Quick Synopsis

A novel of terrible first impressions, hilarious second chances, and the joy in finding your perfect match.

Publisher’s Synopsis

Dr. Briana Ortiz’s life is seriously flatlining. Her divorce is just about finalized, her brother’s running out of time to find a kidney donor, and that promotion she wants? Oh, that’s probably going to the new man-doctor who’s already registering eighty-friggin’-seven on Briana’s “pain in my ass” scale. But just when all systems are set to hate, Dr. Jacob Maddox completely flips the game . . . by sending Briana a letter.

And it’s a really good letter. Like the kind that proves that Jacob isn’t actually Satan. Worse, he might be this fantastically funny and subversively likeable guy who’s terrible at first impressions. Because suddenly he and Bri are exchanging letters, sharing lunch dates in her “sob closet,” and discussing the merits of freakishly tiny horses. But when Jacob decides to give Briana the best gift imaginable—a kidney for her brother—she wonders just how she can resist this quietly sexy new doctor . . . especially when he calls in a favor she can’t refuse.

Book Review

Despite owning all of Abby Jimenez’s books, this is the first one I have actually read. And I am happy with my choice! I will definitely be picking up Part of Your World soon, which is about two characters featured in Yours Truly.

Yours Truly is a slow-burn fake dating romance with the ultimate cinnamon roll love interest. (Yes, I had to look up that term.) While Abby Jimenez included a number of tropes within the novel, she did not skimp on building depth and nuance to this story of two ED doctors.

In Yours Truly, the plot really shines. Both the A and B plot are interesting and feel pretty realistic as far as romance novels go. I was surprised to find that Jimenez’s choice to pair fake dating with miscommunication worked for me. I usually hate stories that include the miscommunication trope. While I did become slightly inpatient regarding the resolution of miscommunication, I otherwise did not mind. I also think the act III crisis was surprisingly genuine and not annoying, as I find a lot plots at that point. I did not roll my eyes once. In fact, I teared up multiple times while reading Yours Truly, which is no small feat. I particularly loved to see people showing up for one another throughout this novel.

Jimenez really brought the anxiety representation in Yours Truly. I thought the characterization of anxiety was true to life as was the handling of medical and emotional trauma. Altogether, it was well done; however, I do think some people may take issue with how much Jacob’s anxiety lessens over the span of the novel. Personally, I found it believable within the context of the narrative.

With the last romance I read being written by Emily Henry, I had high expectations of the dialogue in Yours Truly. It did fall a little bit short on punchiness and wittiness but was otherwise enjoyable. Furthermore, Yours Truly is narrated by the two protagonists. I would have liked for these two voices to be a bit more distinctive from one another.

Both of the protagonists – Briana and Jacob – are well developed. I found Briana and Jacob to be loveable characters despite their flaws. I really enjoyed that Briana was such a strong female lead and did some of the rescuing in the story. However, I thought the secondary characters could have been further developed. Still, the secondary characters were largely fun additions to the story.

Overall, I really enjoyed Yours Truly and recommend it for romance lovers. Just be ready to join the “we must protect Jacob at all costs” club and add to your ever-growing list of book boyfriends.

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