I loved this book!! My first romance book in the males perspective. I am a sucker for a jock falling for a nerdy girl. Bronx was such a good character 👏🏻 Olivia made him a better person and I so wish there was a second book of there lives together!

Thank you, NetGalley and Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

What really drew me to this book was that it is a romance book written from the POV of the MMC. I find in most romance books we sometimes get a chapter or maybe even switch back and forth but this was my first fully male POV romance read.

Bronx is a college quarterback who ends up falling for his lab partner. He is a playboy with a no commitment policy and Olivia is the complete opposite as a straight A student, focused on becoming a surgeon.

I personally found it very difficult to like our MMC because of the playboy aspect of his personality, but eventually Bronx started to grow on me as a sweeter side of him emerged as he got to know Olivia. The relationship between our couple was very sweet and cute which I enjoyed. The drama and scheming in the book was a surprise to me, it felt a bit immature, but it isn’t completely out of place in a college setting.

I didn’t see the ending coming at all, it surprised me how emotional and raw it got, and I definitely shed a tear or two.

Scars of Anatomy by Nicole Alfrine is a sizzling and heartwarming sports romance that combines the perfect blend of sweetness and spice. The story follows Bronx Miller, a cocky college quarterback with his eyes set on the NFL, and Olivia McCausland, a focused, no-nonsense pre-med student. Their unexpected pairing as anatomy lab partners sparks chemistry neither of them can ignore. As study sessions evolve into bet-driven moments and vulnerable conversations, both Bronx and Olivia start to peel back the layers of their personas, realizing they might have more in common than they thought.

Alfrine expertly balances the opposites-attract dynamic, making Bronx’s charming playboy persona and Olivia’s quiet intelligence a captivating pairing. The slow-burn romance keeps readers hooked as the tension builds with both humor and heart. The added layer of personal growth and the emotional scars they both carry add depth to the story, making it not just a love story, but a journey toward self-acceptance.

Fans of light, spicy romance with strong character development will enjoy this one. It has the perfect balance of steam and sweetness, with a bit of college drama to keep things interesting. And yes, it would make an excellent movie!

This, unfortunately, immediately reads like a wattpad book. I'm not saying some people wouldn't like it, its just not for me. Its very dramatic/angsty.

This book was a bit slow in the beginning for me, but once it picked up I couldn't put it down. I don't get why this book is labeled spicy because really there's almost no spice to this book.

I did like the fact that over the book Bronx and Olivia realize that they have more in common, the fact that their lives are connected by one person from the past is a strong bond for them. I felt bad for them both because they were in foster care, but this was a good look into the life of a college student who made their life something and proved that not all foster kids will be drug dealers or amount to nothing.

I loved that they both saw each others scars as beautiful and a part of their stories that made them who they were.

I have unfortunately left my reformed playboy era… I really did not love how the MMC described some things….

Scars of Anatomy follows Bronx, the star player of his college football team, and Olivia, a premed student, who are paired as lab partners in their anatomy class. Bronx isn’t getting the grades he needs, so he asks Olivia to tutor him—and you can probably guess where things go from there.

I loved the premise of Scars of Anatomy, but unfortunately, the story didn’t capture my attention the way I’d hoped. Maybe because I met my husband in college, I found myself holding this book to a higher standard. It just felt like it fell a little flat.

I really appreciated that the story was told from the male main character’s perspective—that’s not something you see often. However, I do think it would’ve been nice to occasionally get a chapter from Olivia’s point of view. We got a full picture of Bronx’s typical football player lifestyle: the frat parties, the drinking, the hookups. But what about Olivia? What did her senior year look like? Didn’t she and her best friend ever go out and have fun? I felt like that side of the story was missing, and it left the connection between the characters feeling underdeveloped.

There are also some heavy topics covered in this book, including child loss, organ donation, parental addiction, and abuse. If those are triggering for you, this might not be the right read.

Thank you to Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this novel.

As a fan of opposites-attract romances with emotional depth, I found Scars of Anatomy to be a charming and satisfying debut from Nicole Alfrine. With its blend of sweet chemistry and spicy tension, it reminded me in all the right ways of modern favorites like Hannah Grace and Ali Hazelwood.

