A review by llamallamacallurmama
Stone Cold Kiwi by Rosalind James

3.5

**Most of my reviews contain detailed Content Notes (including CW/TW) sections, which may include spoilers and general tags.  I have tried to mark them appropriately, but please use caution.** 

3.5/5

Ebook

* Summary:  After delivering her third child into the hands of a sexy doctor on the lawn outside the hospital while her marriage finally falls apart, Poppy finds herself managing coparenting, divorce, postpartum, family conflict, and new love (with the sexy doctor).

* Stats: CR, M/F, open door, part of a series but stands alone.

* Notes: Hm… I don’t really like books that focus heavily on pregnancy/postpartum, which this does - but I liked how it was done here because it felt very “true” for the most part.  I also liked how the FMC’s separation from her (impending) ex-husband was difficult, but that she really had to work through the challenges of dealing with coparenting and his general narcissism and selfishness.  I thought the MMC was fine, although the promiscuity stuff felt a little tired, but I didn’t understand the FMC’s father at all - or how he got away with some of the things he did.  Not the worst representation of medicine I’ve read - although, it would take pretty incredible circumstances for an A&E doctor to be suturing tears on the obstetrics ward… when there’s presumably an OB team available.  Ah, well, needs must, I suppose.  There were a few parts towards the end where everyone gets on the FMC’s case for something pretty unrealistic, which annoyed me, and I came away wondering if this relationship was really caught up in the breakdown of her first marriage or would actually stand on its own long term.

OTT and Spoilery Content Notes:

Children, labour/delivery/childbirth with complications, pregnancy, medical care, blood, infant, infidelity, divorce, descriptions of medical care and death in hospital (MMC is a doctor), hospital scenes, gaslighting from previous partner, breastfeeding, parent does not support FMC/sides with ex, family conflict, FMC is irreconcilably separated but not yet divorced when the romance takes place, coparenting problems, Maori MMC, tattooed MMC, aging grandparent, kinship care (in the past), description of a child drowning, PTSD, anxiety, MMC cries, weaponized incompetence from previous partner, workplace disciplinary issues (instigated against MMC by FMC’s ex), death of family (including parents in car crash), alcohol, player MMC with a little OW drama, a little bit of a lactation kink (miniscule), condom use, concern for STDs due to previous partner’s infidelity, age gap (33F/43M), a joke about suicide, a joke about erectile dysfunction, gift giving, description of wounding of military sibling (in the past), red-headed FMC, lost child, injuries