January 2, 2006
Medical thrillers have been rather sickly of late, but Stanford med student Spanogle has applied the paddles and delivered a real jolt of excitement with this debut novel of a dangerous viral outbreak, diabolical medical chicanery and research run amok. Dr. Nathaniel McCormick, an officer in the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service, is called to St. Raphael's Hospital in Baltimore, where three young women come to the emergency room complaining of flulike symptoms and, after being admitted, begin to deteriorate in very alarming (and graphic) ways. After their skin begins to slough off in large patches, Nate fears the worst: that a deadly viral disease has been unleashed as part of a terrorist attack. Nate is an intelligent, impulsive, intriguing character, willing to lie and steal from both friend and foe to further the case. Once he learns, at a very high price, that a drug company has been experimenting with a very particular means for treating diseased organs, things begin to come together—but time remains of the essence. Spanogle is a funny, smart and skilled writer at the beginning of what readers will hope is a long and prolific career.
May 1, 2006
Young and brash Dr. Nathaniel McCormick, a maverick investigator for the Centers for Disease Control, leads listeners through Spanogle's fever-paced debut novel. Rummel lends a vocal mixture of naïve exuberance and postgrad snarkiness to the action- and technology-packed adventure. A ghastly, impossible-to-diagnose or combat viral outbreak at a Maryland hospital (perhaps too lovingly described in all its flesh-peeling details) sends Nate rushing off in a reckless search for the source of the virus. The journey takes listeners deep into Robin Cook–misuse-of-science country, traveling in the company of a couple of stunning beauties—one naughty, one nice—and a villain sadistic enough to make James Bond's nemeses seem merely playful. With the witty repartee, relentless action, stomach churning violence and mind-melting techno-lingo, it's something of a surprise to discover that Spanogle has also written an oddly affecting coming-of-age novel. Rummel displays a fair amount of versatility, capturing tender moment as efficiently as he handles the less credible confrontations: namely sequences of profound physical abuse from which Nate recovers with jaw-dropping speed. Ah, to be young, romantic, heroic and a fast healer. Simultaneous release with the Delacorte hardcover (Reviews, Jan. 2).