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Moral Injuries
A literary thriller following three best friends since medical school and the twenty-five-year-old secret that now threatens to shatter their lives
Ruthlessly ambitious Olivia, anxious perfectionist Laura, and free-spirited risk-taker Anjali couldn’t be more different. Yet their friendship has kept them inseparable for the past twenty-five years. As wild all-nighters and exam pressure gave way to the struggles and joys of new motherhood and new jobs, their unbreakable bond helped them support each other through it all.
Long ago they promised nothing would come between them. They would do anything for one another—including burying that night they have never spoken of: a university party fueled by drugs, sex, and secrets that forced them to make a deadly choice. But is there a limit to what we would do for those we love? When an eerily similar tragedy strikes the women’s teenage children, everything the friends have built threatens to crumble around them, forcing them to decide how far they can stretch their friendship before it snaps.
Ruthlessly ambitious Olivia, anxious perfectionist Laura, and free-spirited risk-taker Anjali couldn’t be more different. Yet their friendship has kept them inseparable for the past twenty-five years. As wild all-nighters and exam pressure gave way to the struggles and joys of new motherhood and new jobs, their unbreakable bond helped them support each other through it all.
Long ago they promised nothing would come between them. They would do anything for one another—including burying that night they have never spoken of: a university party fueled by drugs, sex, and secrets that forced them to make a deadly choice. But is there a limit to what we would do for those we love? When an eerily similar tragedy strikes the women’s teenage children, everything the friends have built threatens to crumble around them, forcing them to decide how far they can stretch their friendship before it snaps.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published June 25, 2024
162 people are currently reading
10267 people want to read
About the author
Christie Watson
19 books415 followersChristie Watson is a professor of medical humanities at UEA, and worked as an NHS nurse for over twenty years. She has written six books, including her first novel, Tiny Sunbirds Far Away, which won the Costa First Novel Award, and the memoir, The Language of Kindness, which was a number one Sunday Times bestseller. Christie is a contributor to the Times, the Sunday Times, the Guardian, the Telegraph, and TEDx, and her work has been translated into twenty-three languages and adapted for theatre. Moral Injuries, her latest novel, is publishing March 14th (UK) and June (US).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 172 reviews
June 3, 2024
I wasn't sure about Christie Watson's non-fiction account of her twenty years as a nurse, The Language of Kindness. The narrative voice felt complacent rather than thoughtful; it struck me that her depiction of the profession was a bit sugar-coated, whereas other medical professionals and hospital workers were either ignored or criticised. Happily, Watson is a much better fiction-writer: Moral Injuries is really, really good. Interestingly, this is actually Watson's second novel, but it's the first to draw closely on her experiences as a nurse, where she worked across a range of specialisms that included resuscitation, paediatrics and mental health. This breadth of knowledge is vital, making this story of three female doctors working, respectively, as a heart surgeon, an air ambulance doctor, and a GP, totally authentic and convincing. Watson doesn't overload us with unnecessary detail, but she brings to life these different medical environments with precision: 'Majors was always busy. Patients spilled out into the corridor and there was constant noise, alarms and shouting, the smell of urine or bleach or NHS egg sandwiches. The central station was like a hive for medics, all on the phone, permanently harassed, their dark blue scrubs as crumpled as their faces, lanyards swung over their shoulders, pens stuck into ponytails.'
Moral Injuries is pitched as a kind of thriller: these three friends, Olivia, Anjali and Laura, who met at medical school, are forced to confront a secret they are keeping after two of their teenage children witness a tragedy at a party. I suspect those who want a breathlessly fast-paced psychological thriller won't necessarily click with this. Despite a series of medical emergencies, it's much more character-driven, and doesn't rely on a shocking 'twist'. All the better, I say. This allows Watson to make her characters much more realistic, sympathetic and complex. I was especially drawn to Laura, who starts off as the stereotypical 'anxious perfectionist from a tough background' but become so much more than that. She's the most effortlessly competent of the three as an older adult, has plenty of casual sex, and is dealing with family trauma, not just growing up working-class on a council estate. Bisexual Anjali is also much more than a flaky risk-taker, and Olivia is hard to pigeonhole at all - she's ambitious, sure, as the blurb says, but she's also shaped by her privileged background and her relationship with husband Dele.
The title, if at first a little baffling, ends up being perfect for this novel, which is ultimately about moral choices, and the damage we cause to ourselves, and other people who witness our choices, when we make the wrong ones. All three of the characters are culpable to different degrees. Again, it's a dilemma Laura faces in the second half of the novel that I found most compelling, as medical ethics run up against old loyalties. Watson effectively creates a situation which is not ethically clear-cut, and yet we appreciate the enormity of what Laura chooses to do. My only criticism of this novel would be that the chapters rely too much on flash-forwards and flashbacks: a character often recalls a situation rather than it happening in real time, which was a bit confusing and unnecessary. But otherwise, a top-notch literary thriller. 4.5 stars.
I received a free proof copy of this novel from the publisher for review.
Moral Injuries is pitched as a kind of thriller: these three friends, Olivia, Anjali and Laura, who met at medical school, are forced to confront a secret they are keeping after two of their teenage children witness a tragedy at a party. I suspect those who want a breathlessly fast-paced psychological thriller won't necessarily click with this. Despite a series of medical emergencies, it's much more character-driven, and doesn't rely on a shocking 'twist'. All the better, I say. This allows Watson to make her characters much more realistic, sympathetic and complex. I was especially drawn to Laura, who starts off as the stereotypical 'anxious perfectionist from a tough background' but become so much more than that. She's the most effortlessly competent of the three as an older adult, has plenty of casual sex, and is dealing with family trauma, not just growing up working-class on a council estate. Bisexual Anjali is also much more than a flaky risk-taker, and Olivia is hard to pigeonhole at all - she's ambitious, sure, as the blurb says, but she's also shaped by her privileged background and her relationship with husband Dele.
