House of Maher: Abby Jimenez – Holiday Romance Tropes, Cinnamon Roll Heroes & The Darcy Hand Flex

Host: Wave
Guests: Ilona Maher, Olivia Maher, Adrianna “Dre Baby” Maher, Abby Jimenez
Release Date: December 9, 2025

Episode Overview

This heartwarming and hilarious episode of House of Maher centers on holiday romance fiction, "cinnamon roll" heroes, holiday pop culture, and the writing and real-life love of bestselling author Abby Jimenez. Olympic rugby player Ilona, “Girl Dinner” creator Olivia, and human rights advocate Adrianna invite Abby into their cozy LA setup for an exuberant, sisterly discussion about everything from viral family antics and Christmas music to the intricacies of writing romance that sparkles as much as a frosted cupcake.

Abby Jimenez shares behind-the-scenes on her creative process, her extraordinary real-life meet-cute, and the joys and challenges of balancing bakery entrepreneurship with writing chart-topping love stories. The Mahers and Abby also tackle romcom tropes, body positivity in books, and the delicate art of infusing real emotional depth into both fiction and holiday rituals.

Key Discussion Points & Highlights

Maher Family Holiday Vibes & Pop Culture Chat

• Holiday Song Favorites (02:07–03:00)
  • Each sister shares their top seasonal song, revealing beloved traditions—Clay Aiken’s “Married” cover is a family soundtrack.
  • Quote:
    • “You know, ‘Married’ as you know by Clay Aiken... that song by him you can hear ringing around the halls of our house.” — Olivia (02:50)
• Zootopia 2 Discussion (04:24–06:18)
  • The sisters rave about the animated sequel, observing Disney references and clever callbacks.
  • Quote:
    • “They’ve got good callbacks because it’s also in the Disney universe… I was entertained from the moment it started.” — Adriana (05:02)
• Life Under One Roof (09:00–11:50)
  • The realities and nostalgia of all three sisters cohabiting, navigating adulthood quirks—like missing razors and shared spaces—mirrored through sitcom references.
  • Quote:
    • “It’s such a special and unique time. We don’t know when we’re going to be able to do this again… just cherishing it.” — Adriana (09:18)

Welcoming Abby Jimenez: Romance, Real Men, & Cupcakes

• Abby’s Holiday Playlist & Retail Roots (19:05–20:18)
  • Abby's family listens to a rotating top 10, but George Michael’s “Last Christmas” is her holiday staple thanks to years of retail.
• Essential Romance Ingredients (20:37–21:03)
  • Abby champions tension, yearning, and her all-time favorite “cinnamon roll hero”—the sweet, emotionally intelligent male lead, especially at Christmas.
  • Quote:
    • “I want a sweet golden retriever hero this time of year.” — Abby Jimenez (20:43)
• Defining the Cinnamon Roll Hero (21:07)
  • “Thoughtful, sweet, emotionally intelligent, non-problematic… If he bakes, that’s a plus. I love a man in a flannel, a bearded man in a flann.” — Abby Jimenez (21:07)
• Grumpy Sunshine & the Female Gaze (21:37–22:46)
  • Discussion about “grumpy” heroes who must soften for love (“They have to get soft at some point”).
  • On why the female gaze is crucial: “That’s sort of my sweet spot… eye contact and pining and that’s what I like.”

Notable Moment:

• Mr. Darcy Hand Flex—A 10/10 (22:46–22:49)
  • “Oh my gosh, 10 out of 10. 10 out of 10.” — Abby, rating the iconic “hand flex” scene.

