Reviews

Nightingales on Call by Donna Douglas

holly2kidsandtired's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

As the nurses enter their final year of training, new faces appear and an old nemesis finds herself taken down a notch or two.

Dora and Lucy find themselves roommates and working together on the children's ward. Still proud and arrogant, Lucy is hiding the fact that her father has lost his fortune and she and her mother are nearly destitute. Dora and Nick are working to find the money to be able to be married and the last thing Dora needs is Lucy as her roommate. But, as often happens with trial and suffering, hearts are softened and friendships formed. I enjoyed Lucy's path to redemption.

And Jess? Jess was awesome. Loved her role as maid in the nurses house and seeing that side of the hospital and her interactions with grumpy Nurse Sutton, the old House Sister. I look forward to seeing more of Jess.

Picking up after The Nightingale Nurses leaves off, the story could stand alone, but these should be read in order. I love these girls. I love this soap opera called Nightingale. Seriously.

domicspinnwand's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Hat sich jetzt ein bissle gezogen mit dem Fertighören, hat mir aber wieder gut gefallen. Dieses Mal stehen neue Figuren im Zentrum des Geschehens - Kathys Schwester z.B. oder das Dienstmädchen Jess. Außerdem bekommt Lucie, die "Zicke" aus Band 1, eine ausführliche Geschichte, die mir recht gut gefallen hat, auch wenn sie nach hinten heraus vielleicht ein bissle arg rosig ausgeht. Und auch über Dora erfahren wir wieder ziemlich viel, unter anderem taucht eine "böse" Figur aus den ersten Bänden wieder auf. Helen und Millie kommen leider nur sehr am Rande vor - vor allem von Millie hätte ich gerne mehr erfahren. Dafür spielt Schwester Sutton wieder eine recht große Rolle, was mich freut, denn die liest die Vorleserin einfach genial, da kann man das Doppelkinn richtig "wabbeln hören". Und wie schon bei den Vorgängerbänden wollte ich hier auch am Ende am liebsten gleich mit dem nächsten Band starten - aber vermutlich hätte ich dann auch wieder erstmal Pause gemacht... However, wieder sehr solide Unterhaltung mit vielen liebgewonnenen Figuren und einer tollen Vorleserin - definitiv zu empfehlen! Ich vergebe 4 von 5 Sternen und werde mit dem nächsten Band sicher nicht so lange warten...

theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Lovely story. I really enjoyed reading this book. Loved the addition of Jess and getting to know more about some of staff sisters. I would love to read more books by Donna Douglas.

amerdale's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional lighthearted slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

samstillreading's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I do love the Nightingales series as a comfort read – they’re easy to read, yet entertaining and interesting. As I progress through the series, I’m amazed at the way Donna Douglas expertly weaves in new characters and brings others to the forefront. I am glad though that I’m a little late to the series, because the ending of the book almost felt like the end of the series! There was closure for several characters who have had starring roles in the books so far. However, I’m taking what could be an innocent statement by one of them to be a sign of return later on!

The books are set in the Florence Nightingale Hospital in London’s East End and this book sits in 1937. We know that there’s upheaval to come for the staff, but in this book they fortunately seem unaware of it. We carry on the story of Dora, now in her final section of nursing training. Can she and Nick sort out their issues and find happily ever after? Maybe, but there’s more pressing things for Dora at the moment. An old enemy has returned to her personal life and she’s been paired with her foe, Lucy Lane in the paediatric ward. Dora can’t stand Lucy with her high and mighty ways. But in this book, we find out what’s happening in Lucy’s life which makes her much more sympathetic.

There’s also two new characters who are like chalk and cheese. Jess is the maid in the student nurses’ home and she’s determined to work hard and learn all she can. A chance meeting with Effie, a new student nurse, ends up with them being unlikely friends. Effie is immature, flippant and out for a fun time instead of nursing work. Can they help each other when they need it?

Nightingales on Call does miss out on some previously adored characters. There’s little mention of Helen (now a theatre nurse), but given the tragedy that befell her in the last book, that’s likely to be a good thing! Millie is another one who is sidelined – we hear about her upcoming wedding, but not too much more. I had always thought that this wedding wouldn’t occur, based on some romance in previous books, but it looks like I’m proven wrong. I did miss them both as I didn’t particularly like Effie – she was lazy and babyish at times (not to mention stupid). Hopefully the inklings of maturity we saw at the conclusion of the book carry through to the next one. Jess was a stellar character, tough and moral and I can’t wait to hear more about her.

The book is predominantly character driven – we alternate between nurses in the chapters but there’s also a cracking plot. Everything is nicely tied together and moments of fun balance nicely with the sadder moments. What I hadn’t really realised until this book was that we follow a particular specialty depending on where the nurse main characters are rotated. This time is was paediatrics and wow, there have been so many changes in medicine since this time! (Not to mention visiting hours – can you imagine telling a parent they can only see their child once a month?) I loved the historical medicine aspect, as I always do. The books have a comforting feel to them combined with a hint of nostalgia.

