Book Reviews
Sledgehammer
 Book
Title: SLEDGEHAMMER
Author:
Dr. Paulo J. Reyes, M.D
Book Genre: Thriller Fiction Book
Publisher: IUniverse
ISBN # 0-595-66984-0
Price: $14.95
Publication Date: March 2005
Page Count: 200
Recommended Audience:
Avid fiction thriller readers
Reviews:
 A
year ago a DUI killed his beloved wife Leana, leaving ER physician
Dr. Max Kroose to raise their two preadolescent children alone
except for their nanny Esmeralda. After dropping the kids at school,
Dr. Kroose expects a normal day of traumas and tragedy. As always,
ER is overwhelmed so when his son takes a nasty spill at school, but
is okay he has no time to pick him up.
A patient arrives with
strange symptoms that reminds Max somewhat of smallpox yet
seems more powerful than a disease most people thought eradicated.
As the clock ticks, Max becomes increasingly convinced that they are
dealing with a lethal strand of smallpox. He fails to
persuade the skeptical bottom line hospital administrator Kilgorn to
arrange mass vaccination to prevent a pandemic spread. His only
chance resides with his friend a bio-weapons researcher, but even if
he somehow receives help, Max knows that the potential for spreading
has walked out the hospital door numerous times. This is a gut
wrenching medical thriller that centers on how relatively easy the
spread of a bio-weapon can occur in this country.
Max keeps the story
line realistic and together as he goes from the daily troubles of a
single dad who has had no time to mourn his loss to fears for his
two children and others from a stalking killer. His frustrations
mount as he fails to convince anyone that vaccination is needed as
the health system calculates the cost as greater than the risk.
Paulo J. Reyes provides
a SLEDGEHAMMER to a system that set up to insure mass failure
when (not if) the crisis happens.
Reviewer:
Midwest Book Review
Paulo J. Reyes, an emergency room doctor, has produced a
well-written medical thriller. The author's extensive medical
background lends credibility to the fast-paced flow of action in
this novel. The setting is the emergency room of a small community
hospital. A terrorist plot is set in motion, a diabolical scheme to
spread a virus that is an enhanced version of smallpox. The crisp
writing style leads the reader through a fascinating journey of
difficulties that are both riveting and exciting. Given the times,
we live in and the knowledge of the author the plot is both
plausible and realistic.
The main character, a physician who has recently been widowed, is
sympathetic and pragmatic. The reader follows Dr Kroose with
fascination as he uncovers the horror of what is happening. The
author's writing style is direct and his dialogue comes off as
spontaneous and realistic. The premise of the story is current and
therefore attention grabbing. The author shares extensive medical
knowledge with the reader on the nature of the virus and with great
familiarity reveals how terrorists could spread such a virus. He is
passionate and erudite on the dangers and possibility of
bio-weapons. The novel is a great read, and a page-turning thriller
that keeps the reader on the edge of his seat.
Reviewer:
Atlantic Book Review
Sledgehammer
has all the ingredients of a great read. It is bang up to date. The
topic is hot. Readers cannot get enough rollercoaster thriller
novels. The author, Paulo J. Reyes, is an expert in his field and
appears to have a genuine love of his subject.
A thrilling tale is lost in a sea of cliches from the very
beginning. From the opening paragraph of the preface, the author
nails his colours to the mast and we know we are in for a patriotic
"tour de force." The world revolves around the United States of
America. Maybe in real life it does, but we do not need it so
obviously delineated in print.
Again we are up against terrorism and, another staple of modern
thriller fiction, a widowed hero and cute kid.
I really looked forward to this book. The scenario of
bio-terrorism is so real today we can taste it, and as Alfred
Hitchcock once wrote about the essence of a thriller -- to bring
tension into the story we need to know the threat is there.
Reyes is an MD, but unfortunately he assumes his readers have
similar qualifications. The book is strewn with medical terms;
sometimes they are explained, other times not. In addition, he seems
to be in the business of coining new words, like "stomachache."
