Say you'll see me again even if it's just in your wildest dreams...
Say You'll Remember Me
Contemporary Romance
Forever
April 1, 2025
Hardcover, ebook, audiobook
368
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Just for the Summer comes a playful yet deeply emotional romance where one date is all it takes for two people to know they're perfect for each other . . . until one of them moves 2,000 miles away the next day. There's no such thing as a perfect guy, but Xavier Rush comes disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediate yes. That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong . . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date, Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be. Only no amount of distance or time is enough to forget what's between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering.
Ladies and Gentlereaders, Abby Jimenez is back!
Abby Jimenez feels like one of the members of my social circle – her characters say some outrageous things that dial directly into the serious nature of humanity while also being absurdly funny and painfully real. I can certainly see her (and all of her characters) sitting at a bar with me and my friends, dissecting our dating lives, trash talking terrible coworkers, and sharing commentary about the unwritten laws of society – like the comeuppance for jerks who don’t return their shopping carts to those little corrals, and people who don’t use their blinkers. In other words, heathens.
Abby’s books always feel more like a slice of life rather than a work of fiction. I love getting to live in her alternate reality.
“It was my first alien abduction. You always remember your first.”
“Say You’ll Remember Me” is not a typical love story. If you haven’t read the book yet, prepare yourself for feeling your feelings. Xavier and Samantha do have a romance that builds throughout the novel, but in my honest opinion, this novel really doesn’t read like a romance. That’s not to say that there aren’t some really funny, swoony moments throughout, though. Abby has an amazing talent of balancing trauma and humor.
Xavier and Samantha end up in ridiculous situations, like diving off the side of a yacht for a lost phone, locked in an escape room, and accosted by unwelcomed animals.
I love the callbacks to other books in the Abby Jimenez universe. In this story in particular, Abby calls back to “Yours Truly” when Jafar, the African gray parrot, has a visit to Xavier’s clinic and accuses him of inappropriate touching. If you know, you know. This is a staple in Abby’s writing, and one of the best gifts I think an author can give their readers. We spend so much time investing in stories and fictional characters’ lives, all for them to be frozen in time on the last page of their story. Seeing them pop back up in other places is a window into their happy ever after that we don’t normally get to be part of.
“So why was I still thinking about her? Because the facts didn’t change the feelings. I’d been taken by the riptide.”
One of my favorite lines of the book is “love is the brightest color in a gray world.” It’s so perceptible. Everyone knows how bright and sharp something can be against a dull, dark backdrop.
Xavier and Samantha meet each other at one of the most inopportune times in each of their lives. Xavier is weighed down with debt and the pressure of being successful in spite of his upbringing, and Samantha on the cusp of moving to California to be caretaker for her mother. Sure, they didn’t plan on meeting someone special, but I find that the universe doesn’t care about what your plans are.
I typically say that I don’t believe in fate, but I do think that everything happens for a reason. In this case, maybe I do believe in fate.
Hive Mind
Queen Bee Meg and I buddy read “Say You’ll Remember Me” together. If you haven’t tried a buddy read, well, what are you waiting for?! I can’t say enough about how great it feels to be able to bounce your thoughts, ideas, and feelings off of someone else in real time.
One of the most prominent, overarching themes of this book is having to watch someone you love while they are hurt or hurting. We both agreed that calling this story a romance novel almost feels like a disservice because it diminishes the depth and breadth of all of the other relationships that are explored throughout: siblings, parent/child, marriage, etc. “Say You’ll Remember Me” pokes at the soft, fleshy emotional bruises the characters go through and spends the span of the novel working through the healing process.
Sometimes things hurt more before they get better.
Final Thoughts
“Say You’ll Remember Me” is phenomenal, just like the rest of Abby’s backlist. Her talent for enmeshing her characters into the world she builds feels effortless. I’m always going to drop whatever I’m doing and reach for a new Abby Jimenez book.
Is this really a romance novel though? Not to us. It definitely reads more as contemporary fiction with heavy topics like grief, self-care, and familial obligation.
As the Queen Bee said, “it’s a love letter to family, and I appreciate that even more.”
Grab your copy of this emotional book today and let it pluck at your heartstrings the same way it did mine.
I’m Val, and I’m excited to share my love of books with you! I’m a sassy Sour Patch kid from New Jersey, dog mom to Chance the beagle, and much like the rest of the Hive, I’m a coffee lover (I think it’s a requirement to be here). The first book I remember reading voluntarily involved a boy wizard who lived in the cupboard under the stairs, and I’ve been chasing magic ever since. I love Happily Ever Afters, and I love love. My favorite genres are romance and rom-coms, fantasy, and young adult/new adult. If I’m not reading, I’m probably kayaking, watching the Great British Baking Show, or discovering a new craft beer.
