WOW this debut BLEW my expectations out of this world you guys! I kept hearing raving reviews about this book and was thinking "well see about that... most likely I'll be on my outlier island again."

Oh my goodness was I completely wrong... I LOVED everything about this book. This is not your typical light and fluffy romance read. It's so much more then that.. it has depth and emotions that will rock you to your core.

I'm wondering what else does Abby Jimenez have up her sleeve? Abby truly writes like she's been writing novels for YEARS... I mean.. my gosh I couldn't put this book down and didn't want it to end.

This has truly everything you're looking for in a book. The characters were so connectable and I was crying when they were crying, I was laughing when they were laughing, I was angry when they were angry.

This book deserves all the true and raw 5 stars... and THAT is extremely hard in my book you guys. I rarely give out 5 stars so that is in itself should tell you to run not WALK to get this book ;).

This is one gem and true piece of special literature that you don't want to miss. I literally am biting at the bullet for her next novel that comes out in March 2020!

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Forever Publishing for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date: 6/11/19
Published to Goodreads: 6/10/19

THE FRIEND ZONE was one of my top ten anticipated reads of this year and while I received this copy for review a while back, I was completely scared to read it. I felt like I may have too much in common with main character - her infertility issues and her doubts of allowing someone to love her when it may alter the future they imagined for themselves. I had to convince myself to be brave and start it. This book is a romance with some comedy, which I love, so of course I should just go ahead and read it.

I did experience the pain of the characters, but I finished reading it and felt a little less alone. While my circumstances aren't exactly the same, it's definitely something I understand and relate to. Yes, I did cry several times while reading THE FRIEND ZONE. Sometimes my tears were for the characters. Other times the tears were for myself.

And with all of the emotions that I felt while reading this book, what I can appreciate is how much this story made me laugh. Kristen just cracked me up. I loved her humor and her bluntness and the various ways she would make herself undesirable so that Josh wouldn't fall in love with her. I loved the fun little scenes with her yorkie, Stuntman Mike.

And then we have the oh-so crush-worthy Josh. He's now on my book-boyfriend list. I love how he loves Kristen and how he would give her a run for her money when she would turn up the sass. He was her partner in every prank she wanted to pull. He was the one for her, no doubt about it.

Laughable Quotes:

“You should name any dog according to how it will sound while yelling his name and chasing him down the street in a bathrobe.” - How little doggies like Stuntman Mike get their names.

"Did you send me a potato?" - Potato parcels! I've sent one.

“Do I have to put on a bra? Because if I have to put on a bra, I’m not going.” - She's right this can be a make or break moment.

"Have you ever had the urge to tell someone to shut the f*ck up when they aren’t even talking? That’s how I feel literally every time I see his face.” - Oh, we all know someone like this!

I don't know how many times I turned to my husband to share these laugh-out-loud lines, but there were a lot!

THE FRIEND ZONE definitely met my expectations for a most anticipated read for 2019. Even though I was nervous to read it, I'm glad that I experienced all of the emotions I did. This is a book that I needed to read. I loved it.

I really enjoyed this book for about 20%. I can see why so many people are loving on it. Then the hero kept describing the heroine as “a cool girl”. Maybe it was an unknown trigger for me. I guess my opinions about someone that is “a cool girl” are just not that positive. Slowly, I started hating the hero and heroine. I just couldn’t enjoy the story anymore. I wasn’t reading with open, positive eyes, but judgy eyes. I wish this wasn’t the case, but it is what it is.

I voluntarily read an early copy.

I first heard about The Friend Zone over a year ago when a friend of mine got to read the manuscript. She couldn’t tell me anything about the book (it didn’t even have a title and was still in submission) but she told me she loved it so, so much and she hoped that everyone got to read it. Fast forward to now and I can say she was 100% right. The Friend Zone was awesome. It was the perfect balance of humor and emotional heartbreak and I’m so happy I got to read it.

The Friend Zone is the story of Kristen, a strong, funny, feisty woman that is facing the fact she is about to have a procedure done that will stop her from being able to have children. Being the good friend that she is, she puts aside all of that to help her best friend plan her wedding. Which means she will be working side by side with Josh, the best man. As Josh and Kristen get closer it becomes harder and harder for them to stay in the friend zone. The problem is, Josh wants kids and Kristen won’t be able to have them.

What I loved about this story, besides Josh and Kristen, was the fact that the author stared what it is like to be a woman right in the face. She didn’t shy away from the problems women can have when it comes to reproductive issues and how that can make a woman feel. Jimenez was raw, and truthful in her storytelling but also added so much humor into the mix it was a nice balance. There was one part, okay, more than one part, that shredded my emotions and I 100% didn’t see it coming, but again it felt like real life because the unexpected can and will happen.

