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anatl's review against another edition
3.0
A beautiful and touching read like all of Carla Kelly's books. However I was disappointed by some anachronisms and a few historical false notes.
ch6176's review against another edition
3.0
The story of a retired surgeon who comes to an abandoned people in Scotland.
For being a love story there was very little love. This was a much more slow, sweet and realistic romance novel than what I’ve come to expect. Either way it was a nice novel. There was never any overly romantic parts, more like day to day interactions.
For being a love story there was very little love. This was a much more slow, sweet and realistic romance novel than what I’ve come to expect. Either way it was a nice novel. There was never any overly romantic parts, more like day to day interactions.
shell74's review against another edition
5.0
Doing No Harm was a beautifully written Historical Romance that held me captivated from page one. Based on what actually took place in Scotland during the Highland Clearances and set at the end of the Napoleonic war, I am not ashamed to say that this novel brought me to tears more than once over the plight of our characters.
“Do you ever want to help the whole world, Captain?” she asked.
“Only my entire life,” he assured her. “We’ll start small here in Edgar.”
Carla Kelly is my go-to author when I want emotional tales written from the perspective of everyday common people. No matter the time period, I know I will be able to relate to the characters, their struggles, and the overall message of the story. That was absolutely the case with Doing No Harm.
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“Do you ever want to help the whole world, Captain?” she asked.
“Only my entire life,” he assured her. “We’ll start small here in Edgar.”
Carla Kelly is my go-to author when I want emotional tales written from the perspective of everyday common people. No matter the time period, I know I will be able to relate to the characters, their struggles, and the overall message of the story. That was absolutely the case with Doing No Harm.
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sandyd's review
4.0
Wonderful historical background, interesting characters, but a little too sweet and easily wrapped up at the end for me. Still a very enjoyable read.
rhodered's review
3.0
Like many in our times at least, Carla Kelly is appalled by the land clearances of the 19th century when landowners forcibly removed most of the Highlanders from their traditional lands in Scotland. In particular, she's upset by the actions of the incredibly wealthy Dutchess of Sutherland who knew that her agents conducted terrible, nearly genocidal, acts in her name.
Kelly is also passionate about medical men of the 19th century, particularly those attached to the military, in this case the British Fleet that helped stop Napoleon.
Lastly, she cares about human charity, in which one person steps forward to help or save others without thought of compensation. They simply do what is right to do, despite cost to themselves, because they have to.
She brings all three strands of this passion together in this book. No doubt the historic details are as truthful as possible for fiction. The town of Edgar is based on an actual lowland, seaside town Kelly's ancestors once lived in, and it's depicted truthfully from the pretty pastel houses to the awful smell at low tide.
So, why only three stars? I really like Kelly, she's usually an auto four star for me. In this case it's because the center of the story - which is a love story - simply did not have the author's full passion behind it. She wrote it beautifully, the characters are detailed, the plot advances... And yet. It's all too perfect, too glib in a way, empty of the author's passion in its core. She cares about the Highlanders more than the couple who try to help them. I almost felt like the couple were there as plot devices because it's a romance so you must have a couple.
Also, at one point, she has a character scold the Dutchess of Sutherland to her face, a set up that felt transparently to me to be the author yearning to do so herself, rather than something grown from the character's own reality.
I must say that this is all subtle. I may have only noticed it because I've been a fan of Kelly's for years. If this were my first, I may well have been much more satisfied by the story.
If you are interested in any of the three passions I mentioned above, you will definitely get something from this book.
Kelly is also passionate about medical men of the 19th century, particularly those attached to the military, in this case the British Fleet that helped stop Napoleon.
Lastly, she cares about human charity, in which one person steps forward to help or save others without thought of compensation. They simply do what is right to do, despite cost to themselves, because they have to.
She brings all three strands of this passion together in this book. No doubt the historic details are as truthful as possible for fiction. The town of Edgar is based on an actual lowland, seaside town Kelly's ancestors once lived in, and it's depicted truthfully from the pretty pastel houses to the awful smell at low tide.
So, why only three stars? I really like Kelly, she's usually an auto four star for me. In this case it's because the center of the story - which is a love story - simply did not have the author's full passion behind it. She wrote it beautifully, the characters are detailed, the plot advances... And yet. It's all too perfect, too glib in a way, empty of the author's passion in its core. She cares about the Highlanders more than the couple who try to help them. I almost felt like the couple were there as plot devices because it's a romance so you must have a couple.
Also, at one point, she has a character scold the Dutchess of Sutherland to her face, a set up that felt transparently to me to be the author yearning to do so herself, rather than something grown from the character's own reality.
I must say that this is all subtle. I may have only noticed it because I've been a fan of Kelly's for years. If this were my first, I may well have been much more satisfied by the story.
If you are interested in any of the three passions I mentioned above, you will definitely get something from this book.
darlenemarshall's review
4.0
Another sweet tale of good people doing the right thing, one of Ms. Kelly's trademarks. It's especially appropriate to the season and the current world situation, as the people of a small town struggling to survive open their hearts and homes to refugees who just want a chance, and a safe place to raise their families.
The long war with Napoleon is over, and RN surgeon Douglas Bowden finds himself adrift, finally washing ashore in the Scottish lowlands town of Edgar. A medical emergency requires his skills and he puts himself to work, never planning on staying.
However, he didn't count on spinster Olive Grant, who has worked herself to a nub assisting displaced Highlanders driven from their land by the clearances to make room for more profitable sheep.
The novel deals strongly with issues of PTSD, both the form suffered by former military men like Douglas, and the kinds affecting small children who've been traumatized by life. As Douglas and Olive work together to help the refugees and the people of Edgar, they come to realize that not all healing comes from the surgeon's knives or the pharmacy.
Ms. Kelly's books make an excellent holiday read, and Doing No Harm is a timely addition to her collection of Royal Navy historical romances.
The long war with Napoleon is over, and RN surgeon Douglas Bowden finds himself adrift, finally washing ashore in the Scottish lowlands town of Edgar. A medical emergency requires his skills and he puts himself to work, never planning on staying.
However, he didn't count on spinster Olive Grant, who has worked herself to a nub assisting displaced Highlanders driven from their land by the clearances to make room for more profitable sheep.
The novel deals strongly with issues of PTSD, both the form suffered by former military men like Douglas, and the kinds affecting small children who've been traumatized by life. As Douglas and Olive work together to help the refugees and the people of Edgar, they come to realize that not all healing comes from the surgeon's knives or the pharmacy.
Ms. Kelly's books make an excellent holiday read, and Doing No Harm is a timely addition to her collection of Royal Navy historical romances.
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