The title, if at first a little baffling, ends up being perfect for this novel, which is ultimately about moral choices, and the damage we cause to ourselves, and other people who witness our choices, when we make the wrong ones. All three of the characters are culpable to different degrees. Again, it's a dilemma Laura faces in the second half of the novel that I found most compelling, as medical ethics run up against old loyalties. Watson effectively creates a situation which is not ethically clear-cut, and yet we appreciate the enormity of what Laura chooses to do. My only criticism of this novel would be that the chapters rely too much on flash-forwards and flashbacks: a character often recalls a situation rather than it happening in real time, which was a bit confusing and unnecessary. But otherwise, a top-notch literary thriller. 4.5 stars.
I received a free proof copy of this novel from the publisher for review.
April 18, 2024
Huh.
I thought this started strong, and I really enjoyed all of the medical terminology (definitely not for everyone, but I love that stuff), but I never felt like I knew the characters or fully understood them. We hear from all of them, in two timelines, but they all still felt very one-dimensional (and honestly rather annoying) to me.
I thought there would be more of a mystery, but it all was pretty spelled out from the start, which made this a bit of a slog to get through by the end (even though all of the action really happens in the last few chapters).
I guess my main question is why these three women bothered to maintain their friendship at all after medical school. It can be frighteningly easy to accidentally drift apart from friends when you’re all busy with work and kids and whatnot, but they made an effort to stay deeply involved in each other’s lives - whyyyyyy?
This was pretty much a miss for me, but I could see it appealing to people who don’t mind a slow burn exploration of complicated, long-term friendships.
[2.5 rounded down]
* thanks to Harper for the ARC. Moral Injuries publishes in June 2024.
I thought this started strong, and I really enjoyed all of the medical terminology (definitely not for everyone, but I love that stuff), but I never felt like I knew the characters or fully understood them. We hear from all of them, in two timelines, but they all still felt very one-dimensional (and honestly rather annoying) to me.
I thought there would be more of a mystery, but it all was pretty spelled out from the start, which made this a bit of a slog to get through by the end (even though all of the action really happens in the last few chapters).
I guess my main question is why these three women bothered to maintain their friendship at all after medical school. It can be frighteningly easy to accidentally drift apart from friends when you’re all busy with work and kids and whatnot, but they made an effort to stay deeply involved in each other’s lives - whyyyyyy?
This was pretty much a miss for me, but I could see it appealing to people who don’t mind a slow burn exploration of complicated, long-term friendships.
[2.5 rounded down]
* thanks to Harper for the ARC. Moral Injuries publishes in June 2024.
April 22, 2024
“Moral injuries were the price of war. And they were the price of medicine.” Olivia, Laura and Anjali have been best friends since medical school, but 25 years later something they’ve kept hidden all along threatens to burst back into the open. History has repeated itself: their children are in some way involved in an accidental death that takes place at a drug-fuelled party, just as the three young women were in 1999. Watson rotates through the three POVs and two time periods to show how their relationships have developed and how a secret and a betrayal still hold power because of the ethical compromises they forced.
It’s easy and engrossing reading, but starts to get over-the-top melodramatic about two-thirds through, and ultimately failed to convince me. It’s as if the author felt she needed to throw in every issue possible: domestic violence, interracial couples, a same-sex couple, adoption, drug use, sex addiction, and so on. What this means in practice is that characters are reduced to one or two buzzwords, and even if you meet their parents or whatever, you don’t get much more nuance beyond that.
This was my fourth book by Watson and confirms that I appreciate her nonfiction (The Language of Kindness and The Courage to Care) more than her fiction. Of course it was the medical theme that drew me to the novel, even though I don’t normally read anything classed as suspense, and I did enjoy the window onto the working lives of a cardiac surgeon, an air ambulance doctor, and a GP. But I’ll stick to her nonfiction in future.
Some embarrassing errors:
“she was dammed if Rudy’s life would be less than perfect” (p. 95); intention: “she’d be damned if Rudy’s life was less than perfect”
use of “gaslighting” in its modern sense in 1999 (p. 178); it wasn’t in common usage until the mid-2010s
“Prodding and changing the patten of her” (p. 193) - ? “pattern”, I guess, but weird phrasing in any case
“You don’t want to be pilfering around with A&E” (p. 278), with the sense of wasting one’s time; intention: “piddling”? (seems most likely) or “playing”?
worst of all, as it’s a medical one: “had contracted meningococcal sepsis at a festival, the ‘kissing disease’” (p. 260); mononucleosis is what’s known as the kissing disease, though meningococcal bacteria can be spread by kissing
It’s easy and engrossing reading, but starts to get over-the-top melodramatic about two-thirds through, and ultimately failed to convince me. It’s as if the author felt she needed to throw in every issue possible: domestic violence, interracial couples, a same-sex couple, adoption, drug use, sex addiction, and so on. What this means in practice is that characters are reduced to one or two buzzwords, and even if you meet their parents or whatever, you don’t get much more nuance beyond that.
This was my fourth book by Watson and confirms that I appreciate her nonfiction (The Language of Kindness and The Courage to Care) more than her fiction. Of course it was the medical theme that drew me to the novel, even though I don’t normally read anything classed as suspense, and I did enjoy the window onto the working lives of a cardiac surgeon, an air ambulance doctor, and a GP. But I’ll stick to her nonfiction in future.
