Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - Life's Too Short

Abby writes the best book boyfriends but, the true star of this book was Vanessa and her beautiful, fun, vibrant soul! Everything she was and everything she stood for was so inspiring. This girl is out here fighting her own really difficult personal journey while straight up carrying her entire family on her back and smiling while she does it.

You have beautiful, world travel-vlogger superstar, Vanessa Price who has returned home to help her sister with the birth of her new baby - only for her sister to drop off her baby and never come back. This is on par with her families regular antics which Vanessa pretty much single handedly deals with 24/7.

Cue her next door neighbour and the building owner, Adrian Copeland, who is woken up at 3am to the screaming baby next door. He decides to go check on them (to hopefully get some sleep) and finds a very worn out Vanessa in desperate need of a shower. After this random encounter, their friendship really blossoms into something beautiful.

They become each other’s biggest support systems - Vanessa’s contribution is more spiritual & emotional whereas Adrian is like Vanessa’s rock. She’s been strong on her own for so long, Adrian is just there to lend whatever hand he can.

Abby has a great talent in writing very emotional, deep stories and characters and this one was no exception. It covers very heavy and triggering topics such as addiction, terminal illness, child and familial abandonment, mental health struggles - to name a few. But the end result is wonderful story of a family overcoming copious amounts of struggles to become stronger both together and as individuals.

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readingwithmeredith's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Characters: 4

Connection to the book/Enjoyment: 3

Setting: 3

Plot/Overall Story: 4

Writing: 4

Every point= 0.25 stars, max per category 4 points

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amateur_bookworm's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Genre: Contemporary romance, fiction

My summary: Vanessa is a popular travel YouTuber and has found herself unexpectedly thrust into motherhood when she has to step in and take her half-sister’s newborn daughter, Grace. When Grace’s wailing brings Vanessa’s next door neighbor over—at 4am—Adrian and Vanessa are immediately drawn to each other. Adrian, a successful criminal defense attorney, soon finds himself spending less time at the office because he wants to be with Vanessa and Grace. But Vanessa’s days are numbered, as an aggressive genetic disorder has killed every female in her family before the age of 30. Adrian and Vanessa soon find that love is hard, especially with a clock ticking.

My thoughts: This one was a little tough to get through. Actually, almost this entire series was tough to get through. This book was funny, as in, I actually laughed a real laugh several times. Vanessa’s personality sparkled on the page and I enjoyed the unfolding of them falling in love with each other. But, it was also heartbreaking and a downer. I wasn’t even a third of the way through the book yet, and was absolutely terrified that Abby Jimenez was going to thoroughly wreck me before it was over. I didn’t shed as many tears as I thought I might, but it was sad at times. I appreciate this series and Abby taking on some tough real-life themes in the first and third book that I thought she handled well. But I also read as an escape and this sure did not leave me with warm and fuzzy feelings. I think this is a great series, but I caution that it is not as light-hearted as I expected a witty romance series to be.

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quaye's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Out of the first three Abby Jimenez books I have read, this is definitely the best one. Adrian and Vanessa were extremely lovable and their varying lives connecting over a baby crying seemed strange but fitting. I truly loved Adrian and his eventually support and carefulness towards Vanessa. In comparison, to the other books Vanessa and Adrian seemed to be strong characters and more reason to be together and fight for one another. Very heartwarming and sweet story surrounded by real tragedy. The reason for the four star rating was due to the extremely fast breakup and turn around between the two. I think would have been better through this part of the storyline being developed more rather than wrapped up in the last 50 pages.

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bookishmillennial's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial

contemporary fictional romcom & final installment
first-person dual POV of love interests
Friends-to-lovers, nextdoor-neighbor, opposites-attract, & mega strong messaging of be-grateful-for-your-life story set in Minnesota
FMC travel YouTube blogger/influencer Vanessa
MMC lawyer Adrian (went on a date with Sloan in the last book) // Vanessa is fostering her younger sister’s baby, since her younger sister Annabel is struggling with addiction
Adrian knocks on her door to ask her to quiet the baby down but they end up becoming friends
Adrian is dumped by his girlfriend of eight months, after telling him she was married
Cameos from previous series characters, much to my chagrin because FOUR KIDS?! REALLY, FOUR KIDS?! WITH THAT MEDICAL HISTORY?! LITERALLY FORK OFF
Really dislike the making fun of “micro penises” & “nothing is that deep” mentality in here 😭
cw: terminal illness, chronic illness (ALS), addiction, drug abuse, abandonment, mental illness, panic attacks/disorders, hoarding
steam 1/5

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cozyteareads's review

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emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump for around a month or so now and this book was so good that I read the last hundred pages or so in a single sitting. I had such a good time reading it, and it made me tear up a little at the end. There was always a thread of hope and joy through the entire story that made it so comforting to read. I adored it

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hereiskyra's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.75

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