When three women--all patients at Memorial Hospital, insured by Health First, and candidates for bone-marrow transplants--die mysteriously, several people set out to find, or cover up, the murderer(s). The setters-out include forensic pathologist Joanna Blalock, detective Jake Sinclair, and Karl Rimer, who, according to official records, died in Vietnam. A faceless, fingertipless man serves as the thread that ties much of this fascinating, fast-moving story together, while artistic blue-and-gold tattoos furnish links for the pursuers. When Joanna's car is pushed over a cliff, breathless but believable chase scenes follow. Homeless Emma saves the day several times but gets her brains blown out. Joanna, Jake, Karl, and two of the Health First higher-ups finally come together in the research tower, and Emma's old Mace can helps to keep the subsequent deaths on the right side. The three woman patients died, it turns out, in the name of cost-containment, which makes this thriller a thought-provoking glimpse into what controlled, if not managed, care may soon offer us all.

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