Harmful Intent

When a mother and her newborn infant die from the anesthetic he has administered, Boston anesthesiologist Dr. Jeffrey Rhodes's life turns into a shambles. Within months he has been financially destroyed in a malpractice suit and convicted of second-degree murder, with a prison term likely. Panicked, he flees and, in desperation, turns to Kelly Everson, the widow of an old friend who committed suicide following a similar tragedy. They discover that both incidents--and others as well--may not have been cases of physician error but rather deliberate murders. The villain, known to the reader early on, is finally uncovered by the duo, whose efforts are complicated by the unrelenting pursuit of Rhodes by a bounty hunter who has been hired by the bail bondsman who stands to lose a small fortune if the convict is not returned to custody. Through two-thirds of its length, this is a fast-paced, albeit improbable, story of the havoc that can be wreaked by a lone madman. Then a sudden twist brings in a new set of villains and reveals an evil conspiracy that snaps belief. Cook, whose medical thrillers invariably land on the bestseller lists, may be asking more credulity than many readers are willing, or able, to provide this time out. Literary Guild alternate. (Jan.)