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Holmes Brothers #1
Deliver Me
LEAVING AN IMPERFECT PAST…
Monica Gardner is starting over. The broken-hearted St. Louis native has nothing left at home any longer: her future is being an ER doctor at a New Orleans hospital. Her first day makes for a bumpy start as she continually runs into handsome but irascible Dr. Elijah Holmes—a man who could make her change her mind about finding true love.
FOR NEW EXPECTATIONS
For years, Dr. Eli Holmes has been living up to his own high expectations—and is burning himself out in the process. The only time this “Super Doc” ob-gyn slows down is to notice the beautiful eyes of a newcomer, Dr. Gardner. He’s pleased to know that she’s more than just a pretty face, she’s also an ace physician. When they work together, sparks fly. But with both Monica and Eli trying to hard not to fall in love, they realize they can’t resist this affair of the heart.
Monica Gardner is starting over. The broken-hearted St. Louis native has nothing left at home any longer: her future is being an ER doctor at a New Orleans hospital. Her first day makes for a bumpy start as she continually runs into handsome but irascible Dr. Elijah Holmes—a man who could make her change her mind about finding true love.
FOR NEW EXPECTATIONS
For years, Dr. Eli Holmes has been living up to his own high expectations—and is burning himself out in the process. The only time this “Super Doc” ob-gyn slows down is to notice the beautiful eyes of a newcomer, Dr. Gardner. He’s pleased to know that she’s more than just a pretty face, she’s also an ace physician. When they work together, sparks fly. But with both Monica and Eli trying to hard not to fall in love, they realize they can’t resist this affair of the heart.
356 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 27, 2007
2516 people are currently reading
2850 people want to read
About the author
Farrah Rochon
73 books2,583 followersA native of south Louisiana, Farrah Rochon officially began her writing career while waiting in between classes in the student lounge at Xavier University of Louisiana. After earning her Bachelors of Science degree and a Masters of Arts from Southeastern Louisiana University, Farrah decided to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a published novelist. She was named Shades of Romance Magazine's Best New Author of 2007. Her debut novel, Deliver Me, the first in her Holmes Brothers series, garnered rave reviews, earning Farrah several SORMAG Readers' Choice Awards.
In September 2010, Farrah joined the Kimani Romance family with the launch of her new series that follows the life of the fictional New York Sabers football team.
When she is not writing in her favorite coffee shop, Farrah spends most of her time reading her favorite romance novels, hanging around on Twitter, and trying to attend as many Broadway shows as her budget will allow. An admitted sports fanatic, Farrah feeds her addiction to football by watching New Orleans Saints games on Sunday afternoons.
In September 2010, Farrah joined the Kimani Romance family with the launch of her new series that follows the life of the fictional New York Sabers football team.
When she is not writing in her favorite coffee shop, Farrah spends most of her time reading her favorite romance novels, hanging around on Twitter, and trying to attend as many Broadway shows as her budget will allow. An admitted sports fanatic, Farrah feeds her addiction to football by watching New Orleans Saints games on Sunday afternoons.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 319 reviews
May 25, 2013
Deliver Me was a fun, quick read, and if it weren't for the last quarter of the book, which didn't match the rest of the book in tone or consistency, I probably would have given it four or more stars.
Monica and Eli are both likable characters, she is an overachiever looking for a place to leave her mark and he is a hotshot obstetrician who's already left his on the New Orleans hospital where they meet.
Their chemistry is clear from the moment they meet; even as he uses some seriously poor judgment and does something stupid, it's clear she rattles him. And he rattles her with his self-confidence and charm.
His family also charms her--and vice versa--and Eli 'uses' this to suggest they agree to a mutually beneficial relationship to keep his matchmaking mother at bay. But it doesn't last long; their chemistry is too strong and they actually communicate--go figure--about their feelings and begin a true relationship. Their banter is fun and witty, and both seem to bring out the best qualities in the other.
Unfortunately, about three-quarters of the way through the story, Monica reacts very out of character, freaking out about a situation and jumping to conclusions when, just weeks earlier, she handled a similar situation in the exact opposite manner--calmly and giving the benefit of the doubt. And her reactions cause a rift in the relationship that Eli cannot seem to bridge.
And then, suddenly, the story is over. There is a quick Happily Ever After, but it felt ridiculously rushed and didn't match the tone or pace of the rest of the story. Nothing is really resolved.
Additionally, there is a secondary couple that the reader gets glimpses of--I was certain the ending would explain exactly why their story was included so heavily, with their very own chapters. But things never came full circle. I never quite understood WHY Amanda and Jeffrey were there at all.
*Free on Amazon*
Monica and Eli are both likable characters, she is an overachiever looking for a place to leave her mark and he is a hotshot obstetrician who's already left his on the New Orleans hospital where they meet.
Their chemistry is clear from the moment they meet; even as he uses some seriously poor judgment and does something stupid, it's clear she rattles him. And he rattles her with his self-confidence and charm.
His family also charms her--and vice versa--and Eli 'uses' this to suggest they agree to a mutually beneficial relationship to keep his matchmaking mother at bay. But it doesn't last long; their chemistry is too strong and they actually communicate--go figure--about their feelings and begin a true relationship. Their banter is fun and witty, and both seem to bring out the best qualities in the other.
Unfortunately, about three-quarters of the way through the story, Monica reacts very out of character, freaking out about a situation and jumping to conclusions when, just weeks earlier, she handled a similar situation in the exact opposite manner--calmly and giving the benefit of the doubt. And her reactions cause a rift in the relationship that Eli cannot seem to bridge.
And then, suddenly, the story is over. There is a quick Happily Ever After, but it felt ridiculously rushed and didn't match the tone or pace of the rest of the story. Nothing is really resolved.
Additionally, there is a secondary couple that the reader gets glimpses of--I was certain the ending would explain exactly why their story was included so heavily, with their very own chapters. But things never came full circle. I never quite understood WHY Amanda and Jeffrey were there at all.
*Free on Amazon*
April 1, 2018
The book ends RIGHT AS THEY FIGURE OUT THEIR ISSUES. What the heck, Farrah? Other than that, this book was great, but that ending killed me!!
pass
August 2, 2018Just not my cup of tea, I don't enjoy the player type of hero. It's an oldish book and the interactions and the tropes kind of show it. But I liked the heroine a lot and the author's style was enjoyably breezy so will try something more recent.
July 25, 2017
I was doing okay with this until the end. I've got a pretty low tolerance for stories where one party decides something about the other and then they just go off without bothering to talk to someone about it. Was there mildly damning evidence of cheating? Sure. But if you had any actual faith in the relationship you were building, you'd actually talk to the other person before running away like a child.
And I really didn't get the addition of the couple dealing with bipolar disorder during pregnancy to the book. I liked that story, but they didn't mesh well at all.
It did make me hungry, though. So there's that.
And I really didn't get the addition of the couple dealing with bipolar disorder during pregnancy to the book. I liked that story, but they didn't mesh well at all.
It did make me hungry, though. So there's that.
February 26, 2018
Women of Color in Romance Book Club read for February 2018.
