Do No Harm [Mass Market Paperback]

Gregg Hurwitz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 29, 2003

Someone is stalking the UCLA Medical Center -- a depraved madman who is preying upon the staff, particularly those who are young and female. No stranger to the terrible ravages of senseless violence, E.R. Chief Dr. David Spier must keep the emergency room running smoothly and efficiently, even as his terrified co-workers wonder who will be the next victim. But when the monster himself is dragged into the E.R. in handcuffs -- hideously burned, suffering, and begging for mercy -- the nightmare is far from over ... it has only just begun. A single act of humanity is about to unleash a bloody wave of horror that threatens to engulf everyone and everything Dr. Spier cares about. His most sacred oath as a healer has become a death sentence -- for David Spier ... and for a city under siege.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Division chief of emergency services at UCLA hospital, David Spier is just as horrified as his colleagues when a madman wielding a beaker of drain cleaner attacks an ER nurse who happens to be the sister of an LAPD cop. But when he uncovers the abuse the assailant suffered as a child in a psychological experiment Spier's own mother signed off on decades ago, David puts his career in jeopardy to keep Clyde Slade safe from a policeman bent on vengeance, even after Slade attacks the woman David loves and threatens his life. Gregg Andrew Hurwitz packs the pages with enough medical details and procedures to keep ER fans satisfied until summer reruns are over with this foray into Jonathan Kellerman territory. Spier's no Alex Delaware, at least not yet, but while Hurwitz has a way to go before he approaches Delaware's creator in plotting and pacing, he's on the right track. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

After two page-turners distinguished mainly by their lurid action and intrigue (The Tower; Minutes to Burn), Hurwitz shows a more serious side in this adeptly researched, well-constructed tale about science gone awry. One thing that hasn't changed, however, is the authors knack for creating distinctive villains. Here, its a psychologically damaged young man who is terrorizing the staff of a Los Angeles hospital by throwing flesh-burning alkali in the faces of nurses and doctors. After the second attack, police finally figure out the assailant is Clyde Slade, a disgruntled former hospital worker who was let go months earlier for trying to steal drugs. Emergency room physician David Spier believes that Slade may be motivated by something deeper. He launches an investigation of his own, eventually determining that Slade was an unwitting participant in a hushed-up medical study decades earlier that ended in disaster. The study, designed to foster fear in young boys, wound up traumatizing most of them for life. Slade's current behavior, Spier reasons, represents not only a way to exact revenge against the hospital but fulfills a psychological need to generate fear and torment in others. As the cops close in, Spier finds himself advocating for Slade even as he hunts him down. In his most ambitious book to date, Hurwitz delves convincingly into the world of medicine, psychology and investigative techniques. Some characters, a gleeful embalmer, a Nazi construction worker, are a bit over-the-top, and several scenes serve as little more than showcases for Hurwitz's research. But the action comes fast and steady, and by the end, Hurwitz has almost made the case that an alkali-throwing loonie deserves our sympathy.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (July 29, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060008873
• ISBN-13: 978-0060008871
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,154,533 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Gregg Hurwitz is the critically acclaimed, internationally bestselling author of The Tower, Minutes to Burn, Do No Harm, The Kill Clause, The Program, Troubleshooter, Last Shot, The Crime Writer, Trust No One, They're Watching, and coming soon, You're Next. His books have been nominated for numerous awards, shortlisted for best novel of the year by International Thriller Writers, nominated for CWA's Ian Fleming Steel Dagger, chosen as feature selections for all four major literary book clubs, honored as Book Sense Picks, and translated into twenty languages.

Currently a consulting producer on ABC's "V," he has written screenplays for or sold spec scripts to Warner Bros., Paramount, MGM, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, and ESPN, developed TV series for Warner Bros. and Lakeshore, written Wolverine, Punisher, and others for Marvel, and published numerous academic articles on Shakespeare. He has taught fiction writing in the USC English Department, and guest lectured for UCLA, and for Harvard in the United States and around the world. In the course of researching his thrillers, he has sneaked onto demolition ranges with Navy SEALs, swam with sharks in the Galápagos, and gone undercover into mind-control cults.