Some embarrassing errors:
“she was dammed if Rudy’s life would be less than perfect” (p. 95); intention: “she’d be damned if Rudy’s life was less than perfect”
use of “gaslighting” in its modern sense in 1999 (p. 178); it wasn’t in common usage until the mid-2010s
“Prodding and changing the patten of her” (p. 193) - ? “pattern”, I guess, but weird phrasing in any case
“You don’t want to be pilfering around with A&E” (p. 278), with the sense of wasting one’s time; intention: “piddling”? (seems most likely) or “playing”?
worst of all, as it’s a medical one: “had contracted meningococcal sepsis at a festival, the ‘kissing disease’” (p. 260); mononucleosis is what’s known as the kissing disease, though meningococcal bacteria can be spread by kissing
April 1, 2024
DNF at 60%
I´m sorry, but despite my huge expectations for this book, I just felt like I couldn´t read it anymore. Three women and a chopped timeline jumping back and forth left me lost and tired. What´s more, I didn´t connect with any of the characters. Laura seems to be somehow distinguished from Olivia and Anjali, but that´s because most of the narrative is focused on her. The other two are in her background. Also, the book seems to be about busy and unhappy students and doctors, not about a terrible secret from the past.
I like the easiness of the author's writing style and her sense of humor. I couldn´t stop laughing when I read: "The NHS might be underfunded and undervalued by the government, but it remained one of the best healthcare systems in the world." Hillarious!
I cringed when a medical student, a future doctor, wasn´t exactly thrilled about doing Care of the Elderly, which "smelt so strongly of shit, that Anjali had to swallow a mouthful of sick". Of course, she will never get old and her own turd smells like roses.
Oh, and could someone please explain to me how on earth you get a bone marrow sample while on a flying helicopter? And why would you do that in the first place, considering that a patient is a woman who had slashed (knife) femoral artery?
I´m sorry, but despite my huge expectations for this book, I just felt like I couldn´t read it anymore. Three women and a chopped timeline jumping back and forth left me lost and tired. What´s more, I didn´t connect with any of the characters. Laura seems to be somehow distinguished from Olivia and Anjali, but that´s because most of the narrative is focused on her. The other two are in her background. Also, the book seems to be about busy and unhappy students and doctors, not about a terrible secret from the past.
I like the easiness of the author's writing style and her sense of humor. I couldn´t stop laughing when I read: "The NHS might be underfunded and undervalued by the government, but it remained one of the best healthcare systems in the world." Hillarious!
I cringed when a medical student, a future doctor, wasn´t exactly thrilled about doing Care of the Elderly, which "smelt so strongly of shit, that Anjali had to swallow a mouthful of sick". Of course, she will never get old and her own turd smells like roses.
Oh, and could someone please explain to me how on earth you get a bone marrow sample while on a flying helicopter? And why would you do that in the first place, considering that a patient is a woman who had slashed (knife) femoral artery?
February 11, 2024
Christie Watson slowly draws you in to a horror that is all to real. Three best friends in medical school - Anjali, Olivia and Laura - 2o years or more later living lives of promise. When an event puts a child at risk, decisions need to be made. Watson provides POV from all of the friends as well as fascinating flashbacks to medical school and the decisions that have paved the road the friends navigate today. Peppered with real life trauma stories and incredibly interesting medical information, this story is a slow burn AND a shocking thriller in each chapter. I honestly don't think I have ever read anything else with a rhythm like this story, it's like finding a whole new music genre!
Pick up Moral Injuries and immerse yourself in UK hospitals and healthcare, women's friendships, promises and traitorous behavior. When the smoke clears only you can decide what was right! #harper #moralinjuries #christiewatson
Pick up Moral Injuries and immerse yourself in UK hospitals and healthcare, women's friendships, promises and traitorous behavior. When the smoke clears only you can decide what was right! #harper #moralinjuries #christiewatson
February 28, 2024
An intense novel of friendship and how far you go to protect your secrets and loved ones.. Anjali, Laura and Olivia met in the 1990's whilst studying medicine at University. Straightaway they formed a close bond despite being totally different characters.
The novel is told from all women's perspectives both in 1999 and 2024. I didnt find it confusing though as the writing flowed. There is an underlying secret that the women hold from 1999 that impacts their lives in present day. They always said nothing would come in the way of their friendship but is this latest drama going to implode those thoughts?
I really enjoyed this novel, the women were strong and ambitious but also flawed. The storyline is solid. The medical side to the book is also very descriptive. A great read
The novel is told from all women's perspectives both in 1999 and 2024. I didnt find it confusing though as the writing flowed. There is an underlying secret that the women hold from 1999 that impacts their lives in present day. They always said nothing would come in the way of their friendship but is this latest drama going to implode those thoughts?
I really enjoyed this novel, the women were strong and ambitious but also flawed. The storyline is solid. The medical side to the book is also very descriptive. A great read
March 10, 2024
i wanted to like this book so bad, i was so excited to be approved for the ARC, but i was so disappointed. the only reason i did not add to my Do Not Finish list was because of my obligation to review it fairly.
three friends share a huge secret from their past. throughout the next 25 years, most of them struggle with forgetting. but in the present, they find that history can repeat itself, which then brings up all too familiar feelings and fears. this is a story of betrayal and lies.
i think that this book would of been a lot better had it contained more character driven substance. a majority of the book contained medical field jargon that had little to do with the story. i felt as though i was watching a gray's anatomy episode, but without the dramatic plot. not to say it couldn't be interesting to others, i just didn't find the point to be shown.
when i finished this book, i realized not much of anything was concluded. i still had many questions and there were many things that plainly didn't make sense to me.
thank you to netgalley and harper collins publishing for allowing me to read and review!
three friends share a huge secret from their past. throughout the next 25 years, most of them struggle with forgetting. but in the present, they find that history can repeat itself, which then brings up all too familiar feelings and fears. this is a story of betrayal and lies.
i think that this book would of been a lot better had it contained more character driven substance. a majority of the book contained medical field jargon that had little to do with the story. i felt as though i was watching a gray's anatomy episode, but without the dramatic plot. not to say it couldn't be interesting to others, i just didn't find the point to be shown.
when i finished this book, i realized not much of anything was concluded. i still had many questions and there were many things that plainly didn't make sense to me.
thank you to netgalley and harper collins publishing for allowing me to read and review!
