It’s 2047, and the more things change, the more politics stays the same.
Zachary Marshall is a dedicated, brilliant, young, scientist with a secret in his past. He and his best friend from graduate school own a small DNA testing lab where they test for genetic disorders.
When he discovers the gene for psychopathy in an anonymous sample brought to his lab by the Secret Service, his house is bombed and he’s framed for his friend’s murder, sending him underground and on the run with a rogue agent who has secrets of her own.
Zach’s only hope of clearing his name lies in staying alive long enough to expose the conspiracy, derailing the campaign of a corrupt presidential candidate in the process.
This book is a solid example of its type. The plot is well constructed, providing a good blend of action and character development. The characters are also well constructed. As I finished this book, I considered the story satisfying.
So, why only 3 stars?
While the writing is good, the editing needed work. There are too many typos, especially errant commas, for me to realistically ignore. In several places, I had to stop and reread a sentence to understand it because of a typo or unnecessary comma. Some readers will be able to blithely ignore these problems, and you’ll enjoy the book more than I did.
The other problem was predictability. I don’t often notice when a story hits every beat of the obvious path, but I did here. Nothing surprised me in the story. When x happened, the y after it was the most logical option. Sometimes, that’s satisfying in its own way. In this particular story, I felt a little let down by that. If you can shut your brain off and enjoy the ride, though, you probably won’t notice so much.
Hard-core readers of conspiracy/thriller stories will like this book. Those less interested in the genre might appreciate the light touch of discussion regarding the nature of psychopathy and sociopathy.