Side Effect

Side Effect, Sandra Feder, Thornwood Publishing Company, LLC, 2000

Grant Fraser, top researcher at Altimate Pharmaceuticals, has developed a new drug, which, it is whispered, could revolutionize the way doctors fight disease. One day, the company's Research Director abruptly cancels any further work on the drug. Grant doesn't accept the official reason and aims to get to the bottom of it.

Suspicion falls first on Darleen, a fellow researcher and daughter of the President of the company. The time is coming for a new head of Altimate; both Grant and Darleen are on the list. Darleen is the twin sister of Dena, engaged to Grant until she died in a mysterious plane crash one year previously. Darleen makes no secret of the fact that if she is named head of Altimate, Grant will be the first one out the door.

Meantime, a shadowy government chemical warfare lab called A.R. Labs is looking at Grant with a thought toward making him a job offer. Fred, one of their operatives, is sent to observe Grant up close and personal.

Grant becomes almost obsessed with finding out what happened with his drug. He and Joss, the company's Director of Communications, soon find out that his drug does have a huge side effect, and that Darleen is only the proverbial tip of the iceberg. Fred tells them that the side effect has been exploited in a major way, and that it involves Dell, Joss's ex-husband and ex-candidate for Governor. He is the sort of politician who passed "ambitious" a long time ago and is now approaching "megalomaniac." The people of A.R. Labs are not the sort to leave loose ends lying around, so now that Grant and Joss know the truth, they go on the run, and barely escape a couple of murder attempts. Fred finds that his employers have set him up, and that he too has become a "loose end" to be tied up. And it all started with a local school budget referendum.

This book is excellent. Set in southwest Connecticut, it has everything needed by a good mystery/thriller: believable characters, lots of action, plenty of possible villains, and the way in which the drug's side effect has been exploited is very juicy. It gets at least two thumbs up.