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Part of Your World #3
Just for the Summer
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Romance (2024), Nominee for Readers' Favorite Audiobook (2024)11 hours, 43 minutes
A sharp and scintillating summer novel that will make readers laugh out loud and cry happy tears from the New York Times bestselling author of Yours Truly.
Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work.
Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.
It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?
A sharp and scintillating summer novel that will make readers laugh out loud and cry happy tears from the New York Times bestselling author of Yours Truly.
Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work.
Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.
It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?
12 pages, Audiobook
First published April 2, 2024
55034 people are currently reading
715083 people want to read
About the author
Abby Jimenez
18 books101k followersAbby Jimenez is a Food Network winner, #1 New York Times best selling author of Just for the Summer, and recipient of the 2022 Minnesota Book Award for her novel Life's Too Short. Her book Yours Truly was the first romance novel in the history of Book of the Month to win the coveted Dolly Award for Book of the Year. Abby founded Nadia Cakes out of her home kitchen back in 2007. The bakery has since gone on to win numerous Food Network competitions and, like her books, has amassed an international following.
Abby loves a good romance, coffee, doglets, and not leaving the house.
Abby loves a good romance, coffee, doglets, and not leaving the house.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 135,078 reviews
August 30, 2024
5 stars!!
“The best kind of love doesn’t happen on moonlit walks and romantic vacations. It happens in between the folds of everyday life. It’s not grand gestures that show how you feel, it’s all the little secret things you do to make her life better that you never tell her about.”
You guys do not know how excited I am to write this review because this book meant so much to me and I honestly didnt think a book could mean so much to someone until I read this 🥺 It was so beautifully written, with such emotion, Only one book has managed to make me cry (As long as the lemon trees grow") while this one did not make me sob, It brought me so close to it when I read the epilogue because it was perfect 🙂↕️✋🏻 I could have binged this book in one sitting because I was literally free but I was so attached to these characters that I was delaying an inevitable goodbye which hit me so hard because within a span of 400 pages, they gave me so much and took it all away as I closed the book 😔✋🏻 Reading this book was such a serene experience, makes me want to read every Abby book out there because this was fucking beautiful. I have never in my life read a book filled with so much feeling, such perfect representation of guilt, self-hate, anxiety and neglect as this 😮💨
This book perfectly captures gut-wrenching moments mixed with feel-good, heartfelt moments, written with so much emotion that it honestly felt like I was experiencing all this in real life with them with me because there is no way a book can have me on the verge of tears imagining them sitting together as they laugh and live a happy life or make me feel so angry at a character for treating her daughter so bad and I can not stress on how the slow burn made me feel AHHH!! I wanted everything and it eventually gave me everything 😭. The writing was simply breathtaking, it reminded me so much of Emily Henry because usually her books are the type to make me feel this way. The way it described love is gonna make you believe in it 🩷
I feel like another way to look at why this book is so perfect for us is because we had unbelievably high expectations like you do not know how high are expectations were, we singlehandedly believed that this would be our summer read and the anticipation that led to this book because were waiting to read it in June but my copy took a month to arrive and then one thing led to another and before we knew it, and we learned that you need to read the first two books (not true, this could be read as a stand alone) 😭😭 but for a better experience we did and we really enjoyed these two but they can not be compared to this masterpiece. It was everything, it managed to exceed everyone of our expectations and we loved every second of it 😌 This showed how good of a book this was.
The characters in this book were so fucking precious 🥹. I wanted hug all of them because they all deserved so much better than what they got, We follow two characters Emma and Justin who meet over a twitter thread and having similar relationship problems enter a fling 'Just for the summer' and one thing leads to another and to know more you would have to read this book because so much happens and I am still stuck in those moments 😔😮💨✋🏻
“You're not asking too much," he said. "You were just asking the wrong person. Ask me instead.”
Justin was the epitome of 'If he wanted to he would' because he did!! 😌 I love how good Abby Jimenez's men are. All of them are literally green flags. He was everything that you would look for a man. That man was the standard because no one has ever put themselves out that much for anyone, he was fully committed, the way he comforted and understood Emma's trauma and pain and tried to give her time and be there for her was so precious for me because this should be the bare minimum tbh these days, he did all this while struggling himself with his mom going to jail and him having to take care of his family, all of it put together complimented the book well.
I mean how can you not love him, he's 6ft, charming, charismatic, funny and has dimples + is a software engineer and uses his skills to make fun things for his gf 🤭. I love, love, loved the effort that he put into this relationship and I also love the found family aspect that we got because of him, this whole series tying up to this moment felt like a massive found family and I was in love with it.
“In a world where you can choose anger or empathy, always choose empathy,”
Emma was such a strong character tbh because it's so hard to find books without any annoying female characters and I was so happy when I found Emma to be so realistic and relatable 😭 I wont agree with anyone saying Emma didn't deal with anything in a mature way-✋🏻 Live with a mother who abandons you and neglects you and then judge her✋🏻. Emma was so cute, I loved her and I literally grew so close to her and so fond of her that everything that came rolling down on her made me so sad and angry. I loved the way her character looked at the world, where she would look at things with more empathy and would encourage people to do that as well. People like her are a gem and should be protected at all costs 🩷
I hated Emma's mother sm 😡 she made me furious because what she did was unforgivable!! to think that Emma could have gotten so much love and such a nice past- but she didn't because Amber the fucking bitch was to selfish to do that, she would abandon her and ruin her life, would make her feel like shit and would not care for her or more or less pay attention to her 💔 Especially chapter 41 where she talks to him (yk who) and he tells her about his past and she thinks that's it could've been for her.
“Maybe home isn’t a place. Maybe it’s a person.”
Maddy is the friend we alll want and I am so happy and thankful to god for giving me friends like her because she was perfect. She understood Emma so well, gave her reality checks and supported her, helped Justin figure her out and overall I just loved how she was there for her always. I also loved Emma's relationship with Justin's brother and I liked how Justin and Emma rekindled because of them<333
“What are you thinking?” I asked. He didn’t answer for a long moment. When he did, he did it with his eyes closed. “All I ever think about is you.”
The romance was everything that I ever wanted. It was everything. I loved it so much that I literally have no words to describe it, it made me feel every emotion that is out there to exist 🥹 Justin and Emma were made for each other, it was everything that I was looking for in a moment, there banter alone was so well done and their chemistry was perfect tbh. Their domestic scenes had me swooning 😮💨 where they would cook together and help the kids and I loved how she would just extend her trip. That first kiss scene literally gave me and Emma both butterflies, it was so well done. Although it's supposed to be a fling but there's so much slow burn and angst and tension filled in this book 🥵 The perfect balance of everything. Like its the perfect fucking combo for everyone out there. I genuinely would read it every year/ every summer.
Scenes that I absolutely loved:
1, Justin making Emma pre-date questionnaires and giving her invitations 🤭
2, the whole toilet king banter 😭✋🏻
3, Dual pov 🙂↕️
4, The confrontation between Emma and her mother 🥺
5, Chapter 40 😨
6, Justin paddle boating his way through to get on an island just because Emma called him and told him that she was sick 🥹
7, The airport hotel scene between Maddy and Emma 🫂
8, Sarah emergency contact list scene + JustinEmma domestic scenes 🩷
9, Justin and Emma on the date where Leigh and his mom crash with them 🤣
10, the first and the last chapter 🩷🫂
“The moment Emma came into view, my entire world slipped into slow motion. My brain took a screenshot. I felt the moment freeze and save. She was beautiful.”
The plot (Spoilers will be mentioned) started off so cute with the whole fling and it served well for their banter and chemistry and I was excited to see where all of it would go tbh because I wanted to see how all of it would end and oh my god that plot twist that came and hit us?? like me and Roxy were shooketh like we could have figured this out so fast but we were so blind like we were actually so blind and Jimenez did such a mega job keeping us distracted with Justin and Emma that we didnt even figure out the elephant in the room SPOILERS umm chapter 40?? Daniel and Emma being siblings?? I felt so bad for her when Daniel and her talked and Amber was litr mentioned + Neil was right there HOW did we not notice him LMAOO. anyways I liked how Daniel and Emma got their good moments and she had a better life and found someone to love just because of a summer fling SPOILERS END
Overall, an amazing read!! I went in with extremely high expectations and read every single word there was to read!! Would definitely recommend!
Some of the quotes that I loved;
“The love stories sold us the wrong thing. The best kind of love doesn’t happen on moonlit walks and romantic vacations. It happens in between the folds of everyday life. It’s not grand gestures that show how you feel, it’s all the little secret things you do to make her life better that you never tell her about. Taking the end piece of the bread at breakfast so she can have the last middle piece for her sandwich when you pack her lunch. Making sure her car always has gas so she never has to stop at the pump. Telling her you’re not cold and to take your jacket when you are in fact, very, very cold. It’s watching TV on a rainy Sunday while you’re doing laundry and turning her light off when she’s fallen asleep reading. Sharing pizza crusts and laughing about something the kids did and taking care of each other when you’re sick. It isn’t glamorous, it isn’t all butterflies and stars in your eyes. It’s real. This is the kind of love that forever is made of. Because if it’s this good when life is draining and mundane and hard, think of how wonderful it will be when the love songs are playing and the moon is out.”
