There’s something fascinating and exciting about the medical field, leading to the immense popularity of shows like Grey’s Anatomy, Scrubs, House, M*A*S*H, and many more. It’s that perfect combination of entertaining characters (usually working through some drama of their own) and some thrilling medical mystery.
So if you like your books with a hearty dose of science and medicine, then look no further! We put our fingers to the pulse of the literary world and found 6 heart-stopping medical thrillers for you to enjoy.
Viral by Robin Cook
After falling ill on their Cape Cod summer excursion — one meant to reestablish a sense of normalcy during the Covid-19 pandemic — Brian Murphy’s wife and daughter are diagnosed with a rare and highly lethal mosquito-borne viral disease. Forced to choose between the ongoing care of family and bills he can never pay, Brian vows to seek justice. But to get to the bottom of the predatory practices targeting his loved ones, he must uncover the dark side of the medical industry — and bring down the callous executives preying on the sick and defenseless before the virus can claim even more people.
Coded to Kill by Marschall Runge, M.D.
Drexel Hospital’s new cutting-edge Electronic Health Records system is going to revolutionize health care, enabling doctors to access records and issue life-or-death medical orders with a finger swipe. No one wants the EHR to succeed more than Hugh Torrence, a former NSA honcho who sees the system as a tool for unimaginable and unaccountable power. The only thing standing in his way is a loose-knit group of Drexel employees with conflicting agendas and questionable loyalties. While they search for answers, the suspicious patient deaths keep mounting as the target on their back grows larger. (Check out the BookTrib review here.)
The First Harm by Steven Piskula
Tanna Christensen spent countless hours planning for her first gross anatomy dissection, but nothing could have prepared her for what she’s found. Beneath her scalpel lies a cadaver riddled with disturbing genetic abnormalities — evidence pointing to an unthinkable crime. Tanna believes her discovery is the tip of a terrifying secret that goes far deeper than a single corpse. But when her investigation leads to a brutal murder, a lethal cover-up threatens to destroy the future she once dreamed of. And now she’s the next target. Afraid and on the run, Tanna must expose the truth before more lives are lost — including her own. Or is it already too late?
Unnatural Death by Patricia Cornwell
Two mauled bodies in the woods. Top secret autopsies. In this thrilling installment of Patricia Cornwell’s #1 bestselling Scarpetta series, chief medical examiner Dr. Kay Scarpetta finds herself in a Northern Virginia wilderness examining the remains of two campers wanted by federal law enforcement. The victims have been savaged beyond recognition, and other evidence is terrifying and baffling, including a larger-than-life footprint. After one of the most frightening body retrievals of her career, Scarpetta must discover who would commit murders this savage, and why. (Check out the Big Thrill interview here.)
Brain Damage by Freida McFadden
After years of hard work, Dr. Charly McKenna finally has it all. Prosperous career as a dermatologist? Check. Spacious apartment overlooking Central Park? Check. Handsome lawyer husband? Double check. Then one night, a bullet rips through the right side of her skull and she loses everything. As Charly struggles to recover from her brain injury, she begins to realize that the events of that fateful night are trapped in the damaged right side of her brain. Now she must put the jigsaw pieces together to discover the identity of the man who tried to kill her… before he finishes the job he started.
Fatal Intent by Tammy Euliano
When her elderly patients start dying at home days after minor surgery, anesthesiologist Dr. Kate Downey wants to know why. The surgeon, not so much. When Kate presses, surgeon Charles Ricken places the blame squarely on her shoulders. Kate is currently on probation, and the chief of staff sides with the surgeon, leaving Kate to prove her innocence and save her own career. Aided by her eccentric Great Aunt Irm, a precocious medical student, and the lawyer son of a victim, Kate launches her own unorthodox investigation of these unexpected deaths. (Check out the BookTrib review here.)