In the end, The Friend Zone was everything I was hoping for in a book. It hit all the notes I wanted it to and more. I definitely recommend picking this one up.

Tell the world:

Wow!!! I LOVED this book!! It has been awhile since I have stayed up until 2 or 3 in the morning to finish a book, but this one did that for me. There has been a lot of hype around this release, and let me tell you it is deserved.

First off, I loved Kristen as a main character. She was strong and loyal and just fun. I also loved how the author address reproductive issues. It was so refreshing to meet a character that was so real and to have these issues represented so well in the book.

And Josh. I just loves Josh. You can’t help but love a fireman who had all sisters. He was sweet and strong.

Kristen and Josh together were just perfect. They were perfect foils for each other. And their banter and slow burn relationship was well written.

And then there’s Brandon and Sloan. And well let’s just say I need to read book two RIGHT NOW!

Abby Jimenez is an amazing new romance writer, and I can’t wait to devour everything she writes!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Wow! Be ready! The Friend Zone packs an emotional punch. Prepare yourself to laugh and cry your way through Kristen and Josh's journey to a happily-ever-after. 

Weddings and relationships are not on Kristen Petersen's horizon because it makes life too complicated. That's until she meets the best man for her friend's wedding. He's everything she wants, but his desire for a family means she won't get involved with him.

The baby brother in a family with six older sisters, Joshua Copeland knows how to steer his way around a woman – he's had an excessive amount of practice. When he meets Kristen, he's not offended by her sarcasm and standoffish behaviour, after all, he's seen it all before and he likes the challenge. However, when faced with the reason for her attitude, will he relinquish his dream and accept a life with this woman comes at a price?

Have tissues at the ready. This story is intensely heart-aching yet full of humour too. For a début novel, the author knows how to wring out every drop of emotion from the protagonists. They are complex characters, made for each other but in time-honoured fashion, the journey for them to realise it is a difficult one for them to navigate. In some ways, the narrative ended up where I expected it to go. As a reader, I chose not to be disappointed but instead, embraced it because I wanted Kristen and Joshua to have their happy ending – to have what neither thought they could achieve together. Both are engaging characters in their own way but most importantly, they complement each other perfectly. Therefore it's easy to fall for their own unique charm in a relatable way. They are characters you'd want to be friends with in the real world.

After reading The Friend Zone, the justifiable buzz surrounding it is notable and I'm pretty sure it will end up in my top five favourite books of the year.

***arc generously received courtesy of Forever Romance via NetGalley***

I really enjoyed this book! This book has been all over different social media outlets and has been heavily hyped by the people in the book community that I'm connected with. I was a little nervous going into this book for that reason because I haven't always had the best experiences with super hyped books. I am glad that I took a chance on this book though because it was really good.

Even though this is a romance, this book also deals with some sad and heavy topics. I swooned, laughed, and cried several times while reading this book, so it definitely took me on an emotional journey.

I really enjoyed Kristen and Josh's characters. They made the book even more enjoyable to read with their obvious chemistry together.

The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez is the story of Kristen Petersen and Josh Copeland.
Josh is to be the best man at the wedding of Kristen's best friend. So they are put in close working corners but they found a friend zone relationship. Kristen knows that Josh would want a big family because that is one of the reason he broke up with his ex girlfriend. Kristen knows that won't be something she can do for him due to a medical reason.
This was a sweet, funny and sometimes emotional read.

I have to start with Wow!!! Is this really a debut novel by Abby Jimenez and after reading The Friend Zone I’m predicting a very successful career for this very talented author.
This book has all the feels and emotions you want in a great read, I laughed, I cried and at times I held my breath, it’s certainly a book you will want to read in one sitting so please make sure you have time to get captivated in this romance that’s full of love, passion, humour and lots of emotion.
Fate plays a big hand in getting Josh and Kristen on their journey of love and it’s a journey you will want to join, you will want to meet the loveable characters who have depth and strength and you will want to see how their unique relationship pans out. I highly recommend this friends to lovers romance and I will certainly be following Abby Jimenez’s career. Looking forward to what’s next.

Told in alternating perspectives The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez allows you to get completely into both Josh and Kristen’s heads. By turns this book tore me apart and made me laugh hysterically. Though I am generally not a fan of characters that make decisions for other people, Jimenez drew me far enough into the story and Kristen’s head that I was able to let it go. Jimenez’s debut is heart-wrenching and not for the faint of heart. Those that take the plunge will find it well worth it….just make sure you have the large box of tissues handy and lots of water (hydrate!)

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this novel.