Have to say that I found this, Rochon's first published book, a real disappointment. Its heroine, Monica, is an ER doctor who moves to New Orleans after breaking up with her boyfriend of 6 years. She and the hospital's hot player Ob/gyn, Eli, immediately start snarking at each other, but when Monica needs his help on a charity benefit for the hospital, Eli says he'll help—if Monica pretends to be his girlfriend.
They are both physically attracted to one another, which seems to be all that draws them together. They fight far more often than they enjoy each other's company. Monica is slow to give in to her attraction to Eli, given his reputation as a player (which doesn't seem unwarranted). The black moment centers around a not-so-old girlfriends showing up at his house and yelling at Monica for being with "her" boyfriend, which makes Monica immediately decide to dump Eli and not talk to him about why. I really dislike romances that depend on the "keep them apart by having them refuse to talk through their problems" to generate conflict.
Other big problems:
• Problematic portrayal of mental health issues. A small one, when Monica thinks to herself "Methodist Memorial's Psychiatry department needed to make a Polaroid of that smile and pass it to patients suffering from Major Depression. How could anyone's spirits not be lifted by that man's gorgeous smile" and "Okay, Psychiatry could use both the smile and wink in their therapy. The combination could quite possibly cure every case of depression in America"(110, 111). Ah, no, that's no how Depression works...
• A bigger one: the weird, almost totally unconnected subplot about a pregnant patient of Eli's who has bipolar disorder, and who has never told her husband about it (we finally learn that the bipolar was diagnosed after their marriage, but still; I can't imagine keeping such a secret from a spouse. And why didn't he notice?? Especially as he knew her mother suffered from bipolar disorder). And I really hated the "I'm going to break up with my husband because he doesn't deserve to be saddled with a wife with a mental health problem" line that the pregnant woman took, even though that silly type of self-sacrificing is a staple of traditional romance. Though this ableist line of thinking is finally dismissed by book's end, it's a horrible way of thinking to include without contesting it for much of the book.
• And why was this subplot a part of the book in the first place?? What did it have to do with the main story? The only connection I could see was that the pregnant woman, Amanda, started having delusions that her husband was cheating on her, and Monica has the same fear at book's end about Eli. So are we supposed to feel reassured about Monica and Eli's relationship, because Amanda's fears of her husband cheating are all just a delusion? Given Eli's past behavior with women, it doesn't seem too far-fetched to think that once he falls out of lust with Monica, he might easily turn back to his philandering ways...
• Early in the story, Eli grabs Monica (his colleague) at work. In this era of #metoo, I couldn't help but think "job harassment, much?"
• The "black moment" is totally annoying, and rather out of character for Monica
• There's lots of "other woman hating" here, with not just one, but two, of Eli's former girlfriends cast as evil Others/borderline psychotics. And a backstory featuring a selfish lover, too. YUCK!
• Finally, the resolution to the silly black moment—there's no real resolution to Monica's fears that Eli is cheating. Just because a guy does something nice for you, that doesn't mean he can't also do something hurtful to you...
• Oh, and almost forgot: the charity event features a bachelor auction. With men of color. And the event is held AT A PLANTATION....
Have to say that I found this, Rochon's first published book, a real disappointment. Its heroine, Monica, is an ER doctor who moves to New Orleans after breaking up with her boyfriend of 6 years. She and the hospital's hot player Ob/gyn, Eli, immediately start snarking at each other, but when Monica needs his help on a charity benefit for the hospital, Eli says he'll help—if Monica pretends to be his girlfriend.
They are both physically attracted to one another, which seems to be all that draws them together. They fight far more often than they enjoy each other's company. Monica is slow to give in to her attraction to Eli, given his reputation as a player (which doesn't seem unwarranted). The black moment centers around a not-so-old girlfriends showing up at his house and yelling at Monica for being with "her" boyfriend, which makes Monica immediately decide to dump Eli and not talk to him about why. I really dislike romances that depend on the "keep them apart by having them refuse to talk through their problems" to generate conflict.
Other big problems:
• Problematic portrayal of mental health issues. A small one, when Monica thinks to herself "Methodist Memorial's Psychiatry department needed to make a Polaroid of that smile and pass it to patients suffering from Major Depression. How could anyone's spirits not be lifted by that man's gorgeous smile" and "Okay, Psychiatry could use both the smile and wink in their therapy. The combination could quite possibly cure every case of depression in America"(110, 111). Ah, no, that's no how Depression works...
• A bigger one: the weird, almost totally unconnected subplot about a pregnant patient of Eli's who has bipolar disorder, and who has never told her husband about it (we finally learn that the bipolar was diagnosed after their marriage, but still; I can't imagine keeping such a secret from a spouse. And why didn't he notice?? Especially as he knew her mother suffered from bipolar disorder). And I really hated the "I'm going to break up with my husband because he doesn't deserve to be saddled with a wife with a mental health problem" line that the pregnant woman took, even though that silly type of self-sacrificing is a staple of traditional romance. Though this ableist line of thinking is finally dismissed by book's end, it's a horrible way of thinking to include without contesting it for much of the book.
• And why was this subplot a part of the book in the first place?? What did it have to do with the main story? The only connection I could see was that the pregnant woman, Amanda, started having delusions that her husband was cheating on her, and Monica has the same fear at book's end about Eli. So are we supposed to feel reassured about Monica and Eli's relationship, because Amanda's fears of her husband cheating are all just a delusion? Given Eli's past behavior with women, it doesn't seem too far-fetched to think that once he falls out of lust with Monica, he might easily turn back to his philandering ways...
• Early in the story, Eli grabs Monica (his colleague) at work. In this era of #metoo, I couldn't help but think "job harassment, much?"
• The "black moment" is totally annoying, and rather out of character for Monica
• There's lots of "other woman hating" here, with not just one, but two, of Eli's former girlfriends cast as evil Others/borderline psychotics. And a backstory featuring a selfish lover, too. YUCK!
• Finally, the resolution to the silly black moment—there's no real resolution to Monica's fears that Eli is cheating. Just because a guy does something nice for you, that doesn't mean he can't also do something hurtful to you...
• Oh, and almost forgot: the charity event features a bachelor auction. With men of color. And the event is held AT A PLANTATION....
August 13, 2020
4.5 stars
I absolutely loved the slow pace, and the slow burn of the romance between Eli and Monica. They were both very successful doctors, and they really didn't think they had time for love or romance at all.
I also enjoyed getting to know Eli's brothers as well as his mom, and some of their family friends.
This is a feel-good romance, with characters that are so very relatable. The love, respect and loyalty between the family members made it even better!
I absolutely loved the slow pace, and the slow burn of the romance between Eli and Monica. They were both very successful doctors, and they really didn't think they had time for love or romance at all.
I also enjoyed getting to know Eli's brothers as well as his mom, and some of their family friends.
This is a feel-good romance, with characters that are so very relatable. The love, respect and loyalty between the family members made it even better!
March 2, 2018
A light, fun read. I want more about the heroine. Just like her adventures through life. She was fun.
January 22, 2018
content warnings: childbirths on page, emergency childbirths, BAD MENTAL ILLNESS REPRESENTATION, "crazy ex-girlfriend," sex without a condom in the same area code, bipolar disorder, repeatedly pressuring a secondary character to have sex
If I wasn't reading this for the group that is not a book club, I would not have finished it. Eli is a dirtbag and stays one. Monica is okay until she loses all reason. The women are all in that "crazy" category. In the end, I think I liked Alex, but only because I wanted him rescued from all these terrible characters.
