Time, Distance, and Shielding

Radiographic Thriller Trilogy, Book 1

By: Pat Settegast

Narrated by: Shannon Walton

Patients are dying at St. Raphael's Hospital. That sucks. What’s worse? I think a doctor is behind the deaths.

Me? I'm an X-ray tech. I can see through people. That’s cool, but is it enough to stop a psychotic neurosurgeon? Can I use my X-ray skills to learn the truth before it’s too late for me and my patients?

©2020 Benjamin Wesley Roberts (P)2022 Benjamin Wesley Roberts

Buy this book already

Just good style all around. Even pulled off making med tech cliques interesting. The narrator was fantastic.
Definitely will check out the next book in the series.

Well written and fun read

First - full discloser - I know the author. He lived on the same block as I did for a number of years. We were not close friends, but I consider him a friend. We both moved from that town many years ago and live in different states and now rarely, if ever, communicate. That said, I would not give a written review if I did not thoroughly enjoy the book. It is fun, fast paced and expertly written. Do not read this, or suggest it to someone, if considering back surgery. The book lends itself well to the audio format and the performance is top notch. Hopefully, the next book in the series, "Backscatter", will be in audio format soon.

A meandering, if predictable story.

I will not include spoilers in this review, but I am sad to say that much of this book is interpersonal drama between the protagonist, her friends, her coworkers, or her family. In fact, when it comes to medicine, or specifically radiography, there is precious little. Many concepts are wonderfully explained, though anatomical positioning descriptions can be somewhat lacking at times. When the book focuses on the actual medical part of the medical crime thrill, I am enthralled.. only to have it be interrupted with more interpersonal drama.
Many plot threads in the book are wrapped up, but many more are left unexplained. The ending left me unimpressed, though the book was captivating enough that I did actually make the effort to finish it. Personally, I don’t see myself investing more into the series.
If you are a fan of literature directed towards women, then this might scratch your itch. If you are looking for a compelling medical mystery, I would recommend searching elsewhere.
As an aside, the young woman hired to narrate this book did a fair job, though if you listen to how she narrates the dialogue of some of the characters, I’m afraid she gives subtle tells about the plot from the tone of said narrations.