August 31, 2024
Kept me intrigued but also I feel like the author wrote in a confusing way, leaving out details and skipping around with timelines that made it hard to follow…also kind of disliked all the characters?
September 9, 2024
3.5 stars.
June 26, 2024
Three best friends meet in medical school, and one night things go terribly wrong. Twenty five years later their secret is coming back to haunt them.
Olivia is the perfectionist who comes from money and is determined to have it all—the best job, the best house, the best husband, and the best kids. Her ambition knows no bounds, and she will do whatever it takes to protect the ones she loves. Anjali is the anthesis of Olivia, easy going and free-spirited. She and her wife have just started the adoption process and her past isn’t going to help their cause. Laura is the perfect student and now the perfect doctor. Her humble beginnings and traumatic past have shaped her personality in a profound way. These three women somehow connected with each other through their shared school experience and maintained their bond for years afterward despite some rocky bumps along the way.
Though there is a lot of medical terminology, it isn’t distracting from the story. It is obvious author Christie Watson has a medical background. This is promoted as a thriller, but the twist was not shocking. In fact, the book reads like a very long melodramatic episode of Grey’s Anatomy, that is to say it was still engrossing. The three main characters were definitely very interesting, but it did feel a little over the top. The author seems to have added all the issues into one book: drug use, domestic violence, same-sex couple, interracial couple, adoption, anxiety, euthanasia, sex addiction, classicism…this list goes on. I think with a few less triggering storylines, the main narrative might have shined more. That being said, the title was spot on.
Thank you to NetGalley, Harper, and the author Christie Watson for the advanced copy of the book. Moral Injuries is out now! All opinions are my own.
HTTP://www.instagram.com/passionforprose
Olivia is the perfectionist who comes from money and is determined to have it all—the best job, the best house, the best husband, and the best kids. Her ambition knows no bounds, and she will do whatever it takes to protect the ones she loves. Anjali is the anthesis of Olivia, easy going and free-spirited. She and her wife have just started the adoption process and her past isn’t going to help their cause. Laura is the perfect student and now the perfect doctor. Her humble beginnings and traumatic past have shaped her personality in a profound way. These three women somehow connected with each other through their shared school experience and maintained their bond for years afterward despite some rocky bumps along the way.
Though there is a lot of medical terminology, it isn’t distracting from the story. It is obvious author Christie Watson has a medical background. This is promoted as a thriller, but the twist was not shocking. In fact, the book reads like a very long melodramatic episode of Grey’s Anatomy, that is to say it was still engrossing. The three main characters were definitely very interesting, but it did feel a little over the top. The author seems to have added all the issues into one book: drug use, domestic violence, same-sex couple, interracial couple, adoption, anxiety, euthanasia, sex addiction, classicism…this list goes on. I think with a few less triggering storylines, the main narrative might have shined more. That being said, the title was spot on.
Thank you to NetGalley, Harper, and the author Christie Watson for the advanced copy of the book. Moral Injuries is out now! All opinions are my own.
HTTP://www.instagram.com/passionforprose
January 31, 2024
Rating: ⭐️⭐️
Good title. Great premise. Poor execution. This book had so much potential! But just fell so flat for me. With three perspectives, each jumping back and forth in time, it was bound to be a little hard to keep track of each character’s actions, motivations, and feelings, but for me they were lost completely. The pacing was also off; it took ages to get going, then all the ‘drama’ happened in a matter of pages. Overall, not the book for me.
Good title. Great premise. Poor execution. This book had so much potential! But just fell so flat for me. With three perspectives, each jumping back and forth in time, it was bound to be a little hard to keep track of each character’s actions, motivations, and feelings, but for me they were lost completely. The pacing was also off; it took ages to get going, then all the ‘drama’ happened in a matter of pages. Overall, not the book for me.
July 8, 2024
It has been quite some time since I've read a novel with a medical setting. Strange, because I enjoy medical dramas on television. This one was a stellar medical drama AND a psychological study into the impact of secrecy and moral dilemmas on three intelligent women.
"Everyone in this world does bad things or stupid things that sometimes have catastrophic consequences. These are the human factors. We are only human."
Three women protagonists who meet while in medical school form a strong bond and are still best friends twenty-five years later. We hear from all three back in 1999 and also in the present day.
In 1999, while at a university party, there was an overdose death. The circumstances around this death are murky - even to those directly involved - for they were stoned or drunk themselves. This event has long-lasting repercussions to the three med students.
2024 and now the women are parents themselves. When a traumatic event occurs at a party where two of their children are present, it would seem like history is repeating itself...
Olivia is a cardiothoracic surgeon, one of the best. She works long hours in a South London hospital. She is happily married and the mother of two teenage children.
Laura is an emergency physician who works as an air ambulance doctor. She is probably the smartest of the three women and works harder in a profession that she lives for. She is a single mother to a teenage son, a caretaker for her mother who suffers from multiple sclerosis, and she has an unhealthy habit of seeking sex with strangers as a coping mechanism.
