This had a different vibe to it than other Christina McDonald books. While it had the car and mouse factor, it had an emotional layer to it because it had the mother with the sick son selling drugs to pay for his treatment. Oh and she was married to a cop. Talk about a conflict of interest. It pulls at the heartstrings while giving you the added mystery. I’d recommend this book.

Do the ends justify the means? How far would you go to save your child? It's not just Emma that wrestles with what's the right thing, either morally or to accomplish your goals. Several other characters use the same "the ends justify the means" theory for their own actions. I enjoyed this novel. The final twist was excellent. And then the ending - devastating.

"Emma loves her life. She’s the mother of a precocious kindergartener, married to her soulmate—a loyal and loving police detective—and has a rewarding career as a doctor at the local hospital.

But everything comes crashing down when her son, Josh, is diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

Determined to save him, Emma makes the risky decision to sell opioids to fund the life-saving treatment he needs. But when somebody ends up dead, a lethal game of cat and mouse ensues, her own husband leading the chase. With her son’s life hanging in the balance, Emma is dragged into the dark world of drugs, lies, and murder. Will the truth catch up to her before she can save Josh?"

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Do No Harm by Christina McDonald is by far her best book I have read!! This page turner is very intense and will pull at each and every heart strung you have! McDonald takes a very real crisis and incorporates it into a well written psychological suspenseful thriller!

Take a normal down to earth family that finds themselves faced with a tragic problem that turns their everyday life upside down!! Combine that with family secrets, greed, addiction and a very real opioid crisis!!! What does a mother do when her only child is faced with the fight of his life!!!¡. How far will she go to save him and her family!?!?

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and as a mother and a nurse I do not know what I would do if faced with this same dilemma!!!

Thank you Christina McDonald and Gallery Books for an e-ARC of this fantastic book!!! I highly recommend you read this one when released in February! You will not be disappointed!!!!’

Do No Harm by Christina McDonald

I have read both of Christina McDonald's other books and she continues to deliver. This is a rollercoaster of a ride. I loved the overall premise - Emma is a doctor and will do anything to save her son who needs very expensive medical treatment to save his life. Her husband is a detective, investigating the opioid crisis in their area.

This book was tough to root for since the main character made bad choice after bad choice. I did empathize with her and her want to do anything she could to save her son, but she was calculatting, duplicitous, and just unreliable. The opioid crisis was a main focus of this book, similar to that in Long Bright River, and I was more drawn to the story line in this book. However, this is not my favorite of the authors. It was a good pace and fast read but some of the plot points seemed unrealistic and characters could be a bit more flushed out for me. The ending was jam packed and felt rushed.

Thank you Netgalley and Gallery books for my advanced copy.

3 stars for this rollercoaster ride. Loved the premise of this book. Emma is a doctor and will do anything to save her son who needs very expensive medical treatment to save his life. The problem for me is that it is hard to like a book when you despise the main character and you should like them. While I could relate to Emma’s fight to save her son I could not relate to her cold, calculating, unbelievable behavior. The opioid crisis in our country was highlighted in this book and I found this subject to be the most interesting part of the book. Do No Harm is the third book I have read by Christina McDonald, but not my favorite. It was to unrealistic for me. That being said it was a good change of pace for me, a fast read, that kept me flipping the pages. Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review of Do No Harm by Christina McDonald

I love all of the books so far by this author and this one did it disappoint. It was fast paced and I loved the interweaving of the storylines.

Emma is a happily married mom of one precious boy as well as a successful physician when her world suddenly comes crashing down. She receives terrifying medical news about her son and needs to raise money and fast to pay for his cutting edge treatment. Meanwhile her husband, who is a police officer, is frantically trying to obtain a raise at work while solving what may be the most important case of his career. When his case starts to overlap with his wife’s current path things get very complicated.

How far is she willing to go to save her son’s life? How can she keep everything in her life together? What secrets does she have?

I loved this book from start to finish and highly recommend you pre-order it!

Thanks to NetGalley, Christina McDonald, and Gallery books for allowing me to read an advanced e-copy.

In "Do No Harm' by Christina McDonald, we the readers are forced to examine our own thoughts about good and bad, and how those subjective categories change when in dire circumstances. If a mother does something 'bad' to have her child, does that bear the same weight as someone doing the same thing for themselves?

Also, we are forced to examine the opioid crisis and not just that someone is a drug addict, or dealer, but maybe why he or she is in that circumstance. It is far easier to judge than to look deeper and realize that there may be more commonality than we would like to think.