I laughed. I cried. My heart was shattered and mended together. This book was just as good as everyone has said it is, and I love a story that lives up to all the hype. It stays true to being a romance, but along the way takes readers on a true emotional rollercoaster as Kristen and Josh navigated major life issues on their path. I could not put this one down, and couldn't stop talking about it when I did put it down. I don't have enough good words to say about it, but I was so excited to get to the end and see what Abby Jimenez is working on next, because I need it.

This was absolutely amazing.! If you are looking for something that has drama and for characters that don't feel sorry for themselves and actually work things out , this is definitely for you.
If you like books that do more than root for the underdog and actually show you real layers of people and problems and life ,you won't regret picking this up

This was a great read. I immediately fell in love with the main characters, Josh and Kristen. They were both very relateable and even though the book was at times predictable, it didn't distract from the overall essence of the book. I enjoyed the alternating perspectives from Josh and Kristen so you could see both sides of their friendship and watch as they simultaneously both realized their feelings for one another. I was SO glad to see that there will be a second book, focusing on Kristen's friend Sloan, coming soon. I'm so looking forward to reading it and more by this new author.

***Thanks to the publisher and #Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review***

OK, here goes. I have a few issues with this book.
On the surface, the main characters are complex and likable. It was a big turn-off that Kristen had a weird hang up about people who drink wine and eat charcuterie plates (what's wrong with these things?) She made it seem like it was a character flaw to like nice restaurants instead of eating hot wings and drinking beer. Josh was fine, I guess, but was really into hunting, which creeps me out.

The story itself was somewhat fast moving, but it felt like the angsty internal monologues went on forever.

When there was a pretty big plot twist later in the story I was ripped from my comfort zone and this entire book changed its tone. Instead of being a fun, angsty romance, it turned into one of the most depressing stories.

The Friend Zone is THAT BOOK!! You know the one I'm talking about, our FAVORITE, the one we talk about all year. I'll admit that I was nervous as hell about actually holding and reading this. It was one of my most anticipated books this year. It came highly recommended by Kim @bookbruin and Kelly @bookmarkbelles. I think I asked Kelly like five times if she'd read it yet waiting on her to tell me what she thought. Once she read it, she wouldn't stop talking about it. I wasn't really worried about it living up to the hype. I just wanted to savor it. Instead, I ended up devouring it. I literally couldn't put it down. Thankfully I have a great husband who poured my wine for me.

"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."

WOWWWW. This book was so much more than I expected it to be. I was so connected to these characters. I felt everything with them. I was smiling and blushing during their highs. I was also sobbing on their lows. The love will jump from the pages and grab your heart. I don't just mean the love between the couple. I mean the love for their friends, their family, Stuntman Mike and for the future they both want.

"Just say okay."

The only thing I'll say about Josh is he's PERFECTION. He's the man that girls dream of marrying. I connected with Kristen because she's basically me. I can relate to the stress cleaning. It's my go-to. It's all about taking control where you can. I'm an only child. I've also had the "thing" she faces and fears the most. You'll understand more when you read it.

There's so much more I want to say about this book but for spoiler reasons, I won't. I can't recommend this enough. The story was INCREDIBLE. It's BEAUTIFULLY written. It's a story that will stay with me for years.

First of all – I feel so fancy reading a debut book by a famous Food Network multi-winning chef. How cool is that?! Second of all, this book blew my expectations out of the water! I did not expect to feel this way about this book! I’m too emotional over here! I went into this book blindly because I just trust my fellow book reading friends so much. They loved this book too and now I can see why! I have endometriosis and polycystic ovarian syndrome, so this book hit me on a whole other level. We need more books like this. Thank you Abby for this refreshing, feel-good, emotional love story.

The Friend Zone is a debut with chapter switching povs between the heroine and hero, laughs, serious life issues, and a easy paced flow. Kristen suffers from uterine fibroids that cause her to have long heavy periods with extremely painful cramps and other intensified pms symptoms. Even though she feels she would eventually want children, her medical condition makes it implausible, so she is considering a hysterectomy. She's currently dating Tyler, a Marine overseas who is not planning on re-enlisting and coming home to live with her. Tyler doesn't want kids, so even though Kristen isn't sure she loves him, she thinks they are a good match.

Josh just broke up with his girlfriend and is moving from South Dakota to California to work with his bestfriend Brandon, they're fireman. He comes from a large family, six sisters, and has always wanted kids. He's not looking to get into a relationship until he feels settled in but Brandon's fiancee's maid-of-honor captures his attention.

“Fine. Stay. But don’t go catching feelings. I mean it. We are not a thing. Got it?”
“Using me for sex. Got it.” He pulled me closer and kissed my shoulder.
“Stop!”
“Good night.”
I could tell he was smiling.

