
#1 NYT bestseller Abby Jimenez's "Say You'll Remember Me" blends TikTok culture with swoon-worthy romance. Can a Food Network champion create literary magic? With 54,000 Goodreads reviews and exclusive editions flying off shelves, this culturally-savvy love story promises unforgettable emotional impact.
Abby Jimenez is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Say You'll Remember Me and an award-winning romance novelist celebrated for blending heartfelt humor with deeply relatable life experiences. In this contemporary romance, she explores themes of caregiving, early-onset dementia, and second chances through her signature grumpy-sunshine dynamic featuring a compassionate veterinarian.
Before writing full-time, Jimenez founded Nadia Cakes, an award-winning bakery, and won Food Network's Cupcake Wars in 2013. Her previous bestsellers include Just for the Summer, Yours Truly (named Book of the Month Club's 2023 Book of the Year), and Life's Too Short, which won the 2022 Minnesota Book Award.
Known for tackling tough topics like grief, fertility, kidney disease, and mental health alongside swoon-worthy romance, Jimenez is a sought-after speaker at literary festivals and conferences. Her novels have sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide and been translated into 28 languages.
Say You'll Remember Me follows veterinarian Xavier Rush and Samantha, who share an unforgettable first date before Samantha must move to California to care for her mother with early-onset Alzheimer's. Despite the 2,000-mile distance and overwhelming family obligations, Xavier refuses to let her go, flying across the country to maintain their connection. The novel blends romance with deeply emotional family drama as Samantha's household navigates her mother's devastating illness while Xavier and Samantha fight to build a relationship against impossible odds.
Abby Jimenez is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and Food Network winner who founded the successful bakery Nadia Cakes. Her romance novel Yours Truly made history as the first romance to win Book of the Month's Dolly Award for Book of the Year, and she received the 2022 Minnesota Book Award for Life's Too Short. Other popular titles include Just for the Summer, which also became a #1 bestseller. Jimenez is known for crafting emotionally resonant contemporary romances with depth and humor.
Say You'll Remember Me is ideal for readers who enjoy emotional contemporary romance with substantial depth beyond typical rom-com fare. Fans of Abby Jimenez's previous work will appreciate her signature writing style, though those expecting light romance should be prepared for heavy family drama themes. The book suits readers interested in long-distance relationships, caregiver narratives, and stories about family sacrifice. However, readers seeking purely escapist romance may find the Alzheimer's storyline and family crisis overwhelming compared to the romantic elements.
Say You'll Remember Me delivers Abby Jimenez's characteristically captivating writing and creates compelling, well-developed characters that make the instant connection believable. The book excels at portraying the devastating reality of early-onset Alzheimer's and family caregiving with emotional authenticity. However, readers should note this reads more as women's fiction than romance, with heavy dramatic elements outweighing the cute or sexy moments. Some readers found the excessive TikTok references and ACOTAR mentions distracting, though Jimenez's storytelling prowess makes it difficult to put down despite these issues.
Say You'll Remember Me explores family sacrifice, with Samantha giving up her own happiness in Minnesota to care for her mother suffering from dementia. The novel examines long-distance love and whether relationships can survive when external circumstances create seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Trauma and healing appear through Xavier's abusive childhood and his determination to prove his worth through success. The devastating impact of early-onset Alzheimer's on families serves as a central theme, showing how caregiving demands can consume entire households.
Say You'll Remember Me straddles the line between romance and women's fiction, leaning more heavily toward contemporary family drama than traditional rom-com. While it features romantic elements including a meet-cute and cinnamon roll male main character, the long-distance nature means readers get limited Xavier and Samantha content together. The family drama surrounding the mother's Alzheimer's disease often overshadows the romance, with the emotional toll of caregiving taking center stage. Multiple reviewers noted the book wasn't marketed accurately for those expecting a lighter romantic comedy experience.
The long-distance relationship in Say You'll Remember Me spans 2,000 miles between Minnesota and California, with Xavier flying repeatedly to see Samantha despite her insistence that the relationship won't work. After one incredible first date, Xavier refuses to accept their connection as just a perfect memory, making extraordinary efforts to maintain their bond. Samantha's caregiving responsibilities for her mother make relocation impossible, forcing Xavier to shoulder the burden of travel while managing his veterinary clinic. The distance creates tension as Samantha doubts whether love can survive when life is already overwhelming with family obligations.