The book charges along and I believe that anyone who can avoid
being distracted by the above-mentioned faults will enjoy the story.
It will make you think -- long and hard. It may even give you
nightmares about possible scenarios we might face in the future. For
that content, I would give it a cautious recommendation. I could
easily see this as the basis of a TV movie in the not-too-distant
future.
Reviewer:
Nicky Rossiter - Rambles.NET
One
of medicine's great success stories is the global eradication of
smallpox. There have been no new cases of this once-dreaded disease
for more than twenty-five years. But could bioterrorists bring back
this killer virus? And how deadly might be its effects on an
unvaccinated population?
The medical thriller "Sledgehammer" presents just such a scenario.
For the protagonist, emergency room director Dr. Kroose, smallpox is
an important political issue. He wants assurances that his staff
will be offered vaccination, while the parsimonious hospital
administrators worry about the potential for litigation. Dr. Kroose
is preparing to fight for his staff's welfare when Mr. Villalobos
arrives in his emergency room. This obnoxious patient at first
appears to have influenza. But does he? Could a hypothetical concern
suddenly have become real and urgent?
Dr. Paulo J. Reyes is himself an emergency room doctor in California
with many years of experience. He has a thorough understanding of
the risk posed by smallpox, and has been vaccinated against it. He
includes enough medical details in this novel to give it
authenticity, and in a useful preface explains the scientific and
political background to smallpox bioterrorism.
"Sledgehammer" offers a thought-provoking look at emergency-room
politics and the smallpox risk, and it's also a fast-moving
thriller. Share six days in the life of Dr. Kroose, and then decide
for yourself about the threat of bioterrorism.
Reviewer:
Allbooks Reviews
This
book begs to ask the question, “Could it happen today?” With today’s
constant fears of terrorist’s attacks and the ever increasing fear
of a global pandemic, this book takes you inside “what could happen
and how prepared we really are.”
Although the book is fiction, it is based on research by Dr.
Paulo J. Reyes and his 25 years of medical experience as an ER
doctor, as well as extensive medical research for his first book and
his training as a First Responder for terrorist attacks in
California.
Sledgehammer takes place over 6 days in an ER in Los Angeles,
California. Terrorists have attacked using smallpox and one of the
terrorists shows up with symptoms. In this book you journey through
the massive panic of the outbreak, the initial diagnosis being made,
the convincing of staff and higher ups of the diagnosis, and then
the rush to obtain the cure. You realize that the virus has spread
and time is of the essence to save the nation. You grow fond of the
characters and as each faces the threat of the disease, you are
yearning for a quick cure to save them in time. It clearly portrays
how rapidly the disease spreads, the potential devastation if
air-borne, and the fatality of those in contact.
The book is written with great care and precision and the real
life happenings in the ER make it a great read for medical personnel
and those who love medical dramas on TV in addition to science
fiction fans. Plus with today’s current events with constant
terrorists threats and fears of a pandemic, it something of interest
to all.
Sledgehammer sells for $14.95. You can get additional information
at our website at www.pauloreyes.com or
www.virtualwordpublishing.com. It currently sells at Amazon and
other major online bookstores as well. ISBN #097713870-4, 200 pages,
Published 2005.
Reviewer:
SFF Net
It
has been a long time since I have read a book that I simply could
not put down. Sledgehammer was that book. I am a scientist by
profession, so I was able to really relate to the whole
bioterrorism/Virus research plot of the book. I also believe that
someone with out a science background would also love this book. It
is well written and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The book is
fiction, but could this really happen? Scary!
Reviewer:
Cecilia Frederick
ER
physician Dr. Max Kroose becomes aware that an unusual number of flu
cases are presenting with more symptoms than the flu would warrant.
At the same time, he is fighting with the hospital's administration
for smallpox vaccinations for his staff. As first responders, they
would come into contact with smallpox patients in the event of a
pandemic spread by bio-terrorists. To his mind, preparedness is the
only sensible approach.
