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The Medical Students #1
Do No Harm
Doctors go to medical school to SAVE lives... right?
When Matthew Preston was eight, his father was shot and killed in rarefied Pacific Palisades by Ted Nash, a home burglar who happened to be the Prestons' neighbor. Though Nash was sentenced to life in San Quentin, Matthew's lifelong obsession is to somehow get into the prison, gain access to Nash, and exact the ultimate personal revenge. He devises a plan to become a prison doctor to gain access to Nash.
While in medical school, Matthew falls for brilliant classmate Torrey Jamison from poverty-stricken East Palo Alto. Torrey is battling her own demons, having been raped by a school counselor while in high school. Matthew is focused on vigilantism; but he loves Torrey who is morally opposed to killing for any reason--or so she thinks.
When Matthew Preston was eight, his father was shot and killed in rarefied Pacific Palisades by Ted Nash, a home burglar who happened to be the Prestons' neighbor. Though Nash was sentenced to life in San Quentin, Matthew's lifelong obsession is to somehow get into the prison, gain access to Nash, and exact the ultimate personal revenge. He devises a plan to become a prison doctor to gain access to Nash.
While in medical school, Matthew falls for brilliant classmate Torrey Jamison from poverty-stricken East Palo Alto. Torrey is battling her own demons, having been raped by a school counselor while in high school. Matthew is focused on vigilantism; but he loves Torrey who is morally opposed to killing for any reason--or so she thinks.
297 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 29, 2020
300 people are currently reading
162 people want to read
About the author
James B. Cohoon
3 books15 followersJames Cohoon was the president of a Los Angeles based law firm until his early retirement in 2014. As a civil litigation lawyer for over 30 years, he frequently lectured and published legal articles. His daily work included writing legal briefs for judges and other lawyers which were, in essence, 'stories' to fit the facts of his hundreds of legal cases. He resides in California with his high-school sweetheart, Rozanne, with whom he has two children--Kristin, a lawyer who is presently a stay-at-home mother, and Travis, a doctor who is just starting a cardiology fellowship.
Besides playing with his grandsons--Everett and Beckett--James enjoys sighting Orca whales from the San Juan Islands shoreline, playing bridge, and mowing the lawn.
Do No Harm (The Medical Students, Book 1) is his debut novel. Book 2 in the series is in the works.
Besides playing with his grandsons--Everett and Beckett--James enjoys sighting Orca whales from the San Juan Islands shoreline, playing bridge, and mowing the lawn.
Do No Harm (The Medical Students, Book 1) is his debut novel. Book 2 in the series is in the works.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 21, 2020
Do No Harm is a pretty ironic title for a book that does a lot of harm to anyone who is not a straight white cisgender male. I am not sure if the rest of the reviewers are friends of the author, but I am astounded this book has any positive reviews. The fact that it is poorly written is about the kindest thing I could say about it. "Show, don't tell" is something we learn in fourth grade writing, but Cohoon missed that lesson. We are treated to scene after scene of "they had deep conversations over dinner" while never getting to see these conversations; perhaps he’s unable to actually write them?
There’s a thinly veiled conservative agenda that runs central to the book and its plot, and there’s plenty of racism and sexism to be found for anyone looking. The white characters get names; the characters of color are referred to as "the Indian guy," "the pretty Chinese girl," and "the middle-aged Asian man." We get to hear about the dangers of "illegal aliens" and "jihadists yelling 'allahu akbar'" while the main characters mock and misgender a hastily thrown in transgender character. We learn about how hard life is for white men (especially those from wealthy California families!) while the author describes how liberals love criminals so much they'd happily vote a serial killer in as governor.
I’m not sure why I kept reading, hoping that the characters might grow or learn the errors of their thinking, but I’ll save you the trouble. They don't.
There’s a thinly veiled conservative agenda that runs central to the book and its plot, and there’s plenty of racism and sexism to be found for anyone looking. The white characters get names; the characters of color are referred to as "the Indian guy," "the pretty Chinese girl," and "the middle-aged Asian man." We get to hear about the dangers of "illegal aliens" and "jihadists yelling 'allahu akbar'" while the main characters mock and misgender a hastily thrown in transgender character. We learn about how hard life is for white men (especially those from wealthy California families!) while the author describes how liberals love criminals so much they'd happily vote a serial killer in as governor.
I’m not sure why I kept reading, hoping that the characters might grow or learn the errors of their thinking, but I’ll save you the trouble. They don't.
May 25, 2021
I gave this four stars because of the importance of the topics covered, but I wish the author and editor(s) had paid more attention to the basics of craft before cutting this debut novel loose. I would have loved to have felt closer to the characters. To have seen them in more peril. To have felt medical school was difficult and that career decisions were weighty. That doctors office security was tighter.
And I would have preferred a less intrusive narrator with more respect for the non white, non male, non straight characters non privileged characters.
