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Safe Harbor Medical #9
The M.D.'s Secret Daughter
Eight years ago, after Dr. Zack Sargent betrayed her trust, nurse Jan Garcia moved away and secretly kept their unborn daughter. Now she's back to California. Can he be a daddy to Kimmie and forgive his former fiancée?
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
22 people are currently reading
193 people want to read
About the author
Jacqueline Diamond
249 books173 followersUSA Today bestselling author Jacqueline Diamond has more than 100 novels to her name! A former Associated Press reporter and TV columnist, Jackie is best known for her Safe Harbor Medical romances and mysteries, as well as her traditional Regency romances.
Her newest exciting venture is the Forgotten Village Magical Mystery series, beginning with A Cat's Garden of Secrets. Other recent works include the Sisters, Lovers & Second Chances series, featuring couples over age 50.
Jackie has been honored with a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. She and her husband, who have two grown sons, live in Southern California. You can learn more about her books at www.jacquelinediamond.net or at JacquelineDiamondAuthor on Facebook.
Her newest exciting venture is the Forgotten Village Magical Mystery series, beginning with A Cat's Garden of Secrets. Other recent works include the Sisters, Lovers & Second Chances series, featuring couples over age 50.
Jackie has been honored with a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. She and her husband, who have two grown sons, live in Southern California. You can learn more about her books at www.jacquelinediamond.net or at JacquelineDiamondAuthor on Facebook.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 23, 2018
I don't have any opening quote for this, which is always a bad sign.
Here are my problems with Diamond's books:
1.) She writes cold, rigid, uptight heroes. This isn't how I like my men. I like my men kind, warm, and relaxed.
2.) She focuses so much on parenting issues and medical issues in this that romance takes a backseat, or at least a side-seat. This is a common theme in her novels. Expect pages and pages of medical discussion. Expect pages and pages of (terrible) parenting.
This book has a rather complicated plot.
Zack and Jan were together eight years ago. She is a nurse, he is a doctor. He was a stern, blunt, rigid man. When Jan gets accused of giving a patient an overdose, he doesn't believe her when she says she didn't do it. He sides against her. He does not have any faith, loyalty, or belief in her. She leaves him because of this (good on her!) and he promptly marries another woman and adopts his wife's child, Berry. (Why a child is named Berry, I'll never know.) When Jan turns out to be pregnant, she asks Zack to sign papers allowing the baby to be adopted. He does. Only Jan never puts the baby up for adoption, she keeps it and names it Kimmie.
Now, eight years later, Kimmie and Jan are headed back to California to work at the same clinic Zack works at. I guess it's time to tell him the truth: he has a daughter that Jan raised by herself. Zack is now a single parent himself, his wife died and he's left taking care of Berry.
Here are some reasons I don't like the book:
Both of the leads are assholes. Jan keeps her baby and doesn't bother to tell the baby's father she is keeping it. When Zack accidentally leaves his cell phone at Jan's place, she keeps it - even though he's a doctor! - and answers it. When the call comes that Berry wants to be picked up, she goes and picks up Zack's daughter - even though she's never met Berry! - and drives her to her (Jan's) house. Very bad.
Zack is the biggest asshole. I can't believe this guy! He strictly controls his daughter's diet because her family has a history of heart disease. Poor thing can never have sugar or dessert. Or 'too many carbs.' Worse, he takes his other daughter (biological) out to a waffle lunch. You can't do that. You can't have two daughters and allow one to eat 'bad' foods while forcing the other on a 'healthy' diet. Either you have to be strict and healthy with both or allow both treats sometimes, but regardless of who has the family history of heart disease, you can't allow one daughter junk food while denying the other one.
He was increasing his daughters' chances of developing an eating disorder by a lot. :( He would just NOT STOP ragging on sugar, carbs, exercise, etc. etc. all through the book (for Berry only). It was really disturbing to me. I know he's a doctor, I know he's afraid Berry will develop heart disease, but I mean... she's eight. :( Please be a little reasonable. I could see anorexia nervosa barreling down the tracks like a freight train, unless it was derailed by bulimia nervosa or BED. Just don't fuck up your children's eating and relationship with food, Zack.
