The Doctor and the Diva

Erika von Kessler comes from a family of renowned Boston physicians. She has married a wealthy man, but longs to expand her talents as an opera singer to the stages of Italy. Erika’s husband Peter, however, longs for a child and will stop at nothing to be ensured of an heir. After years of infertility, the couple turns to Doctor Ravell, a young Harvard educated physician whose star is rising in the field of gynecology…specifically in helping couples to conceive. Beginning in 1903 and spanning nearly a decade, The Doctor and The Diva is about a woman who ultimately must choose between her career as an opera singer and her life as a wife and mother.

Adrienne McDonnell was inspired to write her first novel based on the true life of her show more son’s paternal great-great-grandmother who deserted her prominent Boston husband in order to further her operatic career in Italy. McDonnell has carefully researched the medical history of infertility treatment (I was amazed to learn that artificial insemination had been practiced as early as 1785 in Scotland). By the mid-nineteenth century, cutting edge doctors were beginning to recognize the the failure to conceive could not always be blamed on the woman – a point which becomes crucial in the plot for this novel. McDonnell artfully weaves all these facts into a spellbinding story that takes the reader from Boston to the coconut plantations of the Caribbean to the splendor of Florence, Italy.

Although there is a hefty dose of romance mixed into this historical novel, the character of Erika represents the strong-minded, intelligent women whose desire to pursue their careers over motherhood placed them on the edge of societal acceptance. It was the exploration of women’s rights which captured my imagination in the novel above all else.

The Doctor and the Diva is an exquisitely crafted story about one woman’s quest to pursue her art, about the barriers which women in the 1900′s faced when deciding to follow their dreams, and about the conflicting emotions when a woman wants it all (spouse, children and career) at a time when societal expectations were quite rigid. This is also an excellent look at medical practice in the field of obstetrics and gynecology during the early part of the twentieth century. McDonnell poses some interesting moral dilemmas which Doctor Ravell faces…and the way in which he resolves them would make for great discussion in a book group.

I thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful book. Readers who love historical fiction and are interested in women’s issues during the 1900′s will want to read this novel.

Recommended. show less

Happily, I liked this book much more than I thought I would. What put me off was the cover and the title but I requested it through LTER anyway because of the book's description.

This book is well-written and easy to read. I got caught up in the story quickly and my interest was held throughout. The author did a great job in building tension and leading the reader smoothly through the story. I mostly liked the characters; again the author did a great job in evoking feelings of empathy for some of them. I also felt a good degree of squeamishness when reading about the main character's experiences in her effort to become pregnant.

This was definitely a good read and despite the title (which reminds me of some sort of lurid romance novel show more and, I think, detracts from the main characters) was well worth my reading time. show less

I really wanted to like this book much more than I ended up doing. It was well-written, the story is compelling, the settings are all ones I'm familiar with and enjoy. But the characters ended up being ones I disliked intensely, and it's hard to explain why without giving away the entire story. Supposedly based on real people who are relatives of the author's son--the relationship was difficult to follow in her acknowledgments--the story of opera, gynecology, infertility treatment, and women's rights to a career and motherhood was one that McDonnell handled well. I just didn't like the people, the choices they made, or the consequences of their actions. That doesn't mean it wasn't a good book. It was. The story just left me very show more depressed-- or as my granddaughter is wont to say "Too bad, so sad."

Essentially Erika wants to be an opera singer. She is the daughter of a doctor, she is well educated, and for a well-bred woman of her social position living in the early 20th century in Boston, she has a great deal of personal freedom. Her husband Peter appears to adore her. He wants a baby badly, more we think to cement his image as the great provider and macho man, than because he has any great paternal instincts. Erika wants a baby because it will please Peter. At least they share a great sexual attraction, and the author often provides us much evidence of that side of the relationship.

Enter Dr. Ravell (do we ever learn his full name?), a new age gynecologist the couple consults to help with their inability to conceive. Apparently artificial insemination was being practiced in the early 1900's and no one talked about it. This was especially convenient since Peter (the husband) had a tendency to wander to exotic places as he pursued his 'business affairs' leaving Erika in the capable hands of the good doctor to be impregnated during his absence.

