I couldn’t stand the main characters, the constant “not like other girls” descriptions, and suddenly a character

has OCD

. But I enjoyed the plot, found it a quick easy read, and am excited for the next book because it’s about a character I liked more.

All I can say is that if I had read this Abby Jimenez book first I never would've read another. I really enjoyed Part of Your World and so I thought I would dip into the backlist, but I hugely regret it. This book has so many issues
- misogynistic as fuck MMC
- pick me "not like other girls" FMC
- the communication issues in this book were soooooooo drawn out and unnecessary
- sex scenes were really basic he has a giant magic dick shit
-

Kristen basically gaslights Josh for 2/3 of the book about their feelings for each other

-

everything with Brandon???? That came out of nowhere and was so epically sad. The medical content around his injuries was unnecessarily explicit and traumatic. This book is marketed as a romcom with some infertility issues for conflict but actually needed MAJOR trigger warnings for Brandon's accident and death

-

magical miracle pregnancy are you kidding me?!

Jesus wept, what have I just read? Abby Jimenez' debut novel, that's what. I loved the author's latest, "Just for the Summer" and gave it 5 stars. This is nothing like it.

It is chock full of misunderstandings & miscommunication (the tropes I hate the most) and a character who decides she knows what's best for another character while that character is incessantly protesting that she's wrong. Kristen emotionally cheats on her long-distance boyfriend Tyler (who is selfish and disrespectful himself), by falling hard in love with Josh but because he wants kids and she can't have any, she first ghosts him then pushes him away. Or the other way round. It happens a lot because she blows hot and cold. So I was on Josh's side for a while but he is another male character who doesn't know when to give up or take a woman's feelings seriously. Also, he owns a gun and Kristen finds that sexy - an attitude so alien to me that I can't compute it. I actually don't read many American authors because often the experiences feel so unfamiliar. Abby Jimenez had been an exception - now I'm not so sure anymore. Also, it's "firefighter", not "fireman", and it's a vocation - if you just moan about the people who call you out, why are you doing it?

And, what the heck was the storyline with Brandon? It's kind of cold to

kill off a character

just so you have a storyline for the next book. It came quite out of the blue but I am heartless enough to say at least it interrupted the constant exhausting "I love him so much but I can't be with him" and "why doesn't she love me?" angst for five minutes. 

Apparently Kristen does not feel worthy of love without the ability of giving birth because her cartoon villain of a mother had put her down all her life. But it doesn't matter because Josh loves her and her uniqueness, which manifests in her simply being outspoken, sarcastic and getting hangry. 🙄

It annoys me not just that there was a

surprise pregnancy

but also that it was so predictable. I knew about 100 pages before Kristen herself did. 

Basically, if you're someone battling with fertility issues, this book is not for you. Seriously, walk away now.

DNFed at 27%. 

✨she’s not like other girls, she’s worse ✨ 

I could see where the story was going with a miracle pregnancy angle, and I really disliked that with her infertility storyline. I also couldn’t hear one more time how she was “not like other girls” - it made it feel like it was written by a 17-year old boy. I enjoyed her other series but this one isn’t for me.

I’ve read two books by this author-the first (part of your world) I wasn’t a fan of, and the second (yours truly) I adored. This read trite and often misogynistic- like the stereotypical male writing a romance.  For example:
“She was like a unicorn. A mythical creature. An honest, no-drama woman who didn’t bullshit and drank beer and cussed and didn’t care about what people thought of her. She was a unicorn, tucked in the body of an attractive woman with a great ass.”

And their romance turned my stomach seeing as she’s IN A RELATIONSHIP!! With a deported solider.The justifications for it? Just Gross. 

And then the tragedy hit. It was unnecessary and awful and did not need to be done. I guess solely to create a sequel? Absolutely Disgusting. 

I just really hated that

Brandon died

It was sad and I hate sad.

Taylor Swift: “peace”!! 

Age rating: 16+ (2 short spicy scenes 1/5🌶️)

Please check content warnings!!! 

This was a story that really needed to be heard, and I’m glad that Abby Jimenez wrote it. It’s so frustrating that not being able to have kids or not wanting to have kids limits your dating pool so much but it DOES. And the struggle of not wanting to burden your loved ones or potential romantic partners with your health issues is SO REAL. It was very cathartic to see Kristen’s healing journey, as she became more accepting of herself and her worth despite her health issues. I also loved how Jimenez mentioned in the author’s note that this story was heavily inspired by her best friend who struggled with the same issues, making it as true and honest as possible. 

This is a sort of FWB to lovers story, but they both secretly want it to be more. It was so sad seeing Kristen pushing Josh away, when he clearly wanted to be with her, but I completely understand why she did. For those who have not struggled personally with chronic health issues themselves, or something of that nature, her choices will probably be frustrating and not make sense, but it is so extremely real and accurate. 

I will be honest, at the beginning, Josh seemed like such a tool. There were a few comments that made me really irritated at him, particularly his comments about women being “too much work” right now. But we do see him quickly change/grow into an extremely caring and kind man as he falls for Kristen. He quickly became the embodiment of “if he wanted to, he would”, I mean he was SO DOWN BAD for her, you don’t understand!! 

Another thing I didn’t love was that there were so many references to Kristen as being a “cool girl” because she didn’t like many of the other things that girls typically enjoy (flowers, candles, etc.). Which, would be okay, if Josh didn’t act like she was superior over other women because she “wasn’t like other women”, ie. she was blunt and emotionally guarded, etc. It just kind of left a bad taste in my mouth, especially after seeing the Barbie movie, this subtle misogyny is frustrating. 

One more thing I didn’t love was how heavily it talked about Kristen tying her worth with how many children she can bear, which is a misogynistic agenda that is literally shoved down women’s throats.  I’m not negating that Kristen would feel this way, she definitely is valid in those feelings, and Josh’s constant comments about wanting a baseball team sized family do not help the issue. It’s not as bad as it was in the past decades, but Yeesh, I can’t believe that we still need to be having this conversation in 2023. This is not really a critique on the author, but on society in general. It’s so sad that women STILL have to deal with this misogynistic ideal. 

Overall, it was a sweet story that dealt with an extremely important issue that you could tell was done with great care. These characters really and truly loved each other so much. However, it definitely wasn’t my favorite Abby Jimenez book because of the issues mentioned above. 

CW: infertility, chronic uterus pain, emotional abuse from parent, misogyny, death, and medical content