"My blood ran cold. He sounded like Don Corleone, making me an offer I couldn't refuse"
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Grievous Bodily Harm by Jane Bennett Munro CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
book review by Maria A. Hughes
Trouble seems to follow Toni Day, a gutsy if somewhat pessimistic pathologist, wherever she goes—and this time is no different. Marcus Manning, a young, charismatic, upstart is hired at Perrine Memorial Hospital to help assimilate it into a larger medical corporation that spans the Pacific Northwest. Despite his outstanding credentials, Toni doesn't trust him when she first meets him because his smile "doesn't touch his eyes." Her immediate distrust leads her to uncover Manning's less than outstanding behavior toward other hospital personnel (including herself) that involves bribery, sexual harassment, blackmail, and outright abuse in order to rise up the corporate chain. Toni blows the whistle on him and attempts to get him jailed for his conduct, until he mysteriously ends up dead. Toni, now the primary suspect, races against the time and law enforcement to prove her innocence.
A good mystery weaves a delicate line between reality and suspension of belief. The author's background as a pathologist lends credibility to Toni's medical evaluation in her investigation, making her come alive for the reader. It produces a story that is both compelling and believable, as Toni uses her medical expertise to clear her name. The author also does a wonderful job of demonstrating how sexism and corporate bullying is alive and well in a character like Marcus Manning, a character the reader will love to despise. Munro's story is a roller coaster ride of suspense and intrigue with twists and turns that will entertain a lover of mysteries and forensic crime novels for hours.