First published 2010
Dr. Nick Garrity treats the homeless from his mobile clinic in D.C. and Baltimore while battling PTSD from his military service. He searches constantly for his missing war buddy Umberto Vasquez, who disappeared four years ago on a classified mission. When psych nurse Gillian Coates approaches Nick about her sister's death, everything changes. Belle Coates, an ICU nurse, supposedly committed suicide, but Gillian refuses to believe it. Belle left behind a clue connecting her to Nick. As they investigate together, Nick and Gillian discover that members of a surgical team from a botched operation are dying one by one. The deaths appear accidental or self-inflicted, but they're actually the work of Franz Koller, a brilliant assassin who specializes in murders that look like anything but homicide. Koller eliminates his targets using what he calls the "non-kill" technique. When Nick and Gillian get too close to the truth behind these calculated deaths, Koller receives new orders. His job won't be finished until he kills both investigators, including Nick, the final surgeon from that doomed operation.
Genres: medical, suspense, mystery, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Baltimore, D.C., Washington
Period: Contemporary
373 pages · Hardcover · St. Martin's Press
Content warnings: death, medical-trauma, violence