Review: Medicine Man by Saffron A. Kent

A Bibliophile Confesses
Sep 27, 2018
3 min read

BLURB

Willow Taylor lives in a castle with large walls and iron fences. But this is no ordinary castle. It’s called Heartstone Psychiatric hospital and it houses forty other patients. It has nurses with mean faces and techs with permanent frowns. It has a man, as well. A man who is cold and distant. Whose voice drips with authority. And whose piercing gray eyes hide secrets, and maybe linger on her face a second too long. Willow isn’t supposed to look deep into those eyes. She isn’t supposed to try to read his tightly leashed emotions. And neither is she supposed to touch herself at night, imagining his powerful voice and that cold but beautiful face. No, Willow Taylor shouldn’t be attracted to Simon Blackwood, at all. Because she’s a patient and he’s her doctor. Her psychiatrist. The medicine man. WARNING: This book discusses sensitive issues including but not limited to, depression and suicide.

Review:

I remember the first book of Saffron's that I read, which was Gods and Monsters. I remember reading it and at the end thinking, if I ever wrote a book, this is the kind of book I would want to write. I would write it just like how she wrote it. Medicine Man for that reason felt like deja vu. Yes, this story is not politically correct (a patient has an affair with her doctor), but boy was it interesting and sexy, and oh so forbidden.

Willow Taylor is in a predicament. Something she did a few montha ago has landed her a visit to the Heartstone Psychiatric Hospital. For the next four weeks she just has to act her way through doctor visits, make them think she's just another angsty teen, and "get better" so her mother won't worry about her too much.

And she's getting by. She's made friends and things seem to be cruising along. She just needs to fake her way for a few more weeks, when the arrival of a new doctor turns her world on its axis.

Simon Blackwood.

"My gaze catches on to his square, rock-hard jaw, tracing the stubble that roughens up the slant of it. My eyes move up and I see his cheekbones, high and cliff-like. Royal, masculine, stunning. Just like his name. He reminds me of the timeless statues I’ve seen in my history textbook."

Willow has drawn clear lines in her head. The doctors are her enemy. They don't bother really listening to her, and they think she's crazy. But when Dr. Blackwood comes along, he surprisingly does make an effort. To get to know his patients. To help them. To really understand them. And so Willows walls begin to crumble.

She doesn't stand a chance against Simon's allure. She doesn't stand a chance against her feelings for him. But their relationship is doomed from the beginning. He's so much older, and Willow's going to get out in a few weeks. She's going to leave, that's always been the plan.

But life doesn't always go according to how we want, does it?

Some people may not like this story for its subject matter, but this is a work of fiction. Saffron's words weave a world that feels so real that I could almost hear the pitter patter of the constant rain that surrounds Heartstone. I could feel the gloom surrounding the hospital. And the angst. Oh the angst. You could feel Simon's inner conflict pouring from the pages. He's got his secrets. He may not want to want Willow, but he can't seem to help himself. The push and pull between the both of them kept me turning the pages, waiting for them to be found out, waiting for their affair to blow up in their faces.

For me every single element of the story worked and I hope that everyone keeps an open mind when they do read this.

5 stars.