I absolutely loved Abby Jimenez's last book, Part of Your World, so I was so so SO excited to receive an ARC for Yours Truly and get into Briana's story! She was such a funny bff in Part of Your World and absolutely deserved her own book! This was a solid 4.5 star read for me, at this point Abby Jimenez can do no wrong and is an instant read for me.

Synopsis: Dr. Briana Ortiz is on the brink of a breakdown. Her divorce with her cheating husband is about to be finalized, her brother is in need of a new kidney, and to top it off a new doctor, Jacob, has started working in the the same ER as her and could be going up against her for the same promotion. She immediately doesn't like him and in a stressful moment, his anxiety gets the better of him and Jacob makes the situation worse. Jacob isn't having a great time of things either - his ex-girlfriend is getting married to his brother soon, and his family is worried about how he is coping so he lies and says he has a new girlfriend.

To try to fix things with Briana, Jacob leaves her a letter apologizing and explaining the incident. Briana is so excited about the letter and forgives Jacob immediately, and they start leaving each other letters around work and get to know one another. Soon they are close friends, eating lunch together in a supply closet, and hanging out on their days off. Jacob, who despite his first appearances is a super caring and selfless person, decides to donate one of his kidneys to Briana's brother, and she offers to do any favor he ever needs. Soon he ends up decided to cash in, asking Briana to be his fake girlfriend up until his ex-girlfriend's wedding, and of course Briana agrees.

As they start fake dating and spending even more time together, both with Jacob's family and Briana's, they both realize that they are starting to develop deeper feelings for one another, but neither says anything - Briana thinks that Jacob is still in love with his ex, and Jacob thinks that Briana isn't looking for anything more than friendship after her divorce and that she is only there pretending to be his girlfriend because of the kidney he's donating. Things start to heat up, but they both have anxieties and issues from their past that they'll need to work through if they can possibly end up together.

Review: Jacob was such a great cinnamon roll character - I mean, giving your new friend's sibling a kidney because it's the decent thing to do?!!! AMAZING. He and Brianna had such good chemistry and were both so funny, I absolutely loved their friendship. This was definitely a bit of a slow burn, but you get to see both of their POVs and how much pining they are doing for one another.

I really liked the way that this book approached anxiety and past trauma. Jacob has pretty severe anxiety, and when Briana finds out she immediately adjusts how she does things with Jacob so that he's more comfortable, never complaining or making him feel like he's different. She is so understanding and caring and that's what we all need in a best friend!!! Briana has some unrealized/unresolved trauma that affects her later in the book, and with encouragement from Jacob goes to therapy to address it, which I LOVED. It always makes me so happy when books demonstrate positive ways to deal with trauma, stress, etc. including using therapy as a tool.

My only little gripe about this book and why it wasn't 5 stars for me is that the book relied heavily on the miscommunication trope - even though they were absolutely head over heels for each other, both Briana and Jacob were making assumptions about what the other one wanted/felt and because of that just didn't address their feelings. This went on for quite a while and wasn't my favorite, but I was so happy once they confessed and we could move on to them being together (and then of course, more drama, but that's how it is in romance!).

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever publishing for this ARC! Yours Truly comes out on April 11, 2023!

It's amazing how the author confronts serious medical issues, anxiety disorders and renal failure, with such compassion and humor. Her characterizations were spot-on and the descriptions so believable. Will look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley for approving this ARC in return of an honest review!

High impressed and highly depressed.

Did I relate a little teeny-tiny bit too much to Briana? Daughter of an immigrant woman with commitment issues. Mhm... yes. Did the end of this book make me feel alone and happy? Also, yes.

In all seriousness this book took me by surprise. Last year I read Part of Your World and loved it. Second books in companion series don't always have the best reputation, but this one sure does.

The only issue I saw present in the story is the will-they-won't-they of it all. Like many, I love a good slow burn. In this case, the romance was near melting point and neither has resolved their tension - and there was A. LOT. I know it might sound frivolous, but Briana and Jacob were so gone for each other, I just wanted for them to be happy.

As a person with anxiety, I was thrilled by the depiction of it in Jacob. I liked seeing that while there are many difficult aspects to his everyday life, he has healthy ways of comping for it. He's not helpless. His heartbeat will skyrocket and his thoughts will be moving at a thousand miles per hour, but he would endure it to not let his loved ones down.

There are no words for the way they took care of each other, the way they learned one another, the way they loved each other.

Outstanding way to start the year!

Abby is so good, y’all! She has a way of pulling you in, ripping your heart out, and then putting it back together where it’s better than before.