What I loved most:

Bronx Miller is your classic star quarterback on the edge of NFL stardom—cocky, charismatic, and living by a zero-commitments rule. His transformation as Olivia peels back layer after layer? Delightfully done.

Olivia McCausland is smart, driven, and refreshingly unimpressed by Bronx’s bravado. Her grounded perspective and inner strength keep the romance rooted in more than physical attraction

Their study sessions and friendly bets over anatomy tests give the slow‑burn romance a playful academic backbone. Threads of emotional scars—both past trauma and identity-driven—are woven through beautifully to emphasize growth and healing.

This debut brings a refreshing male POV, some pleasantly surprising twists, and a satisfying arc of vulnerability and self-discovery. The overarching message—that scars don’t define your future—is handled with both heart and nuance

Would I recommend it?
Absolutely, especially if you’re looking for a romance that combines chemistry, emotional depth, and a sporty college setting. This was a thoroughly enjoyable read—and I’d happily pick up more by Alfrine.

I thought this was a good book and I liked how it went through their entire school year. It reminded me of books I read when I was younger.

#ScarsofAnatomy #NetGalley

Like many others, I found myself struggling a bit with the pacing of Scars of Anatomy. The day-by-day narrative style didn’t quite work for me, as I prefer stories that move forward based on plot or relationship development. At times, the daily breakdown felt repetitive and caused the story to drag. I think the same insights into the characters’ everyday lives could have been achieved without getting bogged down in a play-by-play format.

That said, I really enjoyed experiencing the story through the MMC’s point of view instead of the FMC’s. It offered a refreshing perspective and added depth to the narrative. The chemistry between the main characters was a highlight. It was playful, flirtatious, and genuinely sweet. I found myself rooting for them from the very beginning. Bronx’s immediate infatuation with Olivia was endearing, and I loved watching their connection grow organically from strangers to friends to lovers. I also appreciated that Olivia didn’t fall into the typical “shy, hyper-focused med student” trope. She was vibrant, intelligent, and brought her own energy to the story, matching the MMC with confidence and charm.

(Note for the publishing group: This feedback is less for the author and more for how the book was categorized) When Scars of Anatomy was first added to the galley, it was labeled as “erotica.” While the MMC does have a few encounters with other characters, the level of detail didn’t quite align with that genre. It may have benefited from a different categorization.

A huge thanks to Nicole Alfrine, the Wattpad Webtoon Book Group, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Scars of Anatomy ahead of its release.

Super cute and spicy romance. I loved seeing it from the MMC’s perspective instead! This was an adorable summer read and I look forward to more from this author.

This story follows a star quarterback who instantly falls for the pre-med student when they partner up in Anatomy class. I have to say that I have mix feelings about this book. I liked the romance storyline and I was into the main story however, the scenes were choppy and very repetitive. It felt as though there were only a couple of sets that we were restricted to which was mainly the college. I didn’t get the college atmosphere vibe and instead got more high school drama throughout this book. I did find it unique that this is told from the MMC’s pov because I haven’t seen that before in a while. I did like the QR code we get after certain chapters (about 5 codes) where we can read from the FMC’s pov. I liked the idea but I have to say that if you don’t read it, then you are kind of missing out on some information.

Bronx is the MMC who is popular and doesn’t commit. He’s a good person but has his random mood swings at time. I did wish the author tapped more into his past as we got a few pieces of it. There would also be random information dumps like “omg that’s you?” or “yuh that’s my mom” and just leave it be. Then we have Olivia who is a caring, sweet person but dang this girl needed to tell rat face to leave. He should not have gotten far with all of his red flag energy. There are a few side characters but rat face and Ade where the bullies in this college. The romance is friends to lovers, opposites attract story which was cute. This book only has one spicy scene but other than that it’s very tame.

The ending was well done and a good finish. I did like the extended epilogue (which you get from the QR code). There were a couple of cute moments in this book like how Bronx never let a girl in his room, the Finch nickname, and their study time moments, but there were also some things that were just so typical or made me mad.

