The Good Physician

By Kent Harrington

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0939767600
• ISBN13: 9780939767601
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Dennis McMillan Pubns
• Length: 269 Pages
• Weight: 1.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.0" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Brilliant espionage

The Good Physician When reviewed as 'better than Le Carre' I was surprised but this is one of the best mystery-espionage novels I have ever read. An absolute must for anyone who loves the genre!

A crisp story of the War on Terror

Kent Harrington is one of the undiscovered talents of the crime genre, a gifted writer who has produced half a dozen excellent novels, most recently the superb "Red Jungle." Now he's published an up-to-the-moment literary thriller with a plot featuring the War on Terror as seen through the eyes of a jaded young American doctor working for the CIA. "The Good Physician" doesn't move with the pacing of the typical thriller, but by reading more closely, we're able to enjoy the beauty of the language and the nuanced twists of the characters. "The Good Physician" avoids easy observations or answers, causing the reader to think while being entertained. Harrington's work is worth seeking out.

Pulp spirit with a political edge

Kent Harrington's first published novel, "Dark Ride," is a noir tour de force about a hapless guy whose obsession with a woman leads him from bad to worse to grave situations. Harrington often writes in a distinctive style -- feverish and blunt. Since "Dark Ride," set in Northern California, at least three of Harrington's books have been set in Latin America. This setting (or diverse settings, really) -- hot and steamy, dangerous but elegant, gritty, ugly and beautiful -- works well with his criminal content and crazed but often honorable characters. "The Good Physician" is set in Mexico (mostly Mexico City), and tells the story of a young doctor who is a painter by passion, a quiet ex-pat observer, and a CIA operative. He becomes involved personally and professionally with what might be a terrorist cell, perhaps aiming to bring a bomb from Mexico to the U.S. He doesn't like what he sees on either side of the divide, the blurry divide between good and bad. Harrington initially depends on some quasi-melodrama -- a marriage on the ropes, a lump on a breast, an unwanted pregnancy -- to move the story forward, but then it rolls along. The doctor and another CIA man both fall for different women, and their passion and obsession might mark the high moments of the book. There is good action too, including some wonderfully unexpected behavior -- violent and non-violent -- at key moments. The political implications of the book are not too surprising, given today's state of affairs. But Harrington thrives when he's offering a thrilling ride and delving into his bent characters. It's worth a read if you like your crime fiction hardboiled, character-driven, and off-kilter.