Prepare to meet Abby Jimenez’s next set of leading men.
Three of them. While the budding romance between veterinarian Xavier and social media guru Samantha takes center stage in the book Say You’ll Remember Me (out now) it also offers a glimpse at the next two rom-coms the novelist has in store for readers.
“We are going to get love stories for Xavier’s friends,” Abby told E! News in an exclusive interview. “We’re going to get Mike and Chris’ love stories. Chris’ love story is next.”
That book, which shejust revealed is called The Night We Met, will be hitting shelves soon enough. “That’s my 2026 book,” she shared, adding that she’s currently working on Mike’s story. “I’m already a couple chapters into my ninth book, which is my 2027 novel.”
While details for her next two books are still tightly under wraps, Abby hinted at more threads connecting her new series with her last trilogy. “As we go on, we will actually loop back to the Just for the Summer universe,” she teased, “and see some reoccurring themes and characters from those books as well.”
Luckily, Say You’ll Remember Me sets the stage for the rest of the series. After all, bookish pharmacist Chris and charming personal trainer Mike—along with third high school BFF Jesse and his girlfriend Becca—play a crucial role in Xavier’s journey.
As the vet emphasizes, they’re his chosen family who were by his side as he navigated an abusive situation at home as a teen and, a decade later, are all in as he and Samantha try to overcome the obstacles of time, distance and obligation to make their relationship work.
Plus, as a conversation in Say You’ll Remember Me makes clear, Chris and Mike are very single—and the author is ready for them to mingle.
In fact, it was initially supposed to be her next book after Just for the Summer. “I couldn’t finish it on time,” she admitted. “It was just a too difficult of a plot. It was too much of a nuanced storyline. It needed more of my focus.”
Plus, the writer had another idea ready to go.
“Say You’ll Remember Me was a story that was just very bright in my mind,” Abby shared. “It just flowed right out of me. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with those characters, and so I told my editor that I wanted to put out Say You’ll Remember Me first. She agreed, and I cranked that book out in the second half of last year and had it ready in time for deadline.”
As for how Say You’ll Remember Me came to be? “I’ve been wanting to write a veterinarian hero for a really long time,” she admitted.” And I’ve wanted to write a black cat, golden retriever trope, where he’s really grumpy and sort of reserved, and she’s more witty and sociable and wry.”
Add in a viral video about a cat with a congenital defect who served as inspiration for Samantha’s kitten Pooter—the butthole-less cat who leads to the duo crossing paths—and Abby had the bones for her next book.
But that’s not to say it’s all fun and games for Xavier and Samantha, as the latter quickly leaves Minnesota for California to care for her mom, who has early onset dementia.
“It was challenging to write,” the Nadia Cakes owner explained. “I think at parts, it’s challenging to read, because we just want them to be happy and be together. And I really don’t give these two a break.”
Indeed, as Samantha and her family grapple with the realities of her mother’s diagnosis and care needs in California, Xavier’s attempt to make his romance with Samantha work while not letting all he’s worked for slip away ultimately takes a massive toll.
Still, as she put it, “At the end of the day, they’re going to get a happy ever after, no matter what I put them through in the pages.”
Say You’ll Remember Me is out now. Keep reading for more new spring releases…
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Release: March 18
At long last, Collins is revealing what really when down when Haymitch Abernathy entered the Hunger Games for the Second Quarter Quell—and she doesn’t disappoint. Harrowing and heartbreaking, Sunrise on the Reaping is possibly Collins’ most gruesome outing in Panem yet, though like its predecessors it offers glimmers of the hope to come. Plus, it is chock full of nods to both The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as well as the original trilogy—including familiar faces popping up.
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
Release: March 18
In 2012, the journal of a Lutheran pastor from 1912 is uncovered and, in it, he recounts his interactions with a Blackfeet man—and vampire—Good Stab. Moving between three time periods (2012, 1912, and the time of the 1870 Marias Massacre, in which around 200 Blackfeet people were slaughtered by the U.S. army) the story is a chilling tale of murder and revenge, with supernatural elements that only heighten the narrative.
