Book Smart Kate

Book: 🌟🌟🌟 Audiobook: 🌟🌟🌟 Spice: 🌶️

By Abby Jimenez

This is when I give a mediocre review of a book everyone loves. 

Like all of Abby Jimenez’s novels, this one pulls you in and makes you root for the main couple while endearing you to the secondary characters. You get much more out of this book if you read Part of Your World first, and there is even a breadcrumb trail back to The Happily Ever After Playlist.

Dr. Briana Ortiz is a successful and beloved ER physician, but her personal life is rocky. She is coming to the end of a messy divorce, carrying childhood trauma from her father leaving, and trying to get her brother a new kidney before he runs out of time. Dr. Jacob Maddox is new to the hospital and makes a catastrophically bad first (and second) impression. Then he does the last thing Briana expects and writes her a letter. As she sees a much different side to Jacob, and they begin exchanging letters, they become friends. Then Jacob shows up in the most unexpected way, a kidney donor match. Although she can never repay the favor, she agrees to pretend to be his girlfriend for a family wedding. What starts as pretend becomes real as these two different people understand each other in ways no one has before. But can that be enough?

What I loved: The letter writing, Briana’s ability to understand and support Jacob through his anxiety and panic attacks, Jacob’s sincere understanding of Briana’s hesitancy to become involved based on her past, their families, the mystical bed and breakfast, the three-legged dog name Lieutenant Dan and a foul-mouthed bird.

SPOILERS AHEAD

What I didn’t love: These are two highly educated adults who have spent so much time building trust and honesty through letters, yet the amount of MISCOMMUNICATION in the latter half of this book is insane. INSANE. The only trope I hate more is ACCIDENTAL PREGNANCY. In this case, between TWO DOCTORS in their mid-30s. COME ON. There is not one conversation about birth control between (again) TWO DOCTORS. AGGHHHHH!!!!