Harrowing and timely. I appreciate the opportunity to review Do No Harm. Thank you!

Heartbreaking and engaging, Do No Harm is one mother’s story of how far she is willing to go protect her son. Some morally gray areas challenge the reader. While parts of the story seem a bit problematic and unrealistic, the author does a great job highlighting the opioid crisis. A tragic, thought provoking story that is sure to stick with the reader.

I’ve read two other books by this author, and liked them both. I think that my being a nurse, got in the way of the enjoyment of the book. While I could relate to her desire to save her son above all else, some aspects were unrealistic. A hospital wouldn’t deny treatment because of finances. They would work to find other resources for payment. Also with two employed parents, in professions that provide great benefits, their insurances would have provided much better coverage.
Despite this, I did find myself engrossed in the story, and never giving up on it. It was a tragic story with a tragic ending. The subject of drugs in our society is real, and addiction is a tragedy in itself. There has to be something better for those that suffer from chronic pain, so that patients don’t have to choose between pain relief and addiction. Pharmaceutical companies drive the addiction bus, and now have to find a better solution!
My thanks to NetGalley and Gallery for the ARC. Christina McDonald is a wonderful storyteller and I look forward to her next effort. My opinions are my own!

4.5 Stars

Do Not Harm answers the age old question of just how far would you go to protect your children? When Emma needs money for her son's cancer treatment with no means available, she considers selling opioid prescriptions - something that could risk her medical career, her husband's police career and even their lives.

McDonald does an amazing job at highlighting the opioid epidemic and the levels a mother will go to protect her children, both of which are absolutely horrifying in their own ways, making Do No Harm an incredibly captivating read. In her quest to save her son, how many others will be harmed in the process?

I found this book had its high points... and some low points. I will admit that this book shed some light on the opioid crisis in a new way to me. There were a few scenarios brought to light in the book that I honestly had never thought. of. I will admit, however, I thought that were unbelievable. This book did bring out the tears and I did find the very end to be a surprise...

Once again Christina creates a story that swallowed me up. I found this a fast paced entertaining read and loved the suspense throughout. I could identify with Emma, the main character and her strong motherly instincts to do anything to protect her son at any cost. This author has become one of favorites and a auto buy author. Thank you Gallery Books and Christina for gifting me this copy I won in a contest, in advance for an honest review. I cannot wait to see what Christina has coming next!

Emma & Nate have the perfect life. She’s a doctor & he’s a police detective. Their 5 year old son Josh is the cutest thing since Baby Yoda & he’s obsessed with Star Wars(hence the picture). Their smart, loving boy gets diagnosed with Leukemia & their universe is turned upside down. Put yourself in Emma’s shoes. Imagine being a doctor & saving lives for a living! Every day, you wake up & help strangers. How could you not do WHATEVER IT TAKES to save your own son? The treatment Josh needs costs a lot of money & insurance doesn’t cover it. Emma takes matters into her own hands & decides that selling drugs is the only way she can save Josh. Through work, she has access to Oxy & w/ the current opioid crisis, she knew what she had to do - make money QUICK! The risk would be worth the reward right? When known drug dealers & addicts end up dead, presumably from the Oxy she helped circulate, Nate gets assigned to the case. YES, her husband has no idea what she’s been up to & she needs to stash enough cash to fund their son’s treatments before she gets caught.⁣
⁣
@christinamac79 is a master at making you feel many emotions. I love her proven ability a mother/child relationship to life. Josh was my favorite character. I wanted to jump through the pages, hug & squeeze his cheeks while going through his diagnosis and treatment. A child should never have to experience that. At 5 years old, it’s easy to imagine that a child might not understand being sick & on the verge of death. Christina does something very hard here, but yet so delicately. She helps us imagine what a child with cancer might think & feel in those moments. It’s hard to read, & punches you in the heart, but also helps you to understand Emma’s position in putting her own life & career on the line to save him. ⁣
⁣
So much happens in 368 pages but every piece seemed integral to creating such a suspenseful, emotional story about how far a mother will go to save her child.

"Sometimes we have to do the wrong thing for the right reasons."

OMG! This is the third book I've read by Christina McDonald and I appreciate all of her stories for different reasons. But this book....What an intense and wild ride! I couldn’t put it down!

What would you do for your child? How far would you go to this side of illegal?
Do No Harm answers these questions along with so many others that we are forced to deal with in America and intertwines it into a well told and fast paced emotional psychological thriller.

