At Attention by Annabeth Albert + Necessary Medicine by M.K. York

Posted April 17, 2017 by shooting in Uncategorized / 18 Comments

At Attention by Annabeth Albert

Review by Lauren

source: copy from Netgalley; all opinions are my own

Official Summary: It’s a bit long, so check it out on Goodreads! 
Review: At Attention is the second in the Out of Uniform series and just as good as the first. In this book we have Apollo who lost his husband a couple years ago and is now raising their twin daughters on his own. He never saw himself as the settling down type until he met his husband, so he’s not exactly looking for someone else to fill the role of companion or lover. However, when his best friend pushes his younger brother, Dylan, on him for the summer, things begin to change. Dylan is in town to help Apollo with the girls and to work at a summer camp. While Dylan has always had a crush on Apollo, he tries to get a handle on his feelings and just be the helpful person that Apollo obviously needs. Of course…this doesn’t last that long.

Eventually, the two do start up a relationship of sorts, though it’s not really defined as such and kept a secret from anyone. Dylan is only here for the summer, so Apollo can rationalize getting involved when he knows it’s just physical and there’s an end date. This is before feelings enter the equation and they definitely do! For one thing, Dylan has feelings from the start, even if he tells himself he’s okay with just the summer. As for Apollo, he starts to realize how much he truly likes Dylan and it’s obvious that Dylan fits well in the family, since the girls also adore him. 

This is another great read by Annabeth Albert, and I highly recommend the whole series. The characters were realistic and well done, and I thought the evolving relationship between Apollo and Dylan was done very well. I can’t wait for the third book, whose main characters appear in At Attention! Get to know them now! 




Necessary Medicine by M.K. York 


Review by Lauren


source: copy from Netgalley; all opinions are my own


Official Summary: In the high-intensity world of hospital residency programs, there’s no room for romance. So it’s a good thing for first-year surgical resident Neil Carmona that his crush on the gorgeous cardiologist Eli Newcombe is sheer fantasy. Not only is the sexy doctor Neil’s superior, he’s also recently divorced. 

As Neil’s skill as a surgeon grows, so does his friendship with Eli, and his silent, hopeless longing for more. It isn’t until Neil’s final year that Eli at last admits his own deepest desires. But Neil’s joy is short-lived: Eli has no intention of pursuing a relationship. Their positions in the hospital would make it unethical, even if he was emotionally ready for someone new. 

Wounded and furious, Neil is determined to forget about Eli once and for all. But when a near-tragedy strikes, a new question arises: Is a life without love—without Neil—a greater risk than laying his heart on the line?




Review: When the book starts, Neil is a medical student and then he’s an intern, and then a fellow. The book moves through the years a bit, but I found it easy enough to follow so I was never confused as to where Neil was in his journey to becoming an attending doctor. As for Eli, he’s a cardiologist who Neil first sees in medical school, when Eli is there to give a speech. Once Neil is working at the hospital, he’s path crosses with Eli more and more often. While Neil has been harboring a crush on Eli for years, he doesn’t think the feeling is at mutual since Eli has an ex wife and has never once mentioned being bisexual. As such, Neil tries to enjoy their budding friendship without getting too attached, and it works for awhile. 

Obviously Eli has feelings for Neil too. I don’t think that’s a spoiler as it’s in the summary, and that’s just how these stories go, right? At the same time, Eli isn’t willing to risk either of their jobs or reputations by acting on those feelings and it definitely upsets Neil. This makes sense though; Neil has had these feelings for years and when he finally realizes that they are reciprocated, he’s pushed away. Despite this, things do end up okay for the two, but I don’t want to go into too many details and spoil the whole story. The details are the story after all.

One thing that I will note though is that the book felt a bit too long, as the author focuses a lot on the medical aspect of the story. While I understood most of the details, it did feel like a bit much in parts. Granted, the author is a medical student so it does make sense. While some of the descriptions could have been left out, having some does make the hospital and its inhabitants feel that much more realistic. What tends to suffer from these details is that the actual romance doesn’t really appear until maybe halfway through the book. I was never bored reading the book, but I was definitely more interested in the relationship aspect of the book. 
Necessary Medicine is York’s debut, but hopefully she’ll write more! 

18 responses to “At Attention by Annabeth Albert + Necessary Medicine by M.K. York”

  2. mypixieblog

    Thank you for sharing these reviews–both sound excellent (and I always loved hospital setting for a tv show/book). I swear my list is growing with all of these recommendations but please keep them coming! Xoxo

    Reply

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