A HEARTBEAT AWAY: A NOVEL

Book ID/图书代码： 06830011B47190

English Summary/英文概要： The New York Times bestselling author and master of suspense delivers another novel at the crossroads of politics and medicine in this shocker of a thriller

On the night of the State of the Union address, President James Allaire expects to give the speech of his career. But no one anticipates the terrifying turn of events that forces him to quarantine everyone in the Capitol building. A terrorist group calling itself “Genesis” has unleashed WRX3883, a deadly, highly contagious virus, into the building. No one fully knows the deadly effect of the germ except for the team responsible for its development—a team headed by Allaire, himself. The only one who might be able to help is virologist Griffin Rhodes, currently in solitary confinement in a maximum security federal prison for alleged terrorist acts, including the attempted theft of WRX3883 from the lab where he worked. Rhodes has no idea why he has been arrested, but when Allaire offers to free him in exchange for his help combating the virus, he reluctantly agrees to do what he can to support the government that has imprisoned him without apparent cause.

Meanwhile, every single person in line for presidential succession is trapped inside the Capitol—every person except one: the Director of Homeland Security, who is safely at home in Minnesota, having been selected as the “Designated Survivor” for this event. With enemies both named and unnamed closing in, and the security of the nation at stake, Griff must unravel the mysteries of WRX3883 without violating his pledge as a scientist to use no animal testing in his experiments…and time is running out. Tense, thrilling, and entirely plausible, A Heartbeat Away will make you reflect, wonder, and be truly afraid.

Chinese Summary/中文概要： 《紐約時報》暢銷作家以及懸疑大師再次發表了一部令人毛骨悚然的驚悚小說。

就在總統James Allaire發表國情咨文的那天晚上，他期望發表一場關於個人事業的演講。但是任何人都沒能想到巨大驚人的形勢轉變迫使總統對國會大廈裡的每個人進行隔離檢查。一個自稱“Genesis”的恐怖組織在國會大廈裡釋放了一種叫做WRX3883病毒，該病毒不僅具有高度蔓延性，而且會產生致命的結果。除了發明這種病毒的小組—由總統親自率領的小組，沒有人知道它致命的效果。
此時，唯一能起到幫助作用的人就是過濾性病原體學者Griffin Rhodes。可是他卻因為所謂的恐怖主義行為，其中包括企圖從他所工作的實驗室竊取WRX3883，而被單獨監禁在安全係數最高的聯邦監獄。Rhodes完全不知自己為何被關進監獄，但是當總統提出只要他幫忙對付病毒就釋放他時，他不情願地答應幫助那個不分青紅皂白就將他關進監獄的的政府。
就在此時，每一個有希望接任下任總統的候選人都背困在國會大廈中—不過所有人都把懷疑物件鎖定在同一個人身上：國土安全部的部長。目前，只要他安全無恙地呆在明尼蘇達州的家中，並且已被選為這件事的“指定生存者”。隨著有名的以及無名字的敵人都在漸漸迫近，國家的安全危在旦夕，Griff必須在作為科學家絕不違背“拒絕使用動物做實驗”這一誓言的前提下，揭露WRX3883病毒的神秘之處。可是時間即將耗盡……

情節緊張刺激，完全真實可信，《心跳終止》一書將帶領你反思，驚愕，以及真正地恐懼起來。(XMM)

Awards/获奖情况：Palmer (The Last Surgeon) offers a nifty plot premise in this high-concept medical thriller, but a plethora of subplots distracts from the more interesting primary issue. As the U.S. president, James Allaire, is beginning his State of the Union address, a number of small containers of a viral agent explode and infect the more than 700 people, including every important member of the government except the director of homeland security, who have gathered in the House chamber. The Capitol must be sealed off and the infected audience held inside until a cure for the disease can be found. The plotters behind the attack, a group of domestic terrorists known as Genesis, demand, among other things, that the government abolish the Patriot Act and cease unchecked spying on ordinary Americans. Overblown prose does little to make the implausible scenario more believable. Readers with a low tolerance for the hyperbolic are advised to give this one a pass. (Feb.) ---From Publishers Weekly

Palmer’s early novels were smoothly written, tightly plotted, and memorable. Lately he’s had his ups and downs—more downs than ups, unfortunately—and his latest medical thriller sort of straddles the two. On the upside, it’s got a wicked cool story. Terrorists have let loose a highly virulent virus in the Capitol building on the night of the State of the Union address, forcing the president to lock down the building, trapping inside most of the hierarchy of the American government. Only Griffin Rhodes, a virologist who’s been in prison for allegedly trying to steal the same virus from a research lab, can save the day. On the downside, the writing is, at best, mediocre. The characters are thinly drawn, and the dialogue is wooden and clumsy. This could have been a first-rate thriller; instead, it’s a novel that depends on our loyalty to the author and our interest in its plot, not its characters, to keep us reading. Palmer continues to command an audience, but this is not his best work. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Palmer’s track record (15 medical thrillers, 15 international best-sellers) assures a full-court press on the promotional front, and his latest, though disappointing, will get it, from national print and radio ads to an electronic avalanche. ---David Pitt, From Booklist

About the Author/作者介绍： 邁克.帕爾默曾出版過14本有關醫學方面的國際暢銷懸疑作品。出了寫作之外，帕爾默還是馬賽諸塞醫療協會內科醫生健康服務中心的副主任。該協會一直致力於幫助那些飽受精神與身體疾病，行為問題以及藥物依賴之苦的內科醫生。作者目前住在馬賽諸塞州東部。
MICHAEL PALMER is the author of fourteen previous novels of medical suspense, all international bestsellers. In addition to his writing, Palmer is an associate director of the Massachusetts Medical Society Physician Health Services, devoted to helping physicians troubled by mental illness, physical illness, behavioral issues, and chemical dependency. He lives in eastern Massachusetts.

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