There are a lot of tropes thrown around, but none really work. And the biggest flaw is that the book just really has poor characterization. These characters could never be real people, you never connect with them, and I wanted to leave them.
And the subplot of the pregnant couple with a failing marriage might actually be a harmful depiction of mental illness and bipolar disorder. That whole thing was terrible and unnecessary. And with this being a reissue, I'm startled it wasn't removed or vastly corrected. For anyone with a mental illness, I'd steer very clear of this book.
If I wasn't reading this for the group that is not a book club, I would not have finished it. Eli is a dirtbag and stays one. Monica is okay until she loses all reason. The women are all in that "crazy" category. In the end, I think I liked Alex, but only because I wanted him rescued from all these terrible characters.
There are a lot of tropes thrown around, but none really work. And the biggest flaw is that the book just really has poor characterization. These characters could never be real people, you never connect with them, and I wanted to leave them.
And the subplot of the pregnant couple with a failing marriage might actually be a harmful depiction of mental illness and bipolar disorder. That whole thing was terrible and unnecessary. And with this being a reissue, I'm startled it wasn't removed or vastly corrected. For anyone with a mental illness, I'd steer very clear of this book.
December 20, 2025
Something about a modern-day rake whose profession is an OB/GYN skeeved me out. The B-plot story really took me out of the main story. I know the author was trying to say some big things about living with medical conditions, but it should have been the main plot or removed.
✔️ Dual POVs (Eli x Monica)
✔️ Set in New Orleans
✔️ Open-door contemporary romance — almost closed door (2.5/5🌶️)
💔 Why they can’t be together: He doesn’t date doctors and she’s recovering from heartbreak
✔️ Tropes: Workplace romance
✔️ Dual POVs (Eli x Monica)
✔️ Set in New Orleans
✔️ Open-door contemporary romance — almost closed door (2.5/5🌶️)
💔 Why they can’t be together: He doesn’t date doctors and she’s recovering from heartbreak
✔️ Tropes: Workplace romance
May 15, 2013
Freebie on Amazon! I'm glad it was free, because I probably wouldn't wan't to purchase it. It was overall an okay book, but there was things that really didn't make a lot of sense to me, and got very annoying.
It starts with Monica moving to New Orleans to get away from her ex, and to just start a new life. There she meets Dr. Eli. They end up making a bargain to help him get rid of his mother's match making ways, and to help Monica's career.
But neither one of them realized that sparks would fly when they "pretended" to have a relationship. They know now that what they have is real, and the want to give it a shot.
I really didn't like Monica at times. She drove me nuts when she wouldn't talk to Eli towards the end. And then the ending was slightly disappointed, they didn't really talk about what happened they just forgave each other. I also didn't like the whole psycho ex girlfriend part, and the relationship between Amanda and Jeff. That really had no impact on the story at all, and it was slightly confusing. I won't be continuing this series, but it was an okay read to pass the time.
It starts with Monica moving to New Orleans to get away from her ex, and to just start a new life. There she meets Dr. Eli. They end up making a bargain to help him get rid of his mother's match making ways, and to help Monica's career.
But neither one of them realized that sparks would fly when they "pretended" to have a relationship. They know now that what they have is real, and the want to give it a shot.
I really didn't like Monica at times. She drove me nuts when she wouldn't talk to Eli towards the end. And then the ending was slightly disappointed, they didn't really talk about what happened they just forgave each other. I also didn't like the whole psycho ex girlfriend part, and the relationship between Amanda and Jeff. That really had no impact on the story at all, and it was slightly confusing. I won't be continuing this series, but it was an okay read to pass the time.
September 8, 2018
2% Rotfl! Woman in labour with a breech birth. Super Doc arrives while she is screaming in a contraction, rubs her abdomen, makes a five inch slit and out pops a baby. No anaesthetic, no operating theatre, ...
3% A woman who was in the running for a Nobel prize for her research on abdominal cancer? There isn’t one abdominal cancer.. the term refers to a multitude of cancers - inc . stomach, liver, pancreas,rectum, colon, bowel. One person was researching ALL those?
Do the research. Its not hard to Google 'abdominal cancer' and 'abdominal cancers'. There is no excuse for sloppy writing. Your readers deserve better.
3% A woman who was in the running for a Nobel prize for her research on abdominal cancer? There isn’t one abdominal cancer.. the term refers to a multitude of cancers - inc . stomach, liver, pancreas,rectum, colon, bowel. One person was researching ALL those?
Do the research. Its not hard to Google 'abdominal cancer' and 'abdominal cancers'. There is no excuse for sloppy writing. Your readers deserve better.
June 20, 2011
I really liked this book. Monica and Elijah were great characters. Their attraction to one another was apparent from that first elevator ride, and just gained momentum from there. I will say it was great to read about New Orleans post Katrina. Having never been there before, this books give some you some very descriptive details about the city, and just reading it really can help you paint a good idea of what the town is now like. New Orleans was a wonderful back drop for this book. I can't wait to read more about the Holmes clan.
January 16, 2018
Great start
This novel is a great start to a 6 book series about a family in New Orleans. Elijah and Monica were so great together. I liked that they started off not liking each other - well she didn't like him - but that eventually changed when she got to know him. If you like a sweet contemporary romance with a little spice this ones a great pick.
This novel is a great start to a 6 book series about a family in New Orleans. Elijah and Monica were so great together. I liked that they started off not liking each other - well she didn't like him - but that eventually changed when she got to know him. If you like a sweet contemporary romance with a little spice this ones a great pick.
February 1, 2018
Nice start to the series
I’ve had these books for years but just now got around to reading them.
This wasn’t bad. I’d give it 3.75 Stars. There’s a few things I didn’t like and a could of things that could be flushed out more but the characters are likable and I’m looking forward to the other books in the series.
I’ve had these books for years but just now got around to reading them.
This wasn’t bad. I’d give it 3.75 Stars. There’s a few things I didn’t like and a could of things that could be flushed out more but the characters are likable and I’m looking forward to the other books in the series.
Want to read
August 13, 2017Amazon Freebie 7/3/17
July 30, 2023
I'm pretty sure the only reason I actually finished it was because I was working and it was Sunday so there weren't as many calls coming in so I had enough time to roll my eyes through the whole thing.
Pretty sure this edition was supposed to be a reprint/rerelease, but did it ever see a single editor even with the original run? There were so many instances of incorrect tense, incorrect word(s), wrong spelling, missing/incorrect punctuation. It honestly seemed like the author may have dictated this book and didn't bother to check if the software grabbed the word she was looking for. There were also a few instances where the sentences flat out didn't make sense, either because of extra words (one point where Monica talks about giving up her seat "in exchange to stand at the back") or the other issues I previously pointed out.
Overall, the plot had potential, but I feel like the author didn't do her research on the medical aspect of things. At one point, a character talks about being able to scrub up with the best of them because they'd watched so many episodes of ER. Honestly, half the medical stuff seemed like the information the author used was from TV medical dramas. Like Eli performs an emergency c-section in the back of a car by tapping on the mother's stomach and then making the incision. Admittedly, I'm not any sort of medical professional, and the situation was kind of an emergency, but I feel like even in an emergency, you're not going to just tap on the stomach before performing that kind of a procedure.