When one of his flu patients dies,
Max is convinced he has actually seen a case of smallpox - a dread
disease believed to have been eradicated in the world. Kroose's
fight to get the vaccine is maddening when the reader realizes the
same thing goes on every day when dealing with bureaucrats. The plot
is frightening, and the action moves along at a good clip. Dr.
Kroose is a very real character torn between love for his motherless
children and the obligation he feels he has to prevent worldwide
deaths.
The medical terms, I am sure, are correct
as the author has twenty-five years of experience in the ER, as well
as having been trained as a first responder. For the layman,
however, these terms rather overpower the story. It's one thing to
hear them on TV where there is always accompanying action to blunt
their impact. The abundance of technical terms slowed down the whole
plot for me. And the plot is a good one with a real sense of the
energy necessary to run an ER. Dr. Reyes is a very knowledgeable
man, with a great though terrifying story to tell.
Reviewer:
Book Loons
An
emergency room doctor suspects a bio-terrorism weapon
in the form of smallpox has been introduced into his hospital. He
finds himself
torn between nailing down the identity of the disease with certainty
and fighting
with naysayers which include the business administrator of his own
hospital. This conflict and uncertainty builds throughout the story,
bringing the reader to the edge of his chair.
The author, himself an emergency room physician, brings us inside
the high
pressure, overworked environment of the ER. He also gives us a
glimpse of
how unready this country is to deal with bio-terrorism.
Reviewer:
Bob Spear, Publisher and Chief
Reviewer,
Heartland Reviews
'SLEDGEHAMMER'
POUNDS AWAY AT SMALLPOX THREAT American Reporter
Correspondent--Bradenton, Fla.
This one can - "Sledgehammer" is a gripping, powerful portrait of
an American emergency room physician encountering the "index" case
of a national bioterrorist attack by Islamic terrorists.
I get books in the mail from a number of publishers, and it's
honestly rare that I
get around to reading one. But Dr. Paulo J. Reyes' novel of an
American physician trying to deal with what presents as an ambiguous
case of pox - monkey pox, chicken pox, smallpox, who knows? - is
unnerving and engaging in the extreme. It is probably the best
bio-warfare thriller of the dozen-odd I've read in the past 10
years.
The story has an almost Aristotelian ethic in its observance of
time. Everything
that's important happens within a tightly-wound period of about six
days, and all of it takes place within the confines of a a hospital
- in fact, except for the opening scene at the doctor's home and
some telephone calls that go in and out of the hospital, the
hospital and its emergency room, ICU and corridors are the only
locales. That helps to focus the action of this compelling novel
about a weaponized form of smallpox, called "sledgehammer" for its
forceful appearance - it kills within a few days - that is
introduced into a busy emergency room somewhere in California (we
presume it's a suburb of Los Angeles, but that's never clear) and
eventually takes hundreds of thousands of lives across the United
States.
The action really comes in the form of increasingly desperate
attempts to save the lives of a variety of victims, only one of whom
actually has come down with
smallpox. That victim, a terrorist using the name 'Villalobos" who
pretends to be
from Mexico but is a Middle Eastern terrorist trained in the rugged
Pamir Mountains of Afghanistan, is only slowly revealed as both a
smallpox victim and a terrorist. Thus, the veil is drawn back
slowly, a chapter at a time, and amid the revelations concerning
"Villalobos" are half a dozen hypnotizing accounts of sick and dying
children, alcoholics, women and others in life-threatening condition
as they are treated by a highly skilled and close-knit nursing team
and a dedicated physician, Dr. Max Kroose. There is a small, sad
love story woven within the narrative, and some exemplary acts of
courage that are both genuine and entirely unexpected.
