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book cover for When I Picture You

When I Picture You

A Novel

Narrated by Lauren Fortgang; Hillary Huber

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Pub Date Oct 28 2025 | Archive Date Dec 23 2025


Description

A big-hearted and sexy queer rom-com celebrating the kind of sweeping romance that inspires our favorite love songs. 

Renee Feldman is desperate for a fresh start. She’d hoped to rediscover her creative spark by taking time off from her MFA in documentary film. Instead, she’s stalled. Barista-ing doesn’t chip away at her debt, her thesis project is nonexistent, and if she doesn’t re-enroll next semester, she’ll be out of the program.

Pop star Lola Gray is supposed to be the songwriter of her generation—but she hardly feels like it anymore. It’s been a year since her secret relationship imploded, simultaneously breaking Lola’s heart, annihilating her plan to come out, and plummeting her into writer’s block.

But when Lola sees Renee at her sister’s wedding, all that stress comes to a grinding halt. Lola’s teenage crush on the fearless lesbian next door was so overwhelming, it secretly inspired her debut album. Lola and Renee haven’t crossed paths in a decade, but that night sparks fly.

Renee is still processing the hottest—and most unexpected—one-night stand of her life when Lola surprises her again. Her team is producing a documentary alongside her next album, but the director they hired is a creep. Lola needs Renee to replace him…and filming starts in a week. With her thesis deadline approaching, Renee knows this is her only ticket to graduation.

As Lola and Renee reconnect, there’s no denying the feelings they have for each other or the renewed creativity it inspires. But neither realizes how hard it will be to tell their love story in an industry that sets a narrative of its own.

A big-hearted and sexy queer rom-com celebrating the kind of sweeping romance that inspires our favorite love songs. 

Renee Feldman is desperate for a fresh start. She’d hoped to rediscover her...


Available Editions

EDITION Audiobook, Unabridged
ISBN 9780063429178
PRICE $27.99 (USD)

Available on NetGalley

NetGalley Shelf App (AUDIO)

Average rating from 63 members


Featured Reviews

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Sasha Laurens’s When I Picture You delivers exactly what I crave in romance: a thoughtful blend of friends-to-lovers, second chances, and a romance built on an emotional foundation rather than instant fireworks.

At first glance, neither Renee nor Lola is immediately likable — and that’s part of what makes their story work. Renee is adrift, trying to reconcile her talent and ambition with the stagnation of her present life. Lola, on the surface, seems to have achieved everything she ever wanted, yet her scars from a past relationship shadow even their first night together.

The book is, in many ways, predictable — but it’s also full of tenderness. Laurens excels at capturing quiet moments of connection: late-night conversations, creative breakthroughs, and the nervous joy of falling for someone you thought you’d lost. Even while under the weather, I devoured the story in a single day, drifting in and out of naps and still unwilling to put it down.

I’m grateful to the publisher for the ARC and ALC, which let me enjoy this as an immersive experience. Listening and reading in tandem made it easy to fall for these characters and their journey toward love, self-understanding, and creative renewal.

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