.
“Sometimes the best way to show love or be kind to someone is to meet them where they are.”
.
“Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little hard things that trickle into it that would have rolled off someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, that crack gets bigger, longer, deeper. It makes new breaks. You don’t know how broken she was or what she was trying to do to fill those cracks. Being broken is not an excuse for bad behavior, you still have to make good choices and do the right thing. But it can be the reason. And sometimes understanding the reason can be what helps you heal.”
.
“Sometimes I feel like the seasons could come and go and come and go, a hundred years could pass, a thousand, the ground could collapse under us, this house could crumble and go back to the earth, and we would still be standing here frozen in time, because every second I’m with you is eternal. I’ve never felt anything like it.”
.
“Because when you’re in love, you do hard things.”
.
“I’ve been waiting my whole life to feel like this and I thought it was a curse that nobody else ever worked out. But it wasn’t. It’s just that they weren’t you.”
.
“To me, love meant you stayed. But now I understood that love sometimes means you let someone go.”
.
“This is the thing nobody tells you about The One. How they’re timeless. How the moment they pop up again you’re right back in it, right where you left off.”
.
“Tell me your day today from start to finish.”
____
This book fucking ruined me
Easily my favourite book of the year 😭
___
In Roxy's wise words "This better be revolutionary‼️"
•Buddy reading with Roxy
__
Please, please, please be THE summer romance book. I have invested a lot in you! 😤
“The best kind of love doesn’t happen on moonlit walks and romantic vacations. It happens in between the folds of everyday life. It’s not grand gestures that show how you feel, it’s all the little secret things you do to make her life better that you never tell her about.”
You guys do not know how excited I am to write this review because this book meant so much to me and I honestly didnt think a book could mean so much to someone until I read this 🥺 It was so beautifully written, with such emotion, Only one book has managed to make me cry (As long as the lemon trees grow") while this one did not make me sob, It brought me so close to it when I read the epilogue because it was perfect 🙂↕️✋🏻 I could have binged this book in one sitting because I was literally free but I was so attached to these characters that I was delaying an inevitable goodbye which hit me so hard because within a span of 400 pages, they gave me so much and took it all away as I closed the book 😔✋🏻 Reading this book was such a serene experience, makes me want to read every Abby book out there because this was fucking beautiful. I have never in my life read a book filled with so much feeling, such perfect representation of guilt, self-hate, anxiety and neglect as this 😮💨
This book perfectly captures gut-wrenching moments mixed with feel-good, heartfelt moments, written with so much emotion that it honestly felt like I was experiencing all this in real life with them with me because there is no way a book can have me on the verge of tears imagining them sitting together as they laugh and live a happy life or make me feel so angry at a character for treating her daughter so bad and I can not stress on how the slow burn made me feel AHHH!! I wanted everything and it eventually gave me everything 😭. The writing was simply breathtaking, it reminded me so much of Emily Henry because usually her books are the type to make me feel this way. The way it described love is gonna make you believe in it 🩷
I feel like another way to look at why this book is so perfect for us is because we had unbelievably high expectations like you do not know how high are expectations were, we singlehandedly believed that this would be our summer read and the anticipation that led to this book because were waiting to read it in June but my copy took a month to arrive and then one thing led to another and before we knew it, and we learned that you need to read the first two books (not true, this could be read as a stand alone) 😭😭 but for a better experience we did and we really enjoyed these two but they can not be compared to this masterpiece. It was everything, it managed to exceed everyone of our expectations and we loved every second of it 😌 This showed how good of a book this was.
The characters in this book were so fucking precious 🥹. I wanted hug all of them because they all deserved so much better than what they got, We follow two characters Emma and Justin who meet over a twitter thread and having similar relationship problems enter a fling 'Just for the summer' and one thing leads to another and to know more you would have to read this book because so much happens and I am still stuck in those moments 😔😮💨✋🏻
“You're not asking too much," he said. "You were just asking the wrong person. Ask me instead.”
Justin was the epitome of 'If he wanted to he would' because he did!! 😌 I love how good Abby Jimenez's men are. All of them are literally green flags. He was everything that you would look for a man. That man was the standard because no one has ever put themselves out that much for anyone, he was fully committed, the way he comforted and understood Emma's trauma and pain and tried to give her time and be there for her was so precious for me because this should be the bare minimum tbh these days, he did all this while struggling himself with his mom going to jail and him having to take care of his family, all of it put together complimented the book well.
I mean how can you not love him, he's 6ft, charming, charismatic, funny and has dimples + is a software engineer and uses his skills to make fun things for his gf 🤭. I love, love, loved the effort that he put into this relationship and I also love the found family aspect that we got because of him, this whole series tying up to this moment felt like a massive found family and I was in love with it.
“In a world where you can choose anger or empathy, always choose empathy,”
Emma was such a strong character tbh because it's so hard to find books without any annoying female characters and I was so happy when I found Emma to be so realistic and relatable 😭 I wont agree with anyone saying Emma didn't deal with anything in a mature way-✋🏻 Live with a mother who abandons you and neglects you and then judge her✋🏻. Emma was so cute, I loved her and I literally grew so close to her and so fond of her that everything that came rolling down on her made me so sad and angry. I loved the way her character looked at the world, where she would look at things with more empathy and would encourage people to do that as well. People like her are a gem and should be protected at all costs 🩷
I hated Emma's mother sm 😡 she made me furious because what she did was unforgivable!! to think that Emma could have gotten so much love and such a nice past- but she didn't because Amber the fucking bitch was to selfish to do that, she would abandon her and ruin her life, would make her feel like shit and would not care for her or more or less pay attention to her 💔 Especially chapter 41 where she talks to him (yk who) and he tells her about his past and she thinks that's it could've been for her.
“Maybe home isn’t a place. Maybe it’s a person.”
Maddy is the friend we alll want and I am so happy and thankful to god for giving me friends like her because she was perfect. She understood Emma so well, gave her reality checks and supported her, helped Justin figure her out and overall I just loved how she was there for her always. I also loved Emma's relationship with Justin's brother and I liked how Justin and Emma rekindled because of them<333
“What are you thinking?” I asked. He didn’t answer for a long moment. When he did, he did it with his eyes closed. “All I ever think about is you.”
The romance was everything that I ever wanted. It was everything. I loved it so much that I literally have no words to describe it, it made me feel every emotion that is out there to exist 🥹 Justin and Emma were made for each other, it was everything that I was looking for in a moment, there banter alone was so well done and their chemistry was perfect tbh. Their domestic scenes had me swooning 😮💨 where they would cook together and help the kids and I loved how she would just extend her trip. That first kiss scene literally gave me and Emma both butterflies, it was so well done. Although it's supposed to be a fling but there's so much slow burn and angst and tension filled in this book 🥵 The perfect balance of everything. Like its the perfect fucking combo for everyone out there. I genuinely would read it every year/ every summer.
Scenes that I absolutely loved:
1, Justin making Emma pre-date questionnaires and giving her invitations 🤭
2, the whole toilet king banter 😭✋🏻
3, Dual pov 🙂↕️
4, The confrontation between Emma and her mother 🥺
5, Chapter 40 😨
6, Justin paddle boating his way through to get on an island just because Emma called him and told him that she was sick 🥹
7, The airport hotel scene between Maddy and Emma 🫂
8, Sarah emergency contact list scene + JustinEmma domestic scenes 🩷
9, Justin and Emma on the date where Leigh and his mom crash with them 🤣
10, the first and the last chapter 🩷🫂
“The moment Emma came into view, my entire world slipped into slow motion. My brain took a screenshot. I felt the moment freeze and save. She was beautiful.”
The plot (Spoilers will be mentioned) started off so cute with the whole fling and it served well for their banter and chemistry and I was excited to see where all of it would go tbh because I wanted to see how all of it would end and oh my god that plot twist that came and hit us?? like me and Roxy were shooketh like we could have figured this out so fast but we were so blind like we were actually so blind and Jimenez did such a mega job keeping us distracted with Justin and Emma that we didnt even figure out the elephant in the room SPOILERS umm chapter 40?? Daniel and Emma being siblings?? I felt so bad for her when Daniel and her talked and Amber was litr mentioned + Neil was right there HOW did we not notice him LMAOO. anyways I liked how Daniel and Emma got their good moments and she had a better life and found someone to love just because of a summer fling SPOILERS END
Overall, an amazing read!! I went in with extremely high expectations and read every single word there was to read!! Would definitely recommend!
