Life Support

September 1, 1997
Proving that the world of microbiology is a fertile medium for horror, Gerritsen follows Harvest, her bestselling hardcover debut, with this spine-tingling medical chiller. Toby Harper, an overworked 38-year-old night-shift ER physician at a private Boston hospital, inadvertently allows a 76-year-old man with strange neurological symptoms to wander off and disappear into the night. She soon finds herself caught in a web of intrigue that centers around experimental anti-aging treatments administered by Dr. Carl Wallenberg, an imperious endocrinologist at Brant Hill, a retirement community catering to aging but upscale clientele. After a second elderly man from the same residential population dies with similar symptoms, Harper, fearful of a threat to public health, demands an autopsy over Dr. Wallenberg's objections. The postmortem reveals the cause of death as Creutzfeldt-Jakob (Mad Cow) Disease, and Harper wins an ally in the medical examiner. Despite the best efforts of the Brant Hill management to thwart her, Harper uncovers a trail pointing to the "age rejuvenation" experiments. Suddenly but not surprisingly, her already overburdened life falls apart. A sympathetic Brant Hill doctor is murdered while trying to reach her; and she is accused of the physical abuse of her Alzheimer's-afflicted mother. Underlying the chase is a subplot involving a pair of mysteriously impregnated prostitutes. The pieces in this adeptly crafted medical Rubik's cube don't click into place until the final page. Gerritsen, who was a practicing physician, and who honed her novelistic skills writing Harlequin Romances, adeptly integrates medical details into a taut and troubling thriller. Author tour; simultaneous S&S audio release.

Dr. Toby Harper, an emergency room physician, is curious about the symptoms of a patient who is brought in one evening. Her curiosity leads her to a dangerous discovery that involves researchers' attempts to give senior citizens back their youth. George Guidall's performance immediately draws in the listener. With perfect pacing, he captures the drama and tension without overdoing it. This story is filled with medical details (Gerritsen is a physician) that are often graphic, bloody, and gory--definitely not for the squeamish. S.S.R. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine