bloodstream book review

This weekend, I finished reading Bloodstream, by Tess Gerritson. I picked it up at the used book store, where I do a lot of my book shopping. I really intended to get one of her Rizolli & Isles series, but grabbed this one instead. I didn't realize it wasn't a R&I until I got home and started reading. I was about 3 chapters in, wondering when the ladies were going to show up, when I reread the cover, and went OH! Well, the book is a page turner, and so I eagerly read on.

The main character, Claire, is a female doctor, recently move to a small town in Maine and trying to make a go of her new practice, and her new life. Inexplicably the town teenagers seem to be spiralling out of control, becomming murderously violent. It has happened before in this little town, but no one wants to talk about what happened then. The doctor has to figure out why, because her teenaged son seems to be affected, too.

There was one point, about a third of the way through, when one of the townspeople tells Claire that it is all because of the witches, and the satanic rituals that are going on in the woods. It made me pause, people, it really did. That was SO MUCH what I didn't want this book to be about that merely having it in there was almost enough to make me put it down. I talked my self down.

"Dina," I said, "you are willing to read books with witches and supernatural occurances in them. Why are you acting like you aren't?"

I shook my head, "Self," I sighed, "when you are right you are right. I have enjoyed many of those books, and will enjoy more. But why did she have to go there? THIS book is supposed to be a medical mystery."

"Yeah. It says that right on the cover. So, maybe its a red herring. Let's read a little further and see if Claire falls for it."

Nope, she didn't. In fact - as a counterpoint - about two thirds of the way through, one of the characters is called a witch. Her neighbor says something like, Of course she's a witch! But at least she isn't a vegetarian. I loved that! Really enjoyed the book as a whole, and look forward to reading more of Gerritson's work, R&I related and not.