Monica was an idiot. Like, I'm sorry, but just...seriously, she was frustrating. Even with all the pressure she was putting on herself to be perfect, there were several things that I felt like she tried to lean into that she didn't need to. And for something that was supposed to be such a big deal, we didn't honestly spend all that much time dealing with the bachelor auction unless it was relevant to Eli calling her a control freak. Eli was okay but I've read better. I didn't really have a problem with his sleeping around but the fact that he just shrugged Alicia off, especially after she copied his key was insane. Like he mentioned he was changing the locks, which is definitely a good move, but you also call the cops in that situation because that's the smart move!
The ending conflict with Monica being an idiot when Alicia showed up (and then strutted away before talking to Eli, which should have been a big old hint that maybe there was something else going on) and running was not only stupid of the highest order, but it was also resolved so fast that I don't know if it could be called a conflict. Like they spend several days with her running away and ignoring his calls and then he saves her bacon at the auction and she buys him for 5x more than the others are going for and everything is resolved and swept under the rug. There was no groveling on either side and no real explanation for why Monica couldn't be bothered to be an adult and even try to have a conversation.
The Jeffery and Amanda plot line was honestly useless and it definitely didn't deserve any sort of POV time. It didn't have any bearing on Eli and Monica's relationship and really the only relation to the story as a whole was that she was Eli's patient. And I didn't like the fact that their whole set of problems was because she was hiding a bipolar diagnosis from her husband. Not saying there aren't people who are bipolar and who hide it or don't get help, but the fact that that entire plot/conflict boiled down to Amanda putting words in her husband's mouth just wasn't handled well at all.
From what I've seen, this seems like it may have been the author's first book. There are a couple of her other ones that I do want to read, but I don't know if I'm going to read any more of this series.
Pretty sure this edition was supposed to be a reprint/rerelease, but did it ever see a single editor even with the original run? There were so many instances of incorrect tense, incorrect word(s), wrong spelling, missing/incorrect punctuation. It honestly seemed like the author may have dictated this book and didn't bother to check if the software grabbed the word she was looking for. There were also a few instances where the sentences flat out didn't make sense, either because of extra words (one point where Monica talks about giving up her seat "in exchange to stand at the back") or the other issues I previously pointed out.
Overall, the plot had potential, but I feel like the author didn't do her research on the medical aspect of things. At one point, a character talks about being able to scrub up with the best of them because they'd watched so many episodes of ER. Honestly, half the medical stuff seemed like the information the author used was from TV medical dramas. Like Eli performs an emergency c-section in the back of a car by tapping on the mother's stomach and then making the incision. Admittedly, I'm not any sort of medical professional, and the situation was kind of an emergency, but I feel like even in an emergency, you're not going to just tap on the stomach before performing that kind of a procedure.
Monica was an idiot. Like, I'm sorry, but just...seriously, she was frustrating. Even with all the pressure she was putting on herself to be perfect, there were several things that I felt like she tried to lean into that she didn't need to. And for something that was supposed to be such a big deal, we didn't honestly spend all that much time dealing with the bachelor auction unless it was relevant to Eli calling her a control freak. Eli was okay but I've read better. I didn't really have a problem with his sleeping around but the fact that he just shrugged Alicia off, especially after she copied his key was insane. Like he mentioned he was changing the locks, which is definitely a good move, but you also call the cops in that situation because that's the smart move!
The ending conflict with Monica being an idiot when Alicia showed up (and then strutted away before talking to Eli, which should have been a big old hint that maybe there was something else going on) and running was not only stupid of the highest order, but it was also resolved so fast that I don't know if it could be called a conflict. Like they spend several days with her running away and ignoring his calls and then he saves her bacon at the auction and she buys him for 5x more than the others are going for and everything is resolved and swept under the rug. There was no groveling on either side and no real explanation for why Monica couldn't be bothered to be an adult and even try to have a conversation.
The Jeffery and Amanda plot line was honestly useless and it definitely didn't deserve any sort of POV time. It didn't have any bearing on Eli and Monica's relationship and really the only relation to the story as a whole was that she was Eli's patient. And I didn't like the fact that their whole set of problems was because she was hiding a bipolar diagnosis from her husband. Not saying there aren't people who are bipolar and who hide it or don't get help, but the fact that that entire plot/conflict boiled down to Amanda putting words in her husband's mouth just wasn't handled well at all.
From what I've seen, this seems like it may have been the author's first book. There are a couple of her other ones that I do want to read, but I don't know if I'm going to read any more of this series.
June 9, 2021
Poorly constructed, poorly researched, poor representation of mental illness, and some tropes I simply don't like, though that is of course a matter of personal taste.
I got this free in a bundle and it's my first Rochon read, though I've been hearing good things about her for years. I dearly hope that this is not representative of her more current works.
So let's tackle these issues one by one. Poor construction: first, the whole book is building up to the climactic charity bachelor auction, and I have no problem with that, but then the story ends abruptly at the same time the auction does, with the heroine "buying" the hero from it, some time (several days?) after she literally walks out on him after sex and does her absolute best to ghost him over what we know is a complete misunderstanding. I'll talk more about the miscommunication aspect of this later, but after the hero's repeated attempts to get to the bottom of why she left seemingly without warning or reason, he doesn't really have the chance to apologize or defend himself properly, but then the heroine forgives him anyway for basically no reason. Now, we the reader know that he wasn't actually cheating on the heroine, but she pulls a one-eighty and forgives him on the spot, when he sees him onstage, because...he's just so sexy? I'm not really sure. That happened to fall at the bottom of the page on my e-reader, so imagine my surprise when I flick to the next page and see the end matter--the book ends quite literally with the big auction, there's no denouement, there's no explanation of why she changed her mind, there's not even an epilogue to show them several months or years down the road being happy together. It's just OVER.
Second issue with poor construction: the multi-chapter subplot about the second couple who are patients of the hero, complete with an extra POV character, is jarringly distracting and (in my opinion) wholly unnecessary. This book would have been long enough to qualify as a novel without it, so it's not helpful padding, and I'll get more into why later, but I believe this subplot actively undermines the main plot.
Poorly researched: I can cover this one pretty quickly. I'm no medical expert, but when the hero early on in the story performs an emergency c-section on a conscious patient, without any form of anaesthesia *and* without her consent, I was not impressed. No, I'm serious. At the top of the page, the woman very clearly says "I don't want a c-section" and the next few paragraphs are the hero shushing her and doing anyway. I honestly don't know the protocols for informed consent in emergency situations, and under what circumstances doctors are allowed to exercise their best judgment and operate without informed consent, but whatever they are, I don't think it's just merrily slicing into a woman who moments ago explicitly withheld it.
There weren't any more insanely obvious medical blunders for the rest of the book, but I also didn't have much of a sense of realness from the hospital, either. Much later, a side character in the subplot makes an observation about knowing how to scrub up properly from watching "ER," and that really crystallized the level of medical accuracy in this book to me.
