A creepy, bizarre premise—terrorists want to remove a comrade's head and keep it alive long enough for him to help plan an attack—provides the basis for Wyler's second medical thriller (after Deadly Errors
). Neurosurgeon Russell Lawton's research on brain-computer hookups puts him in the sights of a Middle Eastern terrorist cell after the cell's key associate suffers a near-fatal motorcycle wreck just before an intended attack. Faced with his body's rapid deterioration, the terrorists hit on the scheme of removing his head in order to salvage his brain—with the help of a kidnapped Lawton. After Lawton's abduction, he's forced to play along in order to save his daughter's life. The first half of the novel suffers from credibility problems, notably the terrorists' leap to adopt the unlikely plan and the speed with which they assemble the pieces. Also, what might have been a tense subplot involving Lawton's daughter falls flat. Wyler, a brain surgeon himself, keeps things moving despite the missteps; the gritty, graphic details of cutting-edge surgical procedures, capped with an exciting conclusion, should keep fans of the genre riveted. (Feb.)