Say You'll Remember Me portrays early-onset Alzheimer's with heart-wrenching authenticity, showing how Lisa loses pieces of herself daily while her family reorganizes their entire lives around her care. Abby Jimenez demonstrates thorough research into the devastating reality of having a loved one suffer from this disease and the toll it takes on family caregivers. The novel depicts Samantha's father on the verge of burnout from trying to hold everything together while the family sacrifices personal dreams to keep their mother home rather than in a facility. This storyline provides significant emotional depth but creates a heavy reading experience that some found overwhelming.
Xavier Rush is a gorgeous veterinarian described as a "Greek god" who's better with animals than people, initially coming across as grumpy and saying the wrong things. Underneath his tough exterior lies a "cinnamon roll" of a man—sweet, dependable, and unwavering in his devotion—shaped by years of trauma from abusive parents he no longer speaks to. His childhood abuse created lifelong trauma but also fueled his determination to succeed with his veterinary clinic and prove his parents wrong. Multiple reviewers called him the best book boyfriend Abby Jimenez has ever created, though some noted he felt almost too perfect at times.
The most common criticism of Say You'll Remember Me involves excessive TikTok language and repeated ACOTAR/Rhysand references that felt forced and took readers out of the story. Many reviewers noted the book's second half deteriorated with erratic decisions and constant manufactured conflicts that frustrated readers who were invested in the earlier chapters. Some felt the Gen Z commentary seemed mismatched for characters who appear to be younger millennials rather than Gen Z in age and career stage. Several readers found the book marketed misleadingly as romance when it functions more as heavy women's fiction with family drama overshadowing the romantic elements.
Say You'll Remember Me incorporates several popular romance tropes including a meet-cute when Samantha brings her rescue kitten to Xavier's veterinary clinic. The story features forced proximity during their extended first date, dual point of view alternating between Xavier and Samantha's perspectives, and a cinnamon roll male main character in Xavier. Long-distance relationship serves as the primary romantic obstacle as they navigate 2,000 miles of separation. The novel also includes complicated family dynamics on both sides—Samantha's family crisis with her mother's dementia and Xavier's traumatic past with abusive parents.
Say You'll Remember Me represents a departure from Abby Jimenez's typical balance of romance and humor, featuring significantly heavier themes than her previous works. While it maintains Jimenez's signature captivating writing style that sweeps readers into the story, many fans noted this installment fell short of expectations compared to beloved titles like Yours Truly or Just for the Summer. The book contains less of the cute or sexy content that characterized earlier Jimenez novels, with the family drama and Alzheimer's storyline taking precedence over romantic development. Some reviewers stated that despite disappointment, Jimenez's phenomenal writing still made the book impossible to put down, even when skipping other reads to finish it.
Erlebe das Buch durch die Stimme des Autors
Verwandle Wissen in fesselnde, beispielreiche Erkenntnisse
Erfasse Schlüsselideen blitzschnell für effektives Lernen
Genieße das Buch auf unterhaltsame und ansprechende Weise
She insists people are inherently good, while he maintains they're 'inherently assholes.'
Xavier flies to California 'to be in the same room' as Samantha.
Life without Xavier feels like existing in grayscale.
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Xavier is having a particularly rough day at his veterinary clinic when Samantha Diaz walks in with a kitten tucked in her cleavage. The tiny feline has a rare birth defect-no functional anus-requiring expensive surgery with uncertain outcomes. When Xavier suggests euthanasia as the humane option, Samantha refuses, triggering their first heated argument about human nature. She insists people are inherently good; he maintains they're "inherently assholes." Despite their disagreement, there's an undeniable attraction. Four days later, Samantha proves Xavier wrong by raising nearly $9,000 through a viral campaign cleverly named "Pooter Needs a Poop Chute." Their first date unfolds on a sunset cruise, complete with adoptable puppies and gourmet food. When Samantha accidentally drops her phone into the lake, Xavier immediately jumps in to retrieve it. The perfect evening extends into an unforgettable night when they end up accidentally locked in an alien-themed escape room for hours with "Come On Eileen" playing on repeat. By the time they're rescued at 5:00 a.m., something profound has developed-only for Samantha to reveal she's moving to California permanently in two hours.
Samantha's permanent move to care for her mother-suffering from advanced dementia at just 54-creates an insurmountable barrier to their romance. She can't abandon her family, and Xavier can't relocate his Minnesota veterinary practice. Their painful airport goodbye crystallizes their situation. When Xavier asks what happens now, Samantha responds: "You forget me." Yet two weeks later, Xavier admits he can't stop thinking about her despite their brief time together. Their separation becomes a physical ache-a persistent longing that refuses to fade. Xavier describes it as "a persistent low hum" that only quiets when they're together. For Samantha, life without Xavier feels like existing in grayscale, with color returning only during their rare visits. Despite obstacles, they can't stay apart. Xavier flies to California "to be in the same room" as Samantha, claiming he's attending a conference. The financial strain is significant-Xavier, already $950,000 in debt for his clinic, works seven days a week to afford the monthly $500 flights.