It’s easy to say our systems are broken, tempting to turn to vigilanteism to fix them (particularly for the privileged) but shouldn’t the stakes, costs, and barriers be higher? For those who aren’t sociopaths, taking a human life, or even being responsible for human life, is weighty. Cohoon misses opportunities to let his characters weigh that.
Lawyers write reams in their daily work, but it takes more than that to make a novelist. Cohoon will probably be a good one, but only if he is willing to take more time to hone the craft.
And I would have preferred a less intrusive narrator with more respect for the non white, non male, non straight characters non privileged characters.
It’s easy to say our systems are broken, tempting to turn to vigilanteism to fix them (particularly for the privileged) but shouldn’t the stakes, costs, and barriers be higher? For those who aren’t sociopaths, taking a human life, or even being responsible for human life, is weighty. Cohoon misses opportunities to let his characters weigh that.
Lawyers write reams in their daily work, but it takes more than that to make a novelist. Cohoon will probably be a good one, but only if he is willing to take more time to hone the craft.
October 16, 2021
Good reading.
Pretty good story. Good characters.. good story line. Different books than i usually read. But i thourly enjoyed it. Wasnt planning on reading the second book in the series but because of the ending of the first one im gonna go for it. I think itll be good. Ill let you know my opinion. God bless. VickiLynn
Pretty good story. Good characters.. good story line. Different books than i usually read. But i thourly enjoyed it. Wasnt planning on reading the second book in the series but because of the ending of the first one im gonna go for it. I think itll be good. Ill let you know my opinion. God bless. VickiLynn
August 18, 2021
Yuck!
There is absolutely NO way all these reviews are legit. No way.
I picked up this book on Kindle Unlimited when it came up as a recommendation. I like medical thrillers now and again and this one had rave reviews. Rave paid reviews maybe? Or friends? I'm sorry, but it really is that bad.
First of all, it's one of the most poorly written books I've ever read. Everything is told instead of shown and the character's speak in completely unbelievable ways. Do you know any 20 something year old's who say "I want to kiss you but am worried you might slug me?" Slug?
And it is so POLITICAL. The author misses NO opportunity to share his political beliefs. Like, do you realize you are alienating half your population of readers? Unless you are a total right wing conservative, the constant digs are going to get old real fast. Will for sure skip all future books by this author and you should too.
There is absolutely NO way all these reviews are legit. No way.
I picked up this book on Kindle Unlimited when it came up as a recommendation. I like medical thrillers now and again and this one had rave reviews. Rave paid reviews maybe? Or friends? I'm sorry, but it really is that bad.
First of all, it's one of the most poorly written books I've ever read. Everything is told instead of shown and the character's speak in completely unbelievable ways. Do you know any 20 something year old's who say "I want to kiss you but am worried you might slug me?" Slug?
And it is so POLITICAL. The author misses NO opportunity to share his political beliefs. Like, do you realize you are alienating half your population of readers? Unless you are a total right wing conservative, the constant digs are going to get old real fast. Will for sure skip all future books by this author and you should too.
January 18, 2021
Terrible read
Got this book because it had an award. It is so full of white supremacy, stereotypes and bigotry that I went to the reviews and found similar findings. Not well written. Love mysteries. This one was just a mistake.
Got this book because it had an award. It is so full of white supremacy, stereotypes and bigotry that I went to the reviews and found similar findings. Not well written. Love mysteries. This one was just a mistake.
July 14, 2021
As a young child,Matthew watched his father murdered by a spoiled rich neighbor. From that point on, he wanted only revenge. He needed to become a doctor as an adult to get to the murderer who was in jail for life and that was his main focus. Interesting story.
September 11, 2021
fantastic
This is a must read book. I couldn’t put it down for even a minute. Just a very good read.
This is a must read book. I couldn’t put it down for even a minute. Just a very good read.
March 19, 2021
Really poor. Don’t waste your time.
No character development. Simple but unrealistic plot. Many medical inaccuracies. Author is obviously a vigilante wannabe that thinks he is morally superior. Terrible book.
No character development. Simple but unrealistic plot. Many medical inaccuracies. Author is obviously a vigilante wannabe that thinks he is morally superior. Terrible book.
January 26, 2021
BORING
Really no plot. Just a guy going through life with one goal, to kill his father's killer.
Really no plot. Just a guy going through life with one goal, to kill his father's killer.
January 7, 2021
This intriguing book was a quick read and a page turner. I enjoyed the med school descriptions, but this is an interest of mine, and the villains were indeed villainous (especially the murderer and his mother). But I had a very hard time identifying with a man who could think of nothing but revenge for most of his life. The death of the murderer was not going to bring Matthew’s father back and the man he wanted to kill had small cell lung cancer, which has a very poor prognosis. In other words this creep was probably going to die soon anyway. I was also unclear about the author’s point of view toward his protagonist. It would be really simplistic if Cohoon is sympathizing with a man whose is life dominated by an obsession with vengeance. A more sophisticated approach might have involved more criticism of this need for revenge or a more nuanced analysis of it. The relationship between Matthew and Torrey was also not particularly believable. So 4 stars for so many of the good points of this novel and 2 stars for everything else.