Okay, next issue. Poor representation of mental illness. The entire subplot is about a couple where the wife has bipolar disorder, hides that fact, and her treatment for it, from her husband, and then goes off the rails when her pregnancy screws with her medication regimen, which fails to control her symptoms.
Where the hell do I even start with this? She's depicted as a shrewish, terrible woman, and yes, I do think that's mostly because of her mental illness. Bad look to start with. Then add to that, that she thinks her husband will leave her if he finds out she's ill. Not a good look either. Her paranoid delusions all center on her husband cheating on her--which he's not--and her erratic behavior includes not following her doctor's orders about bed rest, which eventually leads to the premature (but ultimately happy and successful) birth of their child.
Now, to be fair, the husband is an absolutely stand-up guy through all of this, and the couple does get a happy ending. So I'm not accusing the author of believing or endorsing the idea that mentally ill people are either incapable or undeserving of romantic fulfillment.
But the problem is that if the point of this subplot is to mirror the main plot, then it's a terrible idea to have the main couple be a player with a string of clingy ex-girlfriends matched up with a woman who ghosts him because she believes he's cheating on her. See where I'm going with this? By having the subplot LITERALLY be about a mentally ill woman's paranoid delusions, it's drawing a parallel between those and the miscommunication of the main plot. THE HEROINE IS NOT CRAZY, SHE'S JUST INCORRECT. And implying she's "crazy" for thinking the hero might be cheating on her (even if we know he isn't!) is doing a disservice to women who have been or really are being cheated on, because a common backlash from the men is "you're crazy!" Um, no. No to all of this.
The tropes I don't personally like, but aren't necessarily big issues the same way: yes, the entire conflict between the leads boils down to a miscommunication, which results in an unsuccessful ghosting, which leads to the hero being really pushy about tracking her down and finding out what's going on. I hate plots where the love interests refuse to talk to each other for no good reason. Also, I didn't love that when these two get horizontal, there's no mention of any kind of birth control in the room with them, nor was it established that they'd had an earlier conversation about it. As much as I dread the "man wants to go bareback, woman bites her lip and says okay, i'm on the pill" scene that half the bad romance novels I read inevitably rely on, at least those books are talking about it! At least we establish there's not going to be an accidental pregnancy in fifty pages! And the hero is an OB-GYN, so there's literally no excuse for these two not to have a rational conversation about how they're going to handle birth control.
I'm genuinely struggling to find anything good about this book.
I got this free in a bundle and it's my first Rochon read, though I've been hearing good things about her for years. I dearly hope that this is not representative of her more current works.
So let's tackle these issues one by one. Poor construction: first, the whole book is building up to the climactic charity bachelor auction, and I have no problem with that, but then the story ends abruptly at the same time the auction does, with the heroine "buying" the hero from it, some time (several days?) after she literally walks out on him after sex and does her absolute best to ghost him over what we know is a complete misunderstanding. I'll talk more about the miscommunication aspect of this later, but after the hero's repeated attempts to get to the bottom of why she left seemingly without warning or reason, he doesn't really have the chance to apologize or defend himself properly, but then the heroine forgives him anyway for basically no reason. Now, we the reader know that he wasn't actually cheating on the heroine, but she pulls a one-eighty and forgives him on the spot, when he sees him onstage, because...he's just so sexy? I'm not really sure. That happened to fall at the bottom of the page on my e-reader, so imagine my surprise when I flick to the next page and see the end matter--the book ends quite literally with the big auction, there's no denouement, there's no explanation of why she changed her mind, there's not even an epilogue to show them several months or years down the road being happy together. It's just OVER.
Second issue with poor construction: the multi-chapter subplot about the second couple who are patients of the hero, complete with an extra POV character, is jarringly distracting and (in my opinion) wholly unnecessary. This book would have been long enough to qualify as a novel without it, so it's not helpful padding, and I'll get more into why later, but I believe this subplot actively undermines the main plot.
Poorly researched: I can cover this one pretty quickly. I'm no medical expert, but when the hero early on in the story performs an emergency c-section on a conscious patient, without any form of anaesthesia *and* without her consent, I was not impressed. No, I'm serious. At the top of the page, the woman very clearly says "I don't want a c-section" and the next few paragraphs are the hero shushing her and doing anyway. I honestly don't know the protocols for informed consent in emergency situations, and under what circumstances doctors are allowed to exercise their best judgment and operate without informed consent, but whatever they are, I don't think it's just merrily slicing into a woman who moments ago explicitly withheld it.
There weren't any more insanely obvious medical blunders for the rest of the book, but I also didn't have much of a sense of realness from the hospital, either. Much later, a side character in the subplot makes an observation about knowing how to scrub up properly from watching "ER," and that really crystallized the level of medical accuracy in this book to me.
Okay, next issue. Poor representation of mental illness. The entire subplot is about a couple where the wife has bipolar disorder, hides that fact, and her treatment for it, from her husband, and then goes off the rails when her pregnancy screws with her medication regimen, which fails to control her symptoms.
Where the hell do I even start with this? She's depicted as a shrewish, terrible woman, and yes, I do think that's mostly because of her mental illness. Bad look to start with. Then add to that, that she thinks her husband will leave her if he finds out she's ill. Not a good look either. Her paranoid delusions all center on her husband cheating on her--which he's not--and her erratic behavior includes not following her doctor's orders about bed rest, which eventually leads to the premature (but ultimately happy and successful) birth of their child.
Now, to be fair, the husband is an absolutely stand-up guy through all of this, and the couple does get a happy ending. So I'm not accusing the author of believing or endorsing the idea that mentally ill people are either incapable or undeserving of romantic fulfillment.
But the problem is that if the point of this subplot is to mirror the main plot, then it's a terrible idea to have the main couple be a player with a string of clingy ex-girlfriends matched up with a woman who ghosts him because she believes he's cheating on her. See where I'm going with this? By having the subplot LITERALLY be about a mentally ill woman's paranoid delusions, it's drawing a parallel between those and the miscommunication of the main plot. THE HEROINE IS NOT CRAZY, SHE'S JUST INCORRECT. And implying she's "crazy" for thinking the hero might be cheating on her (even if we know he isn't!) is doing a disservice to women who have been or really are being cheated on, because a common backlash from the men is "you're crazy!" Um, no. No to all of this.
The tropes I don't personally like, but aren't necessarily big issues the same way: yes, the entire conflict between the leads boils down to a miscommunication, which results in an unsuccessful ghosting, which leads to the hero being really pushy about tracking her down and finding out what's going on. I hate plots where the love interests refuse to talk to each other for no good reason. Also, I didn't love that when these two get horizontal, there's no mention of any kind of birth control in the room with them, nor was it established that they'd had an earlier conversation about it. As much as I dread the "man wants to go bareback, woman bites her lip and says okay, i'm on the pill" scene that half the bad romance novels I read inevitably rely on, at least those books are talking about it! At least we establish there's not going to be an accidental pregnancy in fifty pages! And the hero is an OB-GYN, so there's literally no excuse for these two not to have a rational conversation about how they're going to handle birth control.
I'm genuinely struggling to find anything good about this book.
