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quillify_'s review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What a crime honestly. This book deserves all the love and admiration and I wish I could meet the author and thank her for writing this.
Now, if you've seem on my Instagram, you'll know I'm not a great fan of books with Indian-American MCs. Frankly, because the authors are too detached from their culture (I mean... you could just ask your relatives living in India if your casual Hindi phrases are right or not. It's not that hard). Their books are rife with cultural and language inaccuracies which could honestly be corrected if they just bothered to get a sensitivity reader. It feels more hurtful that our voices matter to white people more when we're living in a "First world" country (I use the term with caution because again... the level of condescension America-based people have to classify country on the basis of their parameters...yikes). So it makes the veins in my head hurt when people hype up thosemisinformation-spreading, quite performative ahem diverse books.
So this book came as a surprising breath of fresh air in a world logged with books of performative rep!!! It was everything I could have asked for: a loud, chaotic Indian family with fierce love for each other, a badass brown girl in STEM who happens to be a genius, a sweet, adorable love interest who has my heart, a fake-dating platonic relationship where the guy and girl are chaotic best friends who always have each other's back.
So, this book is about Saira, the youngest doctor in America at sixteen years old, the girl who every Indian parent will want their kid to be 100% lol. She's started her residency as Princeton Presbyterian (I hope I got the name right), a whole new adventure where she has to contend with people who underestimate her, learning to deal with the hardships of being a doctor and their round-the-clock schedule, how they deal with grief of losing their patients. Because y'know docs are humans too.
I loved the Sehgal family so much!!! Saira's mom is a doctor, but also fiercely protective of her two daughters and very practical. Their dad is the cool one, always dramatic, always joking, the fun balance to their mom's practicality. Their grandma, Dadi, was another great character, your usual mentor. No, she was a spitfire always cracking jokes, feeding every kid who came into the house, fussy and huffing but with the biggest heart for her family. Taara, Saira's older sister, is the one who I related to a lot because while she is the older sister, her sibling is a genius, and she talks about dropping out of premed, which is a huge thing in most Indian families because of our constant struggle to achieve perfection and high-paying jobs
They remind me so much of my own, and all the mentions of food and chai now have me craving aloo ke paranthe and pakore help ;-;
Vish, Saira's best friend, was another bonus, the lighthearted one in contrast to Saira's seriousness. An aspiring film major and hardcore vegetarian, he is the extended member of the Sehgal family in all ways that count, and actually reminds me a lot of Saira's dad. They love each other platonically, share snacks and he is a critical part of driving the plot for Saira and Link's romance,and also in saving Link's life.
Coming to our two leads, we'll start with Link. Like I said before, one word: ADORABLE. I mean, the guy is sweet, cracks great jokes, loves Indian food, told Saira bless you in at least three different languages when they first met, writes his own songs and sings them too, what's not to love? I can see why Saira was smitten. *insert GUY. exe song* And the best part? There's an HEA. This won't be like Fault in our Stars, I promise.
And now, we come to our female lead. Saira. Jesus, I love her. She's smart and witty and tries her best to improve and do her best for everyone. I love her drive, her spirit to do well, her big heart for her patient. The author details how it is for doctors to deal with grief and their attachment to patients. Most of us might miss it, but I guess I can see why experienced doctors are sort of... cold I guess? They've been through their own hardships and losing people they had cared for once. I also liked how the author took time to carefully set up a fading friendship between Saira and her best friend, Lizzie. It's important to show that in YA, because it happens often. Friends sometimes drift apart and teens need to see that represented to know it's okay to be as cut up over a broken friendship as they would be for romance.
My review barely skims the surface of this book, so, I guess read this if you want:
a) a happily ever after
b) inside perspective on how doctors work and manage this mentally taxing cycle of life and death c) chaotic Indian family at work again
d) a sweet strangers-to-lovers story
e) sisterly bonds with great banter
f) amazing female MC in STEM with character development
Now, if you've seem on my Instagram, you'll know I'm not a great fan of books with Indian-American MCs. Frankly, because the authors are too detached from their culture (I mean... you could just ask your relatives living in India if your casual Hindi phrases are right or not. It's not that hard). Their books are rife with cultural and language inaccuracies which could honestly be corrected if they just bothered to get a sensitivity reader. It feels more hurtful that our voices matter to white people more when we're living in a "First world" country (I use the term with caution because again... the level of condescension America-based people have to classify country on the basis of their parameters...yikes). So it makes the veins in my head hurt when people hype up those
So this book came as a surprising breath of fresh air in a world logged with books of performative rep!!! It was everything I could have asked for: a loud, chaotic Indian family with fierce love for each other, a badass brown girl in STEM who happens to be a genius, a sweet, adorable love interest who has my heart, a fake-dating platonic relationship where the guy and girl are chaotic best friends who always have each other's back.
So, this book is about Saira, the youngest doctor in America at sixteen years old, the girl who every Indian parent will want their kid to be 100% lol. She's started her residency as Princeton Presbyterian (I hope I got the name right), a whole new adventure where she has to contend with people who underestimate her, learning to deal with the hardships of being a doctor and their round-the-clock schedule, how they deal with grief of losing their patients. Because y'know docs are humans too.
I loved the Sehgal family so much!!! Saira's mom is a doctor, but also fiercely protective of her two daughters and very practical. Their dad is the cool one, always dramatic, always joking, the fun balance to their mom's practicality. Their grandma, Dadi, was another great character, your usual mentor. No, she was a spitfire always cracking jokes, feeding every kid who came into the house, fussy and huffing but with the biggest heart for her family. Taara, Saira's older sister, is the one who I related to a lot because while she is the older sister, her sibling is a genius, and she
They remind me so much of my own, and all the mentions of food and chai now have me craving aloo ke paranthe and pakore help ;-;
Vish, Saira's best friend, was another bonus, the lighthearted one in contrast to Saira's seriousness. An aspiring film major and hardcore vegetarian, he is the extended member of the Sehgal family in all ways that count, and actually reminds me a lot of Saira's dad. They love each other platonically, share snacks and he is a critical part of driving the plot for Saira and Link's romance,
Coming to our two leads, we'll start with Link. Like I said before, one word: ADORABLE. I mean, the guy is sweet, cracks great jokes, loves Indian food, told Saira bless you in at least three different languages when they first met, writes his own songs and sings them too, what's not to love? I can see why Saira was smitten. *insert GUY. exe song* And the best part? There's an HEA. This won't be like Fault in our Stars, I promise.
And now, we come to our female lead. Saira. Jesus, I love her. She's smart and witty and tries her best to improve and do her best for everyone. I love her drive, her spirit to do well, her big heart for her patient. The author details how it is for doctors to deal with grief and their attachment to patients. Most of us might miss it, but I guess I can see why experienced doctors are sort of... cold I guess? They've been through their own hardships and losing people they had cared for once. I also liked how the author took time to carefully set up a fading friendship between Saira and her best friend, Lizzie. It's important to show that in YA, because it happens often. Friends sometimes drift apart and teens need to see that represented to know it's okay to be as cut up over a broken friendship as they would be for romance.
My review barely skims the surface of this book, so, I guess read this if you want:
a) a happily ever after
b) inside perspective on how doctors work and manage this mentally taxing cycle of life and death c) chaotic Indian family at work again
d) a sweet strangers-to-lovers story
e) sisterly bonds with great banter
f) amazing female MC in STEM with character development
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Grief, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Medical content and Medical trauma
More...