Some of the quotes that I loved;
“The love stories sold us the wrong thing. The best kind of love doesn’t happen on moonlit walks and romantic vacations. It happens in between the folds of everyday life. It’s not grand gestures that show how you feel, it’s all the little secret things you do to make her life better that you never tell her about. Taking the end piece of the bread at breakfast so she can have the last middle piece for her sandwich when you pack her lunch. Making sure her car always has gas so she never has to stop at the pump. Telling her you’re not cold and to take your jacket when you are in fact, very, very cold. It’s watching TV on a rainy Sunday while you’re doing laundry and turning her light off when she’s fallen asleep reading. Sharing pizza crusts and laughing about something the kids did and taking care of each other when you’re sick. It isn’t glamorous, it isn’t all butterflies and stars in your eyes. It’s real. This is the kind of love that forever is made of. Because if it’s this good when life is draining and mundane and hard, think of how wonderful it will be when the love songs are playing and the moon is out.”
.
“Sometimes the best way to show love or be kind to someone is to meet them where they are.”
.
“Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little hard things that trickle into it that would have rolled off someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, that crack gets bigger, longer, deeper. It makes new breaks. You don’t know how broken she was or what she was trying to do to fill those cracks. Being broken is not an excuse for bad behavior, you still have to make good choices and do the right thing. But it can be the reason. And sometimes understanding the reason can be what helps you heal.”
.
“Sometimes I feel like the seasons could come and go and come and go, a hundred years could pass, a thousand, the ground could collapse under us, this house could crumble and go back to the earth, and we would still be standing here frozen in time, because every second I’m with you is eternal. I’ve never felt anything like it.”
.
“Because when you’re in love, you do hard things.”
.
“I’ve been waiting my whole life to feel like this and I thought it was a curse that nobody else ever worked out. But it wasn’t. It’s just that they weren’t you.”
.
“To me, love meant you stayed. But now I understood that love sometimes means you let someone go.”
.
“This is the thing nobody tells you about The One. How they’re timeless. How the moment they pop up again you’re right back in it, right where you left off.”
.
“Tell me your day today from start to finish.”
____
This book fucking ruined me
Easily my favourite book of the year 😭
___
In Roxy's wise words "This better be revolutionary‼️"
•Buddy reading with Roxy
__
Please, please, please be THE summer romance book. I have invested a lot in you! 😤
May 1, 2026
Oh boy! Too many words come to mind at once, creating a huge cacophony. They're not enough to express how much I loved this book. Great, brilliant, adorable words aren't doing justice for this most poignant book, and even the best couple and best book boyfriend (OMG: don’t you think Justin is like cinnamon rolls meets mud pie? This character completely changed my perspective about the name, although I still think both Justin Bieber and Justin Timberlake are rubbing me the wrong way) created by Abby Jimenez.
I used to think “Part of Your World” was her best work, but “Just for the Summer” exceeded it with Toilet King references, fantastic dating options, so many ugly cries, and sweetest, sighing, swoon-smile-repeat moments blended in heavy triggering subjects that are handled with care and in a realistic way, including PTSD, panic attacks, death, child neglect, dysfunctional family, and mental health issues.
The witty and sweet dialogues, catchy banters, physical attraction, and emotional intimacy, along with the perfect chemistry between Emma and Justin, are pure perfection! Even though they met through a Reddit thread that turned into humorous messages and sweet phone calls during the hardest times of their lives, their blooming friendship and curse-breaking designated dates—including four dates, one kiss, and a breakup—are a scenario doomed to fail when the attraction hits the roof.
Another best part of the book is seeing cameos from the “Part of Your World” universe. Seeing those favorite characters in this book made me smile a lot.
Let’s take a closer look at the plot:
The book opens with a laugh-out-loud “Am I the asshole?” Reddit thread written by Justin, a cute, caring 29-year-old engineer who sees his situation as a good luck charm, meaning each woman he dates finds their significant other immediately after their breakup, and they even invite him to their weddings.
Emma, a 28-year-old traveling nurse, reads this thread during her lunch break with her bestie Maddie, and she decides to DM the guy because she’s also the good luck charm that every man she dates marries immediately after the breakup. Justin decides to write her back, which turns into very entertaining correspondences. A few days later, they start talking on the phone, and eventually Justin comes up with an interesting offer: if they date each other and break up, they can also break the curse and have a chance to find their soulmates. Emma finds this plan unreasonable at first. She and Maddy had already decided to fly to Hawaii for their rest residence, but as long as she spends more time with Justin on the phone, she decides to change her plans and rent a cozy cottage in Minnesota for only six weeks to help her realize their date plan.
She even plays the guilt card to convince Maddy. The plan is simple: they’ll date only for a few weeks, kiss each other goodbye, and ride off into the sunset with their own future soulmates. But when sparks start flying around them and their first meeting turns into being hit by a love truck, the detailed plans, which included more surveys and questionnaires, are fated to fail. Especially when both of them struggle with unexpected mommy-related family issues, which push them toward each other, and Emma, who resists taking people into her heart, finds herself letting not only Justin but his entire family in. Could she learn to set roots somewhere? Could she learn to dissect the barriers to make herself small and open her heart fully to love and be cherished in return?
Overall: three words, “I loved it,” and two more words, “read it”! This is one of the best romance novels of the year, and don’t you dare miss it!
Oh boy, I couldn’t tell you how much I appreciate this digital reviewer copy I received and how thankful I am to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for sending me this ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. And thanks a lot to Abby Jimenez for writing this book, lighting up my mood, making me laugh till my stomach aches, and making me cry till I had the best raccoon makeup.
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I used to think “Part of Your World” was her best work, but “Just for the Summer” exceeded it with Toilet King references, fantastic dating options, so many ugly cries, and sweetest, sighing, swoon-smile-repeat moments blended in heavy triggering subjects that are handled with care and in a realistic way, including PTSD, panic attacks, death, child neglect, dysfunctional family, and mental health issues.
The witty and sweet dialogues, catchy banters, physical attraction, and emotional intimacy, along with the perfect chemistry between Emma and Justin, are pure perfection! Even though they met through a Reddit thread that turned into humorous messages and sweet phone calls during the hardest times of their lives, their blooming friendship and curse-breaking designated dates—including four dates, one kiss, and a breakup—are a scenario doomed to fail when the attraction hits the roof.
Another best part of the book is seeing cameos from the “Part of Your World” universe. Seeing those favorite characters in this book made me smile a lot.
Let’s take a closer look at the plot:
The book opens with a laugh-out-loud “Am I the asshole?” Reddit thread written by Justin, a cute, caring 29-year-old engineer who sees his situation as a good luck charm, meaning each woman he dates finds their significant other immediately after their breakup, and they even invite him to their weddings.
Emma, a 28-year-old traveling nurse, reads this thread during her lunch break with her bestie Maddie, and she decides to DM the guy because she’s also the good luck charm that every man she dates marries immediately after the breakup. Justin decides to write her back, which turns into very entertaining correspondences. A few days later, they start talking on the phone, and eventually Justin comes up with an interesting offer: if they date each other and break up, they can also break the curse and have a chance to find their soulmates. Emma finds this plan unreasonable at first. She and Maddy had already decided to fly to Hawaii for their rest residence, but as long as she spends more time with Justin on the phone, she decides to change her plans and rent a cozy cottage in Minnesota for only six weeks to help her realize their date plan.
She even plays the guilt card to convince Maddy. The plan is simple: they’ll date only for a few weeks, kiss each other goodbye, and ride off into the sunset with their own future soulmates. But when sparks start flying around them and their first meeting turns into being hit by a love truck, the detailed plans, which included more surveys and questionnaires, are fated to fail. Especially when both of them struggle with unexpected mommy-related family issues, which push them toward each other, and Emma, who resists taking people into her heart, finds herself letting not only Justin but his entire family in. Could she learn to set roots somewhere? Could she learn to dissect the barriers to make herself small and open her heart fully to love and be cherished in return?
Overall: three words, “I loved it,” and two more words, “read it”! This is one of the best romance novels of the year, and don’t you dare miss it!
Oh boy, I couldn’t tell you how much I appreciate this digital reviewer copy I received and how thankful I am to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for sending me this ARC copy in exchange for my honest review. And thanks a lot to Abby Jimenez for writing this book, lighting up my mood, making me laugh till my stomach aches, and making me cry till I had the best raccoon makeup.
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April 7, 2024
Reading this book was such an exhausting experience. This was my first book by Abby Jimenez and it put me off to the point that am no longer sure if I want to read any of her other books.
✔️ Online meet cute
✔️ Insta lovey
✔️ Found family
This was one of the most bland and emotionless writing I have read in a while. There were no feelings to it, I surely did not feel a single thing reading it. The plot execution was so messy and had no direction.
The romance was very mid. The two characters start off okay but then their personalities clash. The chemistry is meh. They do have some cute moments but I could not feel a single thing for them.
Justin and Emma have issues of their own but Justin deals with things a tad more maturely compared to Emma. Sure, I feel bad for Emma but the way her story and character was written is just so damn boring. Justin's siblings were more cute and I would rather read about them than this tiresome book.
I skimmed it towards the end and have no regrets. I realize that it's probably just me who didn't like it but please go in with low expectations.
Also, what is the purpose of marketing it as a standalone if we have to read her other books first in order to start liking it?!