JACOB MADDOX >>>>
that’s it. That’s the review.

I don’t know that a better book boyfriend could have been written, if we are being honest.

Jacob + Bri start “fake dating” after Jacobs ex gets engaged to his brother 🫣 and Bri finds out that Jacob is the anonymous donor giving her brother a kidney.

Bri, with all intentions of keeping things casual falls madly, deeply and quickly in love with Jacob (bc DUH they always do with fake dating!!!!) + Jacob feels the same.

After like a LOT of miscommunication- they finally find their happily ever after ❤️

TRIGGER WARNINGS - miscarriage, cheating, anxiety, chronic kidney disease. Mention of suicide.

A really sweet story! Jimenez did a good job depicting Jacob’s anxiety and the slow start of their relationship, getting to know one another through passing notes, made for a great pay off.
Highly recommended!

Yours Truly was, surprisingly, the first book I read by Abby Jimenez, and I was blown away by her writing. Diverse representation sometimes feels forced and fake, but it was a breath of fresh air to read actual everyday conditions represented with amazing honesty in an equally endearing romance.

Never has a fictional relationship felt more real than Briana and Jacob's.
I adored Jacob's yearning for Briana, his patience for her and his constant demonstration of how much he cared for her, even if miscommunication came in between them. It's important to note how great his anxiety is interwoven and written in the story, very palpable. Amazing.
Briana is balancing taking care of her brother, fighting for a promotion at the hospital while dealing with a divorce. She's clearly going through a really bad time when Jacob joins the hospital and then sends her a letter, prompting her to maybe not hate him so much.
Their development of relationship is so beautiful, Briana being so guarded and Jacob not backing down of her love for her... I CRIED. The ending for sure will have everyone in tears.

📖 BOOK REVIEW 📖

❤️ Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez ❤️

This is my first read by Abby and she did not disappoint! 🤌 I went in completely blind and I honestly loved it that way because the plot kept surprising me!

I loved the representation of someone with anxiety 💗 Having post partum anxiety and depression has been really hard for me so I felt like I could relate. I also loved that it was the MMC - he was the sweetest cinnamon roll hero that I just wanted to give a hug. We need more sweet guys, and I mean that sincerely coming from an enemies to lovers fan.

The themes explored throughout the novel are deep and real, such as mental health, chronic illness, divorce, etc., and I really appreciated that. It punched me in the heart several times and made me cry, which I normally don’t love to cry but for some reason this time was so special. The characters’ growth overcoming fears and trauma was just beautiful.

And of course the adorable romance!! I really couldn’t ask for more from a book. I LOVED IT.

We were pleased to share this title at our live Spring Book Preview event for the Modern Mrs Darcy and What Should I Read Next communities on January 10, 2023, when 1200 readers attended live and twice that many watched the replay in the following week. The PDF from that event is attached. Long story short: WHAT A JOY. My favorite Abby Jimenez!

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy to review. What a range of emotions I felt reading this book. I’ve truly enjoyed every Abby Jimenez book. I love how she covered anxiety, I love how a person with kidney failure and his relationships were addressed, and I love that she dealt with trauma and depression. A lot was in this book but it didn’t feel like too much. I cried, I laughed, I got mad. I really enjoyed Yours Truly.

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5 Stars

As a MASSIVE fan of any and everything Abby. I wish I could give this book more than just 5 stars because 5 just doesn’t seem like enough. This book hits the mark yet again for fans of Abby. I was lucky enough to be able to receive a copy early through NetGalley and I DEVOURED it. It has taken me forever to do a review because I feel like I just keep saying the same things because the books are all so damn good. Get ready for insanely terrible first impressions, and equally funny second chances. Abby manages to give us everything we want but still touches on the very serious issues, and brings awareness to them.

She never fails to make us laugh and cry, but my personal favorite this time was the awkward cringing I got to participate in, due to Jacob’s anxiety matching that of my own LOL It is really great to read books with actual relatable characters! This one hasn’t even been released yet and I am already chomping at the bit for her next one!

GREAT job Abby, keep them coming!!

This book gives the reader "all the feels". You will go from laughing to sad to happy to anxious. I really enjoy books that tackle issues such as people living with anxiety and organ donation. I feel that bringing this to light in books might help someone. It was even more personal knowing that the author has dealt with what is going on in her book.

There is so much humor, love, acceptance, personal growth, and quirkiness in this book that time just flew by as I was reading it. I love love loved Jacob and Bri's back and forth letters and banter. Despite everything, they put each other first. Bri was amazing with how she handled Jacob's anxieties ❤️

As I was reading, I realized that there were a ton of tropes in this one book. Fake dating, enemies to lovers, coworkers to lovers, and more that I won't share that could be spoiler-ish. All of them combined so well in this story and made the book one of the best that I read all year!

