Badly beaten, the interracial couple is taken to the emergency room of Dawkins County Hospital for treatment by Dr. Rhea Lynch. However, more than the vicious thrashing from the hate peddlers, Rhea sees strange signs of a pulmonary infection in first the woman and then her mate. Even more shocking to the ER doctor, who thought she had seen it all here in the graveyard shift of this hospital, the twosome quickly dies from whatever attacked their internal organs.

Not long afterward more victims arrive and die at alarming speed. Rhea tries to uncover what happened so that she can provide proper medical care to the suffering and end the growing epidemic. However, she soon finds herself caught in the midst of a hate group, religious fanatics, and the military in what looks like a terrorist germ warfare attack that has turned this South Carolina county into a graveyard.

PRESCRIBED DANGER is an exciting medical thriller that will keep the audience on the edge of their seat throughout the reading and send fans seeking Rhea’s previous appearance (see DELAYED DIAGNOSIS) right afterward. The story line is loaded with action and filled with twists and turn as Rhea plays Gary Cooper in High Noon while the villains are powerful organizational entities rather than western outlaws. The “conspiracy” is a bit thin, but Rhea is a delightful character who makes the Gwen Hunter’s tale work.

Harriet Klausner