Nate McCormick, former medical detective for the CDC, thought he'd left the world of death and medicine behind. But the new life he hoped to start with his girlfriend in San Francisco will have to wait. For Nate is pulled back by the vicious murder of an old friend and the suspicious role the dead man's employer, Tetra Biologics, may have played in his slaying.
The deeper Nate probes, the more clearly the clues lead to a secret alliance of crime, science, and a billion-dollar industry preying on the pursuit of beauty... and determined to hide its victims at any price. For Nate, that price will be the woman he loves - unless he can reveal the flaw in a perfect conspiracy of medicine and murder.
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When it comes to beauty and cosmetic the industry smells money to get out of those desperate to keep up with the standard or those feeling imperfect as today's standard of being flawless is pressuring high.
Nate McCormick recently moved into his girlfriends apartment in San Francisco. Seeking for a new job and the relationship with Brooke struggling with everyday life settling in, an apartment of his own.
Then he is suddenly contacted by a long forgotten former friend from med school: Paul Murphy.
Paul is desperate to tell Nate something that scares him to death and threatens his life. Unfortunately the time for Murph is running out and before he is able to reveal his secret Nate finds him, his wife and two children brutally killed.
Nate struggles with his search for answers and keeping his relationship with Brooke alive while Brooke demands he has to move on without playing detective again.
But Nate conscientiousness and old feelings for his friend demand him to search for answers, straining his relationship even more.
With his clues in hands his research leads him to a secret clinic in San Francisco which promises beauty but unfortunately leads to unimaginable suffering for a certain percentage of patients who soon develop bumps on their faces, the diagnosis: cancer.
All leads back to Murph's last employer Tetra Biologics, Asian connections and the desperate attempt to keep beauties victims hidden alive or dead.
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Flawless is Spanogle's second novel starring Nate McCormick, a former medical detective at the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). While Nate seems to be an average guy with average thoughts, annoying at times, he's very likeable and a typical guy.
The novel began a bit slow with lots of Nate's thoughts which, at times, weren't interesting at all. Getting used to that the reader gets a good medical thriller.
Joshua Spanogle, currently in an internship at Stanford, knows his territory well and
introduces the reader into the secrets of medical research, science and medicine in a sensitive and informational manner.
Looking at his homepage I got the feeling there's a lot of himself to find in the character of Nate McCormick. It made me look forward to his next novel and picking up his first one, Isolation Ward.
Rating:
Visit Joshua Spanogle.
Mass Market Paperback: 576 pages
Publisher: Bantam (March 25, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0440242290
ISBN-13: 978-0440242291
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