Summary:

A medical student investigating the mysterious deaths of patients begins to experience the same deadly symptoms herself.

On rotation at Pittsburgh ’s Angels of Mercy Hospital and struggling to finish medical school, Amanda Mason can’t afford to make any mistakes—or to reveal a troubling secret. Mysterious symptoms that defy diagnosis have been affecting her performance, and as she struggles to keep control, the only person who seems to notice is the irritatingly observant and sexy Dr. Lucas Stone.

But when one patient showing the same strange symptoms dies and another slips into a coma, Amanda realizes the clock is ticking on her own survival. With the help of her friends—Gina, a roommate recovering from her own trauma; Lydia, a streetwise ER attending; and Nora, a by-the-book charge nurse—Amanda must solve this medical mystery before she becomes the next victim…

(previously published as Warning Signs)

Publication Date: 2009 (now in 2nd edition 2019)

Category: romantic suspense; medical thriller novel; Angels of Mercy series (book 2 of 4)

ScienceThrillers technical content rating:

ScienceThrillers.com book review of Catalyst :

Second release in CJ Lyons’ Angels of Mercy series set in a gritty Pittsburgh emergency room, spinning the lives and loves of an ensemble of four strong women with medical careers. This book belongs to Amanda Mason, the proper young medical student who is too proud and too insecure to accept the help she needs.

Two young women die of a perplexing and terrifying neurological syndrome that leaves them awake and alert but utterly paralyzed. Amanda shows early warning signs of the same condition. While in conscious denial, she investigates the cause. Meanwhile, the other three main characters fight their own battles against cheating boyfriends, bulimia, and in Lydia’s case, “the system”. Action-filled climax leads to a very satisfying resolution.

Like Lifelines, Catalyst is part medical thriller, part mystery, part romantic suspense. Again, the men are totally hot, the kinds of guys any smart woman would want to be with. The book offers excellent pacing, can’t-put-it-down story lines, and superb use of medical terminology and concepts.

Plot themes in this book: emergency room drama; neurology; rowing; bulimia; toxic exposures; whole-body cooling; urban paramedics; locked-box syndrome; hyberbaric medicine

This book was originally published as Warning Signs

Pick this book up if: you loved the TV show ER

Angels of Mercy series: Lifelines; Catalyst; Trauma; Isolation

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