March 8, 2021
This is my first book by Ms Rochon and I enjoyed it as with the others this month. Eli, our hero, is a very successful OB-GYN. He and our heroine Monica, get off to a rather rocky start when he mistakes her on her first day as a nurse and is quite rude to her. It’s bad enough that he’s a jerk to her, thinking that as a nurse, she somehow deserves his disrespect but you see, she’s not a nurse, rather she’s a very successful doctor in her own right.
They are paired together for a fund raising event in order to raise money for a woman’s clinic that is very dear to Eli’s heart, Turns out he’s not quite as bad after her first impression and it isn’t long before sparks start flying, This book was written in 2011 and does have some issues that date it. This is the first book in a series about three brothers and despite a few concerns, I liked this one enough to pick up the next two books.
They are paired together for a fund raising event in order to raise money for a woman’s clinic that is very dear to Eli’s heart, Turns out he’s not quite as bad after her first impression and it isn’t long before sparks start flying, This book was written in 2011 and does have some issues that date it. This is the first book in a series about three brothers and despite a few concerns, I liked this one enough to pick up the next two books.
July 7, 2017
DNF (07/17)
God, I just really dislike all these characters... and the story too.
The plot sounds alright (which is why I picked up the book), but all the characters just come across as whiny, assholes. Even the support characters are irritating as hell. The only one who I can't say straight out that that I don't like is the brother Alex, and that's likely only because he hasn't actually said much.
The story itself is just fluff (that's why we love these kind of books), but the way it's being written is just grating on me for some reason. There seems to be lots of 'telling instead of showing' in FR's writing style. There's nothing 'fun' about their interactions, they are just brittle and only tend to highlight that each of the characters are self absorbed assholes. The whole blackmail thing is just starting and it's just 'blah'. If you are going to write an asshole blackmailing someone, do it. But the author seems to spend a lot of time trying to convince us that these two 'are really great people', but they are so far from that that it's not even interesting.
God, I just really dislike all these characters... and the story too.
The plot sounds alright (which is why I picked up the book), but all the characters just come across as whiny, assholes. Even the support characters are irritating as hell. The only one who I can't say straight out that that I don't like is the brother Alex, and that's likely only because he hasn't actually said much.
The story itself is just fluff (that's why we love these kind of books), but the way it's being written is just grating on me for some reason. There seems to be lots of 'telling instead of showing' in FR's writing style. There's nothing 'fun' about their interactions, they are just brittle and only tend to highlight that each of the characters are self absorbed assholes. The whole blackmail thing is just starting and it's just 'blah'. If you are going to write an asshole blackmailing someone, do it. But the author seems to spend a lot of time trying to convince us that these two 'are really great people', but they are so far from that that it's not even interesting.
May 15, 2017
So I REALLY liked this book.
I DID NOT like the ending. It was too abrupt.
It left questions for me that I know if I were the author I know EXACTLY how I'd answer one of them
I like the descriptions of the area. Even though I've never been to New Orleans it felt as though I could picture the areas that were talked about. Descriptions don't have to be in depth to the point of describing every last blade of grass and pebble on the road but describing the types of houses in the area in compared with the one the person lives in (ie: the neighbourhood has seen better days but in wake of Katrina the community is slowly rebuilding itself --disclaimer not an actual quote just pulled out of my arse-- would say to me that it is at least a decent looking neighbourhood that the hurricane wrecked destruction on and that the destruction was being worked on slowly to be cleared up and fixed which would also signify to me that it's either a middle class type neighbourhood with people doing what they can when they have the time/money for it or that it's lower middle class also in the same predicament of doing what they can when they can)
All in all, for this being the first book I've read from the author, I have to say I'm kind of hooked and when I have the money I'm going to go buy some of their other works.
I liked that we had the two separate but also intertwining stories in the book. The one of the two doctors and then the one of one of the doctor's patients and their partner. I feel that for the second one the story did a good job of representing a facet of how BPD can manifest itself in some people. And the fact that pregnancy and hormones can screw with medications and their effectiveness. I like that their story wound up working out for the better because it could have turned out completely different.
And it also shows kind of some of the internalised stigma that those of us with mental health issues deal with with ourselves.
I DID NOT like the ending. It was too abrupt.
It left questions for me that I know if I were the author I know EXACTLY how I'd answer one of them
I like the descriptions of the area. Even though I've never been to New Orleans it felt as though I could picture the areas that were talked about. Descriptions don't have to be in depth to the point of describing every last blade of grass and pebble on the road but describing the types of houses in the area in compared with the one the person lives in (ie: the neighbourhood has seen better days but in wake of Katrina the community is slowly rebuilding itself --disclaimer not an actual quote just pulled out of my arse-- would say to me that it is at least a decent looking neighbourhood that the hurricane wrecked destruction on and that the destruction was being worked on slowly to be cleared up and fixed which would also signify to me that it's either a middle class type neighbourhood with people doing what they can when they have the time/money for it or that it's lower middle class also in the same predicament of doing what they can when they can)
All in all, for this being the first book I've read from the author, I have to say I'm kind of hooked and when I have the money I'm going to go buy some of their other works.
I liked that we had the two separate but also intertwining stories in the book. The one of the two doctors and then the one of one of the doctor's patients and their partner. I feel that for the second one the story did a good job of representing a facet of how BPD can manifest itself in some people. And the fact that pregnancy and hormones can screw with medications and their effectiveness. I like that their story wound up working out for the better because it could have turned out completely different.
And it also shows kind of some of the internalised stigma that those of us with mental health issues deal with with ourselves.
July 8, 2017
I thought nothing could blow me away more than this wonderfully written story, then I checked out the reviews. For the love of all things literary pleasure, do not let the one star reviews fool you! This story is AMAZING!
My reviews are based on a five point system.
I give one star for each of the following -
Hero/heroine chemistry
Overall approval of the storyline
Flow / consistency
Character development
Relatable/likable hero/heroine
First of all, Farrah followed the traditional romance formula beautifully. She gives you internal and external conflict, tension, those cutesy get to know you moments, sensuality, a black moment... and ROMANCE. What more could you possibly ask for???
The chemistry between the main characters had me all over the place emotionally. I loved the push and pull. I loved how their inner conflicts had them both pulling away and denying what was inevitable - their union. The storyline was cliché but uniquely done. The attraction, tension, and sensuality made this classic plot different and entertaining. I thoroughly enjoyed the flow of this story. Normally I find myself skipping through separate chapters just the get to the ones that focus on the couple, but that wasn't the case with this one. The only thing that threw me for a loop was the chapters revolving around Amanda and Jeffrey, but I'm assuming we will see more of them in the rest of the series? The characters were well developed and relatable. I didn't see anything wrong with Eli's past. I can see if he allowed that to keep him from Monica, or if he was disrespecting her or cheating, but we all have a past.
Overall, this was a beautiful love story about two souls who refused to allow past partners and failures to keep them from love. I enjoyed this book so much that I'm recommending it to my readers and buying the entire series in paperback form.
100 out of 100 stars!
July 12, 2013
When looking at the cover you will be mislead, the characters are not white (though that had no effect on the story for me).
Eli and Monica meet before Monica actually starts working at the hospital that Eli is an OB at. Eli is instantly attracted to her and just figures that it was a once in a lifetime spotting of her. That is until he makes a complete fool out of himself thinking that she is a nurse instead of the ER doctor that she really is.