That aside. The idea that Jan wants to have sex with and wants to enter into a long-term relationship with a man who did not have her back when the chips were down, didn't believe her when she told him what happened, and completely fucked her over is unreal. Sure, allow him access to his daughter. Share custody, although make sure he doesn't fuck up her views on food. But allow him back into your bed? Into your heart?!!? Are you fucking crazy??!? I would never give a man like this a second chance. Fuck that shit.
Thirdly, no one can parent for shit in this book. Not only our two leads, but any adult in the whole book. We have Zack, fucking up his daughters' eating, rigidly trying to control every aspect of life, not allowing his daughter to wear skirts because 'it will make her hesitate to exercise,' blah blah blah you get the idea. But you also have shit like this: The girls 'force' their parents to move in together. Yeah, you've got me. I have no idea how two eight-year-old children 'made' their parents move into the same house. It's fucking ridiculous and no parent would allow this. Even the weakest parent wouldn't allow this. Lame plot point by Diamond. If she wanted the leads to live together, she could have had them come to an agreement like adults, instead of cooking up this harebrained idea of the children 'conspiring' to get the adults to move in together - which, no matter how hard you squint, makes no fucking sense.
None of the other adults in the book have any parenting sense either, as becomes clear when they arrange - behind Jan and Zack's back - to have the children organize a crusade to save the animal shelter with the money Zack has raised at the clinic for poor people with fertility issues. This is another head-scratcher - NO adult would think this is a good idea and help children do this. It's ludicrous.
The book ends with Zack just TELLING Jan he's not going to control her anymore. Try not to control everything about the relationship. And she's just like, "Okay. I believe you. Sure, I'll marry you!" and I'm like, "What the fuck." If a person tells you they are going to change, you don't just accept that, you wait and see if they actually do it. Talk is cheap.
I was horrified she was going to marry this short-tempered, controlling, domineering asshole. It's bad enough that she has a biological daughter with him. MARRY HIM?!!? You've gotta be shittin' me. Why would you want to chain yourself to this unpleasant person?
HOW'S THE SEX, CARMEN?
Ugh. Don't talk to me about the sex. Who could have sex with this man?! He's such a horrible person. Let's look at this.
Her cardigan and beige wool skirt joined his slacks in a friendly heap on the floor. He used to fold everything neatly before making love, Jan recalled, half expecting him to take a moment to do so now.
"Aha." Zack flipped her onto the bed. "Caught you off guard."
"You used to..."
"Never mind that. I've grown up."
Gross, gross. Gross on many levels. He used to stop and fold his and her clothes before sex?!?!?!? You have to be kidding me. He's "grown up?" I mean, what? Please explain that to me. He was folding clothes before sex because he was IMMATURE? He's learned to relax a little bit now? VERY LITTLE. o.O
Diamond also succumbs to flowery sex scenes like this one:
Then they caressed each other, legs tangling on the bed, bodies arching together. When he held himself over her and bent down for a kiss, they merged like liquid silver.
Excitement rushed into her. For a moment, they held still, feeling the connection, scarcely daring to move. Then, with a gasp, Zack began to thrust. Joy flooded through Jan. All these years, without realizing it, she'd been waiting for him to come back.
As their rhythm grew wilder and more insistent, they soared from the earth, flying toward the sun and exploding in a great rapturous burst. Shudders vibrated through Zack and into Jan until, slowly, they glided to earth, landing light as a whisper.
TL;DR - Who would want to be with his asshole hero? He's controlling, domineering, cold, stern, bossy and rigid. The worst thing about him, though, is that he didn't have his woman's back and didn't believe her when she was going through a hellish time. He shut her out and turned against her when she needed him the most. Let's face it, he'd be terrible in bed, but the thing Jan would not be able to get over is the absolute knowledge that she cannot trust this man and he won't be loyal to her when the chips are down.
It's unbelievable to me that she'd willingly enter into a romantic relationship with such a man who has shown her his true colors in the past. Nothing he does indicates to me that he has changed. Even if he has changed, I would find that hard to forgive.
Jan is no prize herself. Keeping his daughter and not letting him know about it and not letting him be part of her life is pretty low.
