The Silent Cradle [Mass Market Paperback]

Margaret Cuthbert (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1999

With a "powerful combination [of] medical authenticity and strong writing" (Washington Post Book World), this acclaimed debut thriller is set on the front lines of real-life hospital drama. Margaret Cuthbert draws from her career as an obstetrician to create a terrifying scenario for a doctor -- and arouse our darkest fears about the greedy side of the business of medicine.

Save the life. Save the life....This is the mantra repeated by Dr. Rae Duprey, Berkeley Hills Hospital's premier obstetrician, who's driven by a passion to save the lives of women and babies in her care. But when her career is threatened by a series of "bad baby" cases emanating from the politically sensitive birth center across the street -- a center run by her ex-lover and nemesis, Bo Michaels -- Rae is determined to uncover the truth about why these seemingly routine deliveries are going fatally haywire.

Rae soon discovers that in the ruthlessly competitive atmosphere of today's health-care system, everyone has a hidden agenda. As the hair-raising emergencies continue unabated, she begins to suspect the unthinkable: a sinister plan of medical sabotage, masterminded by a killer who is hardly a stranger to Berkeley Hills Hospital.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Dr. Rae Duprey, vice-chair of Berkeley Hills Hospital's OB/GYN department, has capably met the challenges of being a rare black woman in her profession. But her life is thrown into turmoil when she learns that her department may be eliminated?largely because the rival Birth Center, whose medical director is Rae's arrogant ex-boyfriend, is luring away patients with high-end frills. That's just the beginning of her troubles in this promising but ultimately flat debut about murderous behind-the-scenes scheming in the baby-delivering business. When a series of Birth Center patients with serious complications arrive at Berkeley Hills, Rae starts to wonder whether the Birth Center may be admitting high-risk patients it's not qualified to care for. When a nurse who's also Rae's best friend is savagely attacked, Rae begins to suspect something may be more seriously awry. Then she is blamed for the difficult deliveries and dismissed from the staff. Obstetrician Cuthbert shines when she's describing delivery-room drama, conveying the kind of reflexes and judgment a dedicated physician must cultivate. Unfortunately, the inherent suspense of such scenes is undercut by a byzantine, unconvincing plot. Worse, the characters are wooden types it's hard to care about outside the delivery room?even in the case of the protagonist, who's the model of an ideal doctor but fails to come alive as a human being. Author tour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

OB/GYN Cuthbert debuts with a medical thriller featuring OB/GYN Rae Duprey, who uncovers evil doings at a birthing center.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (February 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671015141
• ISBN-13: 978-0671015145
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,834,086 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:

1.0 out of 5 stars Profound disappointment., July 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Silent Cradle (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a book I really wanted to like. The concept of a minority author with a lucrative career as a professional, trying her hand at writing--well, there's romance in the situation before pen is put to paper. What a disappointment. What ever happened to the role of the editor? I had the feeling, as I was painfully slogging through page after dilletantish page, that this was a modern case of the Emperor's New Clothes. No one at the publishing house had the nerve to call a halt to this fiasco before it hit the presses. Either that, or the publisher was so cynical that he or she believed that the book might be a hit simply because of the author's personal story, and the color of her skin. Never mind about the clicheed plot, one-dimensional characters, and drivel dialogue. When I think of how precious time is nowadays, I found myself getting angry at all involved. Including myself for pushing through to the so-what-who-cares ending. I trust Dr. Cuthbert's patients get better care than did her manuscript.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Predictable Fun, November 7, 2002

By 

Hippolytos (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Silent Cradle (Mass Market Paperback)

Cuthbert certainly isn't breaking any new ground with her debut novel, but it is certainly a quick read, with good characterization and able action sequences. The plot is brilliant in theory, less so in its execution. It becomes apparent all too soon who is beyond the nefarious plot of inducing expectant mothers into premature labor.

Admittedly, the novel is difficult to get into, and bears all the signs of a new author, but soon the plot gels and you'll be lost in its unfolding. While the denoument is predictable, you'll hang in there with main character Dr. Rae and with Cuthbert to see the villain get their comeuppance.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Save your time and money!, October 22, 1999

By 

Chan McDermott - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Silent Cradle (Mass Market Paperback)

I found this book very distressing. First, the medical stuff is very overblown. OBs do *not* spend their time saving babies left and right -- I read several passages to a few of my OB friends and we all agreed, "Give us a break!" Second, the hospital politics was *not* realistic! Third, the author -- and consequently her heroine -- appears to be a drama queen (not something I think I would want in my doctor!). Like many reviewers, I found myself angry that I continued reading the book. But I also found myself angry that the author, as an OB, depicted birth as a big scary event which often goes bad. Pregnant women in our society hear enough scary stories and don't need them perpetuated by an OB writing a "thriller."