by Damon Galgut
First published 2003
Dr. Laurence Waters arrives at a remote rural hospital with hope and energy, ready to make a difference. The facility sits nearly empty, its corridors echoing with abandonment. Frank Eloff, the veteran staff physician who has weathered years in this forgotten place, watches the newcomer with immediate suspicion and resentment. Waters represents everything Eloff has lost or never possessed: youth, idealism, faith in medicine's power to heal. Eloff's hostility toward the young doctor sets events in motion that neither man anticipates. As Waters settles into his new role, Eloff finds himself drawn back into a relationship with a woman from his past. This reconnection stirs feelings he thought buried. Meanwhile, rumors surface about smuggling operations along the nearby border, creating dangerous undercurrents in their isolated community. The two doctors circle each other in this desolate setting, their conflict intensifying as external pressures mount. Waters must navigate not only his senior colleague's antagonism but also the harsh realities of practicing medicine in a place the world has forgotten.
Genres: fiction, medical, mystery, contemporary
Vibes: atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Africa, Remote Rural Hospital
Period: Contemporary
Paperback · Grove Pr