Review: The Queen of Hearts

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The Queen of Hearts The Queen of Hearts by Kimmery Martin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you like tv shows like Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, or go all the way back to M.A.S.H and St. Elsewhere, you'll enjoy this debut novel. I happen to be quite fond of medical fiction that displays lots of (literal) blood and guts and involves flawed characters with moments of brilliance.

This is a novel about 21st c. women juggling careers and family, about friendship, and ultimately, about betrayal and redemption. Zadie and Emma are BFF's with successful careers: Zadie as a pediatric cardiologist and Emma as a trauma surgeon. They've survived together, weathering tragedy and love affairs, but now a secret from their past threatens to upend their world.

There was so much I loved about this book! The brilliant cover, toddler Delaney's dialogue (I hope it's based on a real child and that she never loses her magical conversation quirks), the husbands, and most of all, this line that made me laugh out loud after the women save a life at the country club:

"The news stories accompanying the picture varied from the lurid (Buzzfeed: BATHING SUIT BEAUTIES DRENCHED IN BLOOD) to the factual (NPR: EMERGENCY CRICOTHYROTOMY PERFORMED POOLSIDE)."

It's often said everyone has one book in them. I hope Doc Martin can offer us more than one.

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