Beneath the Wake
A Dr. Zol Szabo Medical Mystery
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
The eagerly anticipated fourth medical thriller in the award-winning series
Epidemic investigator Dr. Zol Szabo hopes an extended cruise on the Indian Ocean with his girlfriend and his son will salve the wounds of the rough times they’ve been weathering at home. As they set sail coddled in unaccustomed luxury on the Coral Dynasty, things below deck are a little less sunny for the ship’s physician. Dr. Noah Ferguson reckons that bandaging the wounds of the crew’s seedy missteps is just part of a job that comes with a fair share of loneliness, but he’s increasingly frustrated that the most rewarding aspect of his practice must remain unspoken. When a mysterious microbe cuts a lethal swath through the crew’s quarters, Noah enlists a reluctant Zol, who must put his vacation on hold to investigate the illness before it consumes everyone on board. As the body count climbs, it becomes apparent that everybody carries a secret in international waters. Miles from land, the captain makes the rules, and anything inconvenient gets tossed overboard to disappear beneath the wake.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This tense thriller is the fourth book in Pennie's medical mystery series (following Up in Smoke), which features Dr. Zol Szabo, a Hamilton, Ont., specialist in public health. After the harrowing experiences recounted in previous novels, Szabo, who is in serious need of some rest and relaxation, books a long holiday for himself; his colleague Natasha Sharma; his son, Max,; and Max's friend Travis. They board the Coral Dynasty, a luxury liner cruising the Indian Ocean. But there will be no smooth sailing for Szabo. Three crew members have died from a mysterious disease, and Szabo feels obligated to help the ship's doctor, Noah Ferguson, discover the cause of the infection and trace it back to its source. If this is not accomplished by the time the ship reaches Singapore in just 13 days the ship's crew and passengers will be put in quarantine indefinitely. Szabo discovers a veil of lies that hides unsavory crimes aboard the ship, which propels the novel to its shocking conclusion. Pennie is a doctor specializing in infectious disease, and his expertise clearly informs and adds a complex realism to this excellent page-turner.
