Abby Jimenez is a popular romance author, she has written a bunch of the popular books like Yours Truly, and Part of Your World. All of her books revolve around two people that are destined for each other but can’t seem to get it right until the very end.
Lifes too Short is technically the third book in an interconnected series, but can be read as a standalone. The storyline revolves around Vanessa and Adrian.
Vanessa is a young Youtube star with a painful life. The women in Vanessa’s family have all died from ALS which is a nervous system disease that weakens muscles and impacts physical function. That’s why she made her youtube channel, to raise money and awareness for ALS. She is a travel youtuber because she wants to see the world before she might die. Recently, Vanessa’s younger sister left Vanessa with her infant daughter. So now Vanessa is a 28 year old, possibly terminal, new mom with a very unhelpful family.
Adrian is a lawyer and apartment building owner, and when he meets the disheveled new mom next door to him his whole life is changed.
Vanessa and Adrian are fast friends, they just connect. Everything about their lives seem to contradict each other, but they just fit. Vanessa is a travel youtuber with millions of fans, Adrian gets panic attacks whenever he goes near a plane. Vanessa’s family is dysfunctional and messy, Adrian’s family seems to be picture perfect.
Adrian wants a life partner, but Vanessa doesnt think she is going to live past 30, so they are at an impasse.
Vanessa had made a rule for herself: she doesn’t date. She doesn’t want to fall in love with someone and then fall in love with her, just for her to pass in a year. Vanessa tries to keep herself unlovable, but Adrian loves her like it’s breathing.
This book was adorable and painful. The connection and chemistry between Vanessa and Adrian was so gripping and their story was so beautifully written, Vanessa and Adrian’s story is pure and beautiful. While I read I went through the five stages of grief.
Abby Jimenez is one of my favorite authors, she always manages to bring in real life scenarios and makes the characters so real and alive. One of my favorite things about Abby Jimenez is that she is able to do representation, like anxiety or a chronic illness, so well, she makes it so real and raw that you can’t help but fall in love with the characters and their struggles.
Sadly, nearly every Abby Jimenez novel has the miscommunication trope but for some reason even though miscommunication is awful and annoying, it makes the story work even better. Sometimes it really got on my nerves and I just wanted them to explain everything to each other, but that wouldn’t be how real life worked and it would have removed some of the magic.
Life’s Too Short is 384 pages long, written in first person and dual POV, and you can fly through it. It’s the perfect romance to read while sitting next to a window on a rainy or cloudy day. Vanessa and Adrian’s story is pure and beautiful.
