1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
exhilarating shocking medical thriller, November 22, 2003
This review is from: Revealing the Covenant: A Medical Thriller (Paperback)
In Malibu, California, as a storm rages neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Preston drives home with his brother Matt following the latter's engagement party. Michael decides to pull over until the current torrent eases up, but before he can find a safe spot, an SUV swerves all over the road before hitting Michael's vehicle. Michael saves Matt's life, but he is paralyzed. The DUI receives a fine and some community service and goes on driving. Michael feels responsible though he logically knows better.
Three years later, Stergis Braxton meets with Michael to bring him on the research team that is very close to finding a way to reverse spinal cord injuries. Obsessed with a cure, Michael agrees though he finds Stergis' paranoia strange. Michael cannot believe the medical community led by a powerful HMO and the American government would not want a successful cure, but then again the polio vaccine cost the industry billions. Soon Michael will learn the truth as the hired killers of the Consortium want him and Kayla Kilmer, daughter of the key researcher, dead at all costs.
Though the chase is fun to follow, that subplot takes away from an exhilarating shocking medical thriller that never lets up until the final hoped for dash for safety. Readers will find it difficult to accept the premise that a major breakthrough would be thwarted by the medical big business government consortium Rusty Reeves makes a compelling case that proves is the key to this strong exposé tale. Sub-genre fans and anyone interested in conspiracies that the public be damned will want to read this well written tale.
Harriet Klausner
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
STEM CELL THRILLER!!!!, September 5, 2003
This review is from: Revealing the Covenant: A Medical Thriller (Paperback)
This review is by Margaret W. Bonanno and was submitted by the author.
This is a tightly-written, eminently credible thriller. It is fast-paced, with nothing wasted, and pulled right from today's headlines, with a villain (HMOs) that most Americans are more than willing to hate. It's especially neat the way you incorporate recent history, such as the Clinton Administration, Whitewater, Charlie's fancying himself a latter-day Harrison Ford, etc.
Starting off with the scene where Christopher Reeve walks again is brilliant (especially the motif of Superman holding the wheelchair over his head). Your Consortium is a monolithic villain, seemingly all-powerful and completely evil. What's intriguing is that Stergis Braxton is not all good, either, but is willing to take underhanded measures to protect his Club.
You're very good with detailed descriptions of places. Every sky you describe is different; the verdigris copper of the gas torches at Rolan Oak, the rosewood tables, Waterford crystal, the detailing of the road signs as Michael drives to Cypress Cove, his taste in music, are exactly enough to put the reader in the setting, without weighing them down.
You really know your medical science, and you have the gift of explaining it to the layman without talking down or overwhelming them with data.
You avoid the cliché of love at first sight through the early rivalry between Kayla and Michael, which at first becomes professional respect and then eventually love ' much better. Your plot is marvelously well constructed. Hans Kilmer's forgetfulness, and what happens to the precious envelope, is quite believable, and the consequences move the story along at a suspenseful pace. There's a good cliffhanger at the end of Chapter 33, and the tornado is a nice touch. Lucky's finding the writing impressions on the legal pad that lead them to the Majestic Lady is also a good device.
You write good dialogue. The way Michael's Southern accent slips out once he relaxes with Kayla makes a likeable guy even more likeable.
There are plenty of nice little touches, like the cabbie with the vodka-laced strawberry malt, the fact that the bad guys are stressed and sweaty and living on junk food, Charlie's playing 'bumper cars' with the FBI, the waitress playing romantic songs for Michael and Kayla. And the Major's 'kite' is fantastic! Just a touch of James Bond, but also within the realm of believable military technology.
'Simon's' transformation is fascinating, but at least some of it ' the foster home, his legal training ' might be better introduced earlier on to make him more sympathetic. He's a complex character (in a good sense), because the reader doesn't know whether or not to trust him until the very end.
Kimberly Crist is also a complex and interesting character. She offers contrast and commentary on white society, and she's a good role model for what a bright young person of color can achieve. Why do I get the impression that Kimberly and Simon might appear in a subsequent book someday? This would be a very good thing.
The chase, complete with the storm at sea and the foul-up with the saline net, and John-John's going back to retrieve Gabby, is a nail-biter. And the final standoff shows everyone's true character, especially Kayla's finishing off the Major to save Michael's life, and Charlie's attempt to save Lucky, which is something a doctor would do.
Revealing the Covenant is a book I would pick up and read and recommend to others.
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