For author Abby Jimenez, Taylor Swift’s “Wildest Dreams” is the anthem for her new chart-topping book, Say You’ll Remember Me.
“Either that or ‘Come on Eileen,’” Jimenez exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting her partnership with Spotify Audiobooks. “That’s another close second just because of what’s in the book.”
Warning: This story contains spoilers about the plot and ending of Say You’ll Remember Me.
The contemporary romance novel — which hit shelves April 1 — follows the story of social media manager Samantha and veterinarian Xavier, who have one incredible date before she moves to California to care for her mom, who is suffering from dementia.
While Say You’ll Remember Me kicks off Jimenez’s new series, avid readers of the author know all of her characters exist in the same universe. In the book, readers meet two of Xavier’s friends, pharmacist Chris and personal trainer Mike, who will be the leading men in her next two novels.
“Sometimes I go into a book knowing exactly who’s going to be next and having a plan. For this series, I definitely knew what the plan was going to be. We’re getting Chris’ book next,” Jimenez said of the 2026 novel titled The Night We Met. “The book after that will be Mike’s book. So I knew pretty far in advance that’s what we were going to be getting. Sometimes, though, I don’t know who the next book is going to be about until I’m halfway through the one I’m writing and a character speaks to me.”
While readers can get their hands on a physical copy of Say You’ll Remember Me, Jimenez has also partnered with Spotify Audiobooks to allow fans flexibility for on-the-go listening.
“You can exercise, you can go to the grocery store, you can cook. You can lay in bed with your earbud in your ear and all the lights off and just listen to your book while you go to sleep,” she said of methods for consuming an audiobook. “There’s so many ways that you can enjoy reading through audiobooks that you can’t with the physical book in your hands.”
Scroll down for answers to all of Us Weekly’s burning questions about Say You’ll Remember Me and beyond:
Us Weekly: Was it intentional or coincidental that the title is a lyric of Taylor Swift’s?
Abby Jimenez: I really wanted the word “remember” to be in a title, and my publisher and I had a lot of discussion about putting the word “remember” in the title. It has sort of a negative, kind of sad connotation. And I said, “You know what? I bet if we call it Say You’ll Remember Me, no one’s going to think that this is not a rom-com. No one’s going to think this is a sad book.” And so we decided to go with that name, and now that song has sort of become the anthem for the book.
Us Weekly: The Dart is a major plot point in the book. Can you tell Us a little bit about your history with the car and why you chose to incorporate the Dart into this book rather than a past one?
Abby Jimenez: I drove a 1966 Dodge Dart convertible when I was 16. I drove it for two years. When I decided to place this book in Southern California, it just really brought back a lot of memories for me of growing up in Southern California. I thought, “I should write some of my own memories into the books.” Obviously, it’s easier than making things up. So I did. I wrote my car into the book. Everything that happens to Samantha in that car happened to me in mine. I actually ended up buying my 1966 Dodge Dart convertible back with the money that I got from my book deal. Got my own memories back.
Us Weekly: Was it always the plan for Samantha’s grandmother to die?
Abby Jimenez: I always knew that I was going to have that happen in the book. Part of me felt like maybe it was, in a way, mercy for the mother who shouldn’t have to watch her own daughter pass before she does. I knew I wanted to tackle issues that were difficult and hard. This is as much a book about family and working things out with your family and caring for a loved one as it is a romance. I knew I was going to do that, and I always joke and say, “The dogs in my book are always safe, but the people, maybe not.”
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Us Weekly: At the end of the book, we see Samantha and Xavier get married and end up in California. Do you think that they’re still together today?
Abby Jimenez: When I’m done writing a book, if I can’t look back and look at these characters and say, “I know these two are together 20 years from now,” then I don’t think I’ve done my job. So absolutely, I can definitely see them together in the long run. I think they were perfect for each other right out of the gate.
Us Weekly: I think they saw that too. Is he one of your favorite book boyfriends that you’ve written so far, or do you have a different one that has a soft spot in your heart?
Abby Jimenez: I always love Jacob [from 2023’s Yours Truly], just because I feel like I just wish he was real so I could protect him in real life. He’s just such a sweet, good, kind human being. But Xavier Rush is definitely on par with Jacob, in my opinion. I really loved writing him. His steadiness and his reliability and just who he is as a man, I just, I love him so much.
Us Weekly: What do you think are the best qualities in a book boyfriend?
Abby Jimenez: For me, the best quality in a book boyfriend is emotional intelligence. I think that’s the most attractive thing of all.
Us Weekly: Are there any tropes that you enjoy writing more than others, or is it fun for you to switch it up?
Abby Jimenez: I always like to switch up tropes in my book. I don’t ever want to get bored as a writer the same way I don’t want my readers to get bored reading the same thing again and again. I really enjoyed giving people Xavier. I think it was a fun difference from my previous books and the previous heroes that I’ve written. He’s so reserved, he’s so reliable, I think that Samantha very much needed that. It was fun for me. Will I continue with the same tropes that I typically do in terms of friends to lovers? Probably. I really like friends to lovers. I feel like it’s the most natural progression in a love story for them to start as friends and then we get to see the evolution. So I’ll probably continue to lean heavily on that trope, but all other tropes are up in the air at all times.
Us Weekly: I know a lot of people would love to see any of your books get movie or TV treatment. If you were to cast the roles of Samantha and Xavier, who would you choose?
Abby Jimenez: Oh, gosh, I’m always so hesitant to name people because I want my readers to be able to envision in their head who these characters are for themselves. I will say that if I ever get the opportunity to make one of my books into a movie, I’m going to really do my hardest as an author to make sure that the readers are happy with the movie that they get.
Us Weekly: You utilize a lot of pop culture references, which is really fun and puts a time stamp on the book. What do you see as the value of that in your writing?
Abby Jimenez: Well, I’m writing a contemporary romance. I think just like you said, it’s a time stamp. I feel like when I read books from 10 years ago, it’s almost fun to revisit that period in time. It’s a contemporary romance. It should reflect what’s happening now. Samantha’s a social media manager, so of course, she’s going to be very online, and she’s going to be very living in the now. I actually really like that when I read books.
Us Weekly: After you release a book, do you pay attention to any of the reviews? Do you try to take in reader feedback?
Abby Jimenez: I try not to because once the book is out to the readers, it belongs to them. I feel like it doesn’t belong to me anymore. Now it’s in their hands and it belongs to the people that are enjoying it. I don’t think it’s like a good place mentally for authors to check out reviews or check out things like that, but I do get tagged in a lot of really fun stuff. If it comes from a trusted source, I will definitely look at it. It’s been really nice to see the love that this book is getting.
Us Weekly: Is there anything you can tease about the plot of The Night We Met?
Abby Jimenez: I will say this was a very difficult book to write. It took me about two years to write. It is a very nuanced plot, and I’m very excited to see what readers think of it. It might be a little bit different from what I’ve given readers before.
Us Weekly: What about Mike’s book?
Abby Jimenez: I’m five chapters into Mike’s book right now. I’m absolutely loving it. We are going to have sort of an enemies to lovers plot for that one. And the Toilet King is back in a big way in that book. So we’re going all the way back to the Toilet King from Just for the Summer.
Us Weekly: You’ve typically done three books in a series. Are you considering adding more this time?
Abby Jimenez: I’ll continue with a friend group or the characters until I feel like I’m ready to move on. I don’t necessarily stick to threes on purpose. It just kind of ends up that way. If there’s a character that surfaces as I’m working on the next two books that I really love, then maybe we’ll get a fourth book in this particular series. It just depends.
Say You’ll Remember Me is out now.