~•~•~
Found family? Forced proximity? Summer fling? Online meet cute? SO EXCITEDDD to start with it!!! ^_^
✔️ Online meet cute
✔️ Insta lovey
✔️ Found family
This was one of the most bland and emotionless writing I have read in a while. There were no feelings to it, I surely did not feel a single thing reading it. The plot execution was so messy and had no direction.
The romance was very mid. The two characters start off okay but then their personalities clash. The chemistry is meh. They do have some cute moments but I could not feel a single thing for them.
Justin and Emma have issues of their own but Justin deals with things a tad more maturely compared to Emma. Sure, I feel bad for Emma but the way her story and character was written is just so damn boring. Justin's siblings were more cute and I would rather read about them than this tiresome book.
I skimmed it towards the end and have no regrets. I realize that it's probably just me who didn't like it but please go in with low expectations.
Also, what is the purpose of marketing it as a standalone if we have to read her other books first in order to start liking it?!
~•~•~
Found family? Forced proximity? Summer fling? Online meet cute? SO EXCITEDDD to start with it!!! ^_^
May 7, 2024
so! this is what we're working with:
1) overly simplistic writing. the characters are almost thirty but the writing feels juvenile?
2) insta love. there was NO build up to their relationship. they talked for two seconds and he was (for some reason that is still unbeknownst to me) obsessed with her?? as in "'i would follow her to the ends of the earth' after six weeks" kind of obsessed? like bffr that is actually concerning.
3) third act breakup (that doesn't even get resolved properly). they are not "together" until the last idk 10 pages of this book??
4) lots of trauma, and yet, underdeveloped and uninteresting characters? dreams/hopes/goals, fears/insecurities, hobbies/likes/dislikes? for emma, all of this revolved around the same thing: her issues with her mother. where's the rest of her personality?? she felt so one dimensional, as if she existed only on one plane and that plane was a manifestation of her childhood trauma. go girl give us absolutely nothing.
this was, in short, incredibly disappointing. but it was also bingeable and, thankfully, quite entertaining so do with that what you will <3
1) overly simplistic writing. the characters are almost thirty but the writing feels juvenile?
2) insta love. there was NO build up to their relationship. they talked for two seconds and he was (for some reason that is still unbeknownst to me) obsessed with her?? as in "'i would follow her to the ends of the earth' after six weeks" kind of obsessed? like bffr that is actually concerning.
3) third act breakup (that doesn't even get resolved properly). they are not "together" until the last idk 10 pages of this book??
4) lots of trauma, and yet, underdeveloped and uninteresting characters? dreams/hopes/goals, fears/insecurities, hobbies/likes/dislikes? for emma, all of this revolved around the same thing: her issues with her mother. where's the rest of her personality?? she felt so one dimensional, as if she existed only on one plane and that plane was a manifestation of her childhood trauma. go girl give us absolutely nothing.
this was, in short, incredibly disappointing. but it was also bingeable and, thankfully, quite entertaining so do with that what you will <3
April 7, 2024
WOW. This book gives golden retriever 'IF HE WANTED TO HE WOULD' MMC and a complex, good hearted, kind and layered FMC who when brought together, make this story magical. The chemistry is something I could almost reach my hand out and FEEL radiating off the page. The honesty, and communication was so refreshing to see characters who whilst setting boundaries, and being carefree with each other also unashamedly sharing feelings with one another. The banter and just silliness that leaves a smile stretched on your face makes the feel goodness of this book undeniable. As always Abby Jimenez serves an amazing romance with such a deeply emotional plot as a side and the two mixed together in this book made it absolutely incredible. 5 🌟
January 4, 2025
SO GOOD!! I was at 4.25ish stars for the first half and then THE ENDING was so good!!!
I loveee Justin. He is the epitome of if he wanted to he would. And Emma! I love that she was such a realistic character. She was so kind and amazing but also had such a heartbreaking past and so much to work through. I thought they were both perfect for what each other needed🥹
Favorite Abby Jiminez book so far! I think this one is really going to stick with me for a long time.
I loveee Justin. He is the epitome of if he wanted to he would. And Emma! I love that she was such a realistic character. She was so kind and amazing but also had such a heartbreaking past and so much to work through. I thought they were both perfect for what each other needed🥹
Favorite Abby Jiminez book so far! I think this one is really going to stick with me for a long time.
June 18, 2024
Amber is my own mother. I didn’t expect the rollercoaster of emotions I felt reading this one. I cried, I laughed out loud, I annotated. I really liked Part of Your World, I loved Yours Truly, but Just for the Summer is easily my favorite. 100 stars!
April 5, 2024
eeeeeeverybody needed therapy
April 6, 2024
4.25 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🌟
April 13, 2024
4.75 ⭐️! (Rounding up for the sake of Goodreads not letting us do .75 stars 😠)
My favorite Abby book yet!!! 🥹
My favorite Abby book yet!!! 🥹
May 14, 2024
I'm so sad this is over
May 15, 2024
calling it now: favorite book of 2024
April 21, 2024
2/5
Unfortunately, a bit of a letdown for me. I couldn’t connect to the main characters, the romance felt like a side character and had no depth, and the plot felt all over the place at times and wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be. While reading it, I felt literally nothing, as if someone had taken away all my emotions. I don't like to admit it because I don't like doing it in books, but the number of pages I skipped because I was so bored is pretty embarrassing. Our main characters had their first kiss and I was close to falling asleep.
Also, is it possible to feel overwhelmed by the amount of things happening in a book to the point that you forget that it is even a romance? Because that's exactly how I felt for most of the story. I recently read a short novella by Abby Jimenez The Worst Wingman Ever and I felt exactly the same, as if the romance was a side plot and the problems and difficulties of the main characters the main. Don't get me wrong, I even liked how the author handled them here, but for the romance book it was supposed to be, the romance was actually my least favorite thing here.
*Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!*
Unfortunately, a bit of a letdown for me. I couldn’t connect to the main characters, the romance felt like a side character and had no depth, and the plot felt all over the place at times and wasn't as interesting as I thought it would be. While reading it, I felt literally nothing, as if someone had taken away all my emotions. I don't like to admit it because I don't like doing it in books, but the number of pages I skipped because I was so bored is pretty embarrassing. Our main characters had their first kiss and I was close to falling asleep.
Also, is it possible to feel overwhelmed by the amount of things happening in a book to the point that you forget that it is even a romance? Because that's exactly how I felt for most of the story. I recently read a short novella by Abby Jimenez The Worst Wingman Ever and I felt exactly the same, as if the romance was a side plot and the problems and difficulties of the main characters the main. Don't get me wrong, I even liked how the author handled them here, but for the romance book it was supposed to be, the romance was actually my least favorite thing here.
*Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!*
July 3, 2024
Forgot to update this but I LOVED IT just like I knew I would. I just love how Abby Jimenez writes contemp romance, it feels so believable. Highly recommend all 3 in this series.
July 10, 2024
Warning: you will need a box of tissues while reading this
4.5 ⭐️
4.5 ⭐️
May 11, 2024
I hate to say it but I think this was my least favorite of the series. There’s only so much self sabotage a girl can take. I found Justin to be the most unrealistic of the leading men… boys like that do not exist. There were definitely some sweet parts I enjoyed, but they were always immediately followed by something annoying. I’m thankful to Abby J for getting me back into romance but I’m ready to try out a new author!
April 12, 2024
•Online meet-cute
•Summer romance
•Dual POV
•Dating pact
•Complex family dynamics
•Found family//adoption//foster care//guardianship
•Mental health/past trauma
•Alllll the Abby Easter eggs
•Baby raccoons!
Justin and Emma meet online after she and her best friend, Maddie, stumble upon Justin's recent "Am I the asshole?" post detailing his most recent 'Good Luck Chuck' relationship. Every time Justin dates someone they quickly break it off and immediately go on to find the love of their life. Not believing that someone else has the same exact luck (curse?) as her, Emma messages Justin, and a flirty text situationship develops. What would happen if they decided to make a dating pact? Could their own bad luck actually cancel each other's out? Just a few simple rules and they could be on their way to true love, right? Right!
4 dates...one kiss...and a breakup. & just for the summer!!
I feel like I say this every time Abby drops a new book but...this is her BEST BOOK YET! Fans of Abby will devour this one and readers who may be new to her writing will no doubt want to go back and connect all the dots from her previous books. One big difference with Just For the Summer compared to her previous books...there is very little of the whole miscommunication trope--bonus points for me! The dual POV gives us a glimpse of two completely different stories, and lives, and slowly merges them into one complex, yet beautiful, story. One of friendship, forgiveness, healing, and the life changing realization that you ARE worthy of love! There were twists I was not expecting and not at all prepared for!! A summer lake house setting & many hilarious and lovable side characters. Laugh out loud funny, the perfect beachy read & also emotional and Kleenex worthy--Just for the Summer is a 5 star heartfelt must-read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for granting my wish in exchange for my honest review. I cannot wait to see what Abby dreams up next!
March 7, 2025
Omg. I've finally had success with an Abby Jimenez book. This was so cute!