Another drawback to the book besides asshole leads is pages and pages of medical information on fertility, and pages and pages of children fighting with each other and with their parents. I find both these things boring.
CAST'S RACIAL MAKEUP:
Zack - White.
Berry - Black.
Zack's Dead Wife Rima - Black.
Kimmie - Half Latina, Half White.
Jan - Latina
ROMANCE CATEGORIES:
Contemporary Romance
Multicultural/Interracial Romance - Zack is white, Jan is Latina
Second Chance Romance
Non-Virgin Heroine
Secret Baby - Kind of
Widower Hero
Doctor Romance
He's a Doctor, She's a Nurse
Here are my problems with Diamond's books:
1.) She writes cold, rigid, uptight heroes. This isn't how I like my men. I like my men kind, warm, and relaxed.
2.) She focuses so much on parenting issues and medical issues in this that romance takes a backseat, or at least a side-seat. This is a common theme in her novels. Expect pages and pages of medical discussion. Expect pages and pages of (terrible) parenting.
This book has a rather complicated plot.
Zack and Jan were together eight years ago. She is a nurse, he is a doctor. He was a stern, blunt, rigid man. When Jan gets accused of giving a patient an overdose, he doesn't believe her when she says she didn't do it. He sides against her. He does not have any faith, loyalty, or belief in her. She leaves him because of this (good on her!) and he promptly marries another woman and adopts his wife's child, Berry. (Why a child is named Berry, I'll never know.) When Jan turns out to be pregnant, she asks Zack to sign papers allowing the baby to be adopted. He does. Only Jan never puts the baby up for adoption, she keeps it and names it Kimmie.
Now, eight years later, Kimmie and Jan are headed back to California to work at the same clinic Zack works at. I guess it's time to tell him the truth: he has a daughter that Jan raised by herself. Zack is now a single parent himself, his wife died and he's left taking care of Berry.
Here are some reasons I don't like the book:
Both of the leads are assholes. Jan keeps her baby and doesn't bother to tell the baby's father she is keeping it. When Zack accidentally leaves his cell phone at Jan's place, she keeps it - even though he's a doctor! - and answers it. When the call comes that Berry wants to be picked up, she goes and picks up Zack's daughter - even though she's never met Berry! - and drives her to her (Jan's) house. Very bad.
Zack is the biggest asshole. I can't believe this guy! He strictly controls his daughter's diet because her family has a history of heart disease. Poor thing can never have sugar or dessert. Or 'too many carbs.' Worse, he takes his other daughter (biological) out to a waffle lunch. You can't do that. You can't have two daughters and allow one to eat 'bad' foods while forcing the other on a 'healthy' diet. Either you have to be strict and healthy with both or allow both treats sometimes, but regardless of who has the family history of heart disease, you can't allow one daughter junk food while denying the other one.
He was increasing his daughters' chances of developing an eating disorder by a lot. :( He would just NOT STOP ragging on sugar, carbs, exercise, etc. etc. all through the book (for Berry only). It was really disturbing to me. I know he's a doctor, I know he's afraid Berry will develop heart disease, but I mean... she's eight. :( Please be a little reasonable. I could see anorexia nervosa barreling down the tracks like a freight train, unless it was derailed by bulimia nervosa or BED. Just don't fuck up your children's eating and relationship with food, Zack.
That aside. The idea that Jan wants to have sex with and wants to enter into a long-term relationship with a man who did not have her back when the chips were down, didn't believe her when she told him what happened, and completely fucked her over is unreal. Sure, allow him access to his daughter. Share custody, although make sure he doesn't fuck up her views on food. But allow him back into your bed? Into your heart?!!? Are you fucking crazy??!? I would never give a man like this a second chance. Fuck that shit.
Thirdly, no one can parent for shit in this book. Not only our two leads, but any adult in the whole book. We have Zack, fucking up his daughters' eating, rigidly trying to control every aspect of life, not allowing his daughter to wear skirts because 'it will make her hesitate to exercise,' blah blah blah you get the idea. But you also have shit like this: The girls 'force' their parents to move in together. Yeah, you've got me. I have no idea how two eight-year-old children 'made' their parents move into the same house. It's fucking ridiculous and no parent would allow this. Even the weakest parent wouldn't allow this. Lame plot point by Diamond. If she wanted the leads to live together, she could have had them come to an agreement like adults, instead of cooking up this harebrained idea of the children 'conspiring' to get the adults to move in together - which, no matter how hard you squint, makes no fucking sense.