The Craft of Audiobooks & Writing Life

• Audiobook Selection Process (22:53–24:29)
  • Abby personally auditions narrators, reviews first chapters, and insists on the perfect dual POV—because a poor narrator can break a book.
  • “I'm very, very active... I love a good narrated book. And I will stop reading if it's not well narrated as well.” — Abby (23:14)
• Reading Aloud for Quality Control (24:00–25:06)
  • Abby reads her manuscripts aloud to her sister-in-law to catch pacing, echoes, or awkward dialogue.
  • Humorous note: “She cannot read my books via audiobook because she prefers me reading it, which is funny because I am a terrible narrator.” — Abby (24:36)
• Writing Amid Real-Life Chaos (25:06–27:11)
  • Despite 1.5 million books sold, Abby has no office—writes in her “international airport” of a living room, but a remodel is finally underway.
  • Dreams of being “kidnapped to a cabin” for uninterrupted productivity.

Real-Life Romance: Abby’s Epic Meet-Cute

• How Abby Met Her Husband (27:36–31:37)

  • The story unfolds as a post-9/11 security mishap at the airport, a passed-around messenger bag, and a TSA search, leading to a cross-country flight conversation that set their love story in motion.
  • “He stops in our row, like, kind of leans in... You guys will not believe what happened...” — Abby (30:00)
  • Memorable Reveal: She didn’t confess her TSA “involvement” until after the engagement!
  • Quote:
    • “I got him searched by TSA, and I didn't tell him until, like, we were engaged.” — Abby (31:31)

• Real-Life Love in Fiction (31:47–33:08)

  • Abby draws on her “cinnamon roll, emotionally intelligent” husband for her romantic heroes and daily life details.
  • “There's little things, like, my husband will never be the first person to serve himself food… He wants to make sure that everybody else at the party… has eaten and has had enough to eat before he will serve his own food. You know, just, like, little things that I feel like can't really be taught. They're just, like, innately… considerate. That's very much him.” — Abby (32:19)

Writing Choices: Fade to Black, Emotional Intimacy, and Baking

• Fade to Black vs. Spice (33:08–34:26)
  • Abby prefers writing emotional attachment and yearning over explicit scenes (“That’s where I really shine”).
  • She admires other authors’ spicy skills but leans into her strengths.
• From Baking to Bestseller (34:26–36:48)
  • Baking began out of necessity during a difficult time—Nadia Cakes was born with three babies in diapers and zero startup funds, eventually thriving on community support and leading to TV victories.
  • “We laid those checks out on the bed and we wrote out $125,000… and opened up the first Nadia Cakes location... and we opened to immediate success.” — Abby (37:02)
  • Her husband “was not intimidated, not threatened” and became CFO so she could lead. “We wouldn’t have any of the things that we have today if my husband had not been the support that he is.”
• Bakery/Bestseller Balance (38:41–39:32)
  • Once the bakery chain stabilized, Abby found the space to return to creative writing at 36—“It all happened really, really fast.”

Upcoming Works & Book Nook Recommendations

• New Novella Collection: “A Married Little Christmas” (39:46–41:38)

  • Inspired by Hallmark tropes: What happens if you’re the sane best friend of a woman about to marry a man she met in three days? Multiple interconnected stories, more love and laughs, “no crying at Christmas.”
  • Quote:
    • “They team up to break up their friends’ marriage. Because you can’t fall in love in three days. Or can you?” — Abby (41:28)

• Current Comfort Reads & Audiobooks (41:58–43:32)

  • Abby recommends “Home Sweet Holidays” collection and her favorite annual re-read, “Tangled in Tinsel” by Tralina Pucci.
  • “I like to just kind of put that in when I’m baking cookies… it’s the background to my holiday things.”
  • Prefers audiobooks 99% of the time, especially for romance and memoirs (“I'm Glad My Mom Died” by Jennette McCurdy is her recent fave).

• What is a Blurb? (44:01–44:20)

  • Blurb: The endorsements on a book’s cover from other authors or notables.
  • “When you pick up a book and then on the cover it says, like, ‘Mia Sosa is always one of my lifetime reads, you know, whatever’—that’s a blurb.” — Abby (44:08)

• Book Tour News & Fun Facts (45:20–46:27)

  • Fewer, larger book tour stops in 2026, including a reveal of Abby’s restored 1966 Dodge Dart convertible in Minneapolis—matching a car in her upcoming novel.

