While this isn’t an official sequel to Say You’ll Remember Me (Amazon), our April 2025 HoH Book Club pick, The Night We Met (Amazon) follows the same Minnesota-based friend group, and Xavier and Samantha do make appearances! And similarly, this book does tackle tough topics and we get another humorous pet to help with comedic relief.

That said, be aware of TWs: substance abuse (alcohol), grief, unexpected death of a parent (off-page), negligent / abusive parent, bullying, and cervophobia (fear of deer)

And as added warning, buckle your butts! You’re in for the slowest burn with the thickest tension! The second you read about Chris and Larissa on the same page (and it’s pretty immediate), it’ll be clear that they belong together. Unfortunately, that desire to just pluck them off the pages and out of the book to stick them together lasts throughout the ENTIRE book. Did you think you were patient? Well, this book will push you to your limits.

I’m grateful to have received an advanced reader’s copy of The Night We Met via NetGalley!

The Sneak Peek

It all comes down to one moment, one decision… and that choice could change your entire life.

For Larissa, that fork in the road happened barefoot on the (literal) back of her best friend, Lexi, at the end of a concert. Larissa needed a ride home, and she had two options: Mike, the charismatic personal trainer eager and energized to make the trek out of his way to drop her off, or Chris, the stoic pharmacist who made the reasonable point that her house wasn’t too far off-route to his house. The choice was simple, really. Larissa hates asking for help because life has taught her the only person she could truly depend on was herself, so she went with the person she thought would be least inconvenienced by the request.

Only months later, as her relationships with both men develop (in different ways), she starts to wonder if maybe she made the right choice that night. Because as real life continues to throw its twists and turns, Larissa finds that there’s someone she keeps seeking out, someone who makes her feel safe and seen, someone who makes sense… and it isn’t who drove her home that fateful night.

What Victoria Loved

VICTORIA’S RATING: 3.75/5

I read somewhere that it took Abby two years to write this. That she switched the order of her releases to tackle Say You’ll Remember Me before she could finish The Night We Met, and I can easily see why that would be the case. Navigating the web of this relationship required such precision to maintain the integrity of the characters and the loyalty they held for the people they love. Abby beautifully balances the soul-deep demands of our heart’s desires with the magnetic pull of our mind’s moral compass. And she’s given us another beautiful romance that highlights the many different kinds of love — infatuation, toxic, aspirational, big, life-long, and real — between friends, lovers and family.

That said, I do think Chris is my favorite character in this book. He sets a new standard for knight in shining armor and proves that chivalry is not dead. Nope, it comes in the form of Christopher Wright… truly, Mr. (W)right!! After reading about the way this man manages Larissa’s allergies, identifies ways to help make life easier for the people he cares about, and helps them find happiness no matter what, you’ll surely rethink the standard for what it means to be loved and cared for.

And that just makes the yearning and tension all the better. Truly, you can cut the tension with a knife. Everything about how these characters interact screams the obvious. And as a fan of both OW/OM drama and the friends-to-lovers trope, I was BESIDE myself for the whole book. Like the self-control and the true respect these characters had for each other and their friend group was unreal, which speaks to the strength of their character and values. Really, as frustrating as the situation was, you really can’t help but cheer for it to all work out.

And let’s not forget, Abby Jimenez is the queen of incorporating levity while tackling tough and complex topics. Here, Chris and Larissa navigate their complicated friendship in the face of grief, substance abuse, negligent parents, and financial struggles… with the funniest little sidekick as comedic relief. Truly, I don’t think I’ve read about a more chaotic goblin — I was laughing out loud at the insane things that dog got up to.

Pre-order your copy of The Night We Met (Amazon) and read with me!

Favorite Scene

“This is it,” I breathed. “I’m going to die at one o’clock in the morning next to a highway in front of a Toilet King billboard.”

- THE NIGHT WE MET by Abby Jimenez

Similar Reads & Recommendations

FORBIDDEN LOVE - BEST FRIEND’S PARTNER: Cruel Summer by Mazey Yates (Amazon)
I was immediately stunned from the first sentence! We view this rather traumatic experience from Sam’s perspective and we’re thrown into the depths of her introspection. Have you been living your life in a way that reflects your wants or what’s expected of you? Has it been shaped by someone else’s values? Driven by fear or motivated by passion? And what happens when you find the person that supports you in that journey, that grabs hold of your hand to keep you steady when it feels like the floor beneath you is crumbling, then grabs a hammer and nails to help you put it all back together? And what if he wasn’t who you thought he would be? See my Sneak Peek.
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AN ALTERNATE ENDING: Give Me More (Salacious Players Club #3) by Sara Cate (Amazon)
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A NAIL-BITING SLOW BURN: Something in the Way Series by Jessica Hawkins (Amazon)
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BY THE AUTHOR: Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez (Amazon)
An HoH Book Club pick! While I was laughing out loud in the opening chapters of this book, I wasn’t prepared for the emotional pendulum that is this love story. Or the framing of memories in the lens of witnessing and living life. Say You’ll Remember Me weaves in heart-wrenching truths about dementia, loss, and love through fresh, witty banter. Abby Jimenez balances the lightness of humor and laughter against the heaviness of grief and anxiety. She incorporates perfectly-timed full-circle moments and comedic breaks to lighten the darkest moments, which only made the characters more relatable and more human. Abby Jimenez holds no punches in this long-distance romance.
Read my Sneak Peek!
VICTORIA’S RATING: 4/5