My first read of the New Year literally happened as the ball dropped. I would say I stayed up only to kiss and wish my family a Happy New Year. That happened but I also stayed up because I couldn’t stop reading until I knew what happened with Sloan and Jason. I’m so thankful that @authorabbyjimenez told the story of Sloan. The Friend Zone left me wanting more Sloan. The Happy Ever After Playlist did not disappoint. We got some Kristen, Josh, Sloan, and Jason. Can’t forget Tucker. I felt like the gang was back together but with some extras! And I was here for it!!

I absolutely adored this book. I was so afraid that I was starting not to like contemporary romance anymore but Abby reminded me that this is what it is all about! A book that makes you feel, makes you hope for more, makes you cry all the tears, and laugh through those tears.

This was such an amazing book to bring in the New Year’s with. This is easily a 5 star book. Wow! If this is any indication of how my reading year is going to be in 2020, I’m all in!!

Thank you @netgalley and @readforeverpub #partner. Be sure to preorder this one, it comes out April 14, 2020.

P.S. Be sure to check out The Happy Ever Playlist on Spotify. Come on where can you get a book and playlist?!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

Oh my gosh...

I'm a little late to the party on Abby's first book, The Friend Zone, One snowy weekend I finally grabbed it off of my bookshelf and dug in. As fate would have it, I also found out that I was selected to receive an ARC of The Happy Ever After Playlist so my weekend was set.

I would highly recommend reading The Friend Zone first to really grasp what this book is based off of. This would work as a standalone, but I feel readers would get more out of it knowing the past experiences and personalities of the characters if they start at The Friend Zone (you will not be disappointed).

We follow Sloan as she begins life again. We meet Jason her love interest. I love how they interacted with each other in the beginning, mostly by flirty text messages. Jason is an up and coming music star and Sloan is an artist trying to get back to doing what she loves, not what she has to do. As they try to mesh their worlds they find themselves easily becoming overwhelmed by life on the road and the demands of his tour schedule. New relationships are hard enough, but the added demands of stardom really test Sloan and Jason and in the process of trying to protect one another, they inadvertently hurt themselves and each other.

I loved the strength of Sloan's character in this book. After grieving a horrible loss, we see her start to thrive and really do what's best for her. Jason does his best to support her, but in the end, I felt it was more Sloan standing on her own two feet and fighting for herself.

The strength of all of the characters, the love and sacrifice we see between partners and the friendships we see continue in this installment make this a 5 star read for me.

Wow. Just wow. I loved Abby's first book but this book was something else. The characters were so well developed and the story was so fleshed out and real that I honestly felt like it was real. I cried (honestly, heart wrenching much??) and laughed and everything in between - and I wanted to fly out to get Nadia's cake (I see what Abby did there..). The characters were just so real and perfect and flawed - I want Kristin and Ernie as my best friends. And obviously Tucker too. This book was incredibly written and if you love happy rom coms, first read The Friend Zone then read this one immediately afterwards. Do it - you won't regret it for a second. Just bring tissues.

I was not expecting to have my heart ripped out as I read this book. But even with that, I laughed and cried and giggled, and re-read pages even as they happened. I wanted to experience this book as one might experience a blanket warm from the dryer.

This is the perfect follow up to The Friend Zone. I was heartbroken for Sloan and was wary of anyone replacing Brandon, but Jason was perfect for her. I really loved seeing her come back to life and I loved how good they were to each other. While there was a little bit of insta-love in this book, I didn't mind it because I really felt like they were right for each other. I loved getting to see so many different sides to these characters--when they were at home in LA, when they went back to Minnesota, when they were on tour, when they were unhappy, and when they were just in their-day-to-day with each other. Both this book and The Friend Zone had really good narrative arcs; I never felt like the story was too short or like there wasn't enough action. The characters really had to work for each other and they had to go through real struggles.

