Public Health Professor, Rod Griffiths, spent his working life dealing with crises like polluted water or trying to save more people from dying of heart attacks. It left a mass of stories in his head.
His first novel, “A Rag Doll Falling” deals with the launch of a new cancer drug with a lethal side effect. The book tracks the detective work needed to make it safe, tangled up with suffering, greed, murder and skulduggery as other characters try to grab money and fame from the drug.
A crash on a ski slope leaves it’s victim in a coma as the first clue to a deadly side effect from a new cancer drug. An aging mob godfather, a sexy escort, a corrupt pathologist all play their parts as Professor Jim Brogan, the unlikely hero, more at home in his laboratory than chasing criminals, struggles to solve the mystery, make the new drug safe, and stop the deadly games
I've spent my life in medicine and public health. I've seen patients and the media duped by hype about new drugs. I've seen drug companies fined huge amounts for inappropriate marketing practices, yet they continue to make vast fortunes. The book is a fictionalised account of the launch of a new cancer drug, complete with nasty side effects, greedy capitalists and crooked money laundering mafia. Through all this Professor Jim Brogan, epidemiologist, stuggles to diagnose the problem and make everything safe.
From a review on Amazon.co.uk
This book contains every element needed to keep the reader's attention. Suspense, murder, romance and a well informed medical backdrop from author and retired doctor Rod Griffiths. The characters are finely drawn, from the charismatic and brilliant doctor Jim to the warm and caring Val who is in love with him and the glamourous ex-escort girl Fiona with a worldly exterior that hides a sad past. The story revolves round a new cancer drug which is being propelled onto the market by an unscrupulous group who are motivated solely by money but thanks to some great detective work by the leading characters, their plans come unstuck. The pathos that is generated when we meet the powerful Italian American whose own life is about to be cut short by cancer is warmed by admiration for the way he summons his last energy to sort the situation out for his family. This book shows clearly the desparation felt by those suffering from cancer alongside the greed of those hoping to profit from their fear. It is written with a true understanding of psychology and readers will relate to it - thoroughly believable and would make a great film.
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