Book Review: It’s All in Your Head by Sabina Nordqvist
Happy Book Birthday to IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD, out in all formats now! I’ve been excited for this book since it was first announced and I’m thrilled to say it didn’t just meet my expectations - it exceeded them with beautiful chronic pain representation, searing social commentary, and an unforgettable romance!
IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD is an adult romance about Skylar, a woman with idiopathic intracranial hypertension, who agrees to fake-date Pike, the hot guy in her chronic pain support group—only to discover he’s an Olympic snowboarder whose career-ending injury is as infamous as his dating history.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for making my year with an early copy! I can’t even begin to describe how much I love this book. The characters have so much depth, they felt like real, raw people. At times, I wanted to shake them and demand they COMMUNICATE, but unlike many other romances, it completely made sense why they were reluctant to open up.
With all their trauma and complexity, it was a thing of beauty to see them finally trust themselves and each other. I was especially impressed with Pike’s character development across the book.
As a chronically ill reader, I feel beyond lucky to see characters like Skylar and Pike on the page. Their romance had me screaming, crying, and hugging my e-reader. It blew my mind to see not just one but two disabled main characters with chronic pain falling in love in all their glory.
IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD doesn’t shy away from dark subjects: ableism, medical trauma, painful medical situations, and toxic families. It gets deep and real in a sensitive and moving way. I kept thinking to myself, “OMG, are we really going there?” and the author handled it all superbly.
IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD is easily a five star read for me and is going on my all time favorites list. I’m still pinching myself that a romance like this exists - and from mainstream publishing no less! I need everyone to run out and buy this book! I guarantee you will go on a journey with these characters that will be impossible to forget.
Content/trigger warnings: explicit sexual content, ableism, medical trauma, medical malpractice, gaslighting, toxic family relationships, internalized ableism, medical situations including descriptions of injuries, spinal taps/surgery, and abusive medical professionals.