None of the other adults in the book have any parenting sense either, as becomes clear when they arrange - behind Jan and Zack's back - to have the children organize a crusade to save the animal shelter with the money Zack has raised at the clinic for poor people with fertility issues. This is another head-scratcher - NO adult would think this is a good idea and help children do this. It's ludicrous.
The book ends with Zack just TELLING Jan he's not going to control her anymore. Try not to control everything about the relationship. And she's just like, "Okay. I believe you. Sure, I'll marry you!" and I'm like, "What the fuck." If a person tells you they are going to change, you don't just accept that, you wait and see if they actually do it. Talk is cheap.
I was horrified she was going to marry this short-tempered, controlling, domineering asshole. It's bad enough that she has a biological daughter with him. MARRY HIM?!!? You've gotta be shittin' me. Why would you want to chain yourself to this unpleasant person?
HOW'S THE SEX, CARMEN?
Ugh. Don't talk to me about the sex. Who could have sex with this man?! He's such a horrible person. Let's look at this.
Her cardigan and beige wool skirt joined his slacks in a friendly heap on the floor. He used to fold everything neatly before making love, Jan recalled, half expecting him to take a moment to do so now.
"Aha." Zack flipped her onto the bed. "Caught you off guard."
"You used to..."
"Never mind that. I've grown up."
Gross, gross. Gross on many levels. He used to stop and fold his and her clothes before sex?!?!?!? You have to be kidding me. He's "grown up?" I mean, what? Please explain that to me. He was folding clothes before sex because he was IMMATURE? He's learned to relax a little bit now? VERY LITTLE. o.O
Diamond also succumbs to flowery sex scenes like this one:
Then they caressed each other, legs tangling on the bed, bodies arching together. When he held himself over her and bent down for a kiss, they merged like liquid silver.
Excitement rushed into her. For a moment, they held still, feeling the connection, scarcely daring to move. Then, with a gasp, Zack began to thrust. Joy flooded through Jan. All these years, without realizing it, she'd been waiting for him to come back.
As their rhythm grew wilder and more insistent, they soared from the earth, flying toward the sun and exploding in a great rapturous burst. Shudders vibrated through Zack and into Jan until, slowly, they glided to earth, landing light as a whisper.
TL;DR - Who would want to be with his asshole hero? He's controlling, domineering, cold, stern, bossy and rigid. The worst thing about him, though, is that he didn't have his woman's back and didn't believe her when she was going through a hellish time. He shut her out and turned against her when she needed him the most. Let's face it, he'd be terrible in bed, but the thing Jan would not be able to get over is the absolute knowledge that she cannot trust this man and he won't be loyal to her when the chips are down.
It's unbelievable to me that she'd willingly enter into a romantic relationship with such a man who has shown her his true colors in the past. Nothing he does indicates to me that he has changed. Even if he has changed, I would find that hard to forgive.
Jan is no prize herself. Keeping his daughter and not letting him know about it and not letting him be part of her life is pretty low.
Another drawback to the book besides asshole leads is pages and pages of medical information on fertility, and pages and pages of children fighting with each other and with their parents. I find both these things boring.
CAST'S RACIAL MAKEUP:
Zack - White.
Berry - Black.
Zack's Dead Wife Rima - Black.
Kimmie - Half Latina, Half White.
Jan - Latina
ROMANCE CATEGORIES:
Contemporary Romance
Multicultural/Interracial Romance - Zack is white, Jan is Latina
Second Chance Romance
Non-Virgin Heroine
Secret Baby - Kind of
Widower Hero
Doctor Romance
He's a Doctor, She's a Nurse
February 6, 2018
When you have a one year old granddaughter you can 't finish a book as fast as you want to. Great book and I would it again!!! Here is a highlight from the book.......
