I really wanted to love this one… but I’m so disappointed. I have loved every single book Abby Jimenez has written and she is one of my top 5 authors, but this one fell short in so many ways. I have always loved Abby’s characters and well-informed writing of difficult topics. She has great banter and I have loved so many of her side characters… all of this was missing from SYRM.

This book was heavy on the pop culture and booktok slang. it got to a point where it felt over done… mentions of ACOTAR/Rhys, silly tiktok trends that are now outdated, etc. I felt tired!!

Our MCs spent so much time trying to figure out how to see one another, traveling, or working crazy hours that when they are together… not much happens?! Their relationship lacked depth and the dialogue felt boring!

Abby Jimenez is known for tackling heavy, real world issues in her books and I have always appreciate that about her. This one is no exception, however, it felt like she was trying to squeeze way too much into one book including (but not limited to): anxiety, infidelity, depression, grief, animal abuse, child abuse, caring for a sick family member… what else did I miss?! This book felt like Samantha and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Life by the end!

I’m hoping this is just a weird fluke and Abby’s next book is just as great as her others because I have truly enjoyed everything else she has written.

thank you Netgalley & the publisher for the e-ARC of this book.

Abby Jimenez is one of my auto buy authors. I will say the first 70% of this book had me hooked to the point where I couldn’t put it down. Say you’ll remember me had the familiar writing style that’s easy to get into. I think the topic of dementia was handled with so much care. This book was emotional from the start with touches of funny/quirky moments. I enjoyed the characters but the story/romance felt rushed and choppy towards the end. While it was an emotionally heavy story due to the FMC life circumstances I didn’t always feel as deeply connected to the MMC, at times some chapters seemed to only focus on the insta-love aspect? The family dynamics for Samantha were really fun and the first 70% one of my favorite parts, personally for me I wish there was a little less time jumping after certain events and even a couple more family conversations. I will say one thing Abby nails is little connections and writing incredible side characters!! That was one of my favorite parts of this book.

Say You'll Remember Me is the story of Xavier and Samantha--who meet briefly and come away with less than stellar impressions of one another. When Xavier attempts to make amends, Samantha agrees to go out with him. After their first date, the best date of their lives, Samantha tells Xavier she is moving to LA to help take care of her mother who is declining due to dementia.

I knew enough about Abby Jimenez to know that her books are not straight rom-coms, there is always some deeper part to the story. I can imagine this is huge for a lot of readers who want their HEA with a little bit more substance. For me, however, I don't exclusively read romance, and I find that when I do, I am looking for more of that traditional rom-com. All of that to say, this may just be a mismatch for me and the book.

I found the instalove between Xavier and Samantha a little bit baffling considering their ages. I LOVED that our protagonists were fully grown people with real lives to deal with so that the romance was not the only thing in the story but I don't guess I found it terribly believable that these two people would go head over heels despite all the obstacles considering their ages and situations. Ultimately, I found the ending kind of unsatisfying and the love a little lacking. I am sure lots of readers who want a bit more heft in their love stories will deeply connect with this one, but I ultimately found it lacking.

Sign me up for the Abby Jimenez book club! This one may have swooped in at the top as a favorites from her so far. I laughed out loud more than once, and then I even cried! The met cute in this can’t be topped, it was hysterical. I couldn’t get enough between these characters! Trigger warning for caring for sick parents and dementia. Abby also has a way of tackling some heavier topics like this in a way that paints a very relatable picture and creates serious depth to her characters, but doesn’t feel overwhelmingly heavy and has resiliency that isn’t unrealistic.

✨ Book Review ✨

Say You’ll Remember Me
By Abby Jimenez
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I knew I would love this one. 😁

Reasons I loved this one:
🩵 It’s finally a well done insta-love.
🩷 Vet, cute animals, funny names
🩵 Same Abby writing that I love
🩷 Good balance of humor and depth
🩵 You get to see them in love throughout the book instead of only at the end and the work it takes to stay in love against all odds.
🩷 Jake from State Farm
🩵 Come on, Eileen
🩷 UFO dates

Thanks so much to Abby, @readforeverpub and @netgalley for the chance to read this advanced ecopy. Overall, very high up my favorite AJ book list. I can’t wait to add my preordered HARDCOVER to my shelf. Hits stores on April 1st!