July 20, 2022
Again, it was actually an Audible Audiobook which is not listed as an option, and I cannot and it as one; Sigh.
In many ways, there were no surprises, and yet, the whole thing was surprising. The building relationship between the main character and his partner was wonderful, although I hated the death penalty and revenge aspects. But I have determined or discovered that I am way to left wing softhearted for most… (Emphasis on left-wing…)
There is so much wrong with the government and justice system that I can't even imagine what would need to be done to correct it, but I am convinced that no side – left or right – has the right tools or reactions to do it in a satisfactory manner. Actually, I'm fairly convinced that no such system could possibly exist in such a way that everyone would be happy!
And the goal of "do no harm" is really poorly defined :-(
In many ways, there were no surprises, and yet, the whole thing was surprising. The building relationship between the main character and his partner was wonderful, although I hated the death penalty and revenge aspects. But I have determined or discovered that I am way to left wing softhearted for most… (Emphasis on left-wing…)
There is so much wrong with the government and justice system that I can't even imagine what would need to be done to correct it, but I am convinced that no side – left or right – has the right tools or reactions to do it in a satisfactory manner. Actually, I'm fairly convinced that no such system could possibly exist in such a way that everyone would be happy!
And the goal of "do no harm" is really poorly defined :-(
July 21, 2020
Just finished "Do No Harm" and found it impossible to stop reading once I started. The pace is satisfyingly brisk, with twists and turns that kept me anxiously anticipating every turn of the page! Cohoon reads like a James Patterson thriller in a medical school setting. Fascinating and in-depth insights to a wide range of topics from revenge, to corrupt political payouts for favors, the prison system, the healthcare system and ultimately what drives humans to behave and respond the way they do. The ending came as such a surprise, I found myself having to go back and reread just to be sure I caught everything!! I would absolutely rate this a 5/5 and will try and wait patiently to see what Matthew and Torrey will be exploring in Cohoons' next novel!!
February 11, 2022
Not for the faint of heart
This was such a thrilling read! The motivation behind every character's actions, the true dilemma of morality, everything about this book was well crafted. I must admit though, with the thorough research and influx of medical information, if you aren't planning to
stick along for the ride, it's best not to start this. Though the end of the story is extremely gratifying, it is an up hill battle to get there. Medical jargon is used constantly and it sometimes felt as if I was in medical school myself. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I can't wait for part II.
Also, I'm so happy that this book didn't end in the way many do these days haha.
This was such a thrilling read! The motivation behind every character's actions, the true dilemma of morality, everything about this book was well crafted. I must admit though, with the thorough research and influx of medical information, if you aren't planning to
stick along for the ride, it's best not to start this. Though the end of the story is extremely gratifying, it is an up hill battle to get there. Medical jargon is used constantly and it sometimes felt as if I was in medical school myself. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I can't wait for part II.
Also, I'm so happy that this book didn't end in the way many do these days haha.
January 20, 2025
James B. Cohoon's Do No Harm is the story an unusual medical student. Matthew Preston decided to be a doctor as a way to get close to his father's murderer. The man is serving life in San Quentin. Matthew initially considered being a corrections officer as a way to get close to him and kill him. He became a prison doctor instead. His girlfriend also went into prison medicine to be close to him. The goal of killing the killer certainly drove Matthew's life and career choices to extremes. The planning seemed almost like some of the actions young people take to get into top schools or land certain jobs so they can be rich and successful.
Read
November 30, 2021Thoughts of revenge
Matt Preston ' s father was murdered by a 25 year old neighbor . He thought of revenge from then on . His goal was medical school and then working in the prison where the man was incarcerated for life . He met Torrey, a fellow student. The two were well matched and studied together with good results for both.
In all stories there are twists and turns with occasional changes, and that is true here. The book also serves as a treatise of sorts of the corrupted mess that is California.
Matt Preston ' s father was murdered by a 25 year old neighbor . He thought of revenge from then on . His goal was medical school and then working in the prison where the man was incarcerated for life . He met Torrey, a fellow student. The two were well matched and studied together with good results for both.
In all stories there are twists and turns with occasional changes, and that is true here. The book also serves as a treatise of sorts of the corrupted mess that is California.
July 12, 2020
Great book! I was on the edge of my seat the entire read! Similar to Robin Cook medical thrillers, this book does not disappoint. Every injustice and social issue was touched on, and the impact that trauma has on young lives is the driving force throughout the book. With an exciting twist at the end, you sigh with relief and smile at the irony! I can't wait for the next book! I love the last paragraph, bravo!