They went up hand in hand and peeked into the girls’ room. Kimmie sprawled on her back in her bed, while Berry curled on her side beneath the princess-style canopy. Each had a cat nestled beside her. Between them, on a small table, rested the book of fairy tales from which Jan had read aloud earlier. The story had ended with, “And they lived happily ever after.” But as she and Zack slipped out, she realized their real story was just beginning. In his bedroom, he withdrew a velvet jeweler’s box from a bureau drawer. “Do you still like these as much as you used to?” To her astonishment he opened it to reveal a set of elegant rings: the engagement ring she’d thrown at him and the one intended for their wedding day. “You kept them?” “I guess there was a part of me that never let go.” She slipped on the sparkler. “It’s beautiful, and it still fits. I can hardly believe it.” “Start believing.” Zack drew her close. “I’m glad it’s back where it belongs.” And so, Jan thought, was she. At the start of a wonderful adventure. Twice upon a time...
They went up hand in hand and peeked into the girls’ room. Kimmie sprawled on her back in her bed, while Berry curled on her side beneath the princess-style canopy. Each had a cat nestled beside her. Between them, on a small table, rested the book of fairy tales from which Jan had read aloud earlier. The story had ended with, “And they lived happily ever after.” But as she and Zack slipped out, she realized their real story was just beginning. In his bedroom, he withdrew a velvet jeweler’s box from a bureau drawer. “Do you still like these as much as you used to?” To her astonishment he opened it to reveal a set of elegant rings: the engagement ring she’d thrown at him and the one intended for their wedding day. “You kept them?” “I guess there was a part of me that never let go.” She slipped on the sparkler. “It’s beautiful, and it still fits. I can hardly believe it.” “Start believing.” Zack drew her close. “I’m glad it’s back where it belongs.” And so, Jan thought, was she. At the start of a wonderful adventure. Twice upon a time...
November 8, 2021
I had a hard time liking Zach. He was so judgemental. He didn't believe Jan when they broke up and quickly became a "hero" to Rima, never again checking on Jan and his own daughter! When they do meet again and he finds out about Kimmie he still doesn't accept his own mistakes. He makes everything about Berry, not even thinking about how Kimmie might feel or Jan. The author alluded that he didn't really love Rima, but wouldn't admit it to Jan because Berry might find out someday. Jan deserved to know the whole truth, but I feel he still never trusted her.
August 11, 2012
Good book. I liked Jan, even though she hadn't told Zack about keeping their daughter. When circumstances caused her to have to move in with Zack and his stepdaughter, things got very interesting. Zack was stunned to learn about his daughter and was intent on getting to know her. With she and Jan moving in, this gave him a chance to get to know her. Zack and Jan were also getting to know each other again. They both had issues that they needed to deal with. Zack had to forgive Jan for not telling him about keeping their daughter. He also needed to learn to be less rigid in the way he did things. Jan needed to forgive Zack for not standing by her when they were first engaged. At the end, Zack finally learned to actually hear what Jan was telling him and they were able to settle their pasts and move on together.
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March 15, 2015Very poor writing...
Firstly when you claim to love someone, you stand by them, ok she made a mistake( as per him) so what ?, ppl does makes mistake. Secondly i understand that the girl lost her job n her fiancee so give up the baby, but couldnt understand why does he give up and also in all the 8years he didnt once tried to find out what happened to the baby and upon that he goes and adopt someone else baby and shows lots of love for her? And falls in love again within months ? Pathetic. And gets angry when he knows the actual fact and then seems reluctant to bring his own child to his home n then well, Lots of mistakes.... Very bad book, donno what the author was thinking while writing... No ratings this time.
Firstly when you claim to love someone, you stand by them, ok she made a mistake( as per him) so what ?, ppl does makes mistake. Secondly i understand that the girl lost her job n her fiancee so give up the baby, but couldnt understand why does he give up and also in all the 8years he didnt once tried to find out what happened to the baby and upon that he goes and adopt someone else baby and shows lots of love for her? And falls in love again within months ? Pathetic. And gets angry when he knows the actual fact and then seems reluctant to bring his own child to his home n then well, Lots of mistakes.... Very bad book, donno what the author was thinking while writing... No ratings this time.
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June 30, 2016Miniseries: Safe Harbor Medical
Category: Heart & Home
Category: Heart & Home
August 12, 2015
Fast read.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews