• This ARC was received directly by the author for winning a contest. All opinions are my own.
• The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez
• Genre: Romance
• Pub Date: April 14, 2020

WARNING: This review may contain spoilers for Abby Jimenez’s first book, The Friend Zone. In order to maximize your Happy Ever After Playlist experience, you will have to do some homework first. Don’t worry – you should enjoy it, and you have until April 2020 to complete it! Here’s the assignment:

1. Some light reading: I first found out about Abby from a viral Facebook post. I must have laughed for a good 10 minutes after reading it, and I thought, “if she is this funny on Facebook, I can’t wait to give her book a try!” Google “Abby Jimenez Ex-lax” then come right back when you finish reading it for your next assignment!
2. Have you finished laughing yet? What did you think? Did you like it? If you thought that was funny, then you will fit right in here. Next up, is some light TV watching. Did you know Abby is a baker, and owns the cupcake shop Nadia Cakes? And, SPOILER ALERT, she won an episode of Cupcake Wars! It is currently on Hulu (at the time of this post) – go check out season 4, episode 7 “Rose Bowl.” This will give you some context, as Nadia Cakes is mentioned in her books. Once you have finished watching, prepare yourself. It’s time to get to the real homework assignment.
3. The Happy Ever After Playlist (HEAP) is a sequel to The Friend Zone (TFZ). To read the synopsis of HEAP will provide a HUGE spoiler to TFZ. To avoid this, ignore the rest of this post, go immediately to your local bookstore or library, and begin to read TFZ as soon as you can. Then come right back here to start getting excited for HEAP to come out in April!

FUN FACT: The events that occur in TFZ had to happen. It turns out that Abby wrote HEAP first, and then TFZ. Had “the event” not happened, the whole series would not make sense. Wonder what I’m talking about? You have skipped ahead! Go back and read TFZ. We will wait. *taps fingers impatiently*

FROM THIS POINT FORWARD THERE WILL BE SPOILERS FOR THE FRIEND ZONE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Goodreads book summary: “Two years after losing her fiancé, Sloan Monroe still can’t seem to get her life back on track. But one trouble-making pup with a “take me home” look in his eyes is about to change everything. With her new pet by her side, Sloan finally starts to feel more like herself. Then, after weeks of unanswered texts, Tucker’s owner reaches out. He’s a musician on tour in Australia. And bottom line: He wants Tucker back. Well, Sloan’s not about to give up her dog without a fight. But what if this Jason guy really loves Tucker? As their flirty texts turn into long calls, Sloan can’t deny a connection. Jason is hot and nice and funny. There’s no telling what could happen when they meet in person. The question is: With his music career on the rise, how long will Jason really stick around? And is it possible for Sloan to survive another heartbreak?”

Towards the end of TFZ, I was heartbroken for Sloan. I was heartbroken for Josh. I was crying and threw my book across the room. Then I had to go get it to finish it. I needed to read HEAP to see where everyone ends up. It had to end with everyone happy. It had happy ever after in the title – everyone was due one…right?

We dive right back into Sloan’s world, where Kristen and Josh appear periodically. It’s been 2 years, and it is rough. Enter Jason’s dog, Tucker. And Jason. And the author’s amazing ability to weave together a story that pulls you in, and won’t let go until you get to the end, and then you are left wanting more. One minute you could be SO FRUSTRATED with a character, and in the next chapter you are rooting for them. I was hooked with every tiff, every flirty engagement, every misunderstanding, every snarky Kristen encounter, ever family trip – ALL. OF. IT.

I would beg my husband to watch the kids, just so I could finish this book. By the end of the book, I found that I was crying AND laughing at the same time. How does she do it?! I can count on one hand the number of books that have caused some waterworks. It will be on both hands if I keep reading all of Abby’s books!

I don’t want to go into more of the story to prevent any further spoilers (I fear that if I start talking about the story, I won’t want to stop).

So mark your calendar folks! April 2020 – check this one out!

Keep on reading!