As the years pass, Erika has to deal with her increasing desire to go to Italy to study opera and become famous with her waxing/waning desire to have a child. I won't say why, but Ravell leaves town to run a coconut plantation in Trinidad, and the von Kesslers go for a visit to continue treatments (as far as Peter is concerned). Eventually Erika makes a heart-breaking decision to abandon Peter and her child to go to Florence to live a life of penury while pursuing her career. Yes they have a child, but I'll the details for the reader to discover.

We are supposed to feel sorry for her having to leave her child behind. The child is the one who is truly abandoned because the mother is in Italy and the father is still gallivanting around the world. There is what is supposed to be a 'happily ever after' ending but perhaps because the choices are different than those I would have made, I don't see them as happy.

It is a good book. It is a great read - even with an excess of details and choices that beg belief--it is a novel that will leap onto book discussion lists for several years. There's a lot to toss back and forth. These are characters that many will champion and others will vilify. Nobody will read the book and come away without an opinion. show less

The Doctor and the Diva is a lushly written novel that explores the relationship between a doctor who specializes in fertility treatments, and a husband and wife who come to him for help concieving a child.
While, I found the book to be well written, I am a bit unsure as to how I feel about it. On the one hand, I loved the details of the settings and time period that the author works into the narrative. I had perfect pictures in my mind of the streets of Boston or the plantation in Trinidad. I also liked the details about the fertility treatments of the time. Its fascinating to know about the "modern" origins of that form of medical treatment. The delicacy that doctors had to use when addressing the husband's role was unsurprising, but show more amusing.
However, I found I had difficulty connecting with any of the characters. Erika seemed very distant and it was difficult to form a picture of her character. Peter, her husband, was always described as "childlike" in his manner and behaviour and it was difficult to feel sympathy towards him. Doctor Ravell was the most interesting of the three, but again I found it difficult to feel a connection towards him.
Overall, I would say this is a well written story, however it missing something to make me connect with it on a more emotional level show less

Living in Boston in 1906, Erica Von Kessler has high hopes of being an opera star. Her husband, Peter, has a differing opinion of Erica's career choice and is constantly herding her from one doctor to another in hopes of having their fertility issues resolved. When Erica and Peter engage the services of Dr. Ravell, Peter is very hopeful that Ravell's incredible advancements in the field will solve their problem once and for all. But Erica is far from being hopeful and it's her despondency over her infertility that prompts Dr. Ravell to make an extreme decision that will drastically alter all three of their lives forever. After the fateful decision of Dr. Ravell fails to bear fruit, Erica and Peter begin to grow apart and they once again show more rely upon the doctor to help them conceive a child together. When Erica's dreams of being an opera star begin to come to fruition, Peter, Ravell and Erica step into a dance of secrecy, deceit, and complicity that weave them together more tightly than any natural bond could ever hope to. Part historical drama and part love story, The Doctor and the Diva explores the conflicting desires of two men and one woman whose dream of the perfect child might just be their downfall.

I had serious reservations about this book stemming mainly from the feelings the title gave me. Knowing nothing other than the title, I had expected this book to be more of a bodice-ripper rather than any type of serious piece of literature. What I found was actually very surprising, because McDonnell's skill brought forth a lot of sensitive issues and imbued them with a relevance and resonance that I found to be not only abundantly entertaining, but also very provocative and thoughtful.

The situation early in the book between Erica and her husband was rather alarming. Erica's sole ambition is to become an opera singer and she was born with a voice to give this dream power. But Peter won't hear of Erica doing anything other than preparing herself to bear his offspring and forces her to consult with doctor after doctor in order to fulfill his desires. I was sad for Erica and felt that Peter was taking her dreams from her with his ceaseless badgering. The book made me feel a little angry at the realization that during this period in history, a woman existed solely to fulfill the desires of her husband and not much else. I grew apprehensive that Peter would end up controlling Erica's life and that her chance to sing would be extinguished. I didn't want Erica to get pregnant, because by doing so, she would be feeding Peter's ambition to control her life, and I felt that Erica didn't deserve that.

When Peter and Erica meet Ravell, things begin to change. Far from being a proponent of Peter's ideas, he sees a side of Erica that no one else seems to. When he questions her about her desire to have a child, she admits that it's something that she wants but it's not the only thing, and that because she has been repeatedly thwarted in her efforts, she has now become focused on the opera. When Ravell makes his decision to do the impossible for Erica and Peter, he sets into motion a series of events that are irrevocable and intense. He will give Erica what she wants, in every sense, but to do this, he must not only deceive her, he must also pay the price for his actions. As Peter and Erica's lives begin to move in harmony, Ravell's begins to fall apart, and it's arguable whether this is Ravell's due.

After a time, the three cross paths again, yet everything about them and their situations has changed. Curiously, Ravell remains dogged in efforts to please them both, though they both want very different things. In this respect, Ravell reveals his selflessness and altruism, but one can see that his motives are not always pure. As Ravell moves in and out of the couple's lives, he gives and takes in equal measure, and though Peter and Erica make their own choices, it's easy to see Ravell's hand in everything they do. These characters are all very interesting specimens, because while you can root for them and dream with them, they can also be very selfish and self-serving. In a few cases they can even become villains, though they all share this role equally. It's easy to see why they do the things that they do, but underneath, it's also easy to see how wrong they are.

When the book reaches it's final section, three lives have come full circle, and it is time for dues to be paid. This is one thing I most liked about the book. No one gets off scot-free, no one can say that they've not had to make sacrifices and adjustments. There's an undercurrent of perfectly culled drama running through this story and it remains intact without ever getting hysterical or overblown. These characters grow and change and their lives become much more than they had been. The three are also somewhat diminished by their experiences as well, which is a point I feel was handled beautifully. So much gain, yet so much loss.

Though I didn't expect to love this book, the fact is that I did and I think many others will as well. It was a touching story full of interesting ideas and perplexing questions, and those readers who like to get really invested in their characters' plights will find a treasure trove to keep them satisfied. The story was complex and involving without being overly florid and the book had the distinct advantage of being a bit on the unpredictable side. I know I'm going to be looking forward to reading more from this author and I urge you not to let the title of this book run you off. A surprisingly good read. show less

While the story itself should be intriguing, I found the execution clumsy and was distracted by the many details and comments which felt jarring given the historical context. I can hardly imagine a gentleman in 1903 couching his refusal to adopt by saying “I admire people who do it.” Just one of many instances where it felt like the author’s 21st Century attitudes infringed on the spirit of the story. And a male lead named Ravell, in a novel consumed by music? It felt heavy-handed and had me cringing right from the first sentence. As a music lover, particularly of opera, it was difficult to excuse errors with the musical selections, some of which were shockingly unsuited to the time period (though the author does acknowledge that show more her choice of Vivaldi was motivated more by personal tastes than by historical accuracy). In the end, I found the want of subtlety too frustrating and so abandoned the book without finishing. show less

I was lucky enough to receive The Doctor and The Diva via the Early Reviewers program. Wonderful read! If I could give it more than 5 stars, I would.

While taking place in the decade preceding WW1, the storyline is one that is easy for women today balancing careers with motherhood (or thinking of doing so) to relate to. Erika's struggles to decide her future at each crossroads in her life certainly rang true and authentic to me (being a similar age, in a similar situation, with similar thoughts and feelings). This is ultimately a story about fallible human beings trying to be true to themselves, and as fair as they know how to be to those around them. Erika & her husband Peter meet Dr Ravell, a renowed fertility specialist, in a show more last-ditch effort to start a family (at Peter's insistance - Erika herself remains ambivalent). Erika and Ravell begin a complicated relationship which ends up with major consequences for both. In the meantime, Erika decides to go to Italy to further her operatic career (with mixed success), leaving her family in the States. An unrelated professional scandal sends Ravell to his Trinidadian estate, and one wonders if/how they will ever cross paths again.

The beautiful settings (Boston, Trinidad, Florence) and operatic world in which Erika moves perhaps serve to allow the normal human-ness of the characters to shine through. The character and story development never feels rushed or short-changed. I never got the feeling that there was a story or piece being missed, either - one that would have made this book any better.

Each major character is given a voice in the novel (several consecutive chapters are told from each of their perspectives), which serves to "get into the head" of all of them and really understand why they made the decisions they did (particularly Ravell's decisions while Erika was his patient..one major one, in particular) and not judge them, but just be interested in them, and fascinated by them. The chapters written from Quentin's perspective serve as a reminder of how a parent's choice can have a profound effect on the youngest of children.

Loved loved loved the ending!! (though it came way too soon - this novel is 432 pages (verrrry sumptuous to hold!), but I read it in 2 sittings - couldn't put it down!)

The title of this novel does not do it justice..this novel is about so much more than the doctor and the diva. show less