My only minor whinge is that it’s near impossible to go out and buy these books off the shelf in Australia – you either need to order them online or buy as an eBook. It’s a pity, because I think they would appeal to a lot of readers who aren’t the online buying type. Plus, when I want my next Nightingale fix, I have to wait if I want a paper book – and that’s hard for this series addict!

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

apple_pie_'s review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

novellenovels's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

dove_63's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

5.0

samstillreading's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I do love the Nightingales series as a comfort read – they’re easy to read, yet entertaining and interesting. As I progress through the series, I’m amazed at the way Donna Douglas expertly weaves in new characters and brings others to the forefront. I am glad though that I’m a little late to the series, because the ending of the book almost felt like the end of the series! There was closure for several characters who have had starring roles in the books so far. However, I’m taking what could be an innocent statement by one of them to be a sign of return later on!

The books are set in the Florence Nightingale Hospital in London’s East End and this book sits in 1937. We know that there’s upheaval to come for the staff, but in this book they fortunately seem unaware of it. We carry on the story of Dora, now in her final section of nursing training. Can she and Nick sort out their issues and find happily ever after? Maybe, but there’s more pressing things for Dora at the moment. An old enemy has returned to her personal life and she’s been paired with her foe, Lucy Lane in the paediatric ward. Dora can’t stand Lucy with her high and mighty ways. But in this book, we find out what’s happening in Lucy’s life which makes her much more sympathetic.

There’s also two new characters who are like chalk and cheese. Jess is the maid in the student nurses’ home and she’s determined to work hard and learn all she can. A chance meeting with Effie, a new student nurse, ends up with them being unlikely friends. Effie is immature, flippant and out for a fun time instead of nursing work. Can they help each other when they need it?

Nightingales on Call does miss out on some previously adored characters. There’s little mention of Helen (now a theatre nurse), but given the tragedy that befell her in the last book, that’s likely to be a good thing! Millie is another one who is sidelined – we hear about her upcoming wedding, but not too much more. I had always thought that this wedding wouldn’t occur, based on some romance in previous books, but it looks like I’m proven wrong. I did miss them both as I didn’t particularly like Effie – she was lazy and babyish at times (not to mention stupid). Hopefully the inklings of maturity we saw at the conclusion of the book carry through to the next one. Jess was a stellar character, tough and moral and I can’t wait to hear more about her.

The book is predominantly character driven – we alternate between nurses in the chapters but there’s also a cracking plot. Everything is nicely tied together and moments of fun balance nicely with the sadder moments. What I hadn’t really realised until this book was that we follow a particular specialty depending on where the nurse main characters are rotated. This time is was paediatrics and wow, there have been so many changes in medicine since this time! (Not to mention visiting hours – can you imagine telling a parent they can only see their child once a month?) I loved the historical medicine aspect, as I always do. The books have a comforting feel to them combined with a hint of nostalgia.

My only minor whinge is that it’s near impossible to go out and buy these books off the shelf in Australia – you either need to order them online or buy as an eBook. It’s a pity, because I think they would appeal to a lot of readers who aren’t the online buying type. Plus, when I want my next Nightingale fix, I have to wait if I want a paper book – and that’s hard for this series addict!

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

leighannsherwin's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I think part of my fascination with this series is seeing how much health care has changed over the years. The opening hospital scene illustrates that by showing a believed teddy bear ripped from the arms of a sick child and the ward sister ordering Dora to burn it and ignore the child's crying. Then there is the strict visiting hours. Imagine only being able to see your child once a month. I can't even imagine keeping patients in the hospital that long these days they try to get you out of there as quickly as possible.
Onto the story, the fourth instalment was written like it would be the last which thankfully it isn't. Dora and Millie are in their final year of training. Millie gets little mention this time around which is sad and I missed her and the newly graduated Helen who also made a brief appearance. The story focuses on Dora and her arch rival Lucy Lane. Lucy who came across as stuck up and kind of mean in other books finally gets some back story and it was nice to get a look into why she acts the way she does. Also included are two new characters Effie, who comes from a long line of Nightingale graduates and Jess hired as a maid in the students home. Dora and Lucy are flung together both as roommates and on the paediatric ward. While Dora is dealing with her secret romance and hoping to plan a wedding, she soon comes face to face with someone from her past she'd hoped was long gone. Lucy and her family are torn apart by the mistakes of her father and face a life of destitution. Effie forms an unlikely friendship with Jess, and develops a romance with a medical student who is a huge jerk but in the end gets what's coming to him in one of the best scenes in the entire series. Jess is on the run from her family. Known as thieves and the lowest of the low in the East End she wants to start out with a clean slate. As always I loved this book and series. If I wasn't so far behind the ending would've made me cry as I don't want to see these characters go. I especially want to see what becomes of Jess and Effie as surely. But it was nice to see the other characters stories wrapped up. Each somehow got the ending they want sort of. I think it's ridiculous that they have to give up nursing work if they marry. Why go to all that trouble only to marry in the end and throw it all away, makes no sense to me, but perhaps that was just the time. Oh well another engaging instalment to the Nightingale series, can't wait to see what happens next.