I really wanted to like this book. It has the best meet cute ever, and the characters start out super interesting, but the more I read, the less I liked it. So, let's start with the good. The dog, Tucker, is great! And the Meet-Cute is great. Sloan, the heroine, is having a really bad two years and then a dog jumps into her life. Tucker is a lost dog and his owner, Jason, is away on a trip. So when Sloan finds him, she starts to take care of him, while leaving messages on the voicemail of the number on Tucker's dog tag. Jason finally gets cell phone service and calls Sloan and convinces her that he HAD set up someone to watch the dog, but that person was unreliable, hence the missing pooch. The set up is so great for this, I thought for sure at first I would really enjoy it.

But in the end, I had some frustrations that really put me off of it. SPOILERS FOLLOW

Sloan is suffering from depression, and while the book occasionally makes noises about how she should go to therapy, she ends up getting better just by making better decisions, all on her own (kinda). But, like, that's not how depression works, and that's not how the type of depression she has works. She needs therapy. She may need medication, and the book just hand waves it all away. "She made better choices which is why she's no longer depressed." Like NO! That is so frustrating to me. It seems irresponsible for an author to present a problem as severe as grand depression, and just say "She was able to just make better choices!"

Also, the choices that they're saying are "better" aren't really better. Because she ends up doing not very good things, but is cheered on by her friends who are just happy she's not in her apartment anymore. But here are the life choices she makes that her friends say are good for her.

After knowing a guy for two weeks she 1) Quits her job to go on tour with him (Jason is a musician) 2) Sells her home, so she's currently homeless 3)BASICALLY MOVES IN WITH A GUY AFTER TWO WEEKS.

And her friends cheer these decisions along. So, that is the majority of my problem.

Also, we keep being reminded that Sloan is more conservative then Jason, but they don't REALLY explore what that means. All we know about Sloan is that she's an artist with a bunch of tattoos, and she likes cooking with hunted meat, and she said she doesn't kiss on the first date (she ends up doing that) and that she thinks sex before marriage is cool, but thinks she should wait to be married before having kids. Like, that is the extent of her conservativeness? It's just a really confusing thing for the book to keep harping on without exploring it, why even mention it?

Okay, let's talk about the hero, Jason. Jason is not a great communicator. In the beginning during the meet cute it's super adorable, but later he has all these worries and fears and he just swallows them down, but also let's them influence how he acts, which isn't the best. They could have just had an actual conversation.

Also, the end grovel wasn't good enough. - There's a public thing, but I feel like we there wasn't enough follow through one on one for after.

So, this book started out pretty solid and then just lost it.

I liked Jimenez’s first book, The Friend Zone, and was really interested in reading Sloan’s story. The book opens with Sloan still struggling to get over her fiancée’s death and get back to herself, which felt realistic and relatable. I liked the setup of the romance here, I liked both Sloan and Jason as main characters, and I especially liked Tucker the dog. Side note: I found Sloan’s bff and the main character from the first book to be super annoying here. The music industry elements in this were interesting and I thought they made for a fairly convincing conflict between Sloan and Jason. My usual complaint with rom coms is that the conflict that keeps the main characters apart is minor and/or could be easily handled with a conversation. In this case, the conflict truly did seem like something that could feel insurmountable.

I will start this off by stating that I had no intention of reading this book. The Friend Zone really messed me up, and I did not want to read a story about the girl who broke my heart in that book. I love a rom com. And the ending of the Friend Zone was really missing the Com, even though it delivered on the Rom.

That being said, I really liked this book. Abby Jimenez did right by Sloan, and gave her the happy ending she deserved. I felt that grief and finding love again were handled very respectfully, and I liked that it was never as if Brandon was getting replaced. All in all, this book makes up for the absolute devastation I felt at the end of The Friend Zone. I would recommend reading the two books back to back so that you aren't left on a sad clifhanger.

Two years after losing her fiance in a motorcycle accident, Sloan finds a dog running around in the street. She ends up bringing him home and calling the number on his id tag to locate his owner, who does not respond. After several days, she is in love with the dog and finally the owner, Jason, calls and explains his situation. He and Sloan end up texting and talking and when he gets back into town, she agrees to go on a date with him.