Rom-Com Holiday Tropes: Rapid-Fire Rankings (49:12–54:59)

The Maher sisters and Abby debate their rankings of classic seasonal romance tropes in typically chaotic, hilarious family fashion:

1. Workaholic Girl Boss/Insensitive Boy (54:59–56:03)

   • The canon “holiday romance” set-up—leaving the city, rekindling spirit (and love) in a small town.
   • “That’s the holiday trope!” — Olivia (55:28)

2. Interconnected Love Stories

   • Series where every friend/family member gets their own chance at love.
   • “You get to love these characters in one book, and then you’re reading the next and you hear about how they’re doing—hi, my darlings!” — Olivia (51:19)

3. Snowed In Together (49:35–50:41)

4. Airport Love Declaration

5. Christmas Miracle

6. Fake Dating

7. Home for the Holiday/Second Chance

Hilarious side commentary on “groveling exes,” “forcibly fluffy” miracle endings, and saucy “immortals be f-ing” book series abound.

Body Positivity in Romances (56:09–58:29)

• The Mahers share nuanced takes on “plus size” heroines—applauding representation, but critiquing books that over-emphasize body image to a distracting or self-defeating degree.
  • “If it’s just supposed to be an aside that just keeps getting dropped so casually, I think it’s so just dangerous and harmful for readers… why the f*** are you including that?” — Adriana (57:57)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I want a sweet golden retriever hero this time of year.” — Abby Jimenez (20:43)
• “You have to be thinking of a lot of romantic situations in life; is that from imagination, is that also reality?” — Alona (27:36)
• “People ask me sometimes, why don't you narrate your book? I'm like, I don't think you understand. These people are. They are actors. Like, they went acting school to do this.” — Abby (24:49)
• “I laid those checks out on the bed and we wrote out $125,000… and opened up the first Nadia Cakes location…” — Abby (37:02)
• “Because you can’t fall in love in three days. Or can you?” — Abby (41:28)
• “I'm very, very active… I love a good narrated book. And I will stop reading if it's not well narrated as well because I just can't.” — Abby (23:14)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Maher Family Holiday Song Chat: 02:07–03:00
• Zootopia 2 Reviews: 04:24–06:18
• Sister Cohabitation/Household Shenanigans: 09:00–11:50
• Abby Jimenez Introduction: 18:28–19:35
• Cinnamon Roll Hero Discussion: 20:37–21:22
• Mr. Darcy Hand Flex & Female Gaze: 22:46–22:49
• Audiobook Choices & Process: 22:53–24:29
• Writing Life & No Office Confessions: 25:06–27:11
• Abby’s Real-Life Meet-Cute: 27:36–31:37
• Infusing Real Life into Romance: 31:47–33:08
• Fade to Black & Spiciness Choices: 33:08–34:26
• Bakery Founder Story: 34:26–38:41
• Upcoming Holiday Novellas: 39:46–41:38
• Current Book Recommendations & “Blurbing”: 41:58–44:20
• Holiday Romance Tropes Game: 49:12–54:59
• Discussion on Body Representation in Fiction: 56:09–58:29

Closing Vibe

By turns laugh-out-loud and deeply heartfelt, this House of Maher episode channels festive chaos, literary love, and real-life joy. It’s a tribute to romance—on the page, in the family, and in everyday gestures. With Abby Jimenez’s candid wisdom on writing and living romance, plus one-of-a-kind Maher sibling banter, listeners leave feeling warm, inspired, and ready to binge on both cupcakes and cozy love stories.

For more:

• Abby Jimenez’s new "Say You'll Remember Me" is out now; pre-order "The Night We Met" everywhere books are sold.
• Follow @authorabbyjimenez on TikTok/Instagram.

Stay cozy, water your Christmas tree, and embrace the “cinnamon roll hero” this holiday season!