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Side Effects
Sophie, a young wife, experiences a breakdown. She is hospitalized and isolated. Before she can recuperate fully, she must feel forgiven for a misdeed in her childhood. She covets that forgiveness, especially from her father. By telling her story to Abe, the nurse practitioner, she finds a way to a new inner freedom. Her relationship with her father is restored, and the reader comes to understand how the story of her childhood affects her ability to choose for herself and find peace and fulfillment. While emotionally gripping, the author leaves the reader with a sense of the realities in life we all face: loss, grief and sometimes mistreatment....
204 pages, Paperback
Published October 17, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 21, 2026
What I enjoyed about Side Effects is how Myrna Brown slowly reveals that Sophie’s struggles didn’t begin with her breakdown. There is so much history behind the person we meet, and as more of her past comes to light, I understood her in a completely different way.
Her friendship with Anna was one of my favorite parts of the story. There is something very genuine about the way their lives remain connected through so many changes and difficult moments. I also found Sophie’s need for forgiveness especially heartbreaking because she has spent so much time blaming herself for something that happened when she was only a child.
This book made me think about how grief can stay with a person and quietly shape the way they see themselves. Sophie isn't a perfect character, and that's exactly what made her feel real to me. A thoughtful and emotional story that stayed on my mind after I finished it.
Her friendship with Anna was one of my favorite parts of the story. There is something very genuine about the way their lives remain connected through so many changes and difficult moments. I also found Sophie’s need for forgiveness especially heartbreaking because she has spent so much time blaming herself for something that happened when she was only a child.
This book made me think about how grief can stay with a person and quietly shape the way they see themselves. Sophie isn't a perfect character, and that's exactly what made her feel real to me. A thoughtful and emotional story that stayed on my mind after I finished it.
August 21, 2026
Side Effects surprised me with how much depth there was behind Sophie’s story. At first, I was simply trying to understand what was happening to her, but the more of her past we discover, the more I understood where her fears and guilt were coming from.
One thing that really stood out to me was how Sophie’s grief over Anna brings so many old wounds back to the surface. Her desperate attempts to find forgiveness and make sense of everything she has experienced made some parts of the story genuinely heartbreaking.
I also appreciated that Sophie’s journey isn't presented as something that can be neatly explained or fixed. She feels like a real person trying to make sense of a world that has become confusing to her.
This was an emotional and thought-provoking read for me. Myrna Brown created a character whose story made me feel compassion, frustration, sadness, and ultimately hope. Sophie’s journey is one that will stay with me.
One thing that really stood out to me was how Sophie’s grief over Anna brings so many old wounds back to the surface. Her desperate attempts to find forgiveness and make sense of everything she has experienced made some parts of the story genuinely heartbreaking.
I also appreciated that Sophie’s journey isn't presented as something that can be neatly explained or fixed. She feels like a real person trying to make sense of a world that has become confusing to her.
This was an emotional and thought-provoking read for me. Myrna Brown created a character whose story made me feel compassion, frustration, sadness, and ultimately hope. Sophie’s journey is one that will stay with me.
August 11, 2026
Side Effects really stayed with me. Sophie is such a complicated and vulnerable character, and I found myself feeling for her even when I didn't fully understand the choices she was making.
What touched me most was how her grief, childhood guilt, friendship with Anna, and desperate search for God all became connected. Her breakdown wasn't presented as something simple or easy to explain, it felt like the result of years of emotions that Sophie had never really been able to face.
I especially loved the emotional connection between Sophie and Anna. Their friendship gave the story so much heart, and their final conversations were genuinely moving.
This is a difficult story in places, but it is also deeply human. Myrna Brown did a beautiful job showing how much a person can carry inside without anyone else fully seeing it. Sophie is definitely a character I will remember.
What touched me most was how her grief, childhood guilt, friendship with Anna, and desperate search for God all became connected. Her breakdown wasn't presented as something simple or easy to explain, it felt like the result of years of emotions that Sophie had never really been able to face.
I especially loved the emotional connection between Sophie and Anna. Their friendship gave the story so much heart, and their final conversations were genuinely moving.
This is a difficult story in places, but it is also deeply human. Myrna Brown did a beautiful job showing how much a person can carry inside without anyone else fully seeing it. Sophie is definitely a character I will remember.