ABBY NO YOU DID NOT! Ughhhhh she has become one of my favorite authors people. The depth of her plots while keeping the romance there. I eat her books up. I loved this book so much, will definitely be buying a copy for my library!

I didn't enjoy this book very much. I had trouble connecting with the romance. I felt like the author rushed this aspect of the novel in the first few chapters only to focus on the tragedy part for the rest of it. The content note says this book is a romcom, but it very much isn't. I wouldn't recommend.

OH. MY. GOSH. 😭

Abby- you did it again!!! What a wonderful adventure I just went on in this book. I couldn’t keep up with my emotions, was I screaming/crying/giggling? IDK! This story felt different than previous romance books by her but personally, I think in a really good way. This story had so much depth and emotion to it. It really reminded me of how fragile life can be + made me wanna hug everyone I love. The reality of Dementia in this book is heart breaking but so eloquently written.. agh my heart.

Sam and Xavier? Yeah, I love them so much and they’re perfection. The constant tension and conflicts they faced while still being so darn in love regardless made me squeal!! Animal lovers and hopeless romantics will adore the man Xavier is. The ending/twist was soooo good I literally felt like the perfect little bow was tied. It’s hard to put my thoughts on this into words because the book speaks for itself. You should really really pre-order this and thank me later.

I’m between 4 and 4.5 - so I’ll round down to 4🤔 as of now!

He’s a grumpy vet with a secret heart of gold and she’s a sunshiney soul who goes out of her way to rescue a lost cause kitten. Sparks FLY on their first date💥✨but all good things must come to an end…?

It had the typical Abby humor and heart…and heartbreak🥲 it felt heavier than usual given our FMC’s situation (⚠️trigger warning for dementia and caregiving) but I appreciated it.

It’s HEAVY on insta love which at first irked me (coming from someone who proclaimed she was going to marry her now-husband after their first date it is a bit ironic, I know) because it seemed TOO perfect?? but the journey these two go on together was genuinely beautiful and mature so I quickly got over it!!🥹

My qualms come from its repetitive nature and frequent TikTok challenges/trendy language/“he looks like Rhysand” mentions! And there were some things I wanted to delve deeper into! (Her dad, Hank, etc!!)

HOWEVER - I read 60% of it in one sitting on a flight and fully immersed myself and really enjoyed the ride!! I even shed a singular tear which might not sound like much but I NEVER cry when reading which is where it’s extra half star may come from❤️‍🩹🫂

Abby Jimenez has this special gift of writing such deep emotions on the page. I will be laughing and crying within paragraphs of each other.

This book was so much more than a romcom, as we see our FMC, Samantha dealing with her mother’s early onset dementia. The author did such a thoughtful job of presenting the mental and physical load of caring for a loved one.

Though heavy at times, Abby brought us so many moments of levity. Xavier and Samantha’s banter was top notch and equally hilarious. They could be completely opposites, but they fit together in every important way.

Less romance, more contemporary fiction and family drama, this one made me feel. Abby captures the raw emotions of caring for a sick loved one, the lasting scars of growing up with abusive parents, and the challenges of maintaining a long distance relationship across flights and time zones. These heavy themes blend seamlessly, creating a deeply moving story. I was wholeheartedly rooting for Samantha and Xavier, impressed by their resilience through everything life threw at them. While I sometimes craved more of the fluffy love scenes, Abby never fails to deliver those unforgettable one-liners and undeniable chemistry.

Read if you like:
-Amazing meet-cutes
-Long distance relationships
-Cinnamon roll MMC
-Family caretakers
-Sexy vets

If Abby Jimenez writes it, it’s a guarantee that I’ll be reading it.

“Say You’ll Remember Me” is a veritable wave of emotions in book-form in the best possible way. To go from humor to genuine grief and then addressing the loneliness of long-distance relationships as well as the hardships of illnesses, was masterful on Abby’s part.

I truly enjoyed this book and felt completely enraptured by the story.

Thank you to Forever for selecting me for this ARC. I am truly grateful.

