Daniel and Alexis after Part of Your World!

Fake Dating
Miscommunication
Letter Writing
Social Anxiety

CW: Panic attacks, infidelity, chronic illness, parental abandonment

Thank you to Abby Jimenez, Forever, and NetGalley for a gifted digital review copy!

I have been in such a reading slump lately and I knew this would be the book to pull me out of it. Read it in 24 hours and loved it!

Yours Truly follows 2 ER docs as they fake a relationship. Briana is freshly divorced and caring for her brother who needs a kidney transplant. Jacob has to convince his family that he can handle having social anxiety while watching his brother marry his ex. He also has 2 kidneys and only needs 1. 😁

I love all of Abby’s books, but I really loved how she flipped the script on this one and gave the male lead a mental health diagnosis. Seems like it’s always females that suffer from anxiety, but seeing how Jacob’s life is impacted by his generalized anxiety is all too real.

Social anxiety sucks, and I’ve done most of the things Jacob does to combat it. I loved hearing him talk through how other people affect his energy differently. So true.

I also love that they’re ER docs! Ya ER!!

Plus, fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, regardless of how unrealistic it may be.

This one drops on April 11, so go preorder it now!

(And thanks so much to @netgalley and @readforeverpub for the advanced copy!!)