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| Plot Summary of Critical Condition |
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"
Ballantine, May 2002, 22.95, 336 pp.
ISBN: 034544339X
Geneticist Dr. Kathleen Sullivan and ER Chief Dr. Richard Steele are making love when she suddenly collapses in pain from a tremendous headache caused by a massive brain hemorrhage. Kathleen loses almost all movement, as she has become a quadriplegic with several critical bodily reflexes failing. She is reduced to communicating with one wink meaning yes and two winks no.
Dr. Tony Hamlin heads up the medical team with assists from Dr. Jim Norris and Dr. Lockman. The staff tries an illegal experimental infusion through Kathleen's neck. Desperate she struggles to inform her beloved Richard that the crack medical team is using her as a guinea pig before they either kill her or leave her with a malfunctioning brain.
CRITICAL CONDITION is an exciting medical thriller that never slows down due to the intrepid frantic actions of the lead female protagonist. The story belongs to Kathleen whose efforts to convey information is difficult and frustrating to her and to the receiver of her eye lid transmissions. The support cast augments the plot with strong characterizations though the constant reference to Richard's dismal handling of his deceased wife's cancer adds little to the current dilemma except to make the hero seem unreliable when it counts. In this potent story that is unnecessary as Richard is already laden with handicaps such as doubting his peers, dealing with the couple's teenage children from separate marriages, coping with the lack of complex communications, and handling the overall health of his beloved. Each of these is handled with depth and dexterity as they nurture the forward thrust of Peter Clement's exhilarating thriller.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Critical Condition |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
Medical Thriller
Yes
Medical Plotlets:
- wild experiments on people
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- doctor
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- missing body parts/abilities
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- doctor
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- power
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
How many deaths?
- 0 (not a murder mystery)
Amount of dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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