Abby has truly excelled with this work. She possesses a remarkable ability to intertwine serious themes with a beautifully crafted love story. The narrative tugged at my heartstrings, evoking both tears and smiles throughout. The connection between Samantha and Xavier is so compelling that it reinforces the belief that love can indeed conquer all. Is the journey easy? No. Does it often require overcoming significant obstacles for a relationship to thrive? Yes. Is the struggle worthwhile? Absolutely. Abby effectively illustrates this through her exploration of complex family dynamics and the challenges of navigating life in pursuit of the love we all deserve. She conveys that while life is fraught with complications, it is also profoundly beautiful, and love is what makes it so. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book; it is a poignant, heartfelt testament to the effort required to achieve the love story we all aspire to in life.

I empathized with Xavier and Samantha's angst about their long distance relationship. However, the depths of their emotional pain, particularly Xavier's, felt concerning. So much focus on a single relationship didn't feel healthy. I appreciated the exploration of supporting a family member with Alzheimers and the secondary characters in Samantha's family. I would have enjoyed getting to know Xavier's friends more as well.

This grumpy/sunshine romance story shares a title with Taylor Swift lyrics is cutesy and cheesy, and I enjoyed aspects of it. The main characters and all their friends are described as unrealistically physically perfect. Xander is the hot veterinarian the world deserves and is mentioned multiple times he looks like Rhysand the fae lord from Sarah J Maas novels and that he never smiles except for pets and Samantha. Samantha might be able to convince my 7 year old to eat mustard. Not really sure about that, but she's really into it. There was some shining moments of witty dialogue that I liked and the beginning was a strong start when Xander shows his heart of gold. There is also a heavier aspect with the female MC's mother's diagnosis of Alzheimer's. But the author tried to balance that out with lots of silly banter and numerous discussions about Pooter the cat's butthole. Some of the silliness and constant dumps of pop culture lost me and made the book too fluffy for my personal taste. I can see why some people would love this author, though. This was a first book of hers and I'm not sure I'm the right audience for it.

Probably the saddest romance book I've ever read?? I'm somewhat torn on my feelings for this one. It was good, and the romance between Xavier and Samantha was really lovely. But I have my qualms with how it all plays out, and it definitely wasn't what I was expecting based on that colorful cartoon cover.

Like I said, Xavier and Samantha's relationship really is the greatest strength here. They have funny banter, a nice play on the GrumpyxSunshine trope, and they support each other in such lovely ways. Xavier in particular is always going out of his way to do anything in his power for Samantha, and I really loved that. Abby Jiminez knows how to write a leading man!

The side characters are solid too, though I wish we got a little more of them. Tristan is funny and irritating, but I wish he had a more substantial role. Xavier's friends (his <i>family,</i> according to him), are shockingly MIA for most of the book. Samantha lowkey doesn't seem to have any at all. This works for parts of the story, but in other parts just feels odd, like there was nothing for them to do in the main plot so they were just left out.

And the saddest parts of this book are handled well, in my opinion. There's a lot of heavy stuff going on (some content warnings, skip if you think that's a spoiler: <spoiler> dementia, discussions of child abuse, discussions of animal abuse, unexpected death of a family member </spoiler>). Jiminez gave everything an appropriate amount of weight and emotional resonance. Some of the scenes with <spoiler>Samantha's mom</spoiler> are genuinely heartbreaking.

I do think it's a tad repetitive. The inner monologues have a tendency to get stuck on a loop of Samantha/Xavier thinking about how wonderful the other is and how difficult their situation is. It's not untrue, but it's a lot of page time dedicated to the same ideas. Occasionally these have slight variations, but it's just riffs on the same.

Also, if one more person scoffed I was going to scream. That may be edited down by the time it actually releases, but it was used so much it really started to stand out.

(Also also, and this one is more me specific, but I found it weird how often Xavier is compared to Rhysand from ACOTAR. I know that's a popular series, don't get me wrong, but it felt almost... pandering?? Like oh the romance girlies love him, this guy should look like him, it's the dream. I don't know, I didn't like it, especially when it's said by 3 different people in the span of like 5 pages)

My real issue with the repetition is that it takes up so much page time that could be devoted to further developing side plots or supporting characters. More from Xavier's friends, or giving Samantha's siblings a real subplot. Some of the plot resolutions feel a little shallow because they're not really expanded on, then they're resolved in a single conversation. I know this is Xavier and Samantha's story, and I know they're supposed to feel isolated at points, but it makes their world feel strangely small.