Anjali is a GP working in a clinic. She sees all sorts in her work and she is good at it, though one feels her heart is not really in it. She lives with a woman named Donna who works as a nurse on the cancer wards. Anjali and Donna are seeking to adopt a child.
"Sometimes, she thought, the truth was unhelpful. Every now and then, the most ethical thing to do was to lie."
Written by a medical professional, the plot reeks of authenticity, as do the characters.
Secrets and lies. Secrets that fester. Guilt that ravages the soul. Betrayal that devastates lives. Ethical dilemmas - medical ones and moral ones. All these factors come into play in this intense and compelling novel.
Highly recommended!
4.5 stars rounded up
"Everyone in this world does bad things or stupid things that sometimes have catastrophic consequences. These are the human factors. We are only human."
Three women protagonists who meet while in medical school form a strong bond and are still best friends twenty-five years later. We hear from all three back in 1999 and also in the present day.
In 1999, while at a university party, there was an overdose death. The circumstances around this death are murky - even to those directly involved - for they were stoned or drunk themselves. This event has long-lasting repercussions to the three med students.
2024 and now the women are parents themselves. When a traumatic event occurs at a party where two of their children are present, it would seem like history is repeating itself...
Olivia is a cardiothoracic surgeon, one of the best. She works long hours in a South London hospital. She is happily married and the mother of two teenage children.
Laura is an emergency physician who works as an air ambulance doctor. She is probably the smartest of the three women and works harder in a profession that she lives for. She is a single mother to a teenage son, a caretaker for her mother who suffers from multiple sclerosis, and she has an unhealthy habit of seeking sex with strangers as a coping mechanism.
Anjali is a GP working in a clinic. She sees all sorts in her work and she is good at it, though one feels her heart is not really in it. She lives with a woman named Donna who works as a nurse on the cancer wards. Anjali and Donna are seeking to adopt a child.
"Sometimes, she thought, the truth was unhelpful. Every now and then, the most ethical thing to do was to lie."
Written by a medical professional, the plot reeks of authenticity, as do the characters.
Secrets and lies. Secrets that fester. Guilt that ravages the soul. Betrayal that devastates lives. Ethical dilemmas - medical ones and moral ones. All these factors come into play in this intense and compelling novel.
Highly recommended!
4.5 stars rounded up
March 17, 2024
Olivia, Laura and Anjali first met at university where they were all studying medicine and formed such a tight bond that nothing was going to break them apart...ever! Fast forward 25 years and they are all qualified doctors in their own fields of medicine, both Olivia and Laura are mothers to teenagers but something from the past lies beneath the surface, an incident at a party that they swore never to talk of again, until something similar happens which involves their children, is history repeating itself or is this just a tragic coincidence, and is their friendship still strong enough to withstand what's happened both now and in the past or, could the secrets they are hiding be what finally breaks them?
Moral Injuries is a fast paced domestic/medical drama set around the lives of these three women, it's a multi perspective, dual timeline story told alternately by the three main characters and jumps back and forth between 1999 and 2024 and highlights the choices, both ethically and morally, made by these women and also their children, and the consequences they are faced with because of these choices. This is a well crafted novel, written by an author that clearly has in-depth medical knowledge from their own earlier career, with authentic characters and enough suspense to keep me intrigued throughout.
I'd like to thank Orion Publishing Group and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Amazon and Goodreads.
Moral Injuries is a fast paced domestic/medical drama set around the lives of these three women, it's a multi perspective, dual timeline story told alternately by the three main characters and jumps back and forth between 1999 and 2024 and highlights the choices, both ethically and morally, made by these women and also their children, and the consequences they are faced with because of these choices. This is a well crafted novel, written by an author that clearly has in-depth medical knowledge from their own earlier career, with authentic characters and enough suspense to keep me intrigued throughout.
I'd like to thank Orion Publishing Group and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Amazon and Goodreads.
March 19, 2024
First off - the cover is BEAUTIFUL. It drew me in immediately. I have not read any other books by Christie Watson, but once I saw the cover, I knew I'd be reading this one.
Overall, the story was alright. I was not too drawn in, though, and found it hard to be excited to keep going. The whole premise of the book is about carrying secrets and how they cause moral injuries throughout your lifetime - and throughout the book, there was this overarching mystery of whatever happened at the party the three main characters went to when they were in medical school and consequently, how it impacted their lives after. You did not find out the whole story of what happened at the party until 80% in. I feel like this revelation should've happened sooner in the book to give it more build and more time for resolution at the end; the ending was a little rushed for me and felt unfinished. I turned the last page on my Kindle and went "oh?" because I truly thought there'd be more.
If you are a medical student, I think this story would definitely be interesting for you! A solid 3/5 for me.
Overall, the story was alright. I was not too drawn in, though, and found it hard to be excited to keep going. The whole premise of the book is about carrying secrets and how they cause moral injuries throughout your lifetime - and throughout the book, there was this overarching mystery of whatever happened at the party the three main characters went to when they were in medical school and consequently, how it impacted their lives after. You did not find out the whole story of what happened at the party until 80% in. I feel like this revelation should've happened sooner in the book to give it more build and more time for resolution at the end; the ending was a little rushed for me and felt unfinished. I turned the last page on my Kindle and went "oh?" because I truly thought there'd be more.
If you are a medical student, I think this story would definitely be interesting for you! A solid 3/5 for me.