There is of course sexual tension between the two, but Eli has sworn off dating doctors, but that all changes when Eli proposes to Monica to pretend to be his girlfriend until after his cousin's wedding in November. In exchange for her cooperation Eli promises to help Monica do what she has in mind for the annual fundraiser.
You just know that they are going to end up falling for each other and you are not disappointed!
Eli and Monica meet before Monica actually starts working at the hospital that Eli is an OB at. Eli is instantly attracted to her and just figures that it was a once in a lifetime spotting of her. That is until he makes a complete fool out of himself thinking that she is a nurse instead of the ER doctor that she really is.
There is of course sexual tension between the two, but Eli has sworn off dating doctors, but that all changes when Eli proposes to Monica to pretend to be his girlfriend until after his cousin's wedding in November. In exchange for her cooperation Eli promises to help Monica do what she has in mind for the annual fundraiser.
You just know that they are going to end up falling for each other and you are not disappointed!
July 7, 2015
Absolutely loved it. The story is told in effortless fashion. Dr. Holmes had me on edge. I knew that leggy girl would show her face. I loved the character Monica. Not wanting to repeat a broken past, I loved how much fire she had and in the end, she git her diamond back in the way of the Super Doc. I really enjoyed Jeffrey and Amanda's storyline. Mental illness is a real issue and I was happy to read about in the way it was told. So glad the Daniels got back on track. I would love to read more about them. The book was my first read by Farrah and seeing that is more about the Holmes brothers, it will not be my last. Outstanding.
August 1, 2021
There are several reasons why I am dnf’ing this book but the main one is that the hero is just too revolting for me. He is the classic man whore type who sees women only as objects for his sexual attraction. About the heroine:
“He’d pegged her as a random goddess put in his line of vision for a few minutes so he’d have someone to fantasize about in the shower.”
Meaning, he not only believes that women aren’t people, but that they are objects specifically provided to him for sexual purposes.
The man is an OBSTETRICIAN, 100% of his patients are women and this is how he sees them?
Ick. Gross. No. DNF.
“He’d pegged her as a random goddess put in his line of vision for a few minutes so he’d have someone to fantasize about in the shower.”
Meaning, he not only believes that women aren’t people, but that they are objects specifically provided to him for sexual purposes.
The man is an OBSTETRICIAN, 100% of his patients are women and this is how he sees them?
Ick. Gross. No. DNF.
December 19, 2021
Set in one of my favorite cities, New Orleans, Monica Gardner is restarting her life after moving from St. Louis. As an ER doctor at a busy hospital, she jumps right in on her first day. The so-called "Super Doc" of OB-GYN Eli is the shining store at the hospital. Until Dr. Gardner shows up to shake up the hospital and his personal life. The book's supporting cast of the Holmes family had me laughing throughout the novel. I plan to read more in the series and look forward to getting into Eli's siblings' stories
August 21, 2013
I enjoyed this book. Eli Holmes is such a fine man.
January 7, 2020
This was my first Farrah Rochon. She's one of the many AoC who got on my radar because of the #RWAshitshow late 2019 and I enjoyed it. This was free and I bought the next 2 books in The Holmes Brothers Series about Eli's brothers Toby and Alex after meeting them about halfway in.
There was a lot to like about this but there were also a couple things that I found problematic.
In terms of what I liked - this was published in 2007, and is set in a New Orleans that is still in the process of rebuilding after Katrina and I appreciate the specificity here, since, according to her bio, Rochon is from a small town near New Orleans. Monica comes to NO because the ER doc who had temporarily relocated to Houston(?) decided not to return after Katrina, and that was the case of many other health care personnel in the book. Not knowing anything about the healthcare system in the US aside from the fact that it's crazy expensive if you don't have private health insurance, I didn't know that doctors can go on strike because of the cost of insurance premiums and because of that, MDs from out of state will come to help.
There was a secondary marriage-in-trouble plot with Eli's secretly bipolar patient who is pregnant but has filed for divorce from her husband because she doesn't want him to suffer her illness. I think this may be the second time I've seen someone bipolar in a romance (first time may also have been a secondary character but I don't remember) so I appreciate the depiction here but I don't think this was particularly necessary. I would rather there was greater development shown in Eli and Monica's relationship, which leads me to the 2 things that bugged me.
I was bothered by Alicia, the last woman Eli was in a pseudo-relationship with, being portrayed as the crazy woman - granted, her showing up unannounced in his bathroom just as he's finished his shower gave me all sorts of Fatal Attraction vibes, but still. Eli could have been straightforward with her rather than give her the passive-aggressive "I just don't have the time to give you that you deserve in a relationship" bullshit.
And my biggest UGH, was about the the Parenting Centre. If it was so important to him, why didn't he volunteer to be a bachelor from the very beginning instead of negging on Monica's enthusiasm and effort to raise money? On a related note, I was especially annoyed by the ending, which seemed hastily wrapped up - Eli comes to the rescue, after 7 bachelor doctors get stuck in Mississippi because of an ammonia leak, enlisting his brothers and someone else to participate, and so Monica decides to forgive him and pay $10K for a date with him as an apology? Just because he saved her auction, which he was co-chair of? Isn't the success of the fundraiser also his responsibility? Did I miss when he explained who the supposed girlfriend was who showed up at his door? The more I think about it the more the ending annoys me.
Despite these 2 things - or maybe 2.5 things if I include Jeffrey and Amanda - I enjoyed this and am looking forward to reading about Toby and Alex's HEA next.
There was a lot to like about this but there were also a couple things that I found problematic.
In terms of what I liked - this was published in 2007, and is set in a New Orleans that is still in the process of rebuilding after Katrina and I appreciate the specificity here, since, according to her bio, Rochon is from a small town near New Orleans. Monica comes to NO because the ER doc who had temporarily relocated to Houston(?) decided not to return after Katrina, and that was the case of many other health care personnel in the book. Not knowing anything about the healthcare system in the US aside from the fact that it's crazy expensive if you don't have private health insurance, I didn't know that doctors can go on strike because of the cost of insurance premiums and because of that, MDs from out of state will come to help.
There was a secondary marriage-in-trouble plot with Eli's secretly bipolar patient who is pregnant but has filed for divorce from her husband because she doesn't want him to suffer her illness. I think this may be the second time I've seen someone bipolar in a romance (first time may also have been a secondary character but I don't remember) so I appreciate the depiction here but I don't think this was particularly necessary. I would rather there was greater development shown in Eli and Monica's relationship, which leads me to the 2 things that bugged me.
I was bothered by Alicia, the last woman Eli was in a pseudo-relationship with, being portrayed as the crazy woman - granted, her showing up unannounced in his bathroom just as he's finished his shower gave me all sorts of Fatal Attraction vibes, but still. Eli could have been straightforward with her rather than give her the passive-aggressive "I just don't have the time to give you that you deserve in a relationship" bullshit.
