Intravenous, A Review When I was asked to do an early read on Joseph Landers’s latest novel, Intravenous, my immediate reply was, yes, absolutely. I had read one of Joe’s earlier novel’s, Drug Revenge so I knew that he tells a good story with lots of twists and turns, but is always in control, guiding the reader down dark and dangerous paths. But then when I found out that Joe’s latest work was a medical mystery set in a large hospital with doctors and nurses hustling and bustling in and out of the plot I got concerned. What do I know about medicine, or hospital operations? My experience with hospitals has been limited to veterinarians and puppies. I have to admit though, two of my all time favorite medical thrillers are Robin Cooks Coma and Richard Preston’s Hot Zone. I also know that the medical mystery genre is very popular among a broad range of hard-boiled thriller fans, and knowing Landers’ ability to snag readers early on with his uncanny use of tight narrative and pointed dialogue, I jumped in with both eyes glued to page one. All too soon I had finished reading Intravenous, sat back, and let my breath out in a gasp. What was that! I had been pulled down dimly lit hospital corridors, raced up even darker and creepy stairwells; I think I even saw something or someone lurking in the hospitals basement laundry. The most terrifying though was to watch as a shadowy figure dispensed a chemical concoction into unsuspecting patients as he expertly pushed the plunger deep into their flesh. I shivered when I saw the killers eyes as he smiled down on his victims as they slowly stopped living, followed by the killer’s mad rush to escape the scene before being caught. Ted Maxwell is in charge of Patient Safety in the hospital and investigates all suspicious or unexplained patient deaths or injuries. He is soon caught up in a series of murders that have rocked the hospital from the Board of Directors down the shift nurses and floor staff. Everyone is running scared, looking over their shoulders, working in pairs for safety. The Directors are alarmed that if word got out about the murders the hospital’s bottom line could suffer; careers would be damaged, reputations harmed, the hospital could lose its license. Maxwell’s challenge is to follow every lead, track down every piece of evidence, talk to everyone that was anywhere near the crime scenes. He is relentless in his pursuit; he eliminates suspects one by one through his investigation, making enemies along the way. When he thinks he has discovered the motive for the murders and sets a trap for the killer the story is racing at such a pace that the reader is running down the halls checking his watch to make sure he is in place with Maxwell before the killer strikes….WOW! Do I recommend this Medical Mystery? Hell yes. Mike Pettit Author of The John Locke Action Thrillers, Sam Nash, Private Eye series, Jack Marsh, Action Adventure Series.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Jun 2013 23:22:08 +0000
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