June 21, 2024
Olivia, Laura and Anjali have been friends since medical school. At a party a tragic accident bonded them for life. Years later they are raising their own children and working as doctors. Their children are teenagers now and an eerily similar situation happens at a party. How do they deal with the trauma? How far would you go to protect your children or your friends? This book explores the gray area of morality. Almost anyone is capable of doing something stupid or bad. Does that make you bad or just human?
I enjoyed this book. I thought it was more of a medical drama rather than a thriller. It’s perfect for fans of greys anatomy!
Thanks netgalley for the advanced readers copy of this book.
I enjoyed this book. I thought it was more of a medical drama rather than a thriller. It’s perfect for fans of greys anatomy!
Thanks netgalley for the advanced readers copy of this book.
March 29, 2025
I enjoyed the story lines about current and past drama, but the writing is clunky and jumps around a bit, even within the same time period. I think overall this is probably a more enjoyable read for people not in the medical field. Details were incorrect/unbelievable (why is an EM doctor doing brain death testing on an ICU patient?) and the dialogue was so beyond unrealistic it was hard to get through- “Look at that left axis deviation! That’s the most impressively prolonged QT interval I’ve ever seen.” 🫠🫠🫠 “she was running at the speed of supraventricular tachycardia” 😐
April 8, 2024
4.5 stars. I was compelled by the story but the writing held me back in places. I have a pet hate for phrases like ‘sticky air’ and the overuse of compound words used as adjectives. It is highly pedantic of me
I do realise but is a style of writing that grates massively.
I do realise but is a style of writing that grates massively.
December 11, 2024
My Rating: 3⭐️⭐️⭐️ it was average… the ending less so but kept me interested for some of the time!!
I am quite behind in my reviews so I won’t do a recap, I will just dive right in. This started out pretty good…it had multi POV and Multi timeline which I love. That always gets me right away. It had this BIG secret and sometimes its great and other times its like… oh… so what!!
In this case the secret or the tragedy or whatever was so what for me… it was a bad thing that happened to some young people and thats no good but it did not warrant the secrecy and behaviour that carried on for the following decades.
This basically follows three lifetime besties (Laura, Anjali and Olivia) and they all attend college to become doctors of some kind. There is a lot of medical talk in this, some of it is interesting and some of it is filler which becomes a bit annoying. They are bound by secrets and lies and whatever whatever… then the “same” tragedy is bestowed on two of their children - not really but a little bit… Again it is a bad thing that happened but also became this huge deal. I dunno maybe I and callous but this is fiction … give me more please I don’t want some mid level drama from three besties I want full blown hectic shit happening.
I personally was rooting for the one person it turns out is the “baddie” all along but if you read this and you find out what the other chicky did to her… well… depends where you are at in life but I am still rooting for the so called baddie.
Overall, I found this fairly boring… three stars because the first half was going somewhere but then it kind of dropped off… so it’s a generous three and I don’t have GR friend I know that I would recommend this too… that is not to say you wouldn’t like it… I just wouldn’t feel confident recommending it.
I am quite behind in my reviews so I won’t do a recap, I will just dive right in. This started out pretty good…it had multi POV and Multi timeline which I love. That always gets me right away. It had this BIG secret and sometimes its great and other times its like… oh… so what!!
In this case the secret or the tragedy or whatever was so what for me… it was a bad thing that happened to some young people and thats no good but it did not warrant the secrecy and behaviour that carried on for the following decades.
This basically follows three lifetime besties (Laura, Anjali and Olivia) and they all attend college to become doctors of some kind. There is a lot of medical talk in this, some of it is interesting and some of it is filler which becomes a bit annoying. They are bound by secrets and lies and whatever whatever… then the “same” tragedy is bestowed on two of their children - not really but a little bit… Again it is a bad thing that happened but also became this huge deal. I dunno maybe I and callous but this is fiction … give me more please I don’t want some mid level drama from three besties I want full blown hectic shit happening.
I personally was rooting for the one person it turns out is the “baddie” all along but if you read this and you find out what the other chicky did to her… well… depends where you are at in life but I am still rooting for the so called baddie.
Overall, I found this fairly boring… three stars because the first half was going somewhere but then it kind of dropped off… so it’s a generous three and I don’t have GR friend I know that I would recommend this too… that is not to say you wouldn’t like it… I just wouldn’t feel confident recommending it.
July 15, 2025
Cannot possibly comprehend why one would be compelled to sabotage another, but continue to be their “friend” for two decades and some. But it was interesting nonetheless. None of the characters really resonated though
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 3, 2024
Not my usual genre but I enjoyed this one. Needed to keep reading to find out what happens.
September 18, 2024
2.5 stars….. a little Meh for me at least the ending. I thought it had a great start.
May 8, 2025
What a page-turner! We are all human and daily face moral dilemmas. Consequences to choices we make.
September 14, 2024
Olivia, Laura and Anjali have been best friends since medical school. They supported each other through years of gruelling training, qualified together and raised their children from babies to teenagers in one big extended family. The three women can't imagine their lives ever not being intertwined. But there's another reason they've clung so fast together for twenty-five years - a secret which could destroy everything they've worked for if it got out.
Author Christie Watson is a former nurse and she writes a world of surgeries, clinics, intensive care wards and medi-vacs with an authority and conviction that comes from years of working in different specialisms. Her prose brings the various hospital departments to life with a plethora of minute but specific details, and she deftly handles medical jargon in a way that feels organic and easy to follow for the lay reader.
