Deadly Companion

Classed as a real type-A employee, JoAnn Rayburn had spent much of her time at TechLab buried in research on a drug that would help in her personal vendetta against brain tumors. But when her colleague is brutally murdered, she finds herself heir to her predecessor's job, company car, and secrets. Meanwhile, children at a local elementary school have become quietly angelic, worrying the teacher and at least one parent. Once again, the villain is a profit-mad, amoral medical research company. But in this debut thriller, the writing is actually exciting; the narrative is smart, with violence that serves the plot rather than substituting for it; the dialogue isn't canned; and the heroes, or more precisely, heroines, aren't thick as clotted cream. (Sept.)