This book was in a way so accurate to how medical school is, and also about how anxiety can cripple students. And so through the lens of Harper, our protagonist, I analyse my experience in medical school with anxiety, other people around me and just how important it is to be curious and not judgemental when it comes to people. It’s important to understand that everyone had their own honey mushroom (you’ll get the context of that in the episode). Goodreads Summary: Harper is anxiously awaiting placement into a top oral surgery residency program when she crashes (literally) into Dan. Harper would rather endure a Novocaine-free root canal than face any distractions, even one this adorable. A first-year dental student with a family legacy to contend with, Dan doesn’t have the same passion for pulling teeth that Harper does. Though he finds himself falling for her, he is willing to play by Harper’s rules. So with the greatest of intentions and the poorest of follow-throughs, the two set out to be “just friends.” But as they get to know each other better, Harper fears that trading fillings for feelings may make her lose control and can't risk her carefully ordered life coming undone, no matter how drool-worthy Dan is. Blood, gore, and extra-long roots? No problem. The idea of falling in love? Torture.

Now this book was quite heartbreaking and as usual Colleen Hoover knew just how to turn the tap onto my emotions and get the water flowing. But in this book, I found catharsis not only in the tragedy in the book, but in the anger and frustration of the characters in how they tried their best to stick to their value. This book also showed how forgiveness was the true beast that prevented the final resolution. So enjoy Salma and discuss forgiveness, anger and the sheer resilience of Kenna in this book, with a definitely STOLEN game of “Would you forgive this cheater?” from the Just Between Us podcast. Link to the Just Between Us podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/1iNAnpr3rVYmuccVJHd2ap?si=IuK0WP5qRP6_HrpcvmY3dw Ledgers Safe Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5whUyhNN7vtxb0nuuNt4qL?si=3WcgSgfJQbGZXjtUIXhZfA Goodreads Summary: A troubled young mother yearns for a shot at redemption in this heartbreaking yet hopeful story from #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover. After serving five years in prison for a tragic mistake, Kenna Rowan returns to the town where it all went wrong, hoping to reunite with her four-year-old daughter. But the bridges Kenna burned are proving impossible to rebuild. Everyone in her daughter’s life is determined to shut Kenna out, no matter how hard she works to prove herself. The only person who hasn’t closed the door on her completely is Ledger Ward, a local bar owner and one of the few remaining links to Kenna’s daughter. But if anyone were to discover how Ledger is slowly becoming an important part of Kenna’s life, both would risk losing the trust of everyone important to them. The two form a connection despite the pressure surrounding them, but as their romance grows, so does the risk. Kenna must find a way to absolve the mistakes of her past in order to build a future out of hope and healing

This book reignited an interest in neurology and also really made me interested in what “yourself” really is and what truly encompasses it. So listen to me talk about my thoughts on what our blind spots are to ourselves, and how grateful I am to have control over myself where Ms Cahalan didn’t. Goodreads Summary: An award-winning memoir and instant New York Times bestseller that goes far beyond its riveting medical mystery, Brain on Fire is the powerful account of one woman’s struggle to recapture her identity. When twenty-four-year-old Susannah Cahalan woke up alone in a hospital room, strapped to her bed and unable to move or speak, she had no memory of how she’d gotten there. Days earlier, she had been on the threshold of a new, adult life: at the beginning of her first serious relationship and a promising career at a major New York newspaper. Now she was labeled violent, psychotic, a flight risk. What happened? In a swift and breathtaking narrative, Cahalan tells the astonishing true story of her descent into madness, her family’s inspiring faith in her, and the lifesaving diagnosis that nearly didn’t happen.

This author is extremely talented at writing smut. And lately I’ve been thinking about smut as a concept and how it sits in today’s society. So listen to myself and Etta speak about smut, erotica, why it’s demonised and how this book specifically has great writing despite being smut. Goodreads Summary: Author Tiffany Reisz returns to the world of The Red with an imaginative sequel full of lust and magic, and the dangers unleashed when the two are combined… On the day of Lia’s university graduation party, her parents—wealthy art collectors with friends in high places—gift her a beautiful wine cup, a rare artifact decorated with roses. It’s a stunning gift, and one that August Bowman, a friend of her parents and a guest at Lia’s party, also has his eye on. The cup, August tells her, is known as the Rose kylix, and it’s no ordinary cup. It was used in the temple ceremonies of Eros, Greek god of erotic love, and has the power to bring the most intimate sexual fantasies to life. But Lia is skeptical of August’s claims of the cup’s mythology and magic—after all, he’s a collector himself, and she suspects he just wants to get his hands on this impressive piece of art. So he dares her to try it for herself, and when Lia drinks from the Rose kylix she is suddenly immersed in an erotic myth so vivid it seems real—as though she’s living out the most sensual fantasy with August by her side… Realizing the true power of this ancient and dangerous relic, Lia is even more wary of giving it up, though August insists it is only safe with him. He’s willing to pay the full value of the cup, but Lia has another type of trade in mind. One that finds them more tangled up in each other—and in fantasy—than either was prepared for.

