At first I was really grabbed by the story. Seeing a fatal accident as a child would be horrifying and certainly could lead to a decision to follow in a doctor's footsteps, especially if that doctor is your dad.
We follow Gene through his college days and choices, of education, of women, of who to admire and who to trust both with his career and his heart. The heart choices of course manage to break his heart, while his career choice is helping to heal hearts.
While I really liked the story, I thought the medical info on exactly what is done during open heart surgery to be more info than needed in a novel. Some might enjoy learning, but I skipped over most of it. I thought Gene's temper, when very angry, did not quite fit the Gene of the tender heart, caring listener character that we were used to.
Overall, I enjoyed the story, thought it could have been shorter and had less big topics to sidetrack us and Gene.
We follow Gene through his college days and choices, of education, of women, of who to admire and who to trust both with his career and his heart. The heart choices of course manage to break his heart, while his career choice is helping to heal hearts.
While I really liked the story, I thought the medical info on exactly what is done during open heart surgery to be more info than needed in a novel. Some might enjoy learning, but I skipped over most of it. I thought Gene's temper, when very angry, did not quite fit the Gene of the tender heart, caring listener character that we were used to.
Overall, I enjoyed the story, thought it could have been shorter and had less big topics to sidetrack us and Gene.