The Book:
Doctors and Friends by Kimmery Martin
Published November 9th 2021 by Berkley
Date read: November 27, 2021
The Characters:
Hannah
Compton
Kira
Buy it on Bookshop.org | Amazon
The Plot (from Goodreads):
Hannah, Compton, and Kira have been close friends since medical school, reuniting once a year for a much-needed vacation. Just as they gather to travel in Spain, an outbreak of a fast-spreading virus throws the world into chaos.
When Compton Winfield returns to her job as an ER doctor in New York City, she finds a city changed beyond recognition—and a personal loss so gutting it reshapes every aspect of her life.
Hannah Geier’s career as an ob-gyn in San Diego is fulfilling but she’s always longed for a child of her own. After years of trying, Hannah discovers she’s expecting a baby just as the disease engulfs her city.
Kira Marchand, an infectious disease doctor at the CDC in Atlanta, finds herself at the center of the American response to the terrifying new illness. Her professional battle turns personal when she must decide whether her children will receive an experimental but potentially life-saving treatment.
Written prior to Covid-19 by a former emergency medicine physician, Doctors and Friends incorporates unexpected wit, razor-edged poignancy, and a deeply relatable cast of characters who provoke both laughter and tears. Martin provides a unique insider’s perspective into the world of medical professionals working to save lives during the most difficult situations of their careers.
The Ending:
Both Kira’s kids get sick and are on their deathbeds. Kira had an experimental antitoxin that Declan had given to her, and decided to administer it to one of her children. She picked Rorie, but Rorie told her to give it to Beux, since it was Rorie’s fault that they got sick. (She had snuck out to see her boyfriend and caught it from him). All of them survived.
The Review:
Thank you to the publisher and to @letstalkbooks for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book was written prior to Covid-19, in an imaginary world, but poses interesting parallels to what we’re living through today. In Doctors and Friends, the artiovirus pandemic swept through the population even quicker than Covid did in real life. Even more terrifying, the virus causes a delayed complication in which it attacks the brain a year or two after recovery from the visible symptoms.
The characters wear pins that display a color indicating their infection status, and apps on their phones alert them when an infected or nonimmune person is nearby. Those who don’t want to submit to testing and vaccines aren’t permitted on airlines or in other public spaces. The main character notes that most people try to comply with the testing and vaccines.
This book was so beautifully emotional. The main theme is female friendship, as Doctors and Friends centers around a group of women who were best friends in medical school. They have stayed in touch and vacation together regularly, which is where they are when the book (and the virus) starts. There’s a lot of grief within the story, so much that I found myself crying at multiple passages. It is very well written, though–I always wanted more.
I thought all the characters were extremely likeable, and I would’ve liked to see more of Compton’s story. The use of multiple POVs worked really well in this case. In the author’s note, KM mentions that Vani will be getting her own book, which I’m very excited to read. Edit: at the time of reading the book, I didn’t realize that two prior books in the series are already out! I can’t wait to read The Queen of Hearts and The Antidote for Everything.
Some readers may not be ready for a book about a pandemic, but I loved this parallel to what we’re living through now. I can’t wait to talk to the author to see what it was like for her to write this book just prior to Covid.
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