Emma is a doctor at a local clinic. Her husband, Nate is a police officer in their small town. And they have the cutest son, Josh that steals a lot of scenes he is in. They aren't wealthy, but they are a happy family that are devoted to each other and to their child. So, when they get news that their sweet child is diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and that their insurance won't pay for the majority of it, what are parents supposed to do? How far would you go to save the ones you love? Emma's protective side takes over and she will go to any means necessary to make sure her son lives, even if that means going behind her husband's back and doing something that is illegal and just happens to be something he is investigating as well.

Ms McDonald doesn't only deal with a parent's love for their child, but she also mixes in some serious issues we have in America and I loved that she combined that with her page turning story. She touched on medical care that no one can afford, highly addictive prescription drugs, and the people who actually need those prescription drugs to deal with pain and cannot get those medications. She did this in a way that didn't feel off. It fit with the storyline and pushed the story forward in a very real way.

This book was gripping from the very beginning. I liked the family and the characters, for the most part. I understood the actions of the parents and how each of them reacted. But where her story really shined was adding in the elements of our societal issues we have and did it in a very authentic way. It made you question how we live and how we can do better. Even if you have to pull yourself away from some unrealistic parts of the story, it's never for long because you will want to know what happens next.

Do No Harm was well plotted out and perfectly paced. The main characters and how they reacted seemed very real. Some of the side characters were a bit much, but they 100% added to Nate's case he was investigating . If you want a story that will pull you in right from the beginning and will captivate you throughout, you've got it. It's fast-paced with everything I want in a good family suspense thriller and I didn't want it to end. The ending was crazy intense and a bit unexpected, but overall this was a strong book with some pretty amazing elements that will stick with me.

Ever since The Night Olivia Fell, it was clear. Christina McDonald could slay an emotional psychological thriller/mystery. She nailed it again with Do No Harm.

With the subjects in this novel, the author tugs heart strings and forces us to experience a greatest fear. Finding out your small child has a terminal illness. Only a short time to live. There is a chance of recovery for the cost a fortune. Of course, the mother and father are broke.

Add the dangerous plan to sell opioids to raise money quick to pay for the life-saving medical procedures.

Add a husband who is the police officer trying to bring down the drug ring in town,

Add a growing number of dead bodies.

Yep. This is a book I will remember. For a long time. I have my own sons, so this theme is a personal one for me.

I wanted to like this but it was just TOO predictable, with twists that were obvious from the first few chapters. Required a little too much suspension of disbelief for me. Sorry, this just wasn't a hit for me.

Emma is a dedicated doctor who is facing a mothers worse fear. Her son Josh has just been diagnosed with a life threatening disease. How far will she go to get the care her son needs makes this an intense read that will tug at all mothers hearts.

Whoa! This thriller might be one of the top thriller reads of the year. Emma, an MD, gets sucked into the underground world of the opioid crisis to help her son, Josh. Complicating her choices is a husband that is a cop and a drug addiction of a brother. Read it on a few hours and didn't want it to end!

Wow! Where to even begin with this one....intense, jaw dropping, and emotional. The writing is absolutely superb! What would you do if your child was on their death bed and needed an outrageously expensive treatment? Do you justify breaking the laws and everything you stand for in order to save your own child's life? I was immediately hooked to the story after the first chapter. It's THAT good! I've never read a thriller quite like this one and maybe that's why I loved it SO much because of it's originality. Definitely recommend pre-ordering this one before it hits shelves!

This is the third book I have read by Christina McDonald and it won't be the last. In this nail-biting medical thriller she takes us on a rollercoaster ride of emotions as we follow two loving parents who will stop at nothing to get the medical treatment their son desperately needs. Emma, a doctor, and Nate, a detective, find their world turned inside out when their five year old son is diagnosed with a rare cancer. His only hope is a new treatment that is not covered by insurance. What would you do to save your child?
Emma's mama bear instinct takes over and clouds her better judgment as she proceeds to join a drug ring with her criminal brother by providing forged scripts for oxycontin. Her doctor's oath goes out the window as her crimes grow deeper, the money piles higher and people start dying. Is one person's life more important than another's?
This book examines the opioid epidemic, it's patients, victims and their stories. Patients who really need the medication who cannot get it anymore are left to find other ways.
My heart broke for Emma. I was also angry with her for making some of the choices she did. The ending is so real it will gut you.