Why it’s essential
Abby Jimenez takes the "opposites attract" trope and gives it ✨spice✨ by creating a female lead who is almost a decade older than her small-town love interest. Julia Whelan and Zachary Webber’s performance of Part of Your World is the icing on top of this laugh-out- loud, happily-ever-after, reverse age gap rom-com.
Featured in: The top 100 romance listens of all time.
What is Part of Your World about?
When swerving to miss a raccoon leads to a car accident, and unexpected romance, ER doctor Alexis Montgomery's life is turned upside down. As she spends more time with Daniel, the handsome stranger who rescued her in his tight-knit town of Wakan, and begins to fall in love, Alexis is left asking herself: Can they find a way to be a part of each other’s worlds?
Editor's review
Audible Editor Patty has a tendency to judge a book by its cover—leading her to dabble into all genres; however, she’s never too far from a contemporary romance novel.
Long before I devoured her debut novel The Friend Zone, Abby Jimenez had a fan in me because of a cake. Both a romance author and the owner of a bakery called Nadia Cakes, Jimenez was responding to a flurry of comments about a geode cake gone wrong—and her sassy, hilarious responses went viral in the best way. From the moment I saw that early audio for Part of Your World was in my library, I dropped everything I was doing, ignored my overflowing TBLT, and started to listen to what would become my favorite of all of her novels.
This dual POV rom-com follows Alexis Montgomery, a city girl who gets stuck in a ditch in the small town of Wakan. She receives help from a handsome stranger, Daniel Grant, and the two end up spending the night together. What starts as a fling soon turns into much more, as Alexis finds herself caught between her demanding family and their legacy at Royaume Northwestern Hospital, and her growing feelings for Daniel. As their relationship deepens, Alexis is faced with a difficult decision—continue to pursue her family's medical legacy or choose a new path with Daniel in Wakan.
I cannot, and will not, ignore the supporting characters in Part of Your World, especially because one of them (Brianna) is the protagonist in the second book of the Part of Your World Trilogy, Yours Truly. The rest of the cast consists of a baby goat in pajamas, a very silly man named Doug, a deaf Pudelpointer, and a pig known as Kevin Bacon—all there for comedic relief, and boy do they deliver!
Aside from the romance, what I loved the most about the story is how authentic Abby Jimenez is in her writing, all while delving into some serious topics. One of Abby’s objectives for Part of Your World was educating her audience on the different aspects of abuse that are not often discussed by putting the listener right in the brain of someone living through it. Through Alexis's journey, we see how emotional abuse can impact how someone approaches not just the decisions they make but the way that they love in the future too. The novel also explores themes of friendship, heartbreak, and the desire to escape, all while delivering a powerful message that "grace costs you nothing."
Overall, Part of Your World is a heartwarming rom-com that left me with the following:
Feeling all the feels
A fabulous crepe recipe that has become my go-to (it’s in the PDF that’s included with the audio)
Amazing resources (also in the PDF) for those interested in learning more about abuse
A new novel to add to my list of favorite comfort listens
I adored Part of Your World, so much so that I’ve already listened to it five times, one of which was while I was on my way to meet Abby at a signing! I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a great HEA romance with a powerful message. Also, don’t skip the author’s note, because it’s beautiful and rounds out the novel perfectly. And if that’s not enough, I should mention—it’s a Julia Whelan and Zachary Webber narration, and they really bring the spice… Do I really need to say more?
Did you know?
Abby’s bakery, Nadia Cakes, created themed cupcakes for the book launch of Part of Your World.
All of Abby Jimenez’s novels take place in Minnesota, and they always have a cute dog in them.
Part of Your World features a Pudelpointer named Hunter, who is based on Abby’s dog, Tess.
Part of Your World is the first book in the Part of Your World trilogy. The second title in the series, Yours Truly, was released in April 2023, with the last title in the trilogy, Just for the Summer, slated for an April 2024 release.
What listeners said
"Two of my favorite narrators + hilarious and heartfelt story = perfection! I couldn't love this more!" —Kaitlin, Audible listener
"Oh how I wish I could’ve read this book as a much younger woman. It spoke to me on so many levels. This is a must read for any girl who has been trained to accept much less than she’s worth. What a beautiful story. I finished in 1 day. Performance by Julia and Zachary was a master class in narration." —Jamie-Lynn, Audible listener
Quotes from Part of Your World
"Grace costs you nothing."
"There’s something more final than forever. It’s never. Never is infinite."
"I knew from experience that sometimes when the wake-up call is big enough, you do, in fact, wake up."
"Love follows you. It goes where you go. It doesn’t know about social divides or distance or common sense, it doesn’t even stop when the person you love does. It does what it wants. Even if what you want is to not be in love."
"Don’t let them decide the life you’re going to live. You only get one."
"Okay, first of all, that pig has a name. It’s Kevin Bacon. It’s rude not to use it."
About the author
Abby Jimenez is a Food Network winner, New York Times bestselling author, and recipient of the 2022 Minnesota Book Award for her novel Life's Too Short. Abby founded Nadia Cakes out of her home kitchen back in 2007. The bakery has since gone on to win numerous Food Network competitions and, like her books, has amassed an international following. Abby loves a good romance, coffee, doglets, and not leaving the house.
About the performers
Julia Whelan is a novelist, screenwriter, actor, and award-winning audiobook narrator of more than 500 titles. Her performance of her debut novel, the internationally bestselling My Oxford Year, garnered a Society of Voice Arts Award. She is also a Grammy-nominated audiobook director, a former writing tutor, a half-decent amateur baker, and a certified tea sommelier.
Zachary Webber is an actor and musician whose audiobook repertoire spans hundreds of titles, several of which have earned him Audies, SOVAS, and AudioFile Earphones awards, most notably for EL James’s Grey series. His film credits include Meg Ryan’s Ithaca and indie features Running Wild and Shut Up and Drive. An accomplished comedian as well, he has appeared on Comedy Central with his sketch comedy group, Sasquatch Comedy, and handles vocals and violin for a synth-pop band, Night Darling. He lives in Los Angeles with his cat, Turkey.