Hurwitz grew up in the Bay Area. While completing a BA from Harvard ('95) and a master's from Trinity College, Oxford in Shakespearean tragedy ('96), he wrote his first novel. He was the undergraduate scholar-athlete of the year at Harvard for his pole-vaulting exploits, and played college soccer in England, where he was a Knox fellow. He now lives in L.A. where he continues to play soccer, frequently injuring himself. Feel free to email him at [e-mail]

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A gripping psychological horror story and medical thriller., September 16, 2002

By 

E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Do No Harm (Hardcover)

Greg Andrew Hurwitz's new book, "Do No Harm" deals with a troubled individual who wreaks havoc in the UCLA Medical Center by throwing lye in the faces of two nurses. One nurse is blinded and horribly disfigured for life, and her brother, a police officer, wants to kill the perpetrator when he is caught and hospitalized. David Spier, chief of the Emergency Room, is a compassionate doctor, and he prevents the police from carrying out their brand of vigilante justice. Unfortunately, the felon, whose name is Clyde, escapes and he continues to spread mayhem and threaten those whom he perceives as his enemies.

There are aspects of "Do No Harm" that are very strong. Hurwitz does a wonderful job of developing character. He makes the criminal in this book so vivid that the reader feels as if he has met this individual, a truly horrifying prospect. The author also effectively explores some of the ethical dilemmas that confront doctors. How far should physicians go to protect the patients in their care? Does a person's psychiatric history excuse him when he turns violent?

Because Clyde escaped while under David's care, the police and his colleagues in the hospital ostracize the doctor. Therefore, partially to redeem himself and to assuage his guilt, David decides to track down Clyde by himself. David is helped by a shady character who is an expert at private investigations that are not sanctioned by law. David eventually finds out that Clyde's behavior has roots that go back many years, and the doctor uses his medical knowledge to diagnose what is troubling Clyde now. Some of his findings are extremely shocking, and David finds himself questioning many of the assumptions that he has held all of his life.

David is also still mourning his beloved wife who died several years ago, and he is slowly getting involved with a young doctor who reciprocates his feelings. However, David's problems in the ER, and his lingering feelings for his wife, interfere with his ability to commit himself to a new relationship.

There are two obvious weaknesses in "Do No Harm." First, it is difficult to believe that a man as mentally unbalanced as Clyde would be capable of carrying out so many carefully planned and even sophisticated attacks. Second, the last quarter of the book is overly long and repetitious.

Overall, however, "Do No Harm" is an engrossing novel, with authentic medical details, an extremely exciting plot and an attractive, albeit somewhat flawed, hero. Those who love medical and psychological thrillers will find "Do No Harm" both fascinating and suspenseful.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Unfortunately boring non-thriller, July 24, 2007

By 

Jennifer Lichtenfeld (Silver Spring, Maryland USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Do No Harm (Hardcover)

David Spier is the Chief of the ER at UCLA Hospital. Amidst the typical chaos, a nurse is brought in from outside the ER doors in horrible pain suffering from extreme burns to the eyes, face, mouth, and throat. Some sort of corrosive liquid has been thrown in her face. David finds himself treating her and dealing with her upset and concerned brother, a LAPD officer. David and Officer Jenkins get off on the wrong foot which does not bode well considering both take a personal interest in solving the case and finding the attacker. But the attacker turns out to be extremely unstable and unpredictable. The police believe David is meddling in their investigation while he believes that he has the medical insight to find the suspect in ways that the police are unable. But when David becomes the primary target he must work in concert with the police or they both risk letting the bad guy escape and do more harm to other innocent victims.

This is the third novel by Hurwitz and they have steadily declined. This plot had great potential and simply fell flat. Much of David's personal grief behind the scenes of the main plot distracted and significantly slowed down the pace of the story. Further, David was not particularly sympathetic and created more trouble for himself than necessary. Instead of rooting for him to find the bad guy, the reader wants to scream at him in frustration. The pages start turning and then abruptly stop. Then the pace picks up again only to hit the skids once more. By the last third you will just be reading to finish, not because the story is providing any enjoyment. Unfortunately, this novel was a large disappointment.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Failure to execute, September 7, 2004

By 

Douglas De Bono - Author of No Safe Harbor (Minnetonka, mn United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Do No Harm (Mass Market Paperback)

This book has an interesting premise. There is a serial alkali thrower terrorizing nurses and doctors at a hospital. Of course, the mixed up fellow has motives for what and why he is doing this.

The plot meanders on for a while and then takes a number of unexpected twists and turns. It is rather odd that the main character who is so good at figuring out some things can seem to be so brain dead when it comes to basic don't go down that blind alley.

Finally, the ending did not have the kind of bang you'd expect from this kind of book.