Plague Ship

August 19, 2013
An onslaught of seasickness on a luxury Caribbean cruise is the first sign of trouble in Goldberg’s vigorous, suspenseful sequel to 2012’s Patient One. Dr. David Ballineau, an emergency room chief at a prominent Los Angeles hospital who’s aboard the Grand Atlantic with his nurse girlfriend and his 11-year-old daughter, must help the boat’s small medical staff cope with those stricken. One by one, the travelers become gravely ill with more dire symptoms: coughing, congestion, and high fevers. Arrogant and pugnacious passengers demand cures. Panic ensues as people start to die, prompting the crew to mutiny and take over the Grand Atlantic. A pandemic could result if the ship is allowed to land. No ordinary physician, Ballineau is a Special Forces veteran of the jihadist war in Somalia 20 years earlier, with the knowledge and physical skills to deal with any emergency, including the over-the-top villains who help give this thriller the quick punch of a comic book. Agent: Scott Mendel, Mendel Media Group.

August 1, 2013
A sick bird's last-ditch attempt to save itself leads to disaster aboard a cruise ship. The Grand Atlantic is a Titanic look-alike complete with wealthy passengers set to enjoy a Caribbean cruise. Dr. David Ballineau, who would have preferred Hawaii, gives in to his daughter Kit's pleading and boards the Grand Atlantic along with his girlfriend, nurse Carolyn Ross, and Kit's nanny, only to find his vacation burdened with medical duties. The ship's doctor lacks experience, and the clinic is too scantily supplied to deal with the many passengers who suddenly fall ill with flulike symptoms. Kit's young friend, a wannabe veterinarian, has found a sick bird, hidden it and tried to nurse it back to health, not knowing that it carries a deadly strain of avian flu. The inevitable outbreak spreads quickly. As the bodies pile up, the CDC can only airlift in some supplies and insist that the ship stay at sea to contain an outbreak that could kill millions should the Grand Atlantic make port. Several desperate passengers and crew members, concerned only about their own health, plot to take over the ship and bring her to a port where they can receive medical treatment. To deal with them, David must draw on both his medical skills and the talents he developed when he was in Special Forces to fight a dangerous battle with the mutineers. As if ocean cruising hasn't been scary enough recently, Goldberg (Patient One, 2012, etc.) devises another all-too-plausible medical scenario that will send chills up the spine despite a few moments readers will be glad are far-fetched.

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