Extreme Measures

Here's a coincidence: two physicians who graduated from Wesleyan Univ., who now practice in Massachusetts, and who write best-selling medical thrillers. One is Robin Cook; the other is Palmer, whose fast-paced hard-cover debut owes a clear debt to his better-known colleague. Like Cook, Palmer pits a brave doc - Eric Najarian, crack emergency-room M.D. at a huge Boston hospital - against a diabolical cabal: Caduceus, which anonymously contacts Najarian and promises him a desired promotion if he'll help in unspecified research. And like Cook, Palmer roots a bizarre plot - bankrolled through drug-dealing, Caduceus turns out to be developing a revolutionary anti-viral drug by experimenting on humans it's turned into zombies with a secret voodoo powder - into a bedrock of authentic medical detail. Though sorely tempted to join Caduceus, Najarian is wooed from its siren's call by plucky Laura Enders, a Caribbean diving instructor who's flown north to look for her missing brother, Scott. Can Scott be the derelict whom Najarian declared dead of a coronary two months back? And can he still be alive - a suspicion raised when a patient with symptoms similar to Scott's revives during autopsy? Teaming up and falling in love, Najarian and Laura turn sleuth, dig out clues at a spooky funeral parlor, and begin to piece together the puzzle when Najarian is kidnapped by voodoo practitioners and nearly subjected to the zombie-powder. Meanwhile, Scott, who's actually a government agent, escapes from the Utah ghost town, headquarters of Caduceus, where he's been shanghaied along with other zombies, and lumbers east; once he reunites with Laura, violent action dominates as Najarian & Co. confront Caduceus - and the surprising figure at its helm. Not as much sheer fun as Cook - the tone here is darker, more solemn - but with strong narrative drive geared by myriad plot twists, this is brisk, hard-working entertainment for fans of medical mischief. (Kirkus Reviews)