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A review by beccabookshelf
Between Friends & Lovers by Shirlene Obuobi
5.0
☆ 5 Stars - 9.00 CAWPILE
Firstly I was immediately hooked from the dedication. Obuobi dedicates this romance novel to 'the "strong" girls. For the girls who seem to have it all together even when they're falling apart. - You deserve to be cherished too.'
This book follows our main character Josephine Boateng, a POC working as an influencer with a medical degree. She is struggling with the idea of actually practicing medicine, instead focusing on a career as an influencer, sharing her opinions and information regarding health, sexual health, self love, and growth. She has been in love with her best friend for a decade and sat on the sidelines as he dates others, ready to accept any attention from him once he remembered she existed. Upon seeing him dating her childhood bully, she realizes enough is enough and decides she needs to move on and stop waiting for him to notice her fully.
The best way to get over someone is to get under somebody else right? And who better of an option than newly met, debut romance author, Malcolm Waters. With his debut romantasy novel gaining virality and the chance of a movie deal, Mal is new into this 'famous' scene and doesn't really fit in with the crowded networking events. That is until he is rescued by Jo at an event. Mal has been following Jo on social media for years, and is even more captivated by her in real life. To his surprise she is equally as interested in him.
This book tackled a lot of deeper themes such as mental health issues, depression, anxiety, suicide, trauma, racism, abandonment, medical emergencies, trust issues, fear of love, emancipation, virginity, social media fame. Obuobi tackled these themes with intelligence and care throughout the novel and made her characters very relatable even if you aren't exactly as nuanced as they are.
I really enjoyed this book and finished it in just a few short sittings. I definitely think I will read more of Obuobi's works in the future.
Some of my Kindle highlights:
'He'd read enough books to know who got the girl between the millionaire-playboy childhood friend and the down-to-earth, comparatively normal second lead.'
'Because you've endured, you've decided that you are strong. -enough of that. Strong isn't a personality trait.'
'Just because you think I'm cute doesn't mean I can't have important things to say'
'You're a writer Mal, use your words.'
'You survived. You'll survive again.'
I received this as an eARC through NetGalley and Avon Books in exchange for my honest review.
There were a few formatting errors in the ePub version that I had, especially around the 'Instagram posts' and their comments. I believe these wouldn't be an issue in the physical version or an official ePub purchased through Amazon. They were a bit frustrating to navigate when I reached those points in the book however was a minor inconvenience.
Firstly I was immediately hooked from the dedication. Obuobi dedicates this romance novel to 'the "strong" girls. For the girls who seem to have it all together even when they're falling apart. - You deserve to be cherished too.'
This book follows our main character Josephine Boateng, a POC working as an influencer with a medical degree. She is struggling with the idea of actually practicing medicine, instead focusing on a career as an influencer, sharing her opinions and information regarding health, sexual health, self love, and growth. She has been in love with her best friend for a decade and sat on the sidelines as he dates others, ready to accept any attention from him once he remembered she existed. Upon seeing him dating her childhood bully, she realizes enough is enough and decides she needs to move on and stop waiting for him to notice her fully.
The best way to get over someone is to get under somebody else right? And who better of an option than newly met, debut romance author, Malcolm Waters. With his debut romantasy novel gaining virality and the chance of a movie deal, Mal is new into this 'famous' scene and doesn't really fit in with the crowded networking events. That is until he is rescued by Jo at an event. Mal has been following Jo on social media for years, and is even more captivated by her in real life. To his surprise she is equally as interested in him.
This book tackled a lot of deeper themes such as mental health issues, depression, anxiety, suicide, trauma, racism, abandonment, medical emergencies, trust issues, fear of love, emancipation, virginity, social media fame. Obuobi tackled these themes with intelligence and care throughout the novel and made her characters very relatable even if you aren't exactly as nuanced as they are.
I really enjoyed this book and finished it in just a few short sittings. I definitely think I will read more of Obuobi's works in the future.
Some of my Kindle highlights:
'He'd read enough books to know who got the girl between the millionaire-playboy childhood friend and the down-to-earth, comparatively normal second lead.'
'Because you've endured, you've decided that you are strong. -enough of that. Strong isn't a personality trait.'
'Just because you think I'm cute doesn't mean I can't have important things to say'
'You're a writer Mal, use your words.'
'You survived. You'll survive again.'
I received this as an eARC through NetGalley and Avon Books in exchange for my honest review.
There were a few formatting errors in the ePub version that I had, especially around the 'Instagram posts' and their comments. I believe these wouldn't be an issue in the physical version or an official ePub purchased through Amazon. They were a bit frustrating to navigate when I reached those points in the book however was a minor inconvenience.