Review: Lethal Remedy

Lethal Remedy (Prescription for Trouble)

About the Book:

What happens when the race to stop a lethal bacteria becomes a race to stop a killer?
Dr. Sara Miles’s teenage patient is on the brink of death from an overwhelming, highly resistant infection  with Staph luciferus, known to doctors as “the killer.” Only an experimental antibiotic, developed and administered by Sara’s ex-husband, Dr. Jack Ingersoll, can save the girl's life.

Seeking to put his life back together after the death of his wife, Dr. John Ramsey joins the medical center faculty staff. But his decision to do so could prove to be costly and even fatal.

Potentially lethal late effects from the experimental drug send Sara and her colleague, Dr. Rip Pearson, on a hunt for hidden critical data that will let them reverse the changes before it’s too late. What is the missing puzzle piece? And who is hiding it? 

My Comments:

Like the other books in Mabry's Prescription for Trouble series, Lethal Remedy is a fast-paced medical thriller with a romantic sub-plot.  It is set in a major medical center in Texas and pits the good general practice doctors against the evil pharmaceutical industry.  It also pits a sympathetic heroine against her ex-husband.  As with the other books, I am not qualified to judge the correctness of the medical/scientific information, but am able to say that with respect to the legal elements, things move more quickly that would be expected.   

It is Christian fiction, and in this case it means a couple of the characters reading scripture or discussing that God is in control.  Unless random comments about God or scripture quotes bother you, the religious content of the book shouldn't be the reason you don't like it.

Grade:  B+

I'd like to thank the publishers for making a review copy available via NetGalley.  I was under no obligation to provide a positive review.

Review: Diagnosis Death

Diagnosis Death - Prescription for Trouble Series #3

About the Book:

The threatening midnight calls followed Dr. Elena Gardner from one city to another, prolonging her grief. Even worse, they are echoed by the whispers of her own colleagues. Whispers that started after her comatose husband died in the ICU . . . then another mysterious death during her training. When a third happens at her new hospital, the whispers turn into a shout: “Mercy killer!”

Why doesn’t she defend herself? What is the dark secret that keeps Elena’s lips sealed?

Two physicians, widowers themselves, offer support, telling Elena they know what she is going through after the death of her husband. But do they? And is it safe to trust either of them with her secret? Soon Elena will find that even when the world seems to be against her, God is for her, if she'll only trust him.

My Comments:

The summary above makes this book sound far more religious than what it really is.  I was more than halfway through the book before anything more religious than having a preacher as a character came forth.  Basically the religious part of the book is that when Elena loses her husband, she loses her faith.  A whole lot of bad stuff happens and while most of it happens she is living in the spare room in the preacher's house.  At some point the preacher's wife reminds her that God is looking out for her, even if she doesn't feel Him.  She sees a friend and fellow doctor praying for a patient.  After the climax, she she goes to church and hears a sermon about the resurrection.  In short, the book is far more romantic medical thriller than Christian.  

Like Mabry's other books (click link for my review) Medical Error and Code Blue, Diagnosis Death moves quickly and is hard to put down.  Mabry's medical background shows in his descriptions of medical center life  and illnesses.  His characters are likable and not too good to be true.  

I'd like to thank the publisher for providing a review copy via NetGalley and I think most folks would enjoy this book.  Grade:  B+

Medical Error: Book Review

Medical Error (Prescription for Trouble Series #2)

About the Book:

Dr. Anna McIntyre's life was going along just fine until someone else started living it. Her patient died because of an identity mix-up, her medical career is in jeopardy because of forged prescriptions, and her credit is in ruins. She thought things couldn t get worse, but that was before she opened the envelope and saw a positive HIV test with her name on it. Her allies are two men who are also competing for her affection. Dr. Nick Valentine is a cynic who carries a load of guilt. Attorney Ross Donovan is a recovering alcoholic. The deeper Anna digs to discover who's behind the identity thefts, the higher the stakes. Finally, when her life is on the line, Anna finds that her determination to clear her name might have been a prescription for trouble.

My Thoughts:

This medical who dunnit kept me pounding the treadmill the last few days.  Mabry can spin a suspenseful story with a little romance added.  The story weaves together a medical mystery and a case of identity theft, and a woman who hasn't had romance in her life in a long time now has two men interested in her.  Definitely a good read.  

The book is classified as Christian fiction, and in this case it means the main character goes to church and wonders why God put her in this situation.  It also means that a friend of hers decides to go back to church.  The religious aspects are not important to the plot and unless you hate religion in books, they shouldn't bother you in this one.  

Grade: B+

I received this book from a friend.

Code Blue: My Review

Code Blue (Prescription for Trouble Series #1)

My New Year's resolution was to lose weight.  Unfortunately I prefer sweets and reading to veggies and exercise.  However, at least right now, I've come up with a liveable compromise.  I have a stack of books sent to me by a friend.  They are in the garage, right next to the treadmill.  I've discovered that if I walk at a slow to moderate pace I can keep my balance and read at the same time.  I've decided that the books in that stack are treadmill books and I can only read them there.  Code Blue required me to spend quite a good bit of time on the treadmill the last few days.  

About the Book:  

In the first book of the Prescription for Trouble series, Code Blue means more to Dr. Cathy Sewell than the cardiac emergency she has to face. It describes her mental state as she finds that coming back to her hometown hasn t brought her the peace she so desperately needs. Instead, it s clear that someone there wants her gone...or dead. 

Cathy returns to her hometown seeking healing after a broken relationship, but discovers that among her friends and acquaintances is someone who wants her out of town...or dead. Lawyer Will Kennedy, her high school sweetheart, offers help, but does it carry a price tag? Is hospital chief of staff Dr. Marcus Bell really on her side in her fight to get hospital privileges? Is Will s father, Pastor Matthew Kennedy, interested in advising her or just trying to get her back to the church she left years ago? When one of Cathy s prescriptions almost kills the town banker, it sets the stage for a malpractice suit that could end her time in town, if not her career. It s soon clear that this return home was a prescription for trouble.

My Thoughts:  

This is a well-written medical-legal thriller with a romantic subplot.  It is Christian fiction, and there are a few mentions of God, faith, and God's will, but unless anything religious instantly turns you off, the religious elements shouldn't make or break whether you like the book.  Since the author is a doctor, I assume the medical parts are reasonably accurate; however the legal elements are a little inaccurate.  The medical malpractice suit was set for trial twelve weeks after it was served.  In real life, discovery would barely have begun by that point.  Still, the book kept me reading despite the fact that I had to walk on a treadmill to do so.