This book touched on a lot of important elements and I enjoyed the overall story. I liked the romance aspect, friendships, and family dynamics in this novel. I thought Angie’s character was likable and definitely someone I was rooting for throughout. At times, it seemed like she was self-deprecating and her reactions to certain situations were a little surprising, but I think by the end she really came into her own. Ricky was great and I really loved his caring and kind personality in this one. This book seemed to be a combination of womens fiction and romance, which I think played off each other well. Overall, I liked the storyline and the characters in this one. I love seeing strong, successful women characters and Angie was definitely the perfect representation of that.

**Please give this debut author a chance despite my review below. **

I'm didn't want to give this a star review, because I think it's unfair to do so, but since NG requires it that's the reason for 1 star. I DNF'd this at 8.8%. I don't like to DNF books and always try to push through, but the older I get the less time I want to spend on something that isn't grabbing my attention in the moment.

I got three chapters in, 18 or 19 footnotes by the end of chapter three and the story wasn't holding my attention at all. This was an e-book version which I believe is why the footnotes bothered me so badly.

I will say that I believe I came with high expectations with the Grey's Anatomy comparison. I am a die hard Grey's fan from day one, but I didn't even make it far enough in to find out if there is any truth to that comparison. I work in healthcare, which is another reason I wanted to love it.

If this becomes an audiobook I may give it another try, but just because it wasn't for me right now doesn't mean it's not for others. It looks like a lot of people have enjoyed it.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This one missed the mark for me unfortunately. I tried the audio version as well as the digital copy and just could not get into it. It came across as choppy and negative.

Angela check off all the boxes as the perfect immigrant daughter. While in her third year of med school, she finds who she truly is. With the help of her friends dubbed the Sanity Circle, and Ricky, a surprise love interest, Angie begins to find herself. She starts to stand up for herself, her beliefs, and goes for what she truly wants. This book reminded me a little of Grey’s Anatomy. I really liked how the relationship between Angie and Ricky developed. It was also great to see a strong female friendship and the ups and downs that happen throughout adult friendships. Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for a review.

Out June 21, 2022 [Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!]

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Angie Appiah is the overachieving medical student daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, but when her boyfriend dumps her and she nearly fails a major exam all in the same day, she’s shaken by the stumble. Before too long, she meets Ricky, a gorgeous but infuriating artist—who just might upend her life even further.

There is SO MUCH I loved about this book! From reading other reviews, I suspected that the theme of an overachieving medical student dealing with burnout and figuring out what she wants out of life would resonate with me, and it definitely did—but the book also gave me an MC with the most relatable insecurities; deep and insightful commentary on medical education, healthcare, and the relationship of both to issues of race and Blackness; commentary on immigrant families and the pressures of being first generation; sapphic and non-binary representation; and honestly so much more. I adored the characters, the storyline, and all of the important issues that Dr. Obuobi managed to address so deftly.

There were moments where I thought the book might be a little bit long, but in the end I think every section and every sentence was necessary to the story. Both of the main characters also made several poor choices and engaged in terrible communication practices—but their growth over the course of the novel was wonderful to see. I am so excited for this novel to be out in the world, and even more excited to read whatever Dr. Obuobi writes next!

Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: Grey’s Anatomy but make it a rom-com; diversity and intersectional representation; strangers-to-friends-to-lovers.

CW: Medical content; death (including death of loved ones); mentions of gun violence/injury; addiction; some discussion of sexism and racism.

- Medical romance
- Meet cute
- Multicultural representation
- Female relationships

Such a good book! As a medical professional I really enjoyed the bits of medicine woven into the story (along with the blurbs describing what things meant). Angie is a great female main character. I loved how strong and driven she was while also being a bit of a mess! Very relatable! Ricky was perfect! Fell for him right away and loved the relationship between him and Angie!
Also loved reading about the female- female relationships! Really brought you into the book and added layers to the story!

Would recommend

This book is about Angie, a Ghanaian-American medical student in Chicago. The story follows her relationships with her family, friends, and new love during her third year of medical school. There are themes of friendship, tradition, self-image, and familial expectation, and plenty of humorous moments, as well. Angie is smart and strong but still figuring things out, just like any young woman at the start of her career.

