Thank you to NetGalley and Wattpad WESTOON Book Group, W by Wattpad Books for the eARC.

You can definitely tell this was a debut book by a debut author. Some of the dialogue was awkward and having the story be from the MMC's POV was a bold choice.

I often enjoy the opposites attract jock/shy girl MCs but this didn't quite hit the mark for me.
The fact that this man asked zero questions about the FMC was the most accurate part of this book. He knew NOTHING about her and was somehow so down bad? If you enjoy insta-love, college romances, you will enjoy this one.
This had a lot of good parts that ultimately had me enjoying their love story and wanting to see how it ended up. I would be interested to see what this author writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and [Publisher Name - please insert] for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts are my own and are in no way influenced by early access to this title.

Scars of Anatomy is an adorable and engaging sports romance that truly highlights Nicole Alfrine's talent as a debut author! This book offers a fantastic blend of sweet romance and thoughtful spice, reminiscent of authors like Hannah Grace and Ali Hazelwood, while carving out its own unique voice.

The story centers on Bronx Miller, a hotshot college quarterback, and Olivia McCausland, a brilliant pre-med student. Thrown together as anatomy lab partners, their initial "opposites attract" dynamic quickly sparks into something more. I was particularly impressed by the choice to tell part of the story from Bronx's perspective; it's not often you get a romance solely from the male main character's POV, and it was a refreshing and enjoyable experience.

Bronx has a troubled past, which he's trying to outrun rather than process. His journey of healing and growth, and how he navigates his trauma, adds significant depth to his character. Olivia, initially appearing as the typical "nerdy hottie," undergoes remarkable character development, especially towards the latter part of the book – a true highlight for me!

Beyond the captivating main couple, Scars of Anatomy delivers a delightful mix of tropes: jealous friends, heartwarming romantic moments, cute nicknames, and even a dash of backstabbing that keeps the plot exciting. Amidst the fun, the book thoughtfully tackles themes of trauma healing and the idea that scars, in their various forms, don't define your future.

Overall, Scars of Anatomy is a solid and enjoyable read. It's a testament to Nicole Alfrine's promising start as an author, and I'm genuinely excited to see what she writes next. This book is a wonderful pick for anyone who loves a good grumpy/sunshine, sports romance with plenty of heart.

This was a cute love story in the MMCs POV which I really enjoyed. It’s fun to see/hear the guy pining over the girl. He would do anything for her, which is what we all want right? This book did get a bit repetitive and would’ve been good to mix it up a little bit of what they were doing, but all in all it was a sweet story.

Thank you Wattpad WEBTOON book group, NetGalley, and Nicole Alfrine for a copy of this ARC.

I thought it was nice to have a s0-called rom-com in the perspective of the MMC for once! I thought this aspect was fantastic. I thought most of the action in the book between Bronx and Olivia had wayyy too much time in class and not enough time in their real lives away from their studies. Some of the supporting characters were even great.

Where this book lost me was the inner dialogue of Bronx! He seemed like the typical jock with a somewhat sensitive side when interacting with Olivia. However, when there is no character dialogue, Bronx's thoughts were perverted and fucked up! His past hookup? No. His thoughts about other women? Eeeeck. His thoughts about his? Disgusting and disturbing.

The ones star was for the male POV, but as the story progresses the stars decrease for slow-burn, lack of dialogue, and the effed up inner thoughts of Bronx.

Cannot recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley, Nicole Alfrine and Wattpad WESTOON Book Group W by Wattpad Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available 6/24/2025

I loved that the book was written in the MMC POV. I do love a dual POV but I LOVEE reading it from the MMC.

When you get to the part of the book where everything falls into place and wonder how you still have so much left to read, everything feels pretty much resolved. I love when we get to see more of the relationship after they get together.

I’ve already recommended this to my friends. Best romance I’ve read in months.

I loved that the book was from the male main character’s point of view, that was a first for me but I loved it so much! It made the story feel different and refreshing. Even without her POV, we still got to learn so much about the female lead.
The plot twists, the drama, and the deeper connections between the characters added to the story.

Overall, I enjoyed this book! If you’re looking for a quick cutesy, college romance with a slow burn and emotional depth, I’d recommend checking this one out.

This book is great!!! I like that it gives off “slow burn” vibes but not rly. I also wouldn’t call it a friends to lovers bc they start as classmates and it just progresses from there. There’s drama and a little spice. I’d rate it a 2.5/5 on a spice scale. Very “contemporary”.

Bronx is the football player that all the girls want - so much so that he doesn’t allow any girls into his dorm room. Olivia is a pre-med major who doesn’t know who he is, and happens to be his new lab partner.

This is the first romance novel I’ve ever read where the entire book was from the MMC’s point of view. It was such a change to hear everything from his perspective and wonder what the FMC was thinking/hiding. Bronx’s responses and reactions were true to character and I enjoyed getting to know Olivia alongside him. Although the book was slow burn for the MMC/FMC, there were several scenes outside of theirs so I wouldn’t classify the book as such. There were few predictable scenes, many unpredictable moments, and a super-cheesy ending that just works. Definitely recommend!

From the first page I didn’t like this book. The inner dialogue was weird and unsettling. He was gross about his mom, his hookup, and all other women. I hate that. Why are you writing a man that hates women as a woman? I think male POVs are not for me. DNF would give this zero stars if I could

4.25 ⭐️
.5 🌶️

May I say, I can count on one hand how many romance books I've read where the MMC is the main narrator of the book and honestly? I enjoyed having Bronx pov so much. While I may be a dual pov girlie through and through, I don't think dual pov would have done this book justice the way it was.

