The Fourth Procedure: A Novel of Medical Suspense [Mass Market Paperback]

Stanley Pottinger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 30, 1995

"A MIND-BOGGLING MEDICAL THRILLER TO END ALL MEDICAL THRILLERS. IT MAY BE THE MOST TALKED ABOUT POPULAR FICTION OF THE SEASON."
--Kirkus Reviews
An accomplished attorney prepares to argue a life-and-death case before a hostile Supreme Court nominee....A leading surgeon answers an emergency call to assist an operation in progress....And in a Washington, D.C. morgue, a medical examiner examines a body that has been tampered with. . . .
"HARROWING."
--New York Newsday
Congressman Jack MacLeod is haunted by an episode that changed his life forever. Now his life is about to explode again: the police find evidence linking him to the strange death of a man who lived in MacLeod's New York City district. . . .
"THE BREAKNECK MOMENTUM WILL KEEP THE PAGES TURNING."
--Elle
Suddenly events spin out of control. Backroom deals made by powerful politicos threaten to destroy Jack's future. And, in the shadows, a plan so outrageous and unthinkable it will smash every assumption about the limits of the human body is nearing its shocking conclusion. . . .
"A CHILLING MEDICAL THRILLER."
--Vanity Fair
Combining the best elements of explosive courtroom drama with groundbreaking medical technology, THE FOURTH PROCEDURE takes the reader beyond the boundaries of today's medicine to an all-too-plausible scenario of a frightening future.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The best elements of legal, medical and political thrillers are combined in this frightening novel. Congressman Jack MacLeod is haunted by an episode from the past. Now the police have found evidence linking him to the death of a man in his district. Jack's life spins out of control as strange medical data starts showing up in morgues and operating rooms.

From Publishers Weekly

Mining the emotional cauldron of abortion rights, this superbly crafted medical thriller deftly probes every conceivable angle through characters that would seem cliched if they weren't so visible in today's headlines. Pottinger lays out his riveting debut on a vast canvas, topping it off with a brazen plot twist virtually guaranteed to thrill some readers and appall others?but leave no one unmoved. He has painstakingly assembled a large (though never unwieldy) cast, carefully maneuvering them through interlocking scenarios that are both individually engrossing and collectively formidable. The story is centered on N.Y. congressman Jack MacLeod and organ transplant pioneer Dr. Rachel Redpath, each of whom has lost a loved one to a back-alley abortionist and has made pro-choice politics a priority. This commitment is shared by Rachel's best friend?and Jack's live-in lover?Victoria, a Washington, D.C., lawyer who defends battered women. Added to the potent mix are, among others, an influential, 27-year Senate veteran; the president of a heavily funded anti-abortion society, a strong Washington lobby; and a pro-life appellate judge who becomes Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Such often standard-issue devices as blackmail, dicey pregnancies, bombings and mysteriously appearing corpses are given new vigor in this novel's dexterous plotting. Pottinger handily proves the adage that politics makes strange bedfellows, adding ironic twists that skewer long-accepted assumptions. 250,000 first printing; $250,000 ad/promo.
Copyright 1995 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: Ballantine Books (December 30, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345402308
• ISBN-13: 978-0345402196
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,514,409 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ethical dilemmas provide fertile ground for suspense., August 3, 2001

By 

David Montgomery "Book Critic" (davidjmontgomery.com) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fourth Procedure: A Novel of Medical Suspense (Mass Market Paperback)

This solid debut novel from the lawyer once named one of Time magazine's "Future Leaders of America" focuses on the highly personal, highly controversial issue of abortion. It is billed as a story of medical suspense, but it also combines political and legal elements into a fascinating, thought-provoking, and gripping plot.

Several characters share center stage in "The Fourth Procedure." The most interesting of them is Congressman Jack MacLeod, a pro-choice politician who finds himself the center of attention when anti-abortionist protesters focus their efforts on his home turf of Syracuse, New York. There the pro-life leader Eli Graves, a rather unsympathetic character, digs up the dirt from Jack's past, threatening to expose his dark past.

The medical aspects of "The Fourth Procedure" appear to be well-researched and accurate, a definite plus. In addition to providing a well-crafted and exciting story, Pottinger does an excellent job of showing both sides of the abortion issue, placing his characters in soul-searching situations that prompt the reader to wonder, "what if it were me?" 

If you like a book that challenges you to think a little while it entertains you, then you should enjoy this remarkable debut from a very promising writer. I look forward to what he does next.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Truly a medical mystery masterpiece!, December 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fourth Procedure: A Novel of Medical Suspense (Mass Market Paperback)

I like novels that keep me in suspense until the end. and that's exactly what "The Fourth Procedure" did! I loved that it gave both sides of the issue that was discussed throughout the book:abortion. It also introduced characters that you want to hate, like Eli Graves, characters you sympathize with, like Jack, and characters that are a complete mystery, like Dr. Rachel Redpath. The book includes several mysteries, including three men involved in blowing up abortion clinics suddenly disappear, then turn up dead with their livers removed and plastic baby dolls in their abdomens with a note inside each of them that reads, "Keep It." The whole book is a puzzle, but when the pieces finally come together near the end, prepare for the ultimate shock! I believe that Stanley Pottinger did a great job coming through with this novel, especially since it's his first. Job well done!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A FIERCE DEBATE ABOUT ABORTION, September 17, 1999

By 

Manuel Gwiazda (Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fourth Procedure: A Novel of Medical Suspense (Mass Market Paperback)

A good work developing the principle of empathy. (the ability to share another person feelings and emotions). Outstanding, breakneck pace, mindboggling, suspense never ever ends until the last page. The unveiling of the fourth procedure is utterly chilling. The author have got what it takes to be an excellent writer When is his next one ?