*this book was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

I wish I loved this book more, but I felt like the MMC really didn’t have much growth at all, which bummed me out! I enjoyed the chemistry between these two and was very hopeful (especially because there were so many tropes I love). However, I felt like Bronx never really faced consequences for his actions or evolved.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad for this eARC!

I'd give this book a solid 3 stars. You don't see many book romance books told from the MMC point of view, so I liked that it was something different in a world where books are usually told in FMC point of view or a dual point view.

Overall, I thought the books was cute and I'd recommend to my book club.

this was cute!! i love a nerdy student + jock pairing. i also thought it was very unique that this was written in the MMC POV. i do prefer dual POV when reading romance books, but that's def a me thing. i think the middle was a bit repetitive and sort of lulled a bit, but the ending made up for it.

overall, this was an easy, cute read, but probably won't be super memorable for me.

thanks for the ARC!

The fact that this book was told entirely from the male main character's perspective was a really cool way to read a romance book! I liked the spin it put on this sports romance.

I found the humour in this book, especially in the beginning, a bit cringey and it was hard to get through. I found that as we got deeper into the story, it eased up.

The speed at which the two characters fell for each other was pretty fast and I would've liked to see a slightly slower burn. There wasn't a physical intimacy between them until later in the book, but with a male main character who was so sexually forward, it seemed a little unrealistic.

I liked that football was an aspect of this story but it didn't overwhelm the story. I would have liked to see a little more involvement of Olivia into the sport, especially with her dad's role.

Overall, this was a good story and I liked reading it, but it didn't blow me away!

I received a copy of this book as a digital arc from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I've come to expect that Wattpad published books are not necessarily the best written books (reads more like amateur writing/high schooler writing), but they are entertaining, light, and fun. This is a story of a football player who falls in love with the nerdy/academic, quiet beauty who wants to go to med school. The story reminds me of the college experience -- get up, go to class, flirt, have lunches together, maybe go to parties, football games on weekends, rinse and repeat. So the plot doesn't bring anything new to the genre, but reading this from Bronx's point of view was fun. There are some trigger warnings for a drug-addict mother, child abuse (referred to, not depicted), lab rat dissections, and hospitals.

This is labeled as erotica, but I think the spice-level is pretty moderate, and not really all that erotic. If you liked Night Shift by Annie Crown, I think this is a similar type of story and that you would enjoy this as well. Solid palette cleanser, college romance.

Mixed feelings on this one. Scars of Anatomy is a sports/college romance between a star quarterback and a pre-med student. The story is good. Like I love the idea of it - two wounded, imperfect people finding each other. But the execution left a lot to be desired. The chapters in the first half of the book felt very choppy, like the book was struggling to flow from one chapter to the next, but it did seem to get better in the latter half of the book. This is also supposed to be a college (like seniors in college, which is basically a graduated adult) and everyone is acting like they're still in high school. Some of the stuff that the characters did just had me throwing my hands up in the air and yelling into oblivion, because HOW IMMATURE CAN YOU GET?! Why are the side characters (Adrianna, Rat Boy) so in love, like almost obtusely infatuated with the MCs? I don't get it. Olivia was fine, maybe a little boring for a FMC, and I honestly felt like she deserved better than Bronx. And Bronx. There is so much to unpack. He's a walking red flag (literally calls himself out on being manipulative at one point) and would have benefited from therapy to help work through his issues rather than jumping into a relationship and treating his partner poorly. I think there are people who would enjoy this book - it was a very fast, easy read and the twist caught me by surprise and saved the book from being 2 stars and bumped it up to a 3 star read. Thanks Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Here is my review of the book on Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7688969162

I’m so thankful I got to read this book. The story was GREAT and I loved the male perspective. I will highly recommend this book. It was worth every minute spent on it.

Scars of Anatomy by Nicole Alfrine was a book I absolutely devoured. I loved both characters so much . Nicole Alfrine’s writing is incredible . The storyline was perfection and the banter between these two was something else.
This book blew me away! I had so much fun reading it!