The author, Shirlene Obuobi, is a physician, so it makes sense that those elements of the story are so accurate. Beyond that, she is currently completing a cardiology fellowship, so I have no idea how she found time to write such a fantastic book! Hello, Wonder Woman!

Read this if you liked The Proposal or The Dating Playbook.

I was so excited to get an e-arc of this book. Contemporary fiction, some romance with a side of medical drama and I'm there. Admittedly, this book had a slow start for me. I started it about a month before I finished it because I kept setting it aside for something else. However, when I revisited the book I ended up reading the final 20 chapters in one night.

This book was a refreshing mix of sweet, silly and serious. Angie is a 25 year old Black woman in her third year of medical school. Her story shows her trying to balance and navigate school, friends, her Ghanaian family, and her love life. It features a diverse cast of characters that the reader quickly gets to know and becomes attached to. My only complaint is that I sometimes found myself feeling annoyed and asking "ugh, what are you doing???" before remembering that Angie is only 25. She is still figuring it all out. When I look back to my life at that stage, despite different circumstances, Angie's experiences are very relatable.

This book has a little something for everyone in the variety of themes it covers. Definitely check it out when it publishes later this month- 6/21!

Thank you to @netgalley and @avonbooks @harpervoyagerus for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

When I saw this book was for fans of Grey's Anatomy, I knew that I had to read this book. I am a diehard Grey's fan, and I came into this book with very high expectations. However, I think the description felt a little misleading because although I absolutely love the romance in this book, and I would describe it as a fluffy rom-com with the medical elements mostly as a secondary plot. That said, I found myself really enjoying this book despite it not being quite what I expected.

My favorite part of this book was the cultural representation. I found myself intrigued by the Ghanaian customs that the protagonist, Angie, describes throughout the book, especially with her sister's engagement. Angie is passionate about racial disparities in the American healthcare system, and I found myself very moved as I watched her grow and change. I found myself loving Angie's independent side just as much as I loved the romance, which is something rare for me with this genre. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone considering going into the medical field or feeling like they would like to see a powerful female protagonist!

I went into this thinking it was a contemporary romance. But this book deals with some pretty serious topics and goes much deeper than you would think. I loved most of this book but felt frustrated through some of it as well. It was kind of an emotionally draining book so be warned. Highly recommend.

I was really excited to read this book but unfortunately it fell a little flat for me. I really liked Angie and her attitude toward life. She’s a strong female character and is relatable.

The whole thing with Ricky was frustrating. The continued back and forth, I felt like he was super wishy washy and didn’t really deserve her. She knew what she wanted and he flaked multiple times. I guess that romance just wasn’t for me. Of course they have a happily ever after though.

Loved the representation in the book all around.

Thanks NetGalley for an ARC for an unbiased review.

An engaging main character, but the incessant use of footnotes throughout the book is a huge distraction, especially in e-book format.

“Love isn’t a test. There aren’t right answers. You can’t get into anyone’s head and puzzle together whether they can love you, or you can love them. You just have to accept the chance that you might get hurt”

An #ownvoices novel with discussions on love, cultural differences, being a black woman in the medical field, immigrant parents, self-sabotage, & complex relationships with friends and family. It was funny, heartwarming, and realistic. `

In the beginning, I was conflicted with Ricky as a romantic partner. I was frustrated and bored with the romance, to be honest, and there were even times when I was rooting against them being together. The miscommunication truly made me want to fight. However, maybe that’s one of the things that makes this book so transparent, and raw. “I’d created a version of him in my head, then broken my own heart when he didn’t fit neatly into the mold” When I came across this quote, I had to stop and ask myself if that was what I was doing with Ricky. He is a flawed character, but so is Angie. They are a reminder that love is not perfect, it isn’t meant to be easy, and does not look the same on everybody. Although, if you are looking for steamy, this isn’t the one.

-I did enjoy the medical drama (the footnotes were extremely helpful)
- I adored her relationships with her friends and wish we got more of it!
-I found learning about Ghanian traditions fascinating and I occasionally stopped to research more or to look up recipes.
-Finally, the ending?! WOW.