Saltwater by Kate Hays
Release: March 25
Every year, the Lingates return to their luxurious villa in Capri, despite a 1992 tragedy that left family member Sarah dead at the bottom of a cliff. Though deemed a horrible accident, something isn’t quite right. And exactly 30 years later, the mystery intensifies as the necklace Sarah was wearing that fateful night turns up, setting off a deadly chain of events that uncovers the secrets from that night—including what actually happened to Sarah.
All That Life Can Afford by Emily Everett
Release: April 1
American college graduate Anna arrives to start a new life in London, only for the reality of the city to dampen all she’d envisioned about her dream home. That is, until she gets caught up in the world of the elite when she’s hired as a tutor by a wealthy family and is soon befriended by her student’s older sister. But in keeping up with this life of luxury, may just come with a price.
Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez
Release: April 1
For Samatha and Xavier, a bad first impression soon gives way to a life-changing first date—which was not what Samantha had in mind for her final night in Minnesota before moving nearly 2,000 miles away. But as she navigates a devastating family crisis and Xavier tries to keep his head down and build his budding vet practice, they can’t seem to forget their magical night together. It’s heartfelt, funny and utterly unputdownable.
Fearless by Lauren Roberts
Release: April 8
Lauren Roberts is back with the epic conclusion to the Powerless series, which sees Paedyn and Kai both back in Ilya. But while they are reunited at last, a decision might break them forever—and destroy Ilya in the process.
The Perfect Divorce by Jeneva Rose
Release: April 15
Five years after The Perfect Divorce, Jeneva Rose is once more throwing Sarah Morgan for a loop, as she discovers her marriage to her second husband isn’t without its secrets, namely his infidelity. However, as she seeks a divorce, new evidence surrounding the murder case involving her first husband pops up. Plus, husband no. 2’s mistress soon goes missing. Suffice to say, Rose doles out an endless supply of juicy twists and turns in this exciting page-turner.
Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
Release: April 22
Taking light inspiration from Taylor Swift’s “Last Great American Dynasty,” the latest from Henry follows writers Alice and Hayden who arrive on a small island off the coast of Georgia for the opportunity of a lifetime: The chance to write the definitive biography of the now-reclusive 20th century tabloid sensation Margaret Ives. But as they battle it out for the top prize—and try to piece together Margaret’s ever-elusive story—sparks can’t help but fly.
Matriarch by Tina Knowles
Release: April 22
Knowles is laying her cards down down down down and telling her story—from the very beginning in Galveston, TX, as the youngest of seven to life to, as the title suggests, matriarch of one of the biggest families in pop culture. Prepare to get to know Ms. Tina Knowles like never before.
The Pretender by Jo Harkin
Release: April 22
Chances are you’ve never heard of Lambert Simnel but back in the late 15th century, he nearly brought the rising Tudor rule to its knees when he emerged out of nowhere as a long thought-to-be-dead Plantagenet duke, who may just have a claim to the throne of England. This gripping story follows a young man, a puppet for the Tudor detractors, who is thrust into the world of aristocracy—and all the dangers and deceit that come with it.
One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune
Release: May 6
Fortune is back in Barry’s Bay, this time to see Charlie Florek meet his match in Alice Everly. Set a few years after Every Summer After, a heartbroken Alice winds up at the lake—where she spent the summer that changed everything for her as a teen—for some time with her recently-injured grandmother. She quickly befriends Charlie, their neighbor and cottage’s caretaker for the summer and, we’ll, we’ll let Fortune take it from here. After all, fans have been begging her to give Charlie his happily ever after for years—and she’s fully delivered with a sweet, summer love story.
My Friends by Fredrik Backman
Release: May 6
Backman is a can’t-miss author for a reason. Set in dual timelines, My Friends follows a pivotal summer for a group of teenagers and a budding artist who 25 years later is mesmerized by a painting depicting three of those friends—and she’s determine to learn more about the people, and the place, behind it. In true Backman fashion, it’s a beautiful, occasionally heartbreaking examination of life, loss, and the people who sustain us.
The Last Ferry Out by Andrea Bartz
Release: May 20
Looking for closure after her fiancée’s death, Abby goes to the island where the tragedy took place. There, she meets a man who says he knows what happened before her fiancée’s sudden death—only he goes missing soon after. Now trapped on an island with her fiancée’s possible killer on the loose, and a close-knit group of ex-pats who are more suspicious than ever, Abby goes on a quest to get to the truth before it’s too late.