What a breath of fresh air! I really enjoyed this book so freaking much. And if it's helpful to anyone- I am not a fan of the first two books in this series and more or less was about to give up on Abby - it's nothing that she as an author is doing wrong. I've just found her stories to be a little too Hallmarky for my taste?
Maybe not Hallmark, but just not my type of cheese? Anyway, to my point- if you are someone that was on the fence you may just very well love this one, because I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed it in comparison.
╰┈➤ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚
Emma and her best friend Maddy are travel nurses, working in hospitals three months at a time while seeing the country.
A few weeks prior to moving to yet another destination, Emma stumbles upon a trending Reddit thread titled 'Am I the Asshole' written by a man in Minnesota who thinks he's cursed. Each time he's had a failed relationship, the ex partner ends up finding their soulmate.
Emma having similar experiences as of late, the two devise a plan to break this curse and date each other only to end it after the summer- in the hopes that they will each find their person.
╰┈➤ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚
You know what, just thinking about to the core events of the book now. I think for me personally where this story is different than the other two Jimenez books I've read is that it offers more depth.
The characters are relatable and down to earth. Everyone knows how to peel a potato and sweep a floor here. They experience highs and lows and life challenges. They're all still very humorous and had me laughing out loud a few times.
: ̗̀➛ The MMC- Justin. He's literally the best. Sweet and considerate, he brings her lunch while she's at work.
: ̗̀➛ The FMC- Emma. She has some emotional baggage which is completely understandable once you meet her mom. But she's also resilient and strong willed. She's determined and kind hearted despite everything she's been through.
There's nothing exceptionally different with this rom-com in comparison to others- in the sense that much of it is predictable. However, I quite enjoyed, what for me- delivered more oomph and less caricature like characters than I'd gotten used to from Jimenez.
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
The summer vibes. ☀️🍉🍧⛱️🎡🌊
What a breath of fresh air! I really enjoyed this book so freaking much. And if it's helpful to anyone- I am not a fan of the first two books in this series and more or less was about to give up on Abby - it's nothing that she as an author is doing wrong. I've just found her stories to be a little too Hallmarky for my taste?
Maybe not Hallmark, but just not my type of cheese? Anyway, to my point- if you are someone that was on the fence you may just very well love this one, because I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed it in comparison.
╰┈➤ 𝓠𝓾𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂 ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚
Emma and her best friend Maddy are travel nurses, working in hospitals three months at a time while seeing the country.
A few weeks prior to moving to yet another destination, Emma stumbles upon a trending Reddit thread titled 'Am I the Asshole' written by a man in Minnesota who thinks he's cursed. Each time he's had a failed relationship, the ex partner ends up finding their soulmate.
Emma having similar experiences as of late, the two devise a plan to break this curse and date each other only to end it after the summer- in the hopes that they will each find their person.
╰┈➤ 𝓜𝔂 𝓣𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 ⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚
You know what, just thinking about to the core events of the book now. I think for me personally where this story is different than the other two Jimenez books I've read is that it offers more depth.
The characters are relatable and down to earth. Everyone knows how to peel a potato and sweep a floor here. They experience highs and lows and life challenges. They're all still very humorous and had me laughing out loud a few times.
: ̗̀➛ The MMC- Justin. He's literally the best. Sweet and considerate, he brings her lunch while she's at work.
: ̗̀➛ The FMC- Emma. She has some emotional baggage which is completely understandable once you meet her mom. But she's also resilient and strong willed. She's determined and kind hearted despite everything she's been through.
There's nothing exceptionally different with this rom-com in comparison to others- in the sense that much of it is predictable. However, I quite enjoyed, what for me- delivered more oomph and less caricature like characters than I'd gotten used to from Jimenez.
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
The summer vibes. ☀️🍉🍧⛱️🎡🌊
March 28, 2025
4 stars ᯓᡣ𐭩
I'm so attached to the characters 😭. It's not even the romance that made me love it (it was), but the way the traumas were dealt with and how unrealistically realistic it was. Things were handled in a practical and mature way. It was definitely not a summer-vibes book because of the characters.
► Emma & Justin met through Reddit when he told abt his 'bad-good luck charm' that all his dates end up finding their THE ONE, while he remains single, and the same thing happened to Emma. They connected with each other, and it all started.
ᝰ.
⌞ Emma Grant & Justin Dahl ⌝
It was insta-love (revealed later lol). The whole falling in love shouldn’t have happened, but *shrugs* they had an arrangement. Now, I did enjoy their moments. The dates were really cute and thoughtful. The questionnaires that Justin made solely for Emma regarding dates were literally screaming 'if he wanted to, he would'.
⌗ –
gosh I loved how many times he did things out of his comfort zone for her. HE PADDLED ON A FLOATIE FOR AN HOUR TO HER COTTAGE WHEN SHE WAS SICK. I don't even need to say more. He met her where she was.
⌗ –
I want to pull Emma out and hug her 🥲💗 Her traumas made me so emotional, the things she faced. She was definitely making practical choices when she didn’t want to stay, but I’m glad that Maddy was there to guide her and give her a reality check. It hurts, but still. i hate her mom sfm. I thought she had good moments and would redeem herself, but my bad. She sucked, and I want her in a dumpster pls.
⌗ –
Their romance was cute, but they both had a lot of baggage. Justin was sometimes right about 'how his feelings for her are more than hers are for him,' and it was understandable from his pov, while Emma kind of struggled with her feelings. The breakup & his little anger after that was justifying, but I'm glad he understood her. The last moment when she told him she loved him, ugh 😭 their hug!!!!!!! I love them. 🧸🎀
The epilogue was so cute fr 😭, and I'm so happy that their mom came back from prison after 2 years instead of 6. seriously, Justin taking care of his 3 siblings and talking about the responsibility was so hard. (him with Chelsea melted my heart ffs). him talking about his MOM BEING A SINGLE PARENT hit way too close to home. The words they used tore me up because it kind of helped me feel what my own mom must be feeling. nvm, this book had some great lessons innit.
Maddy was harsh about her mom most of the time,and I kind of saw her as inconsiderate at the start, but tbh, i understand her. Telling someone one thing again and again and seeing them being hurt by it every freaking time is frustrating. You just can't let your friend or someone you love suffer like that. Not by anyone. Maddy literally stole my heart! 😭
I was kind of rooting for Neil & his 'ex' (not knowing she was book 1's fmc), but when i found out what he did 💀 lmao. I'm glad the author didn’t give him his HEA, but he did change... nvm WHO GIVES A F?
ᝰ.
I'm so attached to the characters 😭. It's not even the romance that made me love it (it was), but the way the traumas were dealt with and how unrealistically realistic it was. Things were handled in a practical and mature way. It was definitely not a summer-vibes book because of the characters.
► Emma & Justin met through Reddit when he told abt his 'bad-good luck charm' that all his dates end up finding their THE ONE, while he remains single, and the same thing happened to Emma. They connected with each other, and it all started.
ᝰ.
“four dates, one kiss, and a breakup. Just for the summer.”
⌞ Emma Grant & Justin Dahl ⌝
It was insta-love (revealed later lol). The whole falling in love shouldn’t have happened, but *shrugs* they had an arrangement. Now, I did enjoy their moments. The dates were really cute and thoughtful. The questionnaires that Justin made solely for Emma regarding dates were literally screaming 'if he wanted to, he would'.
⌗ –
“You’re just in a different place than I am—”
“Then meet me where I am.”
gosh I loved how many times he did things out of his comfort zone for her. HE PADDLED ON A FLOATIE FOR AN HOUR TO HER COTTAGE WHEN SHE WAS SICK. I don't even need to say more. He met her where she was.
⌗ –
“Maybe home isn’t a place. Maybe it’s a person.”
I want to pull Emma out and hug her 🥲💗 Her traumas made me so emotional, the things she faced. She was definitely making practical choices when she didn’t want to stay, but I’m glad that Maddy was there to guide her and give her a reality check. It hurts, but still. i hate her mom sfm. I thought she had good moments and would redeem herself, but my bad. She sucked, and I want her in a dumpster pls.
⌗ –
“What’s wrong? Tell me what you’re thinking.”
I paused. “I’m thinking I like you a lot more than you like me.”
Their romance was cute, but they both had a lot of baggage. Justin was sometimes right about 'how his feelings for her are more than hers are for him,' and it was understandable from his pov, while Emma kind of struggled with her feelings. The breakup & his little anger after that was justifying, but I'm glad he understood her. The last moment when she told him she loved him, ugh 😭 their hug!!!!!!! I love them. 🧸🎀
The epilogue was so cute fr 😭, and I'm so happy that their mom came back from prison after 2 years instead of 6. seriously, Justin taking care of his 3 siblings and talking about the responsibility was so hard. (him with Chelsea melted my heart ffs). him talking about his MOM BEING A SINGLE PARENT hit way too close to home. The words they used tore me up because it kind of helped me feel what my own mom must be feeling. nvm, this book had some great lessons innit.
