In order to give another person their heart’s desire, would you commit an unspeakable act? It’s a question posed throughout this exquisite debut novel The Doctor and the Diva by Adrienne McDonnell.
It is 1903 and a young, Harvard-educated obstetrician, Dr. Ravell, enjoys a growing practice and the repute of helping childless couples conceive. When Erika Von Kessler and her husband Peter Myrick arrive at his office, he is at once struck by Erika’s beauty and her despair. After countless specialists and years of trying, she has given up hope of ever providing the one thing her husband desperately wants. While theirs is a contented marriage, surrounded by friends and family and still filled with passion in the bedroom—their personal passions are not satisfied. Meeting Ravell is the turning point, and he will figure prominently in their quests and desires, providing both a bridge and a chasm between Erika and Peter. Their association will profoundly change each of their lives.
As a prominent business man who travels the world, Peter has the advantage of using his business as an outlet for his adventurous nature, experiencing exotic places not typically ventured by a proper Englishman living in Boston. Traveling for months at a time, he leaves his wife in Ravell’s capable hands, but Erika becomes more and more despondent fearing yet another doctor will fail. Her only joy is the acclaim she receives singing opera in the various salons and small concerts throughout Boston. The adulation she receives invigorates her and she develops a craving for more—more music, more acclaim, and a desire to really succeed at something. Erika wants nothing more than to take the next steamer to Italy and become the greatest opera singer the world has ever known. As Erika’s doctor, Ravell is eager to impress and fearful to disappoint, so he chooses success at any cost. And that changes the landscape for everyone.
Adrienne McDonnell has written a moving mosaic of three lives whose desires and decisions have consequences. This lush, sensual historical novel is at times heartbreaking, at times joyous, and always engrossing. Ultimately, this is a story of obsessions and in many instances the book was shocking, particularly in the decisions made in order to obtain a goal. Each character is complex, sometimes endearing and other times loathsome, but at no time did I not care about what happened to them, because the author has created the perfect canvas between the doctor, the diva, and the businessman weaving an underlying emotional tension throughout the book that allows each character to question what they have and then makes them choose between what they want and what they need. Ms. McDonnell’s ability to make this reader evaluate the moral compass of these characters was at turns startling and revealing. I became a voyeur anxiously waiting an outcome, furiously turning the pages, experiencing the gamut of emotions as each year passed and new choices were made. The Doctor and the Diva reads like a film—each image beautifully painted on the page and coming to life in my mind. For me, this was not a casual read, but a consuming read—one that made me think long after I read the last page.
So again, I pose, would you do anything, at any cost to help another fulfill their dream?
Maria Lokken is an avid romance reader and an award winning television producer.
Wow, Maria. Just WOW!
I usually don't read these kinds of novels because they make me cry and I mean cry. But it sounds really good and though its not your typical romance, I think that's why I'm attracted to it. To sounds like it will be an emotional rollercoaster, perhaps with its up and downs. Already my head seems to be jumping to conclusions about Peter the businessman and his travelles...not good. This always happens!
I think the next time I go to my local store, I'll read and excerpt from it.
It truely sounds good; not my taste but I'll try everything once....maybe twice 
Rosemary
