Originally published: 26 May 2022

Author: Jack Jordan

Published by: Simon & Schuster

Genre: Thriller

Length: 432 pages

Reading dates: 15-18 May 2022

MY CHILD HAS BEEN TAKEN.

AND I’VE BEEN GIVEN A CHOICE . . .

KILL A PATIENT ON THE OPERATING TABLE

OR LOSE MY SON FOREVER.

The man lies on the table in front of me.

As a surgeon, it’s my job to save him.

As a mother, I know I must kill him.

You might think that I’m a monster.

But there really is only one choice.

I must get away with murder.

Or I will never see my son again.

I’VE SAVED MANY LIVES.

WOULD YOU TRUST ME WITH YOURS?

I was so excited to receive a proof copy of Do No Harm – there has been a lot of (well-deserved) hype around this book. Having previously read Night by Night, I knew I was in for a treat!

A three-way narrative, we hear in turn from the three main female characters in the book. Dr Anna Jones is a well respected heart surgeon who is put in an impossible position – she comes home to find her son kidnapped and she is told she must kill a politician during surgery or she will never see her son again. Margot is a nurse who works alongside Anna in the operating theatre and has fallen on hard times. Owing money to the wrong people, she has resorted to stealing from her colleagues in the hospital and to make matters worse has just found out she is pregnant. Inspector Rachel Conaty is tasked with investigating a murder of one of Anna’s neighbours and immediately has suspicions around Anna, whom she feels is connected someway.

Well these aren’t the most likable characters I have ever read about but I appreciate when you are truly desperate, your best characteristics might not shine through! Anna comes across as cold but is amazingly clever, getting herself out of lots of seemingly impossible situations. I had a soft spot for Margot – her childhood wasn’t good but she has managed to pull herself away from her roots and get a good education and job but has found herself being pulled in a direction she doesn’t want to go in to protect her unborn child and to be a better mother than her own was. And Rachel is still grieving the loss of her young son who disappeared without a trace while in her care.

With the overlying theme of motherhood this was literally one of the most exciting stories I have ever read. Without giving too much away, I was left open mouthed on more than one occasion and I loved that the author was able to shock me. My thriller of the year, Do No Harm is a fast-paced and suspenseful thriller which I loved!

On Tuesday I went along to the book launch at Waterstones in Brighton. Jack was in conversation with Nadine Matheson and the conversation was funny and informative. With cupcakes (with surgical accessories) and some fabulous company, I had a great evening. Jack is just lovely and I was thrilled to get my special Waterstones copy signed by him!

About the author:

Jack Jordan is the global number one bestselling author of Anything for Her (2015), My Girl (2016), A Woman Scorned (2018), Before Her Eyes (2018) and Night by Night (2019).

His latest thriller Do No Harm has been coined the thriller of the summer for 2022, described as “relentlessly tense” by Sunday Times Bestseller Lesley Kara, and “Chilling and perfectly paced” by New York Times Bestseller Sarah Pearse.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JackJordanBooks