Well, that wasn't what I had expected. I've read Julie Murphy's Dumplin' series, which I thought was simply fabulous, so I picked this up knowing nothing about it except that it was written by the same author. Holy cow, this book couldn't be further from Dumplin' if it tried! Unlike the sweet and sassy protagonists we meet in Dumplin', Side Effects May Vary is a raw, dark story about a teenage girl who has been diagnosed with cancer and is not afraid to show the world how pissed off she is about it.

At first, I didn't care for Alice very much, or her lovesick-but-friendzoned bestie, Harvey. It felt like an overdone trope (way-too-nice guy is in love with childhood best friend who is quirky but doesn't actually have any likeable qualities). Reading on, though, as the angry tone of the book really sank in, I suddenly got it. I found an appreciation for Alice and her bitterness because, when you think about it, what 17-year-old wouldn't be mad after having their world flipped on its side that way? I think Murphy tells a genuine story that dives deep into the emotional and physical suffering that this illness would put upon on a kid of that age.