Bethnal Green is a hopeful coming-of-age story set between London and Penang in 1971. Suyin has just arrived in London as a student nurse at Bethnal Green Hospital, following in the footsteps of her sister who has recently, suddenly, moved home to Malaysia. As Suyin explores London, she finds herself falling in love with the city, its people, and the immersive, rewarding work of caring and nursing for her patients.

At its heart, Bethnal Green is a gorgeous historical fiction that brings together sisterhood, self-discovery and hope. I loved Suyin so much; she felt like a little sister to me: switched-on, naïve, relatable and resilient. And it's true what the marketing says: this is a love letter to the NHS and the teams of nurses that keep it running. There isn't too much medical speak in the story, just a warm undercurrent of just what nurses do for us all.

I read this book over the course of 36 hours and was completely addicted. I love an immigrant story and especially all of the beautiful descriptions of my own beloved Malaysia. I just wish we had a bit longer in the story: Suyin talks about her sister's London A-Z map but I didn't get a satisfactory reason to why it'd been mentioned so much. The last 'part' felt a little disjointed and rushed, too, with more of the family-between-seas thread explored than in any other part of the book.

All in all, an enjoyable debut from Amélie Skoda that really got me in the heart.