Shirlene Obuobi, congratulations on your debut novel!

I'm not sure where to start with what I love about this book. The protagonist, family dynamics, medicine, love story---ALL of it was amazing and made such a pleasant reading experience. I was rooting for the MC from the beginning and loved watching how she managed the different parts of her life. I can't wait for more from this talented author!

With a very interesting central character, we are transported into the world of Angie, a Ghanaian/American medical student in Chicago. Against all odds, Angie is dealing with career and life issues, yet part of Tge American dream of success….becoming a doctor.

This was engaging and inspiring. Angie is a character to be reckoned with, really likable and interesting. I enjoyed tge book and will recommend it. It has just the right, light touch to make it a good summer/beach read.

Thank you Netgalley for this fine and readable novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and Book Club Girl for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! After reading the synopsis, I had really high hopes, but this book was just okay for me. I loved how dynamic Angie was between being focused on her career vs. wanting love and finding self love along the way. I also loved the focus on Ghanian traditions and culture and how it discussed health disparities and racism seamlessly and thoughtfully. However, most of the characters felt flat to me. Additionally, the writing style felt choppy, and I felt that the use of footnotes contributed to the choppiness, as many of the footnotes could have been explained within the novel itself. This book also used a lot of medical jargon, which I felt could have been explained in simpler "layman" ways.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
On Rotation drew my attention thanks to the cover and the blurb…romance/women’s fic meets medical drama sounded exactly what I was looking for. And the book would release during the summer break between seasons of The Good Doctor, and I anticipated feeling withdrawal by that point.
The book itself feels like a bit of a mixed bag, the result of it not being too sure of its own identity. I was fairly sure based on the blurb that the romance would be more secondary, so I wasn’t disappointed in that regard. And it’s generally pretty solid and cute. However, I also felt a lot of the issues the book wanted to focus on, from the stuff with medical school and the family stuff, nothing really was fleshed out and given the justice I felt it deserved.
And that’s a shame, as I love the detail put into conveying the medical jargon in an approachable way, and describing the issues that might come up as a third year medical student. And the family relationships within a Ghanaian-American family are so intriguing. Add the romantic subplot, and it feels very crowded.
I also had mixed feelings about the narrative choices. Angie has an engaging voice, and I love her little comments about everything from the intricacies of medicine to pop culture. But I felt like the style through which some of this humor is conveyed through footnotes was distracting to the flow of the story.
While this book feels very mixed for me, I appreciate what it’s trying to do in exploring the challenges of being a Black woman in the medical field and navigating life as a child of immigrants on both a professional and personal level. If this book interests you at all, it’s worth giving a try.

I really wanted to like this one, but it was not for me. I was excited to read a romance featuring a Black woman med student and I did enjoy those elements, but everything else was disappointing. The read soured for me when the author cavalierly mentions the main character's Ghanaian father not liking that his other daughter was dating an African American. If I don't ever have to hear about immigrant parents' prejudice against African Americans again, I will be a happier woman. I also live for nerdy characters, but I did not love the blerd elements in this story.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review

In short, I really liked this book. Honestly, I love seeing any books set around a medical/science setting, mainly because I'm a STEM major (biology & chemistry) in college along with being pre-med. Anyway, I loved the main character, Angie, because I honestly related to her a lot at certain points. I LOVED THE FOOTNOTES, they really provided some helpful information, especially for stuff I didn't know. I loved the plot, the comedy, and the romance. It was so hard to put this one down

Mixed feelings on this read for me. I loved Angie as a character. She is fierce, funny, and I very much enjoyed experiencing her first person story. Via the footnotes, Shirlene Obuobi ensures we have context for the Ghanian and medical school details she weaves into Angie's story. I learned something while enjoying an interesting fictional story. Those aspects of this book were fantastic. However, the romance elements of the story did not work for me. Ricky & Angie's chemistry was there, but I felt they were problematic as a couple and found myself rooting against a HEA...which rarely happens for me!

4 stars for Angie's med school / immigrant story, 2 stars for the romance story, so this book nets out to a 3 star read for me, personally.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, in exchange for my honest review.