”I flirt with death as ferociously as another woman might with a handsome man at a party, each scalpel stroke like a suitor’s tongue on the nape of my neck. Each time I cut into the crook of my arm, I choose to avoid the radial artery lolling close to the surface, daring me to die. Each incision is a victory. ”
Carol Topolski’s second novel, Do No Harm, was published in 2010, two years after her first book called Monster Love. Her debut novel was nominated for the Orange Prize for Fiction and has been compared to Lionel Shivers We Need to Talk About Kevin. The British novelist has been a practising psychoanalytic psychologist and maybe that is why both of her books are labeled as psychological thrillers. Her writing is realistic and mighty gripping, you can easily put your soul into the story which can be either a very exquisite or disturbingly creepy reading experience. I prefer the latter in this case.
Do No Harm sets the scene in England during the 70’s and tells us about a talented and widely respected gynaecologist, Virginia Denham. Her stellar reputation is well earned due to her commitment to her patients. She appears to be almost a flawless doctor and a surgeon… but nobody knows about her mental disorder. And nobody knows what she is doing when she’s on her own, or what exactly is running through her mind while operating her women patients.
The book focuses mainly on Virginia but the story involves three minor characters as well. Faisal from India, a colleague of hers, works at the same hospital and is also an ingenious doctor himself. Then there’s a young, pregnant woman named Gilda who is saved by Virginia and after that becomes friends with her.
The third supporting character is an impulsive woman, Ruby, who has known Virginia since she was a child. Ruby socializes with her a lot and by the end of the book I’m sure all readers will understand the truth about her that has been covered in the beginning.
The book contains a lot flashbacks and it reveals the crucial parts of the story little by little. Virginia’s unhappy childhood is undoubtably the main reason for her behaviour and acts so that’s why the history is an important part of the plot. A great part of the flashbacks are also about Virginia’s mother who has her own effective story to be revealed. And along with the protagonist’s story, the book lets you know about the supporting characters who, at the beginning, seems all to have their own, separate stories. But the further the novel goes the more you’ll realise how they are all linked to Virginia’s life.
Do No Harm is not a light book to read for someone who can’t stand cutting, blood and more particularly, the genitals of women. There will be disturbingly precise describtions of certain kinds of situations and actions that can be, more or less, disgusting for a thin-skinned reader. But then again that’s what makes the book so startling and creepy, which I think is the point in this genre. I usually like to read something provocative or appalling so this was a book I enjoyed. Though the plot wasn’t so surprising that it maybe should’ve been since I figured it out kinda fast who and what Ruby was. But it was still well written and it didn’t get boring at any point. And given the fact that I randomly picked up this book without reading any reviews before (which I VERY often do), this was a truly positive surprise. I may have a little crooked taste for books since I found this novel so fascinating but hey, it takes all sorts to make a world.