The Friend Zone

Oh Lord. I’m in desperate need of sleep after devouring this book but I’m too freaking emotional to do anything other than think about Kristen, Josh & their incredible story. Seriously— if you haven’t grabbed this book yet, do yourselves a favor and read it. I still have tears in my eyes from the last couple of chapters & I’m 99,9% positive this is one of the hardest reviews I’ve ever had to write, simply because I loved this book beyond words. The Friend Zone managed to grasp my attention from the very beginning, from the moment Kristen & Josh meet for the first time. It was quiiiite amusing to say the least.

Josh, oh sweet Josh. He is one of the best male heroes EVER. He’s smart, honest, supportive, and most importantly— he knows what he wants and doesn’t play mind games. He is strongly attracted to Kristen from the very first moment he sets eyes on her and he doesn’t even try to hide it. It’s not as easy for Kristen to do the same thing, though. For starters, she’s in a committed relationship —with a man that’s thousand miles away. Oh, and she can’t give Josh the one thing he so desperately wants. Children. So, yeah, she decides it would be best for both of them to stick to the friend zone & not complicate things between them. Needless to say, that attempt failed miserably.

Soon enough, they find themselves in a friends with benefits situation —Kristen’s idea, not Josh’s. He would love nothing more than to be in a committed relationship with her, but she’s adamant about it. But Josh is a determined man, he’ll manage to break down her walls.

The chemistry between them was INSANE. I loved their sweet moments, the hilarious ones and those where I wanted to slap some sense into Kristen for keeping Josh at arms’ length. But, apart from this minor annoying fact, I so want this woman to be my friend. She might be fictional, but I couldn’t care less. She’s strong, funny loyal, selfless. And don’t get me started on Josh. I love everything about this man. Ugh— he took such good care of Kristen, he was such a caring friend and such a tender lover. In other words: he is the definition of perfection.

I cried my eyes out during the last couple of characters, and just thinking about some certain events makes me want to cry all over again, so I’m not going to say any more about it.

I found Abby on her hilarious post on FB. The famous exlax one of course! I had snooped on her page and seen she had a book out and also she is in my home state. A famous cupcake artist and the list goes on. I immediately ordered her book on Amazon. I was at my cabin in Northern Mn and wanted to read it ASAP. So Kindle it was. Then after not putting it down at all even to go to the bathroom or eat for that matter. I soaked it all in at once. And then ordered a signed copy not to long after that. This book is so fantastic! I have read it numerous times. Abby is definitely great at everything she puts her heart and soul into. And she is hilarious too! What are you waiting for? Go read it now!! Enjoy!

I devoured this book! So so so good.

Why did I wait so long to read this incredible book? Oh my goodness!!! I laughed, I cried (ugly cry at that), and cheered!!! Kristen has always had trouble with her uterus. It truly hates her. Now she is facing surgery that will never allow her to have children. Into her life walks Josh. They get along incredibly well and even her dog Stuntman Mike loves him and he hates everyone! Kristen can’t make a life with Josh because he wants a big family and she won’t be able to give him that. I loved Kristen and Josh. The chapters alternate between the two so you get both sides of the story. I loved this incredible story and can’t wait to read The Happy Ever After Playlist!

I’m probably going to repeat a lot of the reviews for this book but it can’t be said enough – this was such a good read! I read this book over two days and that says something for a slow reader like me. I couldn’t put it down. I was laughing out loud one minute and in tears another. Even though I respected her views, I honestly wanted to smack Kristen at times. The way the Abby Jimenz conveys the painful battle with infertility was incredibly moving. There was such a roller coaster of feelings in this book. I was so heartbroken at times but couldn’t wait to see how it all ended. Without giving too much away, I do hope the author writes a sequel for one of the other main characters in this book (if you’ve read it, you know who I’m talking about). I want to know how that character’s life turns out.
Two thumbs up and five stars for this book!

This is a well-written book with all the feels! Humor, Angst, Celebration.
I don’t think I can do justice in writing what this book is about more than what Abby Jimenez wrote at the end of the book, and I quote “… the unify in this story is the feeling of hopelessness, worthlessness, guilt, and despair that come with very common health issues, but not often discusses. Kristin HEA was never about getting pregnant, but It was about her allowing herself to be loved, despite what she felt are her shortcomings. It was about recognizing that she wasn’t defined by her ability to have children, and her worth went beyond the state of her uterus.”
Such powerful words that rocked my heart and soul!

So, I read this series out of order and read this first book after I read the second one. I’m not sure if that had an effect on my feelings toward this story or if, had I read them in the correct order if I’d like this one more and the second one less. But of course one can read each book as a stand-alone story. They were very similar and formulated exactly the same, which took away a lot of the joy of reading this story because it made it too predictable. Overall, it was a good story, but it does weaken my hope that book three (when it comes out) might be too closely mirrored to the first two.

What a ride! Kristin “cute” meets Josh And there is no straight line for them. Sloan & Brandon’s wedding throws them together and their story is also central. Emotionally dense. Compelling. Believable. Loved it!

3.5 frustrating stars for me! I actually couldn’t put this book down! I soooo wanted this to be a 5 star read! It had so much potential! I just kept reading to see if it would get there. The only reason it’s not a 4/5 star book was because of how long the drama of everything played out. The drama of everything last the majority of the book. I went into this book blind knowing nothing of the story line. I will say I loved Kristen and Josh together! However my issues with this book are with Kristen. I had a hard time with her in the beginning of the book then she redeemed herself and then from the middle to the near end I was screaming JUST LET HIM LOVE YOU ALREADY in my mind! This book had me laughing one minute and needing tissues the next.

Absolutely loved this love story! Kristen is a snarky smart woman who has been told she needs a hysterectomy at the age of 30-something. Josh is a firefighter who is looking for the right gal to have LOTS of kids with. A fender bender has them meeting and then by happenstance Josh is BFF with her BFF’s fiancé’. It was refreshing to have Josh genuinely LIKE Kristen from the beginning and the fact that he kept it consistently throughout the whole book. Our author Abby needed to have Josh super invested in that relationship and his just say “OKAY” worked perfectly in the end.

Kristen’s angst about her medical issue did get a little stressful for me as a reader – I was yelling just “TELL HIM” mid-way through but I understand that was needed to keep the story going and made the ending and Josh’s reaction so sweet.

The secondary characters were super funny. Shawn (another firefighter) is a jerk – but he has some of the best lines at the most appropriate times in the book. Dick-Jars, Leggings don’t lie, Hoodies on loan – So Good! Kristen’s puppy Stuntman Mike’s pithy dog shirt logos were hilarious like “DOGFATHER.”

–Alert– there is a sad sequence that is pretty gut-wrenching – like ugly crying sad but it actually lends to the story and I think will end up in the next book from Jimenez.

Our heroine Kristen’s “female” medical issue will resonate with lots of women. I personally went thru the exact same issue only later in life. It is a relatable condition that female readers will completely understand. The HEA was tied up in a little bow that may have been a “tad” unbelievable — but it’s a ROMANCE and I loved it!

I was given this book by Estelle at Read-Forever.com while I was attending the Apollycon event in March, 2019. This is my honest review.