However, the author's voice at times feels condescending - quick to sneer at patients and their family members (worried mothers pushing prams with overdressed babies with inevitable fevers, for example, along with heart surgery patients whose lifestyle has caused their illness) and some scenes are akin to body horror in their graphic descriptions of operations and field medicine. I can stomach one description of a patient's ribs cracking during chest compressions, but by the third time it just felt gratuitous. Other scenes meander into irrelevant or overly detailed descriptions of equipment which seem to be included solely to show off the author's first hand knowledge; did it really serve the plot to spend a paragraph comparing the pros and cons of different methods of measuring blood pressure?
The author enjoys a grand proclamation about the nature of medicine, at one point comparing nurses to both artists and scientists, and even the title is a reference to what she feels is a central conflict for healthcare professionals. At times though, her sweeping observations contradict itself, such as when she seems to oscillates between the conviction that it is better to think of patients as a collection of body parts and the equally fervent assertion that one should never lose sight of patients' humanity.
The writing is underwhelming generally, often resorting to clichés (I counted at least three uses of putting two and two together and getting a number that wasn't four, and two of them were in the same paragraph!) and riddled with continuity errors (such as Olivia's drink switching from coffee to tea and back again within a brief conversation with Anjali) and incorrectly used words ('embellished' instead of 'embezzled' for example). I was also troubled by the author's parent-centric portrayal of adoption in Anjali's storyline; the thought of two characters gleefully celebrating a toddler whose life has deteriorated so much that she has to be removed from her biological parents left a really sour taste.
I found the discourse on the ethics of medicine, particularly in an age where knowledge, techniques and equipment have been developed to a point where it is possible to sustain life indefinitely in many cases, very interesting: the conflict for doctors between knowing that you could do something for a patient and whether you should. This thread elevated the plot about the young boy in intensive care beyond the main purpose it served in the story, and also tied the medical and non-medical narratives together nicely with discussion about when it is better to lie than to tell the truth. Laura's storyline was by far the most compelling for me, as she grapples with choosing between what is medically ethical and what will protect her friends and family.
The main characters are clearly defined and nuanced, their distinct back stories woven in to allow us to understand what motivates them, and I found their friendships enjoyable and engaging from the moment of their utterly bizarre medical school meet-cute. The minor characters of Donna, Anjali's partner, and Dele, Olivia's husband, feel comparatively thin and frustrating; I kept expecting more from them which never materialised.
The plot has potential but it is hard to follow. While the 1999 timeline is linear, the present day narrative jumps back and forth with no indication, leaving it to the reader to infer whether they are reading about new events or something that has already happened; early on, we see Laura and Olivia acting suspiciously during Sunday lunch at Olivia's house, a subsequent chapter jumps back to a conversation that reveals the reason for their behaviour, and we then jump forward in time again, but with all the chapters simply labelled '2024' time feels confusingly fluid. I finished the book with no clear sense of how much time was supposed to have passed in the present day between the party which is the catalyst for the plot and the story's denouement. The ending, when it comes, lacks the impact one might expect from the build-up which preceeds it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this book.
Author Christie Watson is a former nurse and she writes a world of surgeries, clinics, intensive care wards and medi-vacs with an authority and conviction that comes from years of working in different specialisms. Her prose brings the various hospital departments to life with a plethora of minute but specific details, and she deftly handles medical jargon in a way that feels organic and easy to follow for the lay reader.
However, the author's voice at times feels condescending - quick to sneer at patients and their family members (worried mothers pushing prams with overdressed babies with inevitable fevers, for example, along with heart surgery patients whose lifestyle has caused their illness) and some scenes are akin to body horror in their graphic descriptions of operations and field medicine. I can stomach one description of a patient's ribs cracking during chest compressions, but by the third time it just felt gratuitous. Other scenes meander into irrelevant or overly detailed descriptions of equipment which seem to be included solely to show off the author's first hand knowledge; did it really serve the plot to spend a paragraph comparing the pros and cons of different methods of measuring blood pressure?
The author enjoys a grand proclamation about the nature of medicine, at one point comparing nurses to both artists and scientists, and even the title is a reference to what she feels is a central conflict for healthcare professionals. At times though, her sweeping observations contradict itself, such as when she seems to oscillates between the conviction that it is better to think of patients as a collection of body parts and the equally fervent assertion that one should never lose sight of patients' humanity.
The writing is underwhelming generally, often resorting to clichés (I counted at least three uses of putting two and two together and getting a number that wasn't four, and two of them were in the same paragraph!) and riddled with continuity errors (such as Olivia's drink switching from coffee to tea and back again within a brief conversation with Anjali) and incorrectly used words ('embellished' instead of 'embezzled' for example). I was also troubled by the author's parent-centric portrayal of adoption in Anjali's storyline; the thought of two characters gleefully celebrating a toddler whose life has deteriorated so much that she has to be removed from her biological parents left a really sour taste.
I found the discourse on the ethics of medicine, particularly in an age where knowledge, techniques and equipment have been developed to a point where it is possible to sustain life indefinitely in many cases, very interesting: the conflict for doctors between knowing that you could do something for a patient and whether you should. This thread elevated the plot about the young boy in intensive care beyond the main purpose it served in the story, and also tied the medical and non-medical narratives together nicely with discussion about when it is better to lie than to tell the truth. Laura's storyline was by far the most compelling for me, as she grapples with choosing between what is medically ethical and what will protect her friends and family.
The main characters are clearly defined and nuanced, their distinct back stories woven in to allow us to understand what motivates them, and I found their friendships enjoyable and engaging from the moment of their utterly bizarre medical school meet-cute. The minor characters of Donna, Anjali's partner, and Dele, Olivia's husband, feel comparatively thin and frustrating; I kept expecting more from them which never materialised.