Bronx is such a complex character and seeing his growth throughout a single semester was very impressive, especially since it was more innocent and not just because he knew he would get something out of it. I really did like his and Olivia's relationship and the slow burn of it all.

That plot twist near the end though????? Man, you would've thought I was sitting in with them during that scene because I was lowkey crying too.

I am a sucker for the nerd/jock college romances. They all follow a similar blueprint, but it works! I liked Bronx and Olivia together - I thought their chemistry was very relatable.

College romance from the MMC’s point of view which was interesting and different. However, for me, this felt like a young adult book. It was really bland. It had barely any passion or spice. Basically nothing happened between them until the last part of the book and when it did, it wasn’t explosive. The slow burn just fizzled out. So many weird plot twists at the end that felt forced and awkward/cringy.

I really liked that this was entirely from the male POV. Completely unexpected and I was charmed. Otherwise, it was about what I would expect from a Wattpad titles, which is honestly generally very mediocre. Did I read the whole thing? Yes. Did I instantly forget everything about it? Also, yes

I tried to power through this one. But it’s too slow for me. Unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me. I found myself having a hard time focusing while reading it. Also it fell short of the spicy parts of the book that I usually read in most of the romance novels I read. I was disappointed since I came into this book with high hopes. Thank you for the ARC in return for an honest review.

This was a super fun read! I’m honestly in love with the cover which is what initially drew me in but then the plot just had me! This book is focused on the MMCs perspective which was a nice change of pace! I enjoyed seeing how the characters evolved Through the story as well!

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📚✨ Book Review: Scars of Anatomy by Nicole Alfrine ✨📚

Opposites attract has NEVER hit like this 😍🔥

🏈 Bronx: NFL-bound QB, notorious playboy, zero commitment king
🧬 Olivia: Straight-A pre-med, quiet, focused, totally not impressed by him

When they're paired as anatomy lab partners, sparks fly — but so do the emotional walls 😳💥
From steamy study sessions to vulnerable moments, this book is a perfect mix of sweet romance + spicy tension 🥵💖

💔 Outside forces threaten to pull them apart, but real love might just be the glue that holds them together.
🩶 Scars don’t define you — they shape the story, not the ending.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A book that makes me cry, is an automatic 5 stars. No ifs, ands, or buts!

Holy moly! I have never read a romance novel that was solely in the MMC POV! That was super cool and totally unexpected! Most romances only come from the FMC or its Dual POV!

Let me tell you, I loved this book. I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but I will definitely be grabbing a physical copy upon release day!

Bronx and his story made my heart lurch, but once Olivia brought her story to light, I thought my heart was going to stop! Then her parents and Cora and everything, oh my. 😭😭

The author wrapped everything up with a big HEA bow and fate truly shows if it’s meant to be it will! I would absolutely love for a chapter or two from Finch’s POV especially the meeting in anatomy class and the fire alarm after math!

3 ⭐ Thank you Netgalley for the arc review! 🦋
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I really wanted to love this one. Medical drama? Complex characters? Emotional baggage? Heck yes, sign me up. The writing was smooth, and the pacing kept things rolling, but the characters just didn’t have the depth I was hoping for. The chemistry between the leads was undeniable, but their emotional growth felt a bit rushed, so the romance ended up feeling more like insta-love than a true, slow-burn connection.

The medical drama? Super engaging at first, but sometimes it felt more like a TV show with the shock factor cranked up to 11. I get that it works for some readers, but for me, it was a bit much at times.

That said, the emotional moments did finally land for me in the second half, and I found myself invested enough to keep going. So, if you’re looking for a quick, steamy read with a touch of medical drama, this one might work for you—just don’t go in expecting a romance that digs too deep.
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What I liked:
- medical drama
- pacing
- emotional moments in 2nd half
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What didn't work:
- underdeveloped characters
- instalovey romance
- medical drama leaned into over the top territory often

This is the first romance book I’ve read where it’s entirely from the MMC’s POV. I tried to go in with an open mind about that but…if it’s not gonna be an alternating POV, I would really rather it be from the FMC’s POV.

Especially since he starts out as a playboy and had sex with two other women that weren’t the FMC by 8% in. Then he had another hookup with one of them and an almost hookup with another. And then we only got ONE sex scene with the actual FMC???

If you want to try it, here’s a line from the book that’s basically it in a nutshell. I guess read it if this line appeals to you? “Olivia and I are total opposites. She’s the sweet girl next door with the perfect life and family, while I’m the angry, messed up son of a bitch with mommy issues who couldn’t keep it in his pants.”

Thanks to Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group through NetGalley for the ARC.

I throughly enjoyed this book. It’s a cuties type of college romance, and let me just say that I was not expecting it to be so deep. Learning about Olivia and Bronx’s trauma had me in my feelings. I really liked that the POV was from the MMC, which is very different than the norm for a romance book. I almost felt like I was inside of a guys mind.
This was one of the slowest burns I’ve ever read lol. It felt like I was watching the scene in The Little Mermaid when they are in the little boat and all the creatures are singing “kiss the girl”. I was screaming at the book for them to finally kiss because of all the playful banter and being able to feel the unspoken heat between them. The ending was very satisfying and I would recommend this one!