The last person paediatrician Dr Ethan Reid expects to encounter on his rescue boat whilst rescuing refugees from the Mediterranean Sea is Nurse Claire Durand. They had an electrifying one night stand in France and now Claire has some news - she is pregnant. Ethan has always been alone. He was the victim as a teenager and now dogged by survivors guilt always has to be the rescuer, almost like payback.

A sensitively written romance addressing the recent and ongoing plight of the African and Syrian refugees who are risking their lives trying to flee across the Mediterranean Sea on rafts and tiny boats for a better life.

I received this novel from Mills & Boon via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I have always enjoyed reading Louisa Georges’ medical romances. . They are uncomplicated and easy to read.. The story is of a chance encounter that had unexpected consequences. Set the stage for another chance encounter and mother to be meets her baby’s father. So starts another sizzling romance. A good holiday read

The answer is given away of course by the title of this book, so if you are looking for a surprise you aren't going to get one.
What will surprise you however, is the setting.
Whilst this is the traditional doctor-nurse romance it is set at sea - whilst rescuing refugees in the Med. A medical ship board romance but set in the ship that takes in the survivors from the dodgy rafts and boats that set sail from Africa hoping to reach Europe whilst dreadfully over loaded and under powered.
I enjoyed the writing style and the story but do wish the female lead wasn't the nurse so many times!

When Ethan was a teenager he became trapped in a life and death situation which went on to shape his life. Being the one who was saved, Ethan feels like he has to give back and so his own personal mission to save as many lives as possible begins. But then one Night in France he meets Claire and a chance encounter in a lift looks set to change his life forever! When Ethan turns up for his new job he gets a shock when his one night stand is there as well. Can they both overcome their pasts to get the future they desire. Set on a refugee rescue boat there are twists and turns and we get the chance to really look at how the past has shaped who they have become but will the present be enough for them to overcome their pasts and have their own happily ever after!

It's a while since I've read a medical romance, and I didn't remember them being so sizzling, but this one is, and I'm not complaining.

It starts, with a traumatic event for Ethan, that is still affecting his life many years later, when he is attracted to Claire in a bar, just before he embarks on an important humanitarian mission. They are both at pivotal points in their life, and so act on impulse with an explosive and sensual outcome.

The emotional impact of their first meeting is apparent when they meet again and then the conflicts begin and their chance of ever being together, seem remote.

There is a sensitive grasp of contemporary refugee issues and the role of medics in their plight, this provides an adrenaline-fuelled, yet poignant setting for their troubled romance to grow or die.

Claire has her own demons, which make her back off from a long term relationship, but the consequences of their passion, make her reevaluate, but can Ethan, whose emotional damage is severe, learn to forgive himself and trust in another?

After angst and indecision, there is an expected happy outcome, but they really have to work for it.

A surprising and absorbing medical romance.

I received a copy of this book from Mills and Boon via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

We first meet Ethan as a teenager, in a life and death situation. Suffering from survivors guilt, Ethan has trained as a doctor. He lives a very nomadic lifestyle going on one humanitarian mission after another. Now he is in France about to go on a mission with the guy who saved his life all those years ago. The night before he meets Claire at the hotel they are both staying in. After rescuing her from the advances of a drunk man. When the lift they are both going up in, stops when the power goes out.
Our hero and heroine just can't help giving into the attraction they both feel. Afterwards they both go their separate ways. Until they find out they are both working the same rescue mission.
My heart really went out to Ethan, he was so hard on himself, desperate to prove himself worthy of being saved. On top of that he had parents that weren't there for him. Both our hero and heroine were likable. Loved the ending very swoon worthy. An enjoyable read, recommended for fans of contemporary/medical romance. ARC received as part of Mills & Boon insiders. This is my voluntary review.

I have enjoyed this book, however, for some reason it did not resonate with me as I hoped it would, the characters did not seem to have in my opinion much spark and their initial encounter a bit too... I don't know, but I struggled to connect with them emotionally.

Claire is living in the moment and escaping from her family and her old life. She is going to run away to sea! The night before she goes she meets Ethan in the hotel bar and her life changes forever

Ethan is suffering from a form of PTSD following being trapped in an avalanche when he was a teenager. When Chase, who rescued him, calls for help Ethan goes, hoping to pay off some of the debt he owes to Chase for saving his life and choosing Ethan over his best friend

It turns out that both Ethan and Claire are going to be working on the same refugee rescue boat. They agree that they won't discuss their night together but both of them at still affected by it and working together isn't easy for either of them with their desire running beneath the surface
Both Ethan and Claire we running away from something but will they stop running when a revelation changes both their lives?

While I enjoyed reading Ethan and Claire's story I had times when I struggled to bond with them as characters. This book is centred around something that is on everyone's mind, the refugee crisis, and shows some of the things that are being done to protect those who are so desperate to get away from their old lives that they would risk everything to get to safety

You know, the more I think about it, the more Ethan and Claire's story lines up with the reasoning of those they are helping

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys their medical romance book with a sense of adventure and of helping people, of the main characters overcoming serious adversity to be together

Medical romances are my pleasure and there’s not one iota of guilt to be found particularly when the title hints at one of M&B’s most beloved tropes.

“You were supposed to be a fling...”

Louisa George never fails to deliver an all-round satisfying romance and keeps up the trend with paediatric doc, Ethan and nurse, Claire whose journey on the the SOS Poseidon, providing aid to refugees rescued from the Mediterranean Sea, holds some more serious notes amongst their chemistry and growing feelings.

“It’s not our place to judge, we just have to help them rebuild something better than what they left behind.”

I literally read this is one sitting which I think is a fair endorsement of my enjoyment—what hit the spot for me here was location location location offering readers something that bit different—and I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for more from the SOS Docs: Chase has definitely caught my eye.

4 - "We have all night…" Stars!

Saved by their One-Night Baby is the first book in the new SOS Docs series, it is also the first book I have read by Louisa George, but I’ll definitely be looking to read more from her in the future.

"I am here to work not mess around with an unsuitable man…"

Its not often a Mills & Boon novel offers up something different, but Louisa managed to with Ethan and Claire’s story, in that the bulk of it takes place on the SOS Poseidon a ship that patrols the waters mainly around mainland Europe, picking up refugees who are looking to make a better life for themselves. The conditions on-board are basic, with the crew living in close quarters as well as looking after the men, women and children they pick up while on patrol.

His heart was happy with her regardless of the restrictions they put on their relationship…

Stuck in a lift with each other in a hotel lift during a power cut produces an explosive connection, one that Claire wants to treasure as a memory of the beginning of her life of freedom, that is until she turns up on-board the next day and finds Ethan is one of the Doctors she will be working with. They agree to keep things platonic while on the ship, but it gets more difficult to keep on the right side of the line set the longer they spend together.

"It seems we can’t be trusted on our own..."

The title pretty much tells you what happens next, but with Ethan still dealing with a lot of demons from one tragic accident in his youth, the path to parenthood is not all smooth sailing, even though they are a perfect match in pretty much every other way.

"You were supposed to be a fling… I guess you can still be that. I won’t hold you to anything…"

Great story, likeable characters, and a with a huge amount of scope for further characters to come on-board as the series progresses I am looking forward to reading more from it, I hope that ship’s Captain; Chase is up next though, an intriguing character himself in this one and dealing with a lot of the same demons Ethan is, so I’d love to get in his head next.