And my biggest UGH, was about the the Parenting Centre. If it was so important to him, why didn't he volunteer to be a bachelor from the very beginning instead of negging on Monica's enthusiasm and effort to raise money? On a related note, I was especially annoyed by the ending, which seemed hastily wrapped up - Eli comes to the rescue, after 7 bachelor doctors get stuck in Mississippi because of an ammonia leak, enlisting his brothers and someone else to participate, and so Monica decides to forgive him and pay $10K for a date with him as an apology? Just because he saved her auction, which he was co-chair of? Isn't the success of the fundraiser also his responsibility? Did I miss when he explained who the supposed girlfriend was who showed up at his door? The more I think about it the more the ending annoys me.
Despite these 2 things - or maybe 2.5 things if I include Jeffrey and Amanda - I enjoyed this and am looking forward to reading about Toby and Alex's HEA next.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 25, 2018
Deliver Me is the first book in the Holmes Brother series from Farrah Rochon. I’ve heard about this series of books forever, and finally had to give them a try myself. I loved Deliver Me so much; I downloaded all the other books in the series when I was only 25% finished reading it.
Elijah Holmes aka “Super Doc” is an ob-gyn who give his all to his job, even going above and beyond to take care of his patients. He is also absolutely drop-dead gorgeous and has pretty much been a player for years. He has made it a rule to never date doctors after being burned pretty badly in college.
Enter Monica Gardner, who is starting over in New Orleans after having her heart broken in St. Louis. She has taken a job as the head of the ER and hits the ground running from the moment she joins the hospital. Not only does she basically run the ER, but she has also agrees to help run the charity event to keep The Parenting Center up and running, which the citizens of New Orleans are in major need of always. Of course Eli is the one doctor with the most experience, and he is the one to offer to help with the event.
I have to say I laughed out loud on more than one occasion when Monica and Eli were together. From him almost hitting her with is car on their first meeting, to him needing her to pose as his girlfriend to keep his mom from setting him up with his old high school girlfriend, I found myself totally falling in love with them as a couple. They had some serious chemistry, even if neither wanted to admit it in the beginning. OMG I loved Monica and Eli together so much!!! I have to say I loved that Monica made Eli wait to make love for the first time. I don't think I could have bought into them as a couple if she had just jumped into bed with him, when I knew she was still getting past the deception of her ex. Let me just say it was so worth the wait though!
With Monica's trust issues, I knew there was a good chance those issues would become a problem between them. I won't lie, it almost broke my heart to see her accept what she was told rather than talking to Eli about the situation. However, when Monica wants to make things right, she also does it in a big way. I had all the happy sighs going by the end of the book.
I adored Monica and Eli's story, but have to say I also fell in love with the entire Holmes clan along the way. I can't wait to read each of the Holmes brothers get their very own stories, and I so look forward to seeing what is going on with Monica and Eli along the way.
Rating: 4 stars (B+)
Elijah Holmes aka “Super Doc” is an ob-gyn who give his all to his job, even going above and beyond to take care of his patients. He is also absolutely drop-dead gorgeous and has pretty much been a player for years. He has made it a rule to never date doctors after being burned pretty badly in college.
Enter Monica Gardner, who is starting over in New Orleans after having her heart broken in St. Louis. She has taken a job as the head of the ER and hits the ground running from the moment she joins the hospital. Not only does she basically run the ER, but she has also agrees to help run the charity event to keep The Parenting Center up and running, which the citizens of New Orleans are in major need of always. Of course Eli is the one doctor with the most experience, and he is the one to offer to help with the event.
I have to say I laughed out loud on more than one occasion when Monica and Eli were together. From him almost hitting her with is car on their first meeting, to him needing her to pose as his girlfriend to keep his mom from setting him up with his old high school girlfriend, I found myself totally falling in love with them as a couple. They had some serious chemistry, even if neither wanted to admit it in the beginning. OMG I loved Monica and Eli together so much!!! I have to say I loved that Monica made Eli wait to make love for the first time. I don't think I could have bought into them as a couple if she had just jumped into bed with him, when I knew she was still getting past the deception of her ex. Let me just say it was so worth the wait though!
With Monica's trust issues, I knew there was a good chance those issues would become a problem between them. I won't lie, it almost broke my heart to see her accept what she was told rather than talking to Eli about the situation. However, when Monica wants to make things right, she also does it in a big way. I had all the happy sighs going by the end of the book.
I adored Monica and Eli's story, but have to say I also fell in love with the entire Holmes clan along the way. I can't wait to read each of the Holmes brothers get their very own stories, and I so look forward to seeing what is going on with Monica and Eli along the way.
Rating: 4 stars (B+)
June 11, 2024
I'm kinda conflicted...
This was a 3.5 for me. I'm torn between liking the sense of humor that was weaved throughout first and foremost (that's huge for me), and being unable to ignore some things that ended up affecting my overall opinion.
The all-too-common 'scorned woman that now doesn't need/trust men' was one thing, but Monica jumping to conclusions without so much as a word to Eli detracted a whole star from my rating, to be honest. I already wasn't a huge fan of hers but that was incredibly irksome.
The other thing that affected the rating... what was the purpose of the side story with Amanda and her husband? It didn't make any sense to me whatsoever, and felt like filler material. I wanted to skim over those parts.
Other small things: the meddling mother, the crazy ex-girlfriends, the iffy medical procedure descriptions (and I'm absolutely no doctor but some of that stuff seemed off), the abrupt 180 Monica did right before the abrupt ending. And after all the talk about the pregnancy center, we didn't even get to hear if it was saved or not.
The story wasn't bad by any means but those two main things really knocked it down a couple of pegs for me.
This was a 3.5 for me. I'm torn between liking the sense of humor that was weaved throughout first and foremost (that's huge for me), and being unable to ignore some things that ended up affecting my overall opinion.
The all-too-common 'scorned woman that now doesn't need/trust men' was one thing, but Monica jumping to conclusions without so much as a word to Eli detracted a whole star from my rating, to be honest. I already wasn't a huge fan of hers but that was incredibly irksome.
The other thing that affected the rating... what was the purpose of the side story with Amanda and her husband? It didn't make any sense to me whatsoever, and felt like filler material. I wanted to skim over those parts.
Other small things: the meddling mother, the crazy ex-girlfriends, the iffy medical procedure descriptions (and I'm absolutely no doctor but some of that stuff seemed off), the abrupt 180 Monica did right before the abrupt ending. And after all the talk about the pregnancy center, we didn't even get to hear if it was saved or not.
The story wasn't bad by any means but those two main things really knocked it down a couple of pegs for me.
August 28, 2017
Deliver Me is the first book in the Holmes Brothers series as well as the first book that have read by Farrah Rochon. This book like any other had both its positives and negatives, but I personally felt that the story did not have any wow points which made it stand out or remember-able. Eli's character was of a flirt doctor who considered himself to be super doc, but in order to try and save the parenting center that he put so much effort into he had to strike a deal with the beautiful doctor. Monica was on overachieving doctor who was running away from her failures and is always out to impress everybody, I did not like the fact that at the first sign of trouble she ran away and hid behind her insecurities. The chemistry between Eli and Monica was good, but I did not like the fact that Monica got addicted to Eli so quickly. Farrah's characters and writing style was okay, but I did not enjoy that there were two stories running in conjunction with each another, because it mad e it confusing at times. Overall an okay book, with nothing unique to make it memorable.
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