August 21, 2026
There were moments in Side Effects when I had to slow down and really take in what Sophie was experiencing. Her mind becomes such an important part of the story, and I thought the author did a good job showing how frighteningly real her beliefs feel to her while she is going through her breakdown.
I especially liked the way the story connects her present struggles with the losses and guilt she has carried since childhood. Even her desire to find God and somehow save Anna comes from such a deep place of love, fear, and desperation. What I took away from the book is that sometimes the things we never talk about don't simply disappear. They can follow us for years and affect us in ways we don't even recognize.
Sophie’s journey is painful, but it is also very human. This was not a story I could just finish and forget; it gave me quite a bit to think about.
I especially liked the way the story connects her present struggles with the losses and guilt she has carried since childhood. Even her desire to find God and somehow save Anna comes from such a deep place of love, fear, and desperation. What I took away from the book is that sometimes the things we never talk about don't simply disappear. They can follow us for years and affect us in ways we don't even recognize.
Sophie’s journey is painful, but it is also very human. This was not a story I could just finish and forget; it gave me quite a bit to think about.
August 27, 2026
Side Effects is one of those stories that made me feel a lot of compassion for its main character. Sophie is clearly carrying far more pain than the people around her realize, and watching her struggle with grief, guilt, and the fear of losing Anna was heartbreaking.
What I found especially powerful was learning how much of Sophie’s pain went back to her childhood. The story shows how something that happened years ago can continue to affect a person’s life in ways they may not even understand.
This was an emotional read with a very human story at its center. Sophie’s journey gave me a lot to think about, and I appreciated the way the author allowed her to be vulnerable and complicated rather than giving us easy answers.
What I found especially powerful was learning how much of Sophie’s pain went back to her childhood. The story shows how something that happened years ago can continue to affect a person’s life in ways they may not even understand.
This was an emotional read with a very human story at its center. Sophie’s journey gave me a lot to think about, and I appreciated the way the author allowed her to be vulnerable and complicated rather than giving us easy answers.
September 10, 2026
Side Effects gave me a lot more to think about than I expected. Sophie’s story is complicated, and I liked that the book lets you see the different pieces of her life instead of reducing everything to one simple explanation. Her grief over Anna, her search for God, and the feeling that she is constantly trying to prove herself all seem to build on each other.
I also found myself thinking about how easily the people around Sophie misunderstood what she was going through. Some parts were difficult to read, but they felt important rather than unnecessary. It’s not a perfect or easy story, but it feels honest, and Sophie’s journey is the kind that stays in your head for a while after you close the book.
I also found myself thinking about how easily the people around Sophie misunderstood what she was going through. Some parts were difficult to read, but they felt important rather than unnecessary. It’s not a perfect or easy story, but it feels honest, and Sophie’s journey is the kind that stays in your head for a while after you close the book.
September 4, 2026
I honestly didn’t know what to expect from Side Effects, but Sophie stayed with me after I finished reading. What I found interesting was that her story wasn’t just about one moment of breaking down. There were so many things underneath it, her grief over Anna, her struggles with faith, her marriage, and the parts of herself she seemed to have buried for years.
Some moments made me uncomfortable, and others made me genuinely sad for her. Sophie is not always easy to understand, but that actually made her feel more real to me. This was one of those books that made me stop and think about how much a person can be carrying without the people around them really seeing it.
Some moments made me uncomfortable, and others made me genuinely sad for her. Sophie is not always easy to understand, but that actually made her feel more real to me. This was one of those books that made me stop and think about how much a person can be carrying without the people around them really seeing it.
September 10, 2026
Side Effects surprised me because it made me think less about what was happening to Sophie and more about how she got there. I found myself paying attention to the little things, her need for approval, her complicated feelings about her marriage, her education, and especially how deeply Anna’s illness affected her. Sophie can be difficult to follow at times, but I think that’s part of the point. Her world is becoming confusing even to herself. It’s a thoughtful and sometimes unsettling story that gave me a lot to sit with after reading.
September 4, 2026
Side Effects was one of those books that slowly pulled me deeper into Sophie’s world. I really felt the weight of everything she was carrying, especially her grief and loneliness. Watching her search so desperately for meaning and understanding was heartbreaking at times. It’s an emotional story, and Sophie’s journey stayed on my mind after I finished reading.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews