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Abby Jimenez, I just know you STAY on TikTok! Girl, I rot on that app for hours too, but please 🙏🏾😭enough with the references!!

Okay, I’m about to say the dumbest thing ever: Xavier is too perfect? Like, he honestly made me cringe a little sometimes? I swear I’m not trying to be a hater. I hope every guy one meets is like this. But whew, he just always knows the right thing to say and do? Samantha, girl�� good for you!

Samantha and Xavier’s romance was definitely cute! I get that this is a romance book where we get to step out of reality and soak in all the grand gestures, the sweet words, the magic. And if that’s what you're here for, then you’ll be more than satisfied.That said, their romance didn’t feel super believable to me. I just didn’t really get what they saw in each other from that very first date. I love that Jimenez highlights how hard long-distance relationships can be and how beautiful they are when both people are truly trying. But because I didn’t understand the why behind their connection early on, all the big efforts they made to see each other just felt like... huh? It gave very "insta-love." Once they actually started getting to know each other, that’s when I started vibing with their relationship a bit more.

My favorite part of the book, hands down, was their individual lives. Samantha’s family and everything they were going through? So real. The hard decisions, the emotional weight. Super relatable for so many families! And I appreciated that the story didn’t shy away from the messy parts. Xavier had his own baggage, too, especially with his practice and his abusive family situation. I just love when books are raw like that, when I can feel their struggles and think, “Yep, that’s so human.�� That really helped me connect with them as individuals, even if I wasn’t 100% sold on them as a couple.

Definitely one of my most anticipated reads, and now the itch has been scratched. It didn’t meet all my expectations, but hey, it’s okay! I’ll survive. 😅