Moral Injuries

Moral Injuries by Christie Watson
6/25/24; 272 pages
HarperCollins

Moral Injuries by Christie Watson is a recommended medical/domestic drama following three best friends since medical school and a twenty-five-year-old secret.

Olivia, Laura, and Anjali have been best friends for twenty-five years since their first day of medical school. Now Olivia is a cardiothoracic surgeon, Laura is a doctor on a helicopter rescue team, and Anjali is a general practitioner. They have been there supporting each other ever since they met, including keeping a secret from their past. They have also been keeping secrets from each other. When their teenage children face a situation that could affect their future, they try to protect their children which causes all the carefully placed dominoes in their world to fall.

The narrative is told through the point-of-view of the three main characters. The novel started out strong but soon lost steam and began to feel a bit contrived and slow moving as you keep reading, waiting for the big secret to be revealed while other secrets are flying around the room. Readers must wait until late in the novel to learn the big secret, but it seems other secrets were just as important. Actually, it was a stretch for me to believe these three women would remain friends for so long.

The medical portions of the plot are well done, interesting, and should appeal to readers who enjoy medical dramas. The personal dramas, however, seem to slow the pace down and were repetitious. It is obvious that Watson enjoys writing about the medical action more than the emotional issues. It was also a surprise when done reading to see it was only 272 pages because it seemed much longer which isn't necessarily a good sign. Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.