Maddy was harsh about her mom most of the time,and I kind of saw her as inconsiderate at the start, but tbh, i understand her. Telling someone one thing again and again and seeing them being hurt by it every freaking time is frustrating. You just can't let your friend or someone you love suffer like that. Not by anyone. Maddy literally stole my heart! 😭
I was kind of rooting for Neil & his 'ex' (not knowing she was book 1's fmc), but when i found out what he did 💀 lmao. I'm glad the author didn’t give him his HEA, but he did change... nvm WHO GIVES A F?
ᝰ.
“Four dates. A kiss. No breakup.”
“Not just for the summer?”
“No. Forever this time.”
April 9, 2025
★ 2.85 stars
this is not a book i completely hated, but it’s not a book i loved either.
see, i can definitely see why others enjoyed it more than i did because i truthfully don’t think it is a terrible and badly written book. it really isn’t. the thing is that, overall, it just... didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
one of the main things that held me back from truly enjoying this story was the lack of chemistry between the protagonists. i really struggled to get invested in Justin & Emma’s relationship — which is obviously a big problem, because how can you enjoy a book labeled as romance if you don’t think the main characters have a palpable chemistry? there’s just no way. they did have a few nice moments here and there; but in general, their relationship felt forced and majorly bland to me. i can’t say that i was interested to see their relationship progressing and that i deeply rooted for them to be together. i expected way more.
i also expected more from them as individuals. they weren’t necessarily like those characters that are super unlikeable and impossible to care about [thankfully!] but they weren’t special or remarkable enough in my opinion. in my opinion, their personalities needed to be more fleshed out as i don’t think the author made a lot of effort to flesh them out in a more significant way.
as for the plot itself... let’s just say it was boring for the most part. i honestly do not have a lot to say about it because i wasn’t immersed enough to care that much about what was happening and i have to confess that i zoned out a couple times while listening to the audio. oops. it did have a few interesting (well, sort of) things in the middle of it all and the author touched in relevant topics such as parental trauma, child neglect, attachment issues, mental health issues and healing — so it was not a total lost cause. but, to be brutally honest, those things weren’t enough to elevate the book as a whole. not to me, at least.
all in all, Just For The Summer wasn’t terrible, but it left much to be desired in my eyes. as i said at the beginning of this review, i can certainly see why this was an enjoyable read for other readers — but unfortunately, it didn’t quite click with me in the way i thought it would.
it was my first book by Abby Jimenez and, needless to say, i’m not very happy with how it turned out. but even so, i will try to read more of this author’s works and cross my fingers that they are going to give me a better experience.
𝅄 𓂃 𖥻 “The best kind of love doesn’t happen on moonlit walks and romantic vacations. It happens in between the folds of everyday life. It’s not grand gestures that show how you feel, it’s all the little secret things you do to make her life better that you never tell her about.” 𑇛 ˚
this is not a book i completely hated, but it’s not a book i loved either.
see, i can definitely see why others enjoyed it more than i did because i truthfully don’t think it is a terrible and badly written book. it really isn’t. the thing is that, overall, it just... didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
one of the main things that held me back from truly enjoying this story was the lack of chemistry between the protagonists. i really struggled to get invested in Justin & Emma’s relationship — which is obviously a big problem, because how can you enjoy a book labeled as romance if you don’t think the main characters have a palpable chemistry? there’s just no way. they did have a few nice moments here and there; but in general, their relationship felt forced and majorly bland to me. i can’t say that i was interested to see their relationship progressing and that i deeply rooted for them to be together. i expected way more.
i also expected more from them as individuals. they weren’t necessarily like those characters that are super unlikeable and impossible to care about [thankfully!] but they weren’t special or remarkable enough in my opinion. in my opinion, their personalities needed to be more fleshed out as i don’t think the author made a lot of effort to flesh them out in a more significant way.
as for the plot itself... let’s just say it was boring for the most part. i honestly do not have a lot to say about it because i wasn’t immersed enough to care that much about what was happening and i have to confess that i zoned out a couple times while listening to the audio. oops. it did have a few interesting (well, sort of) things in the middle of it all and the author touched in relevant topics such as parental trauma, child neglect, attachment issues, mental health issues and healing — so it was not a total lost cause. but, to be brutally honest, those things weren’t enough to elevate the book as a whole. not to me, at least.
all in all, Just For The Summer wasn’t terrible, but it left much to be desired in my eyes. as i said at the beginning of this review, i can certainly see why this was an enjoyable read for other readers — but unfortunately, it didn’t quite click with me in the way i thought it would.
it was my first book by Abby Jimenez and, needless to say, i’m not very happy with how it turned out. but even so, i will try to read more of this author’s works and cross my fingers that they are going to give me a better experience.
April 9, 2024
Nobody, and I do mean NOBODY, writes romances that I enjoy more than Abby Jimenez!
She makes me want to crawl inside the pages of her books and become one of her characters, so I can marry her “too good to be true” MMC, have a best friend like her MFC will have, and own one of the adorable (or ugly!) rescue dogs that she creates! (here’s looking at you, Brad!) 🐶
I am never approved for her ARCs, and this was one of my MOST anticipated books for 2024, so you know I planned to start reading it on publication day-and it DID NOT DISAPPOINT!
Justin thinks he has been cursed-every woman he dates and breaks up with goes on to find their soulmate in the very NEXT person they date. He posts about it on Reddit and now it is all over the internet.
Emma and her BFF, see the post and send him a DM, admitting that Emma seems to have the same problem. In a flirty response, he suggests that dating each other, could break the curse.
Currently on assignment in Colorado, the friends who are traveling nurses, are due to go to Hawaii next, and a stint in Minnesota where Justin lives, was not even on their TOP 25 list of destinations.
But when two positions open up at a prestigious hospital in Minneapolis, complete with an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka, it seems fated that Emma give “breaking the curse” a try-even if true love wasn’t really something she was looking for.
The result? Another book that had me laughing and crying and cheering a couple on!
With cameos from characters from the “Yours Truly” and “Part of Your World” an earlier two book series-I devoured this unputdownable book!
And, the ending? Chef’s kiss! 😘
Definitely BEACH 🏖️ BAG approved!
Thank You to the Chandler Public library for the loan of both the Audible and written copies on publication day, which I paired for another wonderful experience.
A buddy read with DeAnn! Be sure to watch for her review!
TW: undiagnosed mental health issues, a toxic mother, and past child neglect.
She makes me want to crawl inside the pages of her books and become one of her characters, so I can marry her “too good to be true” MMC, have a best friend like her MFC will have, and own one of the adorable (or ugly!) rescue dogs that she creates! (here’s looking at you, Brad!) 🐶
I am never approved for her ARCs, and this was one of my MOST anticipated books for 2024, so you know I planned to start reading it on publication day-and it DID NOT DISAPPOINT!
Justin thinks he has been cursed-every woman he dates and breaks up with goes on to find their soulmate in the very NEXT person they date. He posts about it on Reddit and now it is all over the internet.
Emma and her BFF, see the post and send him a DM, admitting that Emma seems to have the same problem. In a flirty response, he suggests that dating each other, could break the curse.
Currently on assignment in Colorado, the friends who are traveling nurses, are due to go to Hawaii next, and a stint in Minnesota where Justin lives, was not even on their TOP 25 list of destinations.
But when two positions open up at a prestigious hospital in Minneapolis, complete with an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka, it seems fated that Emma give “breaking the curse” a try-even if true love wasn’t really something she was looking for.
The result? Another book that had me laughing and crying and cheering a couple on!
With cameos from characters from the “Yours Truly” and “Part of Your World” an earlier two book series-I devoured this unputdownable book!
And, the ending? Chef’s kiss! 😘
Definitely BEACH 🏖️ BAG approved!
Thank You to the Chandler Public library for the loan of both the Audible and written copies on publication day, which I paired for another wonderful experience.
A buddy read with DeAnn! Be sure to watch for her review!
TW: undiagnosed mental health issues, a toxic mother, and past child neglect.
April 22, 2025
i REALLY liked this book—teetering between 4 and 4.5 stars. the more i sit with it, the more i miss it. especially you, Justin🥹
i read this in under 24 hours and in two sittings. ate👏🏼it👏🏼up👏🏼 it was the perfect book for me at the perfect time. it doesn’t quite beat out THE FRIEND ZONE (my fave of hers) but it was good. maybe my second fave of hers?!? it’s time for an author ranking…
this is the perfect romcom to head into spring/summer with, and a PERFECT beach or pool binge (i binged it outside this weekend). and the setting? the Midwest in the summer >>>
my favorite thing about Abby Jimenez’ books are the side plots. she kind of reminds me of Katherine Center in that way—where the side plots are almost just as strong if not stronger than the romance / main plot. this was no exception!
i also love how mature her characters are. maybe that’s a reflection of my age (31), but i’m here for the older 20s/early 30 romances where people are in similar stages of life to me. much more relatable, idk the younger characters just dont hit as hard for me now (which obv makes sense, except if you’re Magnolia Parks lolllll).
this book was much deeper than i was expecting it to be, esp with the mom side plot. but i really applaud Abby for how she wrote and handled these delicate topics and characters. without spoiling anything, the third act breakup was actually really respectable and not an eye roll at all (which it typically is for me, iykyk).
but like, is Justin everyone’s book bf now? bc he’s mineeeeeee. my goodness he was perfect 🥹 gentle and kind and caring and romantic and supportive. and i’m sure he was a SMOKEEEE lol😮💨
chalk this up as a book i’d like to see adapted STAT!!!!
i read this in under 24 hours and in two sittings. ate👏🏼it👏🏼up👏🏼 it was the perfect book for me at the perfect time. it doesn’t quite beat out THE FRIEND ZONE (my fave of hers) but it was good. maybe my second fave of hers?!? it’s time for an author ranking…
this is the perfect romcom to head into spring/summer with, and a PERFECT beach or pool binge (i binged it outside this weekend). and the setting? the Midwest in the summer >>>
my favorite thing about Abby Jimenez’ books are the side plots. she kind of reminds me of Katherine Center in that way—where the side plots are almost just as strong if not stronger than the romance / main plot. this was no exception!
i also love how mature her characters are. maybe that’s a reflection of my age (31), but i’m here for the older 20s/early 30 romances where people are in similar stages of life to me. much more relatable, idk the younger characters just dont hit as hard for me now (which obv makes sense, except if you’re Magnolia Parks lolllll).
this book was much deeper than i was expecting it to be, esp with the mom side plot. but i really applaud Abby for how she wrote and handled these delicate topics and characters. without spoiling anything, the third act breakup was actually really respectable and not an eye roll at all (which it typically is for me, iykyk).
but like, is Justin everyone’s book bf now? bc he’s mineeeeeee. my goodness he was perfect 🥹 gentle and kind and caring and romantic and supportive. and i’m sure he was a SMOKEEEE lol😮💨
chalk this up as a book i’d like to see adapted STAT!!!!
April 25, 2024
➳ 4.75⋆
I. AM. OBSESSED. WITH. THIS. BOOK.
(and iwant NEED a justin)
I. AM. OBSESSED. WITH. THIS. BOOK.
(and i
July 20, 2024
Just for the Summer is exactly what I imagine you'd get if you took all the worst parts of early 2010s Tumblr/Wattpad and ran them through a random tiktok buzzwords generator. The book reads like it was written in hopes that it becomes a movie, this is not a compliment.
Considering how much hype this book gets, I expected to get something more than 400 pages of pointless dialogue and trauma dumping with no actual plot in sight. Abby Jimenez' style of writing prioritizes dialogue over the prose and plot development and while it's quirky and fun in the beginning, it gets increasingly frustrating and boring the more of the book you read. There's so much plot holes and inconsistencies that you begin to wonder if there's a former book about the two mcs that you should have been aware of before starting Just for the Summer.
The author clearly believes that having her characters trauma dump over and over again will substitute for plot and it just doesn't work that way I fear. A vast majority of this book was just about the mcs and their issues, especially Emma and her relationship with her mom. It was exhausting to read, which admittedly might have been the point so kudos to the author, but when that's taking away from the romance in romance book?? maybe change how it's marketed to the public then!! We also did not need almost 10 chapters of Emma and Justin being sick. We should have been done with that in two chapters, three at the most. What's even worse is the conflict stretching out over half the book only for the resolution to be like 12 pages long...like are you kidding me?? It very much felt like a 'here damn' kind of ending and that made me even more mad.
Adding onto that the entire book is just one giant ad. The book was released only a couple months ago, it's too much of a coincidence that every single big name brand that were mentioned, in almost every chapter by the way, just so happened to be target names that are on the bds boycott list lol. And while this might not matter to everyone, it does to me. Reading a book pandering to zionists is not my idea of fun 😊.
I did not care for any of the characters, especially not Justin and Emma. They were both immature, which is insane cause they're supposed to be almost 30 year olds, and boring and seemed to only complain, complain, complain the whole book. Emma was such an infuriating character to read about. I don't think it's possible for someone THAT self absorbed and self centered to have a job in nursing, is it?? It was all about her since she's apparently the smallest person who ever lived. Justin was bearable for the first 6 or so chapters before he took a sharp turn from quirky nerd into invasive weirdo and just kept on getting worse from then on. Both of them had chemistry equivalent to reading a blank piece of paper, another thing that doesn't make sense since the author was clearly going for the 'love at first sight' shtick.
Other than a few long declarations of love that were clearly put there so that booktokers would post about it with the caption "need me a man like him fr", there's nothing of weight in this giant snoozefest of a book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
pre-read:
I'm a bit late to the party but starting my first Abby Jimenez book. fingers crossed that it's good 🤞🏽✨
Considering how much hype this book gets, I expected to get something more than 400 pages of pointless dialogue and trauma dumping with no actual plot in sight. Abby Jimenez' style of writing prioritizes dialogue over the prose and plot development and while it's quirky and fun in the beginning, it gets increasingly frustrating and boring the more of the book you read. There's so much plot holes and inconsistencies that you begin to wonder if there's a former book about the two mcs that you should have been aware of before starting Just for the Summer.
The author clearly believes that having her characters trauma dump over and over again will substitute for plot and it just doesn't work that way I fear. A vast majority of this book was just about the mcs and their issues, especially Emma and her relationship with her mom. It was exhausting to read, which admittedly might have been the point so kudos to the author, but when that's taking away from the romance in romance book?? maybe change how it's marketed to the public then!! We also did not need almost 10 chapters of Emma and Justin being sick. We should have been done with that in two chapters, three at the most. What's even worse is the conflict stretching out over half the book only for the resolution to be like 12 pages long...like are you kidding me?? It very much felt like a 'here damn' kind of ending and that made me even more mad.
Adding onto that the entire book is just one giant ad. The book was released only a couple months ago, it's too much of a coincidence that every single big name brand that were mentioned, in almost every chapter by the way, just so happened to be target names that are on the bds boycott list lol. And while this might not matter to everyone, it does to me. Reading a book pandering to zionists is not my idea of fun 😊.
I did not care for any of the characters, especially not Justin and Emma. They were both immature, which is insane cause they're supposed to be almost 30 year olds, and boring and seemed to only complain, complain, complain the whole book. Emma was such an infuriating character to read about. I don't think it's possible for someone THAT self absorbed and self centered to have a job in nursing, is it?? It was all about her since she's apparently the smallest person who ever lived. Justin was bearable for the first 6 or so chapters before he took a sharp turn from quirky nerd into invasive weirdo and just kept on getting worse from then on. Both of them had chemistry equivalent to reading a blank piece of paper, another thing that doesn't make sense since the author was clearly going for the 'love at first sight' shtick.
Other than a few long declarations of love that were clearly put there so that booktokers would post about it with the caption "need me a man like him fr", there's nothing of weight in this giant snoozefest of a book.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
pre-read:
I'm a bit late to the party but starting my first Abby Jimenez book. fingers crossed that it's good 🤞🏽✨
February 3, 2024
Thank you Forever Pub for the ARC. IYKYK, my reviews are always honest.
writing: very mid | plot: okay | ending: THANK GOD | 3.5 rounded up
my opinion
FYI: this is insta-love with fade to bland grey spice
Despite the writing being extremely mid, I'm tossing this 4 stars (3.5 rounded up) because Abby got my ass with Emma's character arc. I was INVESTED. If she hadn't extracted her head from delulu-land, I would've given this one star so brace yourself while reading this. I honestly didn't give AF about the romance, I was on edge the entire time waiting to see how the dynamic between Emma and her ain't shit womb donor (mom) shook out. But seriously, Emma almost made me DNF because her toxic positivity was making my blood pressure skyrocket.
The blurb leads you to believe this is a less misogynist Good Luck Chuck, but the curse storyline was ultimately insignificant. Also, if you really think about it, it makes no sense Emma would give up Hawaii for Minnesota (this felt like a crime) to break the relationship curse when her entire "thing" is she's constantly on the move and refuses to settle down. If she doesn't want to stay in one place, why does it matter that her exes find their soulmates after they break up? Seems like the curse was actually working in her favor because she never had to worry about "the one that got away". But I digress...
This is my first Abby Jiminez that I completed (dnfed Yours Truly—no I won't be taking questions at this time) and I did find it funny. I liked the AITA post to kick things off and to tie it all together at the end.
Random, but I've noticed that authors are allergic to dialogue tags these days. Not all dialogue needs tags, but I find it odd that emotionally charged exchanges were devoid of them. It's giving interview transcript and I'm not a fan of it. Feels lazy.
No spoilies but I did like the conclusion of the book and I found the characters decently flushed out. Maddy is the fucking REALEST. She deserves ALLLLLLLL the good things in life. I hope her size is never sold out during sales, she never gets janky substitutions when ordering groceries online, and that her socks always match. She NEVER complained about Emma's selfishness; she was fiercely protective, patient, and endlessly selfless. Also, Justin's backstory was interesting. Definitely unique. Yes, the stress of his family situation was downplayed big time, but at least it was something different than the "my mom died when I was young" backstory that we usually see for MMCs. I think Justin was too good for Emma... He and Maddy should've linked up together tbh.