Amid the controlled chaos of the nursing room we get a telling
glimpse of a
hospital administrator who is far more knowledgeable about costs
than about
his responsibility to the first responders who work on his staff; at
the internecine warfare between physicians over insured vs.
uninsured patients and their care; at the prima donnas who sometimes
risk the lives of their patients for points of personal pride; at
public health officials whose first concern is bureaucratic
protocols and whose last concern is public health; about the way in
which Fort Detrick, Md., the home of American bioterror research,
may have engaged in some underhanded and dangerous - and probably
necessary - experimentation with smallpox; about the real threat of
smallpox to an unprepared world; and, not least of all, a horrifying
and unforgettable glance at the ravaging course of the most dreaded
disease on earth.
This a book that is chock full of a surgeon's jargon, and while
many may have
trouble with that, it greatly increases the book's overwhelming
realism --
Reviewer:
Joe Shea is Editor-in-Chief of
the American Reporter and edits our Book Review. Copyright 2005 Joe
Shea The American Reporter. All Rights Reserved.
Excellent
medical thriller detailing the potential threat of a
smallpox outbreak brought on my terrorists. Everyone will get
caught up in this terrific thriller!
A
year ago a DUI killed his beloved wife Leana, leaving ER physician Dr.
Max Kroose to raise their two preadolescent children alone except for
their nanny Esmeralda. After dropping the kids at school, Dr. Kroose
expects a normal day of traumas and tragedy. As always, ER is
overwhelmed so when his son takes a nasty spill at school, but is okay
he has no time to pick him up.
A patient arrives with strange symptoms that reminds Max somewhat of
smallpox yet seems more powerful than a disease most people
thought eradicated. As the clock ticks, Max becomes increasingly
convinced that they are dealing with a lethal strand of smallpox.
He fails to persuade the skeptical bottom line hospital administrator
Kilgorn to arrange mass vaccination to prevent a pandemic spread.
His only chance resides with his friend, a bio-weapons researcher,
Max knows that the potential for spreading has walked out the hospital
door numerous times.....
This is a gut wrenching medical thriller that centers on how
relatively easy the spread of a bio-weapon can occur in this country.
Max keeps the story line realistic and together as he goes from the
daily troubles of a single dad who has had no time to mourn his loss
to fears for his two children and others from a stalking killer. His
frustrations mount as he fails to convince anyone that vaccination is
needed as the health system calculates the cost as greater than the
risk. Paulo J. Reyes provides a
SLEDGEHAMMER
to a system that is set up to insure mass failure when (not if) the
crisis happens.
*August
30, 2005 - Posted on Amazon/Barnes & Noble
Reviewer: Harriet Klauser
Over
the centuries, smallpox epidemics have devastated world
populations killing an estimated 40% of those that come in
contact with the disease. In 1796, Edward Jenner developed a
vaccine that reduced the loss of life from this catastrophic
disease eventually leading to the complete eradication of the
disease. In 1980, the World Health Organization declared that
no natural forms of smallpox existed and most vaccination
programs ceased to exist.
Due to recent world events and
increase in the rise of terrorism, however, concerns have
been raised about the potential of bioterrorism in the form
of manmade forms of deadly diseases such as smallpox. As much of
the population has not been vaccinated against smallpox,
this disease could easily restart its horrible killing spree.
Moreover, new bioengineered versions of this deadly disease
could be created to be faster, more efficient killing mechanisms.
SledgeHammer tells the chilling story of what if. The story
details five days in the life of a doctor working in the emergency
ward when a man dies of what everyone thinks is the flu. Confused
by the death of the previously perfectly healthy man, this doctor
must not only fight through his own doubts about the true cause of
the death but also through mountains of bureaucracy and his own
imminent mortality. The result is such a true to live account that
it is actually quite alarming.
Reviewer:
Tami Brady
Science
fiction at its best. Terrorist have attacked using
smallpox and one ER doctor must stop its deadly spread when
one of the terrorists shows up at his ER with symptoms.
Great suspense and action.
Reviewer:
BookReview.com
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