The Queen of Hearts
By: Kimmery Martin
Published Year: 2018
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 352
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Zadie Anson and Emma Colley have been best friends since their early twenties, when they first began navigating serious romantic relationships amid the intensity of medical school. Now they're happily married wives and mothers with successful careers--Zadie as a pediatric cardiologist and Emma as a trauma surgeon. Their lives in Charlotte, North Carolina are chaotic but fulfilling, until the return of a former colleague unearths a secret one of them has been harboring for years.
As chief resident, Nick Xenokostas was the center of Zadie's life--both professionally and personally--throughout a tragic chain of events in her third year of medical school that she has long since put behind her. Nick's unexpected reappearance during a time of new professional crisis shocks both women into a deeper look at the difficult choices they made at the beginning of their careers. As it becomes evident that Emma must have known more than she revealed about circumstances that nearly derailed both their lives, Zadie starts to question everything she thought she knew about her closest friend.
First Impressions
Ooooo! So pretty! I almost don’t care what this book is about because the cover is so pretty. Luckily, the summary appealed to me as well. A friendship with hidden secrets in their past that comes back to haunt them? I was completely sold and this became one of my most anticipated novels of 2018.
What I thought
Queen of Hearts is pretty much what Grey’s Anatomy would be if it was a book and I loved it.
Emma and Zadie became friends when they met at a high school program for aspiring doctors. They then stayed friends as they went through the same programs and both ended up working in their specialties in Charolette. At this point in their lives, tey are both married with children and still consider each other their closest and dearest friends.
When they were in medical school, the experienced a traumatic event that was fraught with drama and mystery. Ten years later, a doctor from their past, who was right in the middle of this mystery and drama, shows up in their hospital.
The story alternates between Zadie and Emma’s perspectives as well as the timeline of current day and their pasts (mostly their third year of medical school). I liked the way that this novel was laid out. I think the story would have lost a lot if it had only been told from one perspective, and I liked that we learned about their past slowly over time and not all at once.
Martin also balanced the medical terminology with real world drama. I never felt like I was reading a textbook, but there was enough there that I felt as though Emma and Zadie were real life med students and doctors. The only issue I had with the writing was the character descriptions. I felt there was a lot of discussion about Emma and Zadie’s appearances. Not only did it come up a few too many times for my liking, but it was always the same description. If I had to read that Zadie was “slim but voluptuous in a curvy way” one more time I was going to scream.
I loved the medical drama, as I am a fan of the early Grey’s Anatomy seasons. The friendship was beautiful to see too. I loved seeing that Emma and Zadie were supportive of each other throughout their lives. Watching the way their past came up on them was fascinating too, and ended in a satisfying (if maybe not fully realistic) way.
I really enjoyed this book. I would have loved to read it with book club, just to have someone to talk about it with. If you are a Grey’s Anatomy fan, or a fan of books with friendship at the core I would highly recommend this book. As a debut, I think Martin has a few kinks to work out with her writing, but her story telling is solid and I was entertained the entire time. I look forward to reading more of her books in the future!