Although a somewhat-predictable stalking subplot wraps up a little too neatly, the book succeeds as a well-developed...
A talented but troubled surgeon searches for personal and professional redemption in MacDonald’s debut novel.
At one time, Dr. Phil Graham had it all. A successful surgeon praised for his professionalism and rapport with his patients, he’s also happily married to Joan, the love of his life. Graham believes he has the perfect life until a car accident takes the life of his wife and leaves him with severe scars, both physical and emotional. Although he tries to rebuild his world and return to his medical practice, he increasingly finds himself numbing the pain with alcohol and casual sex. The changes in Graham’s lifestyle eventually lead to a series of outbursts in the operating room that threaten his career. Just when Graham’s life and career reach their lowest ebb, he meets Amanda Fellows, the sister of one of his patients, who offers a second chance at love. While Graham takes the first steps toward romance with Amanda, a one-night stand with a woman named Dawn comes back to haunt him when he finds himself stalked by her husband. MacDonald’s brisk, compact narrative is tightly focused on Graham, a compassionate surgeon whose present troubles may be rooted in a tragic childhood. Some of the most effective elements of the novel involve Graham’s interactions with his colleagues and patients. These supporting characters aren’t anonymous set decoration; in many respects, they’re as clearly defined as Graham. An unexpected detour in the action occurs when Graham decides to unravel the secrets of his childhood; however, MacDonald convincingly connects Graham’s past to his current problems. The novel stumbles a bit when it comes to Graham’s ill-fated one-night stand with Dawn. Graham’s initial attraction to her and his reluctance to continue the fling are well-defined, but Dawn and her husband remain murky peripheral characters in a subplot that ultimately seems excessive.
Although a somewhat-predictable stalking subplot wraps up a little too neatly, the book succeeds as a well-developed character study of a man in the midst of a personal crisis.Pub Date: April 9, 2014
ISBN: 978-1495203459
Page Count: 216
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A first novel, this is also a first person account of Scout's (Jean Louise) recall of the years that led to the ending of a mystery, the breaking of her brother Jem's elbow, the death of her father's enemy — and the close of childhood years. A widower, Atticus raises his children with legal dispassion and paternal intelligence, and is ably abetted by Calpurnia, the colored cook, while the Alabama town of Maycomb, in the 1930's, remains aloof to their divergence from its tribal patterns. Scout and Jem, with their summer-time companion, Dill, find their paths free from interference — but not from dangers; their curiosity about the imprisoned Boo, whose miserable past is incorporated in their play, results in a tentative friendliness; their fears of Atticus' lack of distinction is dissipated when he shoots a mad dog; his defense of a Negro accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, is followed with avid interest and turns the rabble whites against him. Scout is the means of averting an attack on Atticus but when he loses the case it is Boo who saves Jem and Scout by killing Mayella's father when he attempts to murder them. The shadows of a beginning for black-white understanding, the persistent fight that Scout carries on against school, Jem's emergence into adulthood, Calpurnia's quiet power, and all the incidents touching on the children's "growing outward" have an attractive starchiness that keeps this southern picture pert and provocative. There is much advance interest in this book; it has been selected by the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest; it should win many friends.
Pub Date: July 11, 1960
ISBN: 0060935464
Page Count: 323
Publisher: Lippincott
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1960
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles...
Sisters in and out of love.
Meghann Dontess is a high-powered matrimonial lawyer in Seattle who prefers sex with strangers to emotional intimacy: a strategy bound to backfire sooner or later, warns her tough-talking shrink. It’s advice Meghann decides to ignore, along with the memories of her difficult childhood, neglectful mother, and younger sister. Though she managed to reunite Claire with Sam Cavenaugh (her father but not Meghann’s) when her mother abandoned both girls long ago, Meghann still feels guilty that her sister’s life doesn’t measure up, at least on her terms. Never married, Claire ekes out a living running a country campground with her dad and is raising her six-year-old daughter on her own. When she falls in love for the first time with an up-and-coming country musician, Meghann is appalled: Bobby Austin is a three-time loser at marriage—how on earth can Claire be so blind? Bobby’s blunt explanation doesn’t exactly satisfy the concerned big sister, who busies herself planning Claire’s dream wedding anyway. And, to relieve the stress, she beds various guys she picks up in bars, including Dr. Joe Wyatt, a neurosurgeon turned homeless drifter after the demise of his beloved wife Diane (whom he euthanized). When Claire’s awful headache turns out to be a kind of brain tumor known among neurologists as a “terminator,” Joe rallies. Turns out that Claire had befriended his wife on her deathbed, and now in turn he must try to save her. Is it too late? Will Meghann find true love at last?
Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles (Distant Shores, 2002, etc.). Kudos for skipping the snifflefest this time around.Pub Date: May 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-345-45073-6
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2003
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