So reading this book and the film, made me realise I had some personal misconceptions or preconceived ideas about my intelligence that just don’t sit right with me. So listen to me speak in awe about the ingenuity of Mark Watney and how that manifests into my life and how the education system doesn’t exercise us to our full potential, in the diversity of intellect. Goodreads Summary: Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first. But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

This book and movie really moved me and made me evaluate how I made decisions in my life. Was I sacrificing my happiness? Or compromising? Am I settling? Or accepting? Well listen to Catherine and I talk and differentiate between the terms and discuss how this manifested in Lou as a character. Goodreads Summary: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Giver of Stars, discover the love story that captured over 20 million hearts in Me Before You, After You, and Still Me. They had nothing in common until love gave them everything to lose . . . Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life—steady boyfriend, close family—who has barely been farther afield than their tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex–Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life—big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel—and now he’s pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. Will is acerbic, moody, bossy—but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living. A Love Story for this generation and perfect for fans of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, Me Before You brings to life two people who couldn’t have less in common—a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart?

This book was an astounding novel of verse, about a young woman grappling with her identity as a Christian, a teenager and a daughter of an immigrant. Hear me speak about how I related to her when it comes to language learning as someone who doesn’t know their mother tongue, and how silence can be a powerful tool to oppress others but also for yourself. Goodreads Summary: Fans of Jacqueline Woodson, Meg Medina, and Jason Reynolds will fall hard for this astonishing New York Times-bestselling novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet, about an Afro-Latina heroine who tells her story with blazing words and powerful truth. Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems. Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

TW: Discussion surrounding Domestic Abuse, Sexual Assault and gun violence It Ends With Us is a VERY popular booktok book that I ATE up when I first read it. But when I discussed the book further with others I realised there was much depth to the discussions raised about the topics in this book and also the book itself. So hear Agape and I discuss cycles, in our lives and in the book, and also about Colleen Hoover as a phenomenon. TW: Discussion surrounding Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault GoodReads Summary: Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most. Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up — she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true. Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place. As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened. Agape’s podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ZCkwONWK20wBNrSgyIC7P?si=MRbhzLnlQxCxAsiM0eLJLw

Reading this romance was quite cathartic as I was vicariously experiencing a story where things turn out right with a protagonist that shared so many characteristics with myself (black, West African, medical student, struggling 😅). Besides that, something else that stuck out to me was how friendships were quite integral to the story and that also attachment styles were quite informative in understanding ourselves and also how Angie condoned herself in relationships. So listen to me discuss that and gush about friendships in my life. HAVE A GOOD DAY!! 👍🏽 GoodReads Summary: For fans of Grey’s Anatomy and Seven Days in June, this dazzling debut novel by Shirlene Obuobi explores that time in your life when you must decide what you want, how to get it, & who you are, all while navigating love, friendship, and the realization that the path you’re traveling is going to be a bumpy ride. Ghanaian-American Angela Appiah has checked off all the boxes for the “Perfect Immigrant Daughter.” - Enroll in an elite medical school - Snag a suitable lawyer/doctor/engineer boyfriend - Surround self with a gaggle of successful and/or loyal friends But then it quickly all falls apart: her boyfriend dumps her, she bombs the most important exam of her medical career, and her best friend pulls away. And her parents, whose approval seems to hinge on how closely she follows the path they chose, are a lot less proud of their daughter. It’s a quarter life crisis of epic proportions. Angie, who has always faced her problems by working “twice as hard to get half as far,” is at a loss. Suddenly, she begins to question everything: her career choice, her friendships, even why she's attracted to men who don't love her as much as she loves them. And just when things couldn’t get more complicated, enter Ricky Gutierrez— brilliant, thoughtful, sexy, and most importantly, seems to see Angie for who she is instead of what she can represent. Unfortunately, he’s also got “wasteman” practically tattooed across his forehead, and Angie’s done chasing mirages of men. Or so she thinks. For someone who’s always been in control, Angie realizes that there’s one thing she can’t plan on: matters of her heart.

TW: (in the episode we briefly mention gender dysphoria - which we mistakenly mispronounced as dysmorphia, apologies - so just a heads up) KEEP SAFE GUYS The Vanishing half is an amazing book about the consequences and opportunities that follow if you decide to abandon an integral part of your identity - race. And it follows four complex women as a sort of group Bildungsroman about identity, escape and mother daughter relationships. So listen to Omonye and I discuss all three in a lovely discussion about this book and how we perceive these themes to link to our lives as students and human beings. Omonye’s socials: Her podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/7jyuZ3ASJSItDZIiFO8rWj?si=MrQSqRXsQ8mzlCEJLkBI3g Her TikTok: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMNSNpoxh/ Her Instagram: omonyevictoria GoodReads Summary: The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters' storylines intersect? Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing. Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.