She Treads Softly: The Dismantling

Saturday, May 30, 2015

The Dismantling

The Dismantling by Brian DeLeeuw

Penguin: 4/28/2015
eBook review copy, 288 pages
trade paperback ISBN-13: 9780142181744
http://www.briandeleeuw.com/

The Dismantling by Brian DeLeeuw is a highly recommended suspense novel that explores the morality of several issues, including organ trafficking.

Simon Worth has dropped out of medical school and found himself an ethically questionable position with Health Solutions, an organ brokerage company run by Peter DaSilva. Health Solutions basically buys kidneys and livers from cash-strapped "donors" for those in need of a transplant who can afford their services. It's Simon's job to discreetly match donor and recipient, or seller and buyer, while behind the scenes DaSilva alters medical records and launders the money. Even though he may have to explain away any ethical quibbles over what he's doing, it is a way for Simon to make a lot of money quickly.

When Simon arranges for Maria Campos, a young woman from L.A., to donate part of her liver to ex-athlete Lenny Pellegrini, all seems to be going smoothly. She's going to pretend to be a distant cousin and Lenny swears he is going to lay off the booze. Even after many successful brokered organs, this time there may be a problem. Additionally, both Simon and Maria have dark personal secrets they are trying to hide.

The plot moves along quickly in The Dismantling and DeLeeuw does an excellent job interweaving the backstory of his characters with the main story. At first it appears to be a medical thriller, but then, as the plot thickens and the tensions mount, it takes a turn toward suspense and drama. This is a well written page turner that should please fans of both genres. The characters of Simon and Maria are well developed. As they slowly divulge much of their personal stories, we learn more about their motives and reasons for participating in an arrangement with questionable legality.

Disclosure: I received an advanced reading copy of this book from the publisher and TLC for review purposes.

TLC Dismantling Tour

1 comment:

Anonymous said...: "questionable legality" is certainly an appropriate phase ... I can only begin to try to imagine what would push someone into such a situation.

Thanks for being a part of the tour!; June 4, 2015 at 9:37 PM

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John Updike's six rules for reviewing:

1. Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt.

2. Give him enough direct quotation--at least one extended passage--of the book's prose so the review's reader can form his own impression, can get his own taste.

3. Confirm your description of the book with quotation from the book, if only phrase-long, rather than proceeding by fuzzy precis.

4. Go easy on plot summary, and do not give away the ending.

5. If the book is judged deficient, cite a successful example along the same lines, from the author's oeuvre or elsewhere. Try to understand the failure. Sure it's his and not yours?

To these concrete five might be added a vaguer sixth, having to do with maintaining a chemical purity in the reaction between product and appraiser.....Review the book, not the reputation.... Better to praise and share than blame and ban. The communion between reviewer and his public is based upon the presumption of certain possible joys in reading, and all our discriminations should curve toward that end.