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The Friend Zone  By  cover art

The Friend Zone

By: Abby Jimenez
Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton, Erin Mallon
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Publisher's summary

Fall in love with this hilarious and heartwarming USA Today best-selling romantic comedy that LJ Shen calls "an absolute treat".

Kristen Petersen doesn't do drama, will fight to the death for her friends, and has no room in her life for guys who just don't get her. She's also keeping a big secret: facing a medically necessary procedure that will make it impossible for her to have children.

Planning her best friend's wedding is bittersweet for Kristen - especially when she meets the best man, Josh Copeland. He's funny, sexy, never offended by her mile-wide streak of sarcasm, and always one chicken enchilada ahead of her hangry. Even her dog, Stuntman Mike, adores him. The only catch: Josh wants a big family someday. Kristen knows he'd be better off with someone else, but as their attraction grows, it's harder and harder to keep him at arm's length.

The Friend Zone will have you laughing one moment and grabbing for tissues the next as it tackles the realities of infertility and loss with wit, heart, and a lot of sass.

"Your next favorite romantic comedy...The Friend Zone is that rare beach read with tons of heart that will make you laugh and cry in equal parts." (PopSugar)

"Your next rom-com to obsess and cry over." (Cosmopolitan)

Goodreads Choice Awards nominee - Best Romance, Best Debut

O, The Oprah Magazine Best Romance Novels of the year

Audie Award Finalist

USA Today best seller

Bookish Best Books of the year

SheReads Best Romances of the year

Women's Health Best Romance Novels of the year

Good Housekeeping Best New Books for Summer

PopSugar Best Books of Summer

Publishers Weekly Starred Review

Booklist Starred Review

Booklist Top 10 Romance Debuts of 2019

©2019 Abby Jimenez (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Jimenez's dazzling debut is a brilliantly written romantic comedy that seamlessly toggles back and forth between scenes of laugh-out-loud, snarky wit and serious emotional issues without missing a beat, all the while delivering maximum reading satisfaction."—Booklist, Starred Review

"Harnessing sass, heartfelt struggle, and unapologetic sexuality, Jimenez's debut is as hysterical as it is tear-jerking...Jimenez manages to fulfill all expectations for a romantic comedy while refusing to sacrifice nuance. Biting wit and laugh-out-loud moments take priority, but the novel remains subtle in its sentimentality and sneaks up on the reader with unanticipated depth. Readers who have wrestled with infertility will find Kristen's anxieties and sorrows deeply relatable."—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"The Friend Zone is a beautiful tale of learning to accept the love you deserve and finding a path to self-acceptance along the way....a zippy, instantly recognizable voice and fresh, funny characters."—Entertainment Weekly

What listeners say about The Friend Zone

Average customer ratings
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✫✫ 4 Stars ✫✫

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I really liked all of the characters, I found them relatable and loved how different they all were and I truly loved how Kristen was so far from perfect. And Josh might be the perfect me! I think that what I liked the most was that the story felt original, after thousands of contemporary romance books they all start to feel exactly the same and this one didn't. The subject matter really was hard and I know a lot of people feel like it should have been handled different but honestly I don't think there is a right way to handle this from the characters perspective, everyone is different and everyone has a different threshold for how much they can handle and how they handle it. I will say that I would have liked it even more if Kristen would have just talked to him instead of keeping it bottled up for sooooo long, that felt a little like drama added to the book for the sake of drama. I loved that it had a happy ending, while probably not very realistic, this is fiction and romance so I expect that.

The narration was perfect! I actually bought this book because of the narration team, they are my favorites!!

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14 people found this helpful

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Terrific book!

This book is absolutely wonderful! It grabs you from the beginning and has a few unexpected turns that keep you interested. It is a great story!
Also, the narration on the audiobook is great - both actors did a fantastic job bringing the story to life.

I will be keeping an eye out for more books from Abby Jimenez!

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5 people found this helpful

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Wow!

Fantastic story, excellent narration! I laughed, I cried, and I laughed again. Erin and Teddy were wonderful. I have not read anything that had the wide range of emotions invoked on the reader in a long time. Kudos to the author! You go girl:)

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1 person found this helpful

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Worth The Hype

Everyone is talking about this book so you probably already know that this story does follow a taboo topic along with fertility and female issues. I related to Kristen on so many levels. I felt her every emotion as she talked about her cycles, the pain she was in, and the heartbreak of not knowing if she would have a child one day. I have suffered with many of the same issues and I just loved reading a story that actually took that conversation a little further than any other I have read. It did have a cute romance as well. I liked both Kristen and Josh. I loved their building relationship and the fun they had together. However; I did not think it was anything extra special compared to other romances away from the female issues being discussed. Then BAM! Something happens that I was not expecting! It all worked within the story, and I did not see it coming. Even though it was very sad and emotional, I liked what it brought to the story. Overall, I would recommend this.

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1 person found this helpful

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one of the best books I've ever read

even though I've already read the paperback (twice) this audiobook was absolute perfection! I laughed and cried and cried. perfect narration. I've already pre-ordered the second book

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Fabulous

I laughed, I cried this was such a great story.
Take a moment and fall in love with Kristen and Josh.

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AMAZING

A truly wonderful story. Had me in tears at the end. Yes romcom but so much more and better. I did not want to stop it and literally drove around to finish it.

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Kept my attention

I liked the character development and story line. Definitely worth the read! I will be the sequel now!

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Abby, more please!

I listened to The Happy Ever After Playlist first then immediately got this book. It did not disappoint. I laughed, I cried, I loved it. Please write more!

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really good

this was a really good book. sometimes good things come from horrible situations. always enjoy Teddy Hamilton. my fav!!!

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