
0525948430



Opinion
From the critics

Community Activity
Summary
Add a SummaryLooking for a detective novel sans detective; a muster novel sans mystery because it's all quite clear and a suspense novel with lots of suspense? Let me recommend to you this novel by Ken Follet. There's definitely a full ,measure of suspense as a death-dealing potion hangs in the balance, one that could a destruction far surpassing the death dealt the world by the black deaths of the Middle Ages.
The novel is so engrossing I found it virtually impossible to put it down. Read to to get to sleep and all of a sudden, before your know it's three in the morning. A good read --- a fast read. I think I've found a new favourite author.
A missing canister of a deadly virus. A lab technician bleeding from the eyes. Toni Gallo, the security director of a Scottish medical research firm, knows she has problems, but she has no idea of the nightmare to come.
As a Christmas Eve blizzard whips out of the north, several people converge on a remote family house. Stanley Oxenford, the research company’s director, has everything riding on the drug he is developing to fight the virus – but he isn’t the only one: His grown children, who have come to spend Christmas, have their eyes on the money it will bring.
Toni Gallo, forced to resign from the police department in disgrace, is betting her career on keeping the drug safe; a local television reporter, determined to move up, has sniffed the story, even if he has to bend the facts to tell it; and a violent trio of thugs is on its way to steal it for a client already waiting – though what the client really has in mind is something that will shock them all.
As the storm worsens, the emotional sparks – jealousies, distrust, sexual attraction, rivalries – crackle; desperate secrets are revealed; hidden traitors and unexpected heroes emerge ..

Comment
Add a CommentI enjoyed this book very much. It helps define the meaning of a mystery/thriller, where the bad guys are in deep trouble and the good Gal is in hot pursuit. Toni Gallo has her hands full, trying to outwit those who would attempt to put life to the sword. Of course, it's not at the same intense level as "Pillars of Fire" or a few other of his classic books; however, I would certainly recommend this book for its entertainment value
Suspense. Thriller. Death-dealing virus and Christmas all in one novel. Very readable.
Scientific novel about a group of criminals who steal a vial of a deadly virus from a laboratory that could kill millions, and decide to sell it to another group, all the while during a snowstorm. There is action and suspense along the way; including guns,violence and hostage taking. okay book.
Not one of Follett's best but not a bad read either. Characters you love to hate, characters you feel sorry for, a fairly fast-paced plot. It's a quick, easy read that doesn't require too much thought.
Thieves have stolen a deadly virus from a Scottish lab, and they have to deliver it to the buyer during a blizzard. I won't give away more of the plot, but the burning question becomes, "Doesn't anyone have a cell phone?" Enjoyable snowy suspense novel to read on a hot day.
This is a fast paced thriller - perfect to read around the holiday time. Read it and you will understand.
Christmas Eve, a snowstorm, a deadly virus, great suspense!
Enjoyable but not one of my favourites by Follett. Not memorable like Pillars of the Earth.