I am absolutely in love with these contemporary romances by Helen Scott Taylor. She has an amazing way with words and I absolutely love how her locations are in Britain. There is something absolutely lovely about stories based in the UK. The Amy Doctor’s Baby is unique in that not only is the mother Olivia a single mother but the father of her child and all the male members of his family are a part of the military. Active service in fact… including the patriarch the Brigadier.

The story begins with the eldest son Radley coming home on leave from his stint as a specialized military doctor only to find new mother Olivia in his parents’ sitting room with darling baby George. The ex girlfriend of his brother Cameron, she was left in dire straights when he questioned the parentage of her son. luckily Sandra, Radley and Cameron’s mother steps in and helps out leaving Olivia safe and able to continue her studies left out of necessity when she had complications in her pregnancy. 

With her emergency c section Olivia is left unable to watch George alone and Radley is home to help. Our romance goes from there. What I love about this story is that the pace of the romance is slow. The history of both characters is examined in some detail and the relationships of ALL the principle characters are taken into consideration. 

You absolutely feel for Olivia and fall in love with baby George. Even the errant Cameron is redeemable while Radley is a knight in shining armour! A lovely romantic read… Be sure to check out others by her: A Family for Christmas (HERE) and A Family Forever (HERE). The Army Doctor’s Baby is considered a novella as well, so a must have for those rainy days!

The Army Doctor’s Baby

Sometimes  a quick afternoon read is all you need… The Apply of My Eye by Christine McGreggor is a sweet novella and a first book for this author. This book begins with Michelle Perry having inherited her grandmother’s home with its two beautiful apple trees in a quiet neighbourhood. An only child of a small extended family she is surrounded by love and is excited to move into a home that has been a part of her entire life. 

This gentle romantic drama shows clearly how the apple tree (which has been threatened by a neighbour) is not only important to Michelle but a catalyst to the beginnings of a new romance, with the help of her best friend of course. The pace of the story is a little quick (especially the romance) but in a novella length book that is often to be expected. 

There are some unexpected conflicts and some humour… all in all this is a great single sitting book. I would most definitely read more by this author.

The Apple of My Eye

First a warning… this book includes explicit sex scenes… not my cup of tea but the relationship does make sense for the need for the physical contact and the mystery and the character growth and actually characters themselves made this book worth reading regardless (I honestly skimmed and skipped past the scenes as best I could). 

Playing Doctor by Julie Rowe is listed as A Bandit Creek Romance. This Canadian author has a history in medicine and, as is stated in her bio at the back of the book, loves to include medical details in her romance books. What I loved was that it was not overpowering, you didn’t feel like you were reading a medical journal but at the same time you felt like you understood a bit more about what the main character ( a doctor) was doing. 

This book is novella length, a good afternoon read. The main character is a doctor recently returned from Afghanistan. She is dealing with Post Traumatic  Stress Disorder and begins the story with throwing old sticks of dynamite into a lake to detonate them. Enter Smitty, who was with her on her dramatic tour… hired by the town to keep her from hurting herself or others. 

The romance between Smitty and Abby is well developed, the town itself is interesting and well described. There is a history to uncover, healing to accept and an adventure to be had! It felt believable and quirky and almost left you wanting a little more… especially in regards to the town drunk and his “Ghosts”… The emotions are dealt with with great care and the PTSD is used within the plot in a way that feels like the author is really authentic. A terrific afternoon romance/mild mystery read! 

Playing Doctor