This book.. chefs kiss. I loved this book from start to finish. Abby Jimenez is one of all time favorite authors and she’s an autobuy so I was prepared to love it. But what I wasn’t prepared for was how dear to my heart this book would become.

Abby’s books tend to always tie in some sort of realistic heartache and conflict. That’s one of the reasons I love her books. This one is no different. At first, I felt this book was different. The writing felt different, I wasn’t sure where the story was necessarily headed. It kept me guessing on what paths the MCs were going to take. But it rounded out to be a beautifully written story. This will be one of my best books of the year. I highly recommend but grab those tissues!

⚠️Possible trigger warnings

Thank you to @readforeverpub for allowing me to read this ARC!

I devoured this book in two days and I couldn't put it down! I’m a big fan of Abby’s previous works and couldn’t believe I was approved to read this one early. Whatever the case, I’m so happy I get to promote this book to the world because holy crap.. It’s a masterpiece. My new favorite book by her for sure!

All of the characters were complicated and realistic. I loved getting to know Samantha’s family and watching how each of them coped with Samantha’s mom’s diagnosis was heartbreaking and vulnerable. We all deal with things differently and I felt like that was really well represented here. All of the moments with Xavier’s found family from his vet staff to his best friends were just as sweet and supportive.

The romance in this book is top tier. I was so attached to Samantha and Xavier. I loved that through it all they tried absolutely everything to make it work and never gave up on each other. I don’t know that I’ve read a book that perfectly encapsulates how hard long distance romance is quite like this one. The struggle was real but it was honest and heartfelt and really wonderful in the end.

A lot of heavy topics were weaved into this story, but were presented in a way in which you saw those realities for exactly what they were. There were bad days and good days. As only Abby can do, she provided funny moments and serious moments and everything in between which made this a really, really great story.

If you could’ve seen the big ugly tears I cried for the last 45 minutes finishing this book you’d pick it up immediately. The ending was satisfying and couldn’t have been more perfect. My favorite thing about this book was how easy it was to fall into the story; I was hooked from page one and I’m still thinking about how I felt while reading this days later.

I know you won’t, but seriously do not skip this read. It was infinite stars, perfectly done, absolutely no notes.

Thank you, thank you, thank you NetGalley and Forever Grand Central Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez
Rating: 4.5 stars
Pub date: 4/1

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Forever for my advanced copy!

Say You’ll Remember Me is another romance from Jimenez that hits right in the feels. This story follows Samantha, who’s juggling the enormous responsibility of caring for her mother with dementia, and Xavier, a ridiculously attractive veterinarian who seems too good to be true. But after an unforgettable date, Samantha realizes her family situation won’t allow for a relationship, no matter how much she wants one.

Xavier is the kind of book boyfriend you can’t help but love. He’s kind, patient, and completely smitten with Samantha. Even when life keeps throwing obstacles in their way, he never wavers. And Samantha? She’s easy to root for, even when she struggles to put herself first. The way Jimenez captures the emotional toll of dementia makes this story so much deeper than just a romance.

The family dynamics are another highlight. Samantha’s relationships with her siblings, dad, and grandmother make the story even better.
While I really enjoyed this one, it’s full of heartache, and I wish Jimenez had found a way to balance the lighthearted humor that she’s known for with the heavier subject matter. Her books always have some emotional elements, but this one seems to be extra sad.

Overall, this book is emotional, heartwarming, and one that’ll stick with you long after you finish. If you love romance with depth, then this book should be on your radar.

Read if you like:
*amazing meet-cute
*long-distance relationships
*emotional reads
*dual POV
*closed-door steam

YeaAAAHHH, This is for the BOOK GIRLIES! I was immediately giggling and kicking my feet. Oh my god it was amazing. I’ll be buying a physical copy as soon as it comes out. Grump big hearted vet? ACOTAR references? YUPPPP