Kristen and Josh definitely have chemistry on the pages, they have similar tastes, attitudes, and sense of humor; I enjoyed the playfulness between the two. There's a little bit of love triangle with Kristen dating Tyler but being extremely attracted to Josh. At first I liked how the author didn't immediately demonize Tyler, but about halfway through Kristen gets an easy out solution and the love triangle conflict lost a lot of its umph.

The main conflict of the story is Kristen knowing that she probably will never be able to have children, knowing Josh wants them, and so feeling she isn't good enough to be with him. Kristen is a sassy, tell it like it is character, easily discussing or mentioning her period issues but clams up and refuses to tell Josh that it could lead to her never having children. This creates a situation where Kristen is constantly pulling Josh in, because she is incredibly attracted to him and doesn't want to admit to herself that she loves him, but then harshly emotionally pushing him away, it started to get a bit exhausting and annoying. Lack of communication becomes part of the premise of the story and with two leads who otherwise have no problem communicating, it felt somewhat forced.

Josh for his part, plays a pretty understanding sensitive guy. He constantly bends and makes way for Kristen's needs, so often and completely that while he is definitely sweet, I didn't feel they had an equal relationship, how was Kristen meeting Josh's needs? Kristen is twenty-four and Josh twenty-nine, I felt this had a bit of a New Adult feel to it, Kristen came off young and immature at times and Josh felt a bit stand-in for Fairy Tale Submit To All Your Wants and Desires placeholder hero.

But being with her wasn’t even something I had to think about. I did want kids. But I wanted her first. Everything else was just everything else.

I thought it was great that the author showcased Kristen dealing with the health issues she did, we don't often get to read heroines with these issues but the ending had a bit of a surprise to it that I know will leave some readers feeling betrayed, it almost felt like a bait and switch to me. [Kristen ends up getting magically pregnant to their surprise (hide spoiler)]
There was also an ending heavy emotional situation that came off feeling somewhat manipulated, it was shocking but I wasn't completely invested in the secondary character because they weren't fully fleshed out and it ended up feeling more set-up for the second in the series than adding to the emotional fabric of this story.

Overall, this author has a very easy reading style that does keep you reading the pages. There was some “cool girl” vibes going on with Kristen that I could have done without, women who eat cheeseburgers aren't necessarily cooler than those who don't; comes to close to the manic pixie girl vibe promoting for me. The main conflict of the story ended up feeling bait and switch, Kristen's push and pull with Josh started to drag, and there was some layers and depth to characters I was missing that kept me from fully sinking into the story. This is an author I'm going to keep an eye on though, there's some charisma to her writing.

4.5 stars

I requested this one on a whim as I usually try to stay away from super hyped books.

I loved Kristen and Josh. She’s sarcastic and sassy and I loved every minute of being in her head. He’s a sweet and charming marshmallow who is an amazingly good person. Together they have banter and chemistry and it was so easy to root for them.

Plot wise, it was...mostly good. The entire thing was a giant game of push and pull and that got tiring real quick. Yes, yes, I get the reasons behind it, but still. Have a conversation already. I loved all of the talk of periods and fibroids and Josh not even being fazed by it. There is a plot thread that I didn’t see coming and the book turned in an entirely different direction. And even though it was heartbreaking, it added a layer of sincerity that I couldn’t get enough of.

Overall, I devoured this book from the first page and was irritated that I had to stop to eat, although I think Kristen would approve. This is such a strong debut, I can’t even wait to see what’s next from Abby.

**Huge thanks to Forever for providing the arc free of charge**

Better Than The Hype!

So, I’m usually really leery of books that have a ton of hype because most of the time I don’t love them as much as everyone else does (which is totally fine, different books work for different people for different reasons). But...THIS. ONE. IS. BETTER. THAN. THE. HYPE!

Josh and Kristen connect immediately and everyone feels it, including the reader, there’s just three little problems: Josh broke up with his last girlfriend because she didn’t want kids, Kristen is about to take steps that make that no longer an option for her, and she has a boyfriend...sort of. So Kristen decides to kill him and her feelings with sarcasm and showing him the real her from the start...too bad he falls hard for the real her and isn’t willing to stay in The Friend Zone.

The explorations of love, friendship, infertility/reproductive issues, loss, self worth, and sacrifice are so beautifully handled that even as your heart is being torn apart, along with the characters’, you’re laughing and smiling and having your faith renewed. Abby Jimenez’s voice and style are so perfect for romance and I can’t wait for more!

I received a complimentary review copy of this book but all opinions are my own.

Oh man, what a great debut book!

Loved this one from the very first page. The dialogue was great and the chemistry was even better! I truly love it when I take a chance on a new author and realize that I am already wanting more words from them as soon as I finish the first book.