Customer Reviews

Brain Dead

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I agree with the other two reviews (not counting the 5-star ad which is the first "review," with such nuggets as "A reader would have to be BRAIN DEAD not to enjoy this tale").
This is a good hospital suspense book. Several times the protagonist Timmie will reach a conclusion and forget to share that with the reader. And the secondary characters do blur into each other.
The major fault I found with the book is its length -- 497 pages!! In reaching this length, the author throws in too much repetition of dialogue, reflection, and plot. The author really does not have to repeat something 10 times to have the reader get the point. This would have been a much better book at about 350 pages.

The Alzheimers angle makes this book special, but the mystery seems to get side-tracked at times. The sudden realization at the end seems rather obvious to the reader, and indeed seems to have been how the book led us throughout most of the narrative. Were we suposed to have been surprised?

There are some episodes and characters whose potential fall through, leaving a sense of a hole (the ex-hubby, the car chase -- why?). Though they're there to throw us off the real track, there still needs to be more explanation for why they happened, why they were needed.

Yes, the nurse talk got too thick at times but it was fascinating all the same (I love the term "gomer"), and Timmie's often uncaring attitude towards her patients was off-putting. This might be just layering of character, but I wanted to like Timmie. She was caring but uncaring, and she knew a little too much about everything. But her situation was one that gripped me, and the relationship between her father and her was a fascinating one to explore.

Her name, though: Timothy Leary-Parker. It brought me out of the story every time it was mentioned, even just as "Timmie." Too much, too cute.

Good writing otherwise, and like I said, the Alzheimers angle put quite a fascinating spin on the whole thing.

As an Eileen Dreyer fan, I was sadly disappointed with this book. The rapid, choppy, hospital slang was hard to read. Timmie was not a very sympathetic character, and the other characters were so alike I had a hard time keeping straight who was who.

Timmie Leary-Parker loves the constant excitement and commotion that her work as a Los Angeles emergency room trauma nurse brings to her. That is why she is extremely unhappy to have to return to her small Missouri hometown. However, Timmie realizes that she has no options because her father suffers from Alzheimer's and she does not have the funds for any other decision but to come home and care for the ailing man. Daniel Murphy is recovering from his work as an internationally renowned journalist reporting from all the world's crisis spots. He suffers from battle fatigue syndrome, preferring to live a sedate life in a small American town. ...... However, neither Timmie or Daniel understand that beneath the facade of quiet serenity lies a terrible evil. Apparently, a serial killer is murdering dying patients at the Restcrest Alzheimer's Clinic and the Memorial Medical Center. That killer is also ridding the world of abusive former spouses. The townsfolk seems to know that a killer is on the loose, but no one wants to raise any noise because the subsequent scandal could destroy the town. This does not stop Daniel and Timmie from teaming up to uncover a murderer. However, this does not sit well with many of the local citizens, some of whom would prefer that the dispatching of the nosy couple occur rather than the unmasking of the serial killer. If the pair is not careful, they could be the next two victims of a diabolically clever killer or someone else who believes that silence is golden. ..... Eileen Dreyer provides readers with an exciting medical thriller that will leave everyone hesitating before checking into any medical facility. A reader would have to be BRAIN DEAD not to enjoy this tale of two disturbed adults struggling to survive their daily worlds. Timmie is especially a super lady who uses her wit to overcome the melancholy of watching a loved one mentally vanish behind the shroud of Alzheimer's. This novel rivals the best works of Michael Palmer and Robin Cook. .....Harriet Klausner

I saw this title and thought I was in for a dose of medical monsters, ethics violations, and general stupidity that plagues medical thrillers.

Instead, I got a cast of fabulous characters, a good amount of humor to offset the seriousness of Timmie's life, and a killer who's not the egotistical headcase from central casting. The small town aspects were played well and the forensics angle wasn't overbearing. These made for a refreshing read.

There's only one complaint from the gallery on this one. What moron at Harper decided that the title was a good choice when it has nothing to do with the story?

I am an RN and love mysteries written by nurses. This book was exciting and at times funny

Excellent plot, interesting characters, good medical/hospital detail, hard to put down. Although the lead female character has issues, as it is termed today, she is believable and likeable. The settings, both hospital and locale, feel real.The danger to the characters seems unrelated at first but is neatly tied up by the end.

I am a fan of mysteries, and this sounded like a good one, but it was not the best. The real mystery and suspense didn't seem to begin until about halfway through the book. Often times, I felt like I had missed something when Timmie came to a conclusion. Also, I found this book to involve lots of lingo involving medicine and certain medications that I knew nothing about. The characters were interesting, and multi-layered, and the plot was good enough to keep reading, but I would not recommend it if you don't know about medicine and certain medications and what they do. If you are a doctor, a nurse, or someone else well versed in medicine, you will probably enjoy and understand this book much more than I did.