Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Page Three of FourShadow Image by Martin J. Smith
Jove, June 1998.Paperback, 372 pages.
ISBN: 0515122866.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
Psychologist Jim Christensen is an expert on
repressed memory and his work with Alzheimer's
patients is especially fascinating for its glimpses
into the strange way that the human mind works.
One of his most famous patients is society grande
dame Floss Underhill, wife of former Senator
Vincent Underhill and mother of Ford Underhill who is making his
senatorial bid, following in the footsteps of his
father. When Floss apparently tries to commit suicide,
the family hires Jim's live-in love, attorney Brenna
Kennedy, to help keep the suicide attempt under
wraps. As Brenna digs more deeply into the case,
it appears that the suicide attempt may actually
have been a murder attempt and that Jim's
painting therapy may have caused a
dangerous secret in Floss' mind to resurface --
a secret that someone is willing to commit
murder in order to protect.
In this second entry in the Jim Christensen series (see, Time Release) Martin Smith crafts a chilling, suspenseful and provocative tale which explores the themes of greed, ambition, love and the devastating effects of Alzheimer's on not only the sufferer, but on the caregivers as well. Perhaps as a product of being a Pulitzer-prize nominated journalist, Smith is especially adept at probing delicate issues, presenting all sides of a problem such as the rage of the caregiver without preaching or moralizing. He presents shocking issues with which ultimately the reader must come to terms while at the same time, providing a heart-pounding psychological suspense thriller. A gripping and thought-provoking book.
--Claire E. White
Panic by Echo Heron
Ivy Books, August 1998.Paperback, 371 pages.
ISBN: 0804114587.
Ordering information:
Amazon.com.
When a young teenager, Iris Hersh,
the daughter of a popular
politician, becomes
terribly ill from an unknown virus
she initially gets the city's attention and
concern -- but fears escalate
as the number of cases increases. Nurse
Cynthia O'Neil grows attached to Iris and
begins working impossible hours to
keep her alive. When Cynthia becomes
infected with the deadly virus, her friend,
charge nurse Adele Monsarrat, begins
searching for answers to save her friend's
life and contain the virus before it finds
more victims. Meanwhile, Iris's father
Gordon Hersh, who is running for State
Senator, is torn between his campaign
manger's insistence that he use
his daughter's illness to gain an
advantage in the polls and his desire
to stay out of public view to look
after Iris.
Author Echo Heron imbues Panic with a compelling reality drawn from her years as a critical-care nurse in coronary and emergency medicine for seventeen years. Part medical thriller and part political potboiler, Panic is a fast-paced, appealing read.
Return to the August 1998 issue of The IWJ.
More from Writers Write