This was my FAVORITE Abby book! Read in less than a day. Spoiler alert- but my favorite character trait in this book was that a male character had anxiety. It showed that this can be debilitating for both males and females.

So, first of all, I adore anything Abby Jimenez writes and I will read every book she puts out there! With that being said, this is a love story between 2 ER doctors who have awful relationship histories in their pasts and come together to help each other out and end up falling in love. This book explores social anxiety, depression, trust issues, and organ donors. This book is woven together so perfectly and it has all the parts of a love story. Even those who don't suffer from anxiety or depression or haven't had their hearts broken, will feel for Brianna and Jacob and their love for each other and their survivor mentality when it comes to opening yourself up to someone. Absolutely loved this book!

Abby Jimenez is an author that I will drop everything I’m doing to read her books. I’ve been waiting for Briana’s story since Part of Your World. Briana is everything I love in a heroine. Strong, independent, sassy and loyal. Jacob is such a cinnamon roll and definitely book boyfriend material.

As someone who deals with anxiety everyday I felt so connected to Jacob. Whenever I’m going somewhere for the first time I have to scout out the place in advance. It was even worse when I had my car and would stress over parking. 😩😩

“I agree to be harmless to you.”

“Because love shows up. And here I am.”

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

As always Abby writes characters that I can relate to and cheer for while reading. It was cute seeing certain Easter eggs throughout the story as well. If you haven’t read a book by this author what are you waiting for? Seriously, run don’t walk and check out a copy of this book!

Content Warning: Infidelity (prior relationship), pregnancy issue and clinical anxiety.

Abby Jimenez is consistent in writing characters and stories that I fall in love with, and also rip my heart out a little. Yours Truly is a slow burn romance that dealt with a lot of heavy topics, but Briana and Jacob were so free and light hearted together that there was a beautiful balance in this book. Briana is almost divorced from her ex that cheated on her, and swearing off men for a while after some unsuccessful attempts at online dating. Jacob has just transferred hospitals after his own break up, and these two become friends after some unlikely and unfortunate events. Jacob has severe anxiety that is depicted beautifully in this book. Briana understands him and pays attention to him in a way that his ex never did.

This book was an engaging read, even though it contained my least favorite trope, fake dating. The book starts off with great communication between Briana and Jacob, but towards the middle to end of the book, all the drama is due to a lack of communication. I have a pet peeve regarding drama being caused by a lack in communication. Additionally the end of the book had some additional drama that played out rather quickly, and I would have liked some additional time for the characters to work through the events.

This is a beautiful and heartfelt story that I highly recommend.

I also recommend reading the content warning at the start of the book.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and voluntarily give my honest review.

Truly, Abby. What are you doing to me? Not only does this book have fake dating but it also has angsty as hell mutual pining, the 'oh no one bed' trope, getting drunk and confessing love trope, and <i>letter writing</i>. There's a wonderful breakdown of Jacob, who is painfully introverted and has social anxiety and Briana, who <i>understands</i> how to help him out in high-stress situations. She's not a perfect character either as she struggles with depression and went through painful trauma in regards to her ex-husband. To top that off, there's a heartbreakingly personal side plot of the Briana's brother going through kidney failure and struggling with his diagnosis while adapting to a life of dialysis. The 180 change from his life of depression to knowing he has a donor is relatable. From someone who has literally gone through kidney failure, been through the process of learning to do home dialysis, and then actually finding someone who offers to donate out of the blue and is a match?? It's indescribable and yet, Abby captures it all in her writing. Not only am I invested in reading about Jacob and Briana fall in love with each other but hiding their feelings, I am rooting for her brother and THRILLED when he gets the news of having a donor.
There's so much heart to this book but there's also plenty of humor as we follow Briana and Jacob from their amusing meet cute (and hilariously bad first impression) to them getting to really know each other and their fake dating. Jacob's entire family are full of characters, including his mom who is a sex and relationship expert. So many things can go wrong for them and they have some very low points in the book but they also have each other.
I cannot recommend this book enough. Abby Jimenez has surpassed my expectations for this book and I have really enjoyed her past books. They're always full of warmth and love and this one is no different.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

I will absolutely be purchasing this book for our library!

First, the author is local and the story is too, taking place at some familiar locations near our library. Second, it is well written and joyful. Third, it handles sensitive topics carefully and respectfully. Overall, the title is an excellent addition to our collection that I truly believe will excite our readers.