At the heart of Samantha's inability to return to Minnesota lies her commitment to her mother. Lisa Diaz, once a powerful CEO, now suffers from early-onset dementia that has erased her memories and personality, forcing her family to witness her gradual disappearance. The novel portrays dementia caregiving with brutal honesty - Lisa's anxiety when her husband leaves escalates into destructive meltdowns. Most heartbreaking is when Lisa looks at her daughter and asks, "Who are you?" The disease fractures the entire family. Samantha's father Dan struggles with loyalty to a wife who no longer recognizes him, while her siblings debate whether professional care equals abandonment. Their promise to keep Lisa at home becomes increasingly untenable as her condition worsens. This family crisis parallels Xavier's history with abusive parents who punished him for an undiagnosed learning disability. Both carry heavy burdens - hers to her ailing mother, his to the practice he built to prove his worth.
Xavier's childhood taught him to control his emotions because "showing feelings was how my parents knew how to hurt me." This emotional restraint follows him into adulthood - his staff describes him as intimidating, rarely smiling, with "cold and handsome and dangerous looking" features. They joke he only dates uptight "bun energy" women. Samantha is his opposite - naturally social, someone who "meets strangers at a bar and ends up in someone's wedding by the end of the night." She challenges his cynicism and calls him out when he's being an "asshole." With her, Xavier finds himself wanting to please her in small ways. During their alien spaceship escape room, Xavier opens up about his abusive childhood - something he never shares. When her grandmother dies unexpectedly, Xavier spends his last penny on an emergency flight and becomes "the backbone" of her family for nine days. Their relationship becomes a safe harbor where both can heal.
Environmental contrasts highlight Xavier and Samantha's separation. During a Minnesota visit, Samantha realizes: "Xavier and I exist in different seasons - he's living in fall while I'm still in summer," symbolizing their incompatibility. Their lives fundamentally diverge. Xavier's world centers on his veterinary clinic and rescue work in Minnesota, while Samantha's California existence revolves around her mother's dementia care and social media career. During visits, they create temporary connections. Xavier integrates with Samantha's family during her grandmother's funeral-cooking, managing Lisa's care, and providing support. Similarly, Samantha "slides into his circle effortlessly" when meeting his friends. Yet these moments only emphasize their daily absence from each other's lives. Xavier misses Samantha when sick with pneumonia, while she longs for ordinary togetherness instead of their exhausting visit pattern. Their situation reaches tragicomic heights when Tristan buys Samantha a ticket to visit Xavier, only for her to discover he's flown to California to surprise her-as if "some jealous god had vowed never to let us be in the same room at the same time."
After months of struggling, Xavier reaches a breaking point. A conversation with his mentor Hank-who turns out to be the veterinarian who saved his childhood dog-provides clarity. "I would trade everything for one more day with my wife," Hank tells him, insisting nothing matters compared to love. On the one-year anniversary of meeting Samantha, Xavier appears unexpectedly in California-permanently. With his SUV and dog, he declares, "I'm tired of waiting forever." He's realized living without Samantha is harder than giving up his business. "I want to stop living one flight to California at a time." This gesture comes at enormous cost. Xavier has left his practice, faces debt, and lacks a California veterinary license. Yet he's chosen love over financial security-a profound sacrifice for someone who built his identity on proving worth through success. His proposal receives Samantha's "A thousand times yes." As they embrace, Lisa watches from the doorway. Though she doesn't recognize them, she still recognizes love-suggesting perhaps love is "the last thing we forget" and "the brightest color in a gray world."
What makes this story compelling is the courage to choose love despite overwhelming obstacles. Xavier and Samantha's journey shows that meaningful decisions often require reimagining our lives completely. Their story challenges us: What would we sacrifice for love? Would we choose connection over security? In a world prioritizing career success and stability, their choice stands as a radical act. They remind us that while circumstances change, love remains our most powerful human experience - worth fighting for, sacrificing for, building a life around. Most beautiful is how they create joy amid challenges. From alien-themed escape rooms to sunset Ferris wheel rides, they find magic in ordinary moments. They teach us that love isn't just grand gestures but showing up daily, choosing each other despite every reason not to. Isn't that what we're all searching for? Someone who makes the imperfect journey worthwhile - someone worth crossing 2,000 miles for until finding a way to build a life together.