The plot has potential but it is hard to follow. While the 1999 timeline is linear, the present day narrative jumps back and forth with no indication, leaving it to the reader to infer whether they are reading about new events or something that has already happened; early on, we see Laura and Olivia acting suspiciously during Sunday lunch at Olivia's house, a subsequent chapter jumps back to a conversation that reveals the reason for their behaviour, and we then jump forward in time again, but with all the chapters simply labelled '2024' time feels confusingly fluid. I finished the book with no clear sense of how much time was supposed to have passed in the present day between the party which is the catalyst for the plot and the story's denouement. The ending, when it comes, lacks the impact one might expect from the build-up which preceeds it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this book.
March 3, 2025
Really poor, confusing structure, cliches galore and implausible episodes. I got to the end to find out what happened and two days after finishing I find that I can't remember and I don't care.
March 26, 2024
I just couldn't get into this.
I was far too slow in pace - other reviews have said it was a slow burn, but for me it didn't actually burn!
I found the plot to be super dense, and the characters were unlikeable.
I really really did not like this one.
I was far too slow in pace - other reviews have said it was a slow burn, but for me it didn't actually burn!
I found the plot to be super dense, and the characters were unlikeable.
I really really did not like this one.
March 24, 2024
I liked a language of kindness, Christie Watson's non fiction memoir. However, I wasn't so taken with this one. You can always tell when someone is an expert in their field as it shows in their writing and I felt this was overly done. We had lots of descriptions of daily duties, principles and ethics within medicine. The story wasn't bad...it reminded me a bit of a lianne moriarty book. We follow three friends Laura, Olivia and Anjali. They all met at med school and have been firm friends for the past 20 years when the past.comes back to haunt them when it involves their children at a party. Will their friendship survive a second time?
February 16, 2025
Despite the book's brief length, I completed it in three days. Simply put, reading it was tedious. I had the worst time trying to make this book work for me since the characters were uninteresting and the plot was unimpressive.
March 9, 2024
Moral Injuries starts with the prologue opening at a rager of a house party fueled by tons of alcohol and drugs. It’s told in first-person, yet who is telling the story is not revealed. The party ends in tragedy, yet who experiences this tragedy and all involved is kept a mystery.
Olivia, Laura, and Anjali meet in Medical School and become fast friends. They quickly form such a bond, they think of themselves as family. The story is told in alternating POV’s between each of the three women and also alternates between the past (during med school) and the present. It explores the bounds of true friendship and how it can be tested during difficult times.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I’m a huge fan of medical dramas, so I really liked reading about the women as they go through Med school and their experience as Doctors. I also liked that it had a hefty dose of suspense. I did think the story was dragging out a tiny bit, but I also think it was necessary to tell the story. Some also might find the alternating POV’s mixed with alternating timelines a lot to take in.
I did think that Christie Watson’s experience as a Nurse is really cool and brings a unique voice to this novel. Her writing and character development is excellent and her medical background really allows you to immerse yourself in Olivia, Laura, and Anjali’s world.
Moral Injuries was a 4.5 for me. I definitely recommend this book if you enjoy suspenseful drama’s, especially anything rooted in medicine.
Many thanks to Harper Collins, NetGalley and Christie Watson for gifting me an ARC in exchange for my honest review!
Olivia, Laura, and Anjali meet in Medical School and become fast friends. They quickly form such a bond, they think of themselves as family. The story is told in alternating POV’s between each of the three women and also alternates between the past (during med school) and the present. It explores the bounds of true friendship and how it can be tested during difficult times.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I’m a huge fan of medical dramas, so I really liked reading about the women as they go through Med school and their experience as Doctors. I also liked that it had a hefty dose of suspense. I did think the story was dragging out a tiny bit, but I also think it was necessary to tell the story. Some also might find the alternating POV’s mixed with alternating timelines a lot to take in.
I did think that Christie Watson’s experience as a Nurse is really cool and brings a unique voice to this novel. Her writing and character development is excellent and her medical background really allows you to immerse yourself in Olivia, Laura, and Anjali’s world.
Moral Injuries was a 4.5 for me. I definitely recommend this book if you enjoy suspenseful drama’s, especially anything rooted in medicine.
Many thanks to Harper Collins, NetGalley and Christie Watson for gifting me an ARC in exchange for my honest review!
February 20, 2024
As others have said, this book has a great premise but for me it just wasn’t executed well. There are three main characters and the book is told from their different points of view over different timescales, which can get quite confusing. I also felt it took an age for anything of real consequence to happen and then it all happened at once. I’m sure others will enjoy this book but it wasn’t for me. Thank you to NetGalley, Orion Publishing Group and the author for the chance to review.
June 25, 2024
Moral Injuries details the moral quandary that occurs when a pact made by three best friends in medical school resurfaces as they help their children navigate a similar situation.
Laura, Olivia & Anjali met in medical school and their close friendship has continued as they work as a life-flight physician, cardiothoracic surgeon and a general practitioner within the healthcare system in the UK. They flashback to 1999 and the events leading up to a secret they've kept between themselves and present day when their children are involved in a party-related tragedy. Moral compasses spin as the women choose between their children and their friendship and ethical decisions in medicine.
Read if you enjoy medical settings, stories of women's friendships, and reading others handling the outcome of making difficult decisions.
Laura, Olivia & Anjali met in medical school and their close friendship has continued as they work as a life-flight physician, cardiothoracic surgeon and a general practitioner within the healthcare system in the UK. They flashback to 1999 and the events leading up to a secret they've kept between themselves and present day when their children are involved in a party-related tragedy. Moral compasses spin as the women choose between their children and their friendship and ethical decisions in medicine.
Read if you enjoy medical settings, stories of women's friendships, and reading others handling the outcome of making difficult decisions.
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