September 2, 2020
Inspiring while absolutely thrilling
Incredibly fast-paced. A spoiled rich man kills then, after getting a life sentence in prison is up for parole. The son of the man he shot goes to medical school so he can get into the prison to kill the murderer. Very thought- provoking realistic story of the hard journey through med school, then it's time for his dream to be fulfilled. You won't put this one down til you are to the end!
Incredibly fast-paced. A spoiled rich man kills then, after getting a life sentence in prison is up for parole. The son of the man he shot goes to medical school so he can get into the prison to kill the murderer. Very thought- provoking realistic story of the hard journey through med school, then it's time for his dream to be fulfilled. You won't put this one down til you are to the end!
January 6, 2021
This is a well-written book with realistic characters and an interesting plot. I learned a lot about medical school and becoming a doctor. I had a little problem with one of the premises in the book about the protagonist. I was also a little disappointed in the ending. I would have preferred that the protagonist make the major decision rather than being driven by events. I won't go into more detail to avoid spoilers.
Overall it is a good read and I will continue to follow this author.
Overall it is a good read and I will continue to follow this author.
July 9, 2021
Interesting read. Not nearly as predictable as other books. Young Matthew’s father is killed by a burglar, and he receives a sentence of life without parole. That’s not quite good enough for high school graduate Matthew. He is determined that the killer will pay. In undergrad and medical school, Matthew falls for the sweet Torrey. As they both work together in San Quentin, strange things start to happen.
July 7, 2021
What a great read.
It was hard to put down. The two main characters Matthew & Torrey and there journey through med school was educational. The last chapter had a great twist. With Matthew's revenge. Can't wait for Bad medicine and what is waiting next for Matthew and Torrey .
It was hard to put down. The two main characters Matthew & Torrey and there journey through med school was educational. The last chapter had a great twist. With Matthew's revenge. Can't wait for Bad medicine and what is waiting next for Matthew and Torrey .
October 9, 2020
The books title “Do No Harm” is the central theme to the characters as they each come to terms with violent events that have left them scarred. Matthew Preston, the main character,
is motivated by revenge and leads the way for juicy twists and turns.
is motivated by revenge and leads the way for juicy twists and turns.
November 18, 2020
This book kept me thinking about the characters on between reading sessions, & I appreciated the deadpan humor sprinkled throughout. There were several plot twists that I didn't see coming! A thought-provoking read.
December 25, 2020
No ending!!!
The story line was actually very interesting and believable . Secondary characters could have been fleshed out a bit more. But, no ending?!?!? Books and movies like this do not offer closure.
The story line was actually very interesting and believable . Secondary characters could have been fleshed out a bit more. But, no ending?!?!? Books and movies like this do not offer closure.
January 22, 2021
Fast paced fun
I loved this new to me author and book. I am a big revenge fan and this storyline was very interesting to me. I loved the medical students and look forward to starting book two!
I loved this new to me author and book. I am a big revenge fan and this storyline was very interesting to me. I loved the medical students and look forward to starting book two!
January 26, 2021
Great Read!
I always enjoy a good medical mystery. This book was hard to put down and kept me guessing how it was going to end. Very creative. Enjoyed it very much and would highly recommend it!
I always enjoy a good medical mystery. This book was hard to put down and kept me guessing how it was going to end. Very creative. Enjoyed it very much and would highly recommend it!
August 2, 2021
Interesting
This book was not a joy to read but I found it to be quite informative regarding prisoners, prisons, guards, etc. The story flowed well and the characters flawed and realistic.
This book was not a joy to read but I found it to be quite informative regarding prisoners, prisons, guards, etc. The story flowed well and the characters flawed and realistic.
August 18, 2020
Spellbinding. Couldn't put it down
A great book. Riveting. Loved all the twists and turns the plot took. Didnt anticipate some of them. Can't wait for his next book
A great book. Riveting. Loved all the twists and turns the plot took. Didnt anticipate some of them. Can't wait for his next book
September 12, 2020
The whole premise is amateurish.
Don’t waste your time. The only reason i am writing beyond the first sentence is in order to post, a certain number of words are required.
Don’t waste your time. The only reason i am writing beyond the first sentence is in order to post, a certain number of words are required.
February 4, 2021
A quick read
Not much to write about....mundane plot, mundane characters...sort of interesting premise and I did finish it...actually with relief. I wouldn't bother again.
Not much to write about....mundane plot, mundane characters...sort of interesting premise and I did finish it...actually with relief. I wouldn't bother again.
March 2, 2021
Good read
It was good didn't see the ending coming, interesting characters and an easy Recommend this author I like surprise endings.
It was good didn't see the ending coming, interesting characters and an easy Recommend this author I like surprise endings.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews