Fatal
A Novel
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4.3 • 106 Ratings
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
From The Sisterhood, Michael Palmer's first New York Times bestseller, to The Patient, his ninth, reviewers have proclaimed him a master of medical suspense. Recognized around the world for original, topical, nail-biting suspense, emergency physician Palmer'swork has been translated into more than thirty-five languages. Now he reaches controversial and startling new heights in a terrifying tale of cutting-edge microbiology, unbridled greed, and murder, where either knowing too little or trusting too much can be FATAL.
In Chicago, a pregnant cafeteria worker suffering nothing more malevolent than flulike symptoms begins hemorrhaging from every part of her body. In Boston, a brilliant musician, her face disfigured by an unknown disease, rapidly descends into a lethal paranoia. In Belinda, West Virginia, a miner suddenly goes berserk, causing a cave-in that kills two of his co-workers. Finding the link between these events could prove FATAL.
Five years ago, internist and emergency specialist Matt Rutledge returned to his West Virginia home to marry his high-school sweetheart and open a practice. He also had a score to settle. His father died while working for the Belinda Coal and Coke Company, and Matt swore to expose the mine’s health and safety violations.
When his beloved Ginny succumbed to an unusual cancer, his campaign became even more bitterly personal. Now Matt has identified two bizarre cases of what he has dubbed the Belinda Syndrome--caused, he is certain, by the mine’s careless disposal of toxic chemicals. All he needs is proof.
Meanwhile, two women, unknown to one another, are drawn inexorably to Belinda, into Matt’s life--and into mortal danger. Massachusetts coroner Nikki Solari comes to attend the funeral of her roommate, killed violently on a Boston street. Ellen Kroft, a retired schoolteacher from Maryland, seeks the remorseless killer who has threatened to destroy her and her family.Three strangers--Rutledge, Solari, and Kroft--each hold one piece of a puzzle they must solve, and solve quickly. If they don’t, it will be far more than just their own lives that are at risk.
Michael Palmer has crafted a novel of breathtaking speed and medical intricacy where nothing is as it seems and one false step could be FATAL.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Palmer's 10th medical thriller rides on his usual wave of unrelenting adrenaline, and will make readers think twice the next time they're due for a routine vaccination. The physician-hero this time is Matt Ruttledge, a doctor in bucolic Belinda, W.Va. When several of his patients turn up in the emergency room, babbling incoherently and sporting unsightly lumps on their faces, Ruttledge blames the town's main employer, a large mining operation with a history of safety abuses and environmental neglect. As more patients turn up with the same fatal symptoms, Ruttledge discovers that a larger culprit may be responsible: a new supervaccine that's about to hit the market. Backed by powerful political interests and drug companies, the vaccine, called Omnivax, had been tested in Belinda a decade earlier, and its deadly side effects are now finally surfacing. Joined by a group of like-minded medical professionals and a colorful cast of civilians, Ruttledge sets out to stymie the makers of the vaccine. Omnivax's backers, however, have no intention of letting a lone doctor and a gaggle of bumpkins kill their cash cow. As with Palmer's other popular thrillers (The Patient, etc.), the plot at times turns wild to the point of disbelief, and the occasional red herring practically screams its presence the moment it swims into view. But the former ER physician's ability to craft gripping suspense, likable heroes and hateful villains as well as a thought-provoking dialogue about the risks of the nation's vaccination program keep the pulse pounding. Major print and radio ad/promo; author tour.
Customer Reviews
Great medical book
This book contains plenty of real life medical jargon and procedures. I loved every second of the book but the pacing was a little scattered. Nothing that wouldn’t deter a reader from a great book
Fatal
Great read. I I couldn’t put it down at the end. I stayed up very late to finish it! I have not been an avid reader since I retired, but this really held my interest. I was a nurse for almost 50 years, so medical mystery novels are my favorite genre!
Vaccine scares
Love this author usually, but cannot abide unsubstantiated vaccine foolishness.