Usually I only share quotes that make me wanna gauge my eyes out with hot spoons but in this case, I'm gonna share an excerpt that had me questioning if someone was cutting onions in close proximity of me:
"You're not asking for too much. You were just asking the wrong person. Ask me instead." Faaaacccttttsss though (within reason). Your "too much" for someone will be another person's bare minimum.
All in all, this book kept my attention and threw me for a loop several times. I was ON EDGE. So I have no choice but to give Abby her flowers for taking me on a wild ass ride.
pros & cons
pros: good character arc with Emma, Maddy is a real one, Justin was a likeable MMC (epitome of "if he wanted to, he would") with a unique backstory, strong resolution to Emma's story and their relationship, funny at times, interesting premise although not fully executed
cons: very bland, emotionless writing... it was really the character's actions/beliefs that kept me emotionally involved, lack of dialogue tags during heated scenes watered things down, Emma's motivation to break the curse made no sense
____
Check out my YouTube and my TikTok
writing: very mid | plot: okay | ending: THANK GOD | 3.5 rounded up
my opinion
FYI: this is insta-love with fade to bland grey spice
Despite the writing being extremely mid, I'm tossing this 4 stars (3.5 rounded up) because Abby got my ass with Emma's character arc. I was INVESTED. If she hadn't extracted her head from delulu-land, I would've given this one star so brace yourself while reading this. I honestly didn't give AF about the romance, I was on edge the entire time waiting to see how the dynamic between Emma and her ain't shit womb donor (mom) shook out. But seriously, Emma almost made me DNF because her toxic positivity was making my blood pressure skyrocket.
The blurb leads you to believe this is a less misogynist Good Luck Chuck, but the curse storyline was ultimately insignificant. Also, if you really think about it, it makes no sense Emma would give up Hawaii for Minnesota (this felt like a crime) to break the relationship curse when her entire "thing" is she's constantly on the move and refuses to settle down. If she doesn't want to stay in one place, why does it matter that her exes find their soulmates after they break up? Seems like the curse was actually working in her favor because she never had to worry about "the one that got away". But I digress...
This is my first Abby Jiminez that I completed (dnfed Yours Truly—no I won't be taking questions at this time) and I did find it funny. I liked the AITA post to kick things off and to tie it all together at the end.
Random, but I've noticed that authors are allergic to dialogue tags these days. Not all dialogue needs tags, but I find it odd that emotionally charged exchanges were devoid of them. It's giving interview transcript and I'm not a fan of it. Feels lazy.
No spoilies but I did like the conclusion of the book and I found the characters decently flushed out. Maddy is the fucking REALEST. She deserves ALLLLLLLL the good things in life. I hope her size is never sold out during sales, she never gets janky substitutions when ordering groceries online, and that her socks always match. She NEVER complained about Emma's selfishness; she was fiercely protective, patient, and endlessly selfless. Also, Justin's backstory was interesting. Definitely unique. Yes, the stress of his family situation was downplayed big time, but at least it was something different than the "my mom died when I was young" backstory that we usually see for MMCs. I think Justin was too good for Emma... He and Maddy should've linked up together tbh.
Usually I only share quotes that make me wanna gauge my eyes out with hot spoons but in this case, I'm gonna share an excerpt that had me questioning if someone was cutting onions in close proximity of me:
"You're not asking for too much. You were just asking the wrong person. Ask me instead." Faaaacccttttsss though (within reason). Your "too much" for someone will be another person's bare minimum.
All in all, this book kept my attention and threw me for a loop several times. I was ON EDGE. So I have no choice but to give Abby her flowers for taking me on a wild ass ride.
pros & cons
pros: good character arc with Emma, Maddy is a real one, Justin was a likeable MMC (epitome of "if he wanted to, he would") with a unique backstory, strong resolution to Emma's story and their relationship, funny at times, interesting premise although not fully executed
cons: very bland, emotionless writing... it was really the character's actions/beliefs that kept me emotionally involved, lack of dialogue tags during heated scenes watered things down, Emma's motivation to break the curse made no sense
____
Check out my YouTube and my TikTok
April 16, 2024
six stars, no question
April 25, 2024
fmc is the smallest girl ever
September 24, 2024
I loved every minute of it 🥹
5⭐️ (♾️)
Banter was top tier, chemistry was fire, deeper plot lines of neglect and family trauma was heartbreaking but amazingly done. I want a friend like Maddy
I never saw the twist coming (I would say you should read Part of Your World & Yours Truly first to really appreciate everything)
Feet were kicked and tears were shed. Perfection
5⭐️ (♾️)
Banter was top tier, chemistry was fire, deeper plot lines of neglect and family trauma was heartbreaking but amazingly done. I want a friend like Maddy
I never saw the twist coming (I would say you should read Part of Your World & Yours Truly first to really appreciate everything)
Feet were kicked and tears were shed. Perfection
June 24, 2024
!!!!!! i have no WORDS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“four dates. a kiss. no breakup” 🩷🎀🌸💓
*CHANGED FROM 4.75 TO A 5 BECAUSE I LOVEEEDDD SO MUCH*
“four dates. a kiss. no breakup” 🩷🎀🌸💓
*CHANGED FROM 4.75 TO A 5 BECAUSE I LOVEEEDDD SO MUCH*
November 27, 2024
1.) Part of Your World ★★★★★
2.) Yours Truly ★★★★
let me preface this entire review by saying that i do believe you should read at least part of your world in this loosely connected series. i didn’t feel like this about yours truly, because you just see overlapping friendships between characters - which is really cool, but i don’t think would hinder any reading experience! But i truly am not sure if i would have given this book five stars, if not for also reading part of your world! so again, totally do whatever you wanna do, read these however you want to read them, but i just recommend reading at least part of your world (which is probably the best romance book i’ve read in years, so it will be a fun side quest, i promise)!
now that that is out of the way - let me actually talk about the book itself! The basic premise is that a girl read a reddit post that makes her realize the poster and her have one thing in common: they both are the person people date before they find their soulmates. So emma (28, traveling nurse) slides into justin’s (op, 29, engineer) about this curse they both may have, but then they start talking about other things and realize that they actually have more in common than their nonexistent love lives. they come up with a plan to maybe try to break this spell by dating each other on emma’s next traveling assignment, where she will come to minnesota where justin is at. and maybe, much like another book i loved this year - funny story, justin can convince emma to fall in love with his state, and maybe even want to set up some roots even though she lives a life constantly moving from place to place with her best friend.
firstly, i love justin, i love emma, i wish them both the very best in life, but their friends, in particular maddy, oh they have my entire heart. this is a love story, without question, and this has a lot of heavy themes of grief and childhood neglect, but to me, this is a story about friendship, support systems, and being there for the people you love in life, no matter what. from justin’s friends knowing exactly what to do to lightening the weight in his life, to emma’s best friend maddy, who gave her so many different types of love throughout this book and truly is probably the best book friends i’ve ever read about in my life, to justin’s mom’s best friend who makes me cry even thinking about. this is just such a book about showing up for people, and also feeling like you trust people to show up for you, even when others in the past have made you a person who does not trust easily. these themes just really set this book apart for me, and is the reason this will be one of my favorite books of 2024.
other things i loved: first dates with kittens!! questionnaires/google forms letting the person know what you like on dates! i know a lot of medical travelers and it was really cool reading a mc who does it! also, accurate med surg stereotype commentary, alongside accurate vegas stereotype commentary lol. you’re never too old to make new connections, and healthy relationships, with respected boundaries (romantically, but also with friends and family and anyone you choose to share your life with)!
overall, if you’re looking for a really good romance, following two people healing from their pasts, both together and apart, and truly creating a healthy life for themselves, while also being such a love letter to friendships and all relationships (again, not just romantic ones), then please pick this up. i knew i was going to like this, but i didn’t expect to love it so very much and be impacted by the story so very deeply. and if you need a reminder, you are not the sum of the bad things in your past, especially stuff that was beyond your control. and it’s never too late to get the help, or extra resources, that you deserve. and you always deserve to live a healthier life, surrounded by people who appreciate you and love you unconditionally.
lastly, abby - please give us the maddy book. I am on my knees writing this review, begging you, please.
trigger + content warnings in the front of the book (it also says there should be a full list of more tw/cw on the author’s website and goodreads, which i couldn’t find to link as of august 5th, 2024, but i still always appreciate when they are in books): scenes containing panic attacks, anxiety, ptsd, depression, depictions of undiagnosed mental health issues, a toxic mother, and past child neglect.
additional trigger + content warnings i wrote down while reading: talk of loss of father in past (car accident where the other person was drinking and driving), abandonment, abusive parents, neglect in past, child starvation in past, gaslighting, manipulation, a few hospital settings (only because of the profession of one of the mcs), talk of foster systems, grief, a parent going to prison, one sentence regarding suicide, vomit, sickness (norovirus), talk of menstruation, headlice, and talk of loss of grandparents in past.
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♡ The Friend Zone ★★
♡ buddy read with betty jo
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