Doctors Beyond Borders in Aussie Readers

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Nov 21, 2013 Lauredhel rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley, australian-women-writers-challenge, romance, australian

Ariadne is an Australian doctor working for MSF in the Sudan. Ford is an American doctor doing the same. Both are escaping bad workplace romances, and decide that MSF is the furthest they can get from their old lives. Both decide that there is no room for romance in their lives. Both realise they're wrong, but slowly and one at a time, alternating, in a fairly predictable fashion. When one of them is thrust into danger, the situation comes to a head.

The two sidekick characters are likeable, and Ariadne is an Australian doctor working for MSF in the Sudan. Ford is an American doctor doing the same. Both are escaping bad workplace romances, and decide that MSF is the furthest they can get from their old lives. Both decide that there is no room for romance in their lives. Both realise they're wrong, but slowly and one at a time, alternating, in a fairly predictable fashion. When one of them is thrust into danger, the situation comes to a head.

The two sidekick characters are likeable, and the medicine interesting. I think I might have appreciated this as a full-length novel, with the everyday hospital life fleshed out more.

This wasn't really my kind of romance, I'm afraid. I get a little leery about the kind of insta-lust that causes legs to buckle and eyes to dim and ears to only hear the rushing of blood. And about strained, mixed metaphors and confusing anatomical issues ("Her breath halted in her oesophagus."?). And also about characters who come out of an (view spoiler)

Those are fairly minor complaints in what is otherwise a mostly enjoyable fling-turned-deeper workplace romance. My biggest issues with this book, however, are the skeevy race issues and white Saviour syndrome. The white people are the only ones with developed characters. The midwife is an oversexed Argentinian "bombshell" who can't take no for an answer, and the local characters, where they are given names, are ciphers. (view spoiler) Worse, however, is the (view spoiler) And that kind of sums up the book, for me - I feel like it's exploiting a dire situation, and describing it in unconsciously racist terms, merely in order to tell the story of a lustful whirlwind romance between two people who will wander off into the pretty Australian sunset and never have to think of it again.

I expect some people will think I'm being overly critical, and I am reluctant to leave a lukewarm review early in the release period. I'm not bothered if some people enjoy this - it's just not for me. It wouldn't put me off checking out Tyler's further work, however. Segments of this book were quite intriguing, and the issues definitely aren't unfixable. ...more

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Dec 29, 2013 Bree T rated it liked it

Shelves: kindle-version, netgalley, romance, arc, aww2013

Australian doctor Ariadne Tate is fleeing a failed relationship when she takes a deployment to Sudan with Médecins Sans Frontières. Romance is the last thing on her mind and in the country devastated by war, famine, crimes against humanity and disease, she vows to find a way to both make a difference and forget the betrayal she left behind. But she didn’t count on meeting American doctor Ford Gosden, also in Sudan.

Ford is too attractive for his own good and Ariadne, who has been called cold befo Australian doctor Ariadne Tate is fleeing a failed relationship when she takes a deployment to Sudan with Médecins Sans Frontières. Romance is the last thing on her mind and in the country devastated by war, famine, crimes against humanity and disease, she vows to find a way to both make a difference and forget the betrayal she left behind. But she didn’t count on meeting American doctor Ford Gosden, also in Sudan.

Ford is too attractive for his own good and Ariadne, who has been called cold before, isn’t ready for what he can make her feel. She doesn’t want to get involved with him – she’s already had her heart broken enough and even if they were to give in to their feelings, it would only get messy. They live together and work together but only for a little while longer. When their deployments are over, Ford will go back home and America and she will go back home to Sydney. There’s no point losing her heart when nothing can come of it.

Ariadne throws herself into doing the best she can for her patients, inoculating them against disease, trying to treat them for the ones they already have and trying to get them enough nourishing food so that they survive. But as the political tensions escalate, Ariadne has caught the eye of a local militia leader who sees her as a prize he must have. When she is taken during a run to deliver supplies to communities, Ford cannot sit around and wait for MSF or the UN to attempt to negotiate her release. He’ll do anything he can to get her back…..or die trying.

I’ve never read a novel set in Sudan before but it’s an area that’s been in the news an awful lot recently. This book is apparently set before the creation of South Sudan (it’s talked about in the novel as likely to happen soon) but it’s set in the politically tumultuous region of Abyei, which even now, is the subject of fighting by both the northern (Sudan) government and the newly-created South Sudan. It’s been seized by the north and at the moment, seems to be held to the stricter rules of the Islamic authoritarian state. For the purposes of this review I’m going to assume that it’s all ruled by Sudan and each part of it is held to those rules, because I’m surprised that the doctors consumed alcohol often and kept it within their house, especially given that local militia often made drive bys in the night to intimidate them. Alcohol is illegal in Sudan – the consumption of, the making of, the importation of. And although regions of the more moderate south do make their own ‘moonshine’ type grog, it can often be laced with some pretty bad stuff and it’s a risk to even consider drinking it. To be caught either possessing or drinking alcohol is an offence punishable under Sharia law. I’m not sure if the MSF or UN forces would be considered exempt from this but I’d guess that if they’re going to be tolerated in the country providing aid then they’d probably have to adhere to the laws. Ariadne also spends a lot of time wandering around the desert in tiny shorts and singlet tops which seems a pretty awesome way to get skin cancer. But perhaps I just feel that way because I’m a ridiculously pale redhead with genes more suited to Scotland than Australia and I can get burned on an 18 degree day.

On to the actual story. Ariadne was involved with someone she worked with back in Australia only to be betrayed by him. She seems to have run away from that situation and decided to immerse herself somewhere totally different working for the greater good providing medical assistance to those that need it. But her vow against romance lasts for only as long as it takes her to lay eyes on Dr Ford Gosden and his emerald green eyes. Ford too is scarred by something gone wrong back in America and he’s also been the subject of unwanted attention from a MSF midwife as well. But he wants Ariadne (boy does he want Ariadne) and he sets about attempting to break down the walls she has constructed around herself. It’s not an easy task but Ford is very persistent and he keeps chipping away at her defenses. There’s very much an instalust situation going on here – Ariadne can’t stop staring at his eyes and fantasizing about his body and it seems to go both ways. Ford is a ball of hormones – randier than a teenage boy with his first sexual experience dangling in front of him! They certainly had a lot of sexual chemistry and passion but the transition to love does feel a little rapid. Their interactions are all mostly sexual or concerning patients/the situation in Sudan.

Ariadne was a prickly character, quite stand offish but she developed a good friendship with one of the other female doctors. However some of the characters in this book did odd things – Gabriella was such a stereotype it was almost embarrassing and some of the locals felt very cliched, especially when they waxed lyrical about their country and what it had done to them. Ariadne also does something incredibly stupid going off alone with just Jack, the driver, to deliver supplies. Why she’d even think to get that idea into her head is beyond me, especially when she’d already had a run in with the local feared militia leader and seen his rather sinister interest in her. Characters who make decisions to do such things in a foreign country, especially a foreign country as unstable and dangerous as Sudan (seriously, read the warnings about travelling both into the country and around it, it’s rather enlightening) frustrate me enormously. There’s wanting to help, and that’s fine. It’s her job. But there’s also a matter of personal safety. And not putting yourself in a situation where you can get kidnapped, raped, tortured and probably murdered. ...more

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