This was a really cute, light, happy story. Jason is a semi-famous musician and I usually avoid books about the rich and famous, it’s just not my thing. But I loved @authorabbyjimenez’s first book, The Friend Zone, and so many of my friends loved this one, so I gave it a shot. With a semi-famous musician as a lead, I expected a story of excess and extravagance, two things I am not interested in reading about, but this story could not have been further away from that. Jason was a very down-to-earth, family oriented guy. I loved how Abby Jimenez explored the demands of a record label, the demands of a music career and touring with a band. I thought it was really well done and added a lot of depth and dimension to this unique rom com. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes romance and rom coms.

Really enjoyed this book and I cannot wait to read more from the author. The characters were wonderful and I liked the plot. It was a book that kept me engaged and I could not put the book down,

I absolutely loved reading the story of Sloane and how she found her way back to living after going through an extremely difficult loss.
I loved there were songs actually tied to each chapter as well

Yes, yes, yes! I absolutely adored this sequel to The Friend Zone and learning more about Sloan's story. And as with TFZ, the author's note at the end of this book added an additional layer of depth to the entire storyline which I loved. Can't wait to see what Abby Jimenez has in store for us next!

Thank you Netgalley and Forever Romance for the advance copy of this book!

I'm having a difficult time giving this story a star rating because something about Jimenez's writing grabs me by the throat, tosses me into a tornado, and doesn't let me go until I've reached the end surrounded by the destruction of my feelings. So, if that's what you are looking for, hold on for the ride Dorothy.

I gobbled up The Happy Ever After Playlist, happy to see Sloan recovering from her grief over the events in The Friend Zone (a book which filled me with similar feelings), and being wooed by the deliciously sexy musician's dog leaps through her sunroof and into her life. Sloan deserves the best in life and I'll cape for her till the end.

The first portion of the book with the texts and flirting between Sloan and Jason is delightful and super fun, full of Jimenez's wit and perfection with dialogue.

I wasn't always quite as enchanted with Sloan's friends (the couple from TFZ) or Jason after he reveals his stardom to Sloan. He's immediately entranced by Sloan because she is physically beautiful and funny, and makes some comments about needing to lock her down before anyone else can realize she's ready to date again which made me cringe a little and I was glad Sloan wasn't privy to those thoughts. Sloan's friends also seem to be on #TeamJason a few more times than I felt like he deserved, but to each their own. I'm just firmly #TeamSloan and wanted to punch Jason in the teeth a few times.

There was also a subplot involving Jason and a pop star ex with mental health issues that thankfully wrapped up in a respectful way but also made me grit my teeth a few times. See behind spoiler for more thoughts (view spoiler)

So, overall there were a lot of things that worked for me and other things that didn't BUT I devoured the entire story in about a day because that's how much I wanted to know what happened. A perfect follow-up for fans of the first book and who want to take on this angst filled romance with a cute as heck dog.

Thank you to Forever for the advance copy!

OMG I loved this book so much. I didn't think I could love it as much as the first book but this book blew the Friend Zone out of the water in my opinion. Right from the beginning I fell in love with how the main characters accidentally started talked. I loved both of them so much and there was so much pain for Sloan to work through. Her transformation and their love story was just amazing. I've been in a huuuge bookhole since I finished the book. I can't wait to read more from this author!

I ate this right up. Abby Jimenez successfully delivers another home run with this release and I can't say I'm surprised. I LOVED The Friend Zone so much. It was a random pick up and I was excited about a new romance title and I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. Then I got this one in my hands and WOW. WOW WOW WOW. I loved it. I went into this blind - as I tend to do lately, and it just made it all the more enjoyable. Highly recommend. Please read and recommend this.

This book will give you ALL of the feels. I was fortunate to have found Abby Jimenez's first book, The Friend Zone, on a whim while searching through NetGalley. Ever since, I have been patiently waiting for book 2. And I was thrilled to once again be able to read it long before others thanks to NetGalley. It was definitely worth the wait. I immediately fell for Jason. He and Sloan were such a cute couple as Sloan worked to rebuild her life and learn to not only love again but to love herself. The only downfall here is having to wait for the third book from Abby Jimenez!

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was not expecting this book to be what it was-- in a good way. There is a lot more plot to this book then is hinted at in the summary. The summary covers about the first third of the book and that is it. There really isn't much of a fight for Tucker (the Dog) at all, and it resolved fairly quickly. Going into this novel, I fully expected for the two main characters to not even meet until halfway through.

Our two main characters are Sloan and Jason. Jason is a musician about to make it big. Sloan is an artist who is struggling after the death of her fiance. The story follows the progression of their relationship as Sloan slowly moves on from the person she was going to spend the rest of her life with and Jason has to fulfill contractual obligations to his label. There are ups and downs along the way, particularly as Jason becomes famous.

The writing style is easy to fall into. The writing is not clunky and the chemistry between Sloan and Jason is not only believable, but it is refreshing. I do think that their relationship develops too quickly though, but hey, it's fiction. I sympathized with the "villain" of the novel and was pleased with how her story line was treated. The real villain does not get it's just desserts though.

My only criticism of this book is that, while Sloan spends a lot of time mourning her deceased fiance, we don't really get any sense of him as a character. We see the physical remnants of his life in her home, but never see his relationship with Sloan. No memories or dreams where we actually see him. There is only really once instance where Sloan speaks of his character in the whole book. Much of the novel revolves around this one characters death, but we don't... get a sense of him. Sloan's best friends husband was her deceased fiances best friend and likewise, nothing was actually shown of their relationship. I would have liked at least one scene that showed a memory of Brandon.

All in all a good read if you like contemporary romance novels and something to look forward to for your 2020 reading list.

I devoured it in just one sitting and I absolutely enjoyed reading this one. When I previously read Friend zone, my concern was why they had to kill off Sloan’s fiance, Brandon in such tragic way but after reading Sloan’s future in this one, it all seems well-connected. Sloan’s future definitely needed a book and we have this one for that. I loved this book so much more than The Friend zone.

Jason is absolutely dreamy, rockstar, musician hero who comes into Sloan’s life when she is grieving the death of her fiance. Absolutely difficult to not fall in love with this character. There is a cute dog, Tucker in the plot who helps in getting Sloan out from grief into the world after a long time. The banter between the two was absolutely to die for and enjoyable. It gives quite a few interesting moments and you will end up falling in love with the two characters. The celebrity status of Jason also brings in some life changing moments for their relationship.

Abby Jimenez is definitely on auto-buy author list without a doubt.

Thanks to Forever Pub and NetGalley for the advanced copy to review!

The Happy Ever After Playlist by @authorabbyjimenez 🎶 9/10

This story was so sweet!! It was such a funny and easy read, Abby’s characters are always so charming and relatable. Abby’s writing is like reading texts from a best friend, her stories are always laugh out loud funny but can also touch on emotional topics without going overboard. After reading the Friend Zone, Sloan’s story of losing her fiancé really stuck with me, and I immediately felt like she deserves a happy ending. So when I found out the next book was giving Sloan her shot at love I was all in. In the Happy Ever After Playlist we get to know Sloan and see her finally get back out there, finding herself again. After a chance encounter rescuing a doggo named Tucker and eventually meeting his handsome owner Jason, who seems to be a notorious flirt.

Now the question is will Jason (a famous musician) stick around for good or will Sloan have to deal with losing another love?

I loved all the flirty banter from Jason, their sexy chemistry was fun to read right from the beginning. FYI some absolute gem out there created the playlist (each chapter has a song) on Spotify so you can listen to the songs as you read! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1tsC0rNPk4Q4lymo4ek83S?si=TFq3F28NQyKv3OhK3vjfhg

Thank you to @netgalley and @readforeverpub @grandcentralpub