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Medical examiner Laura Hanning has two charred corpses and no answers. Both bear a mysterious tattoo but exhibit no known cause of death. Their only connection to one another is a string of puzzling miracle cures. Her preliminary investigation points to a cult that possesses the fabled panacea--the substance that can cure all ills--but that's impossible.
Laura finds herself enmeshed in an ancient conflict between the secretive keepers of the panacea and the equally secretive and far more deadly group known only as 536, a brotherhood that fervently believes God intended for humanity to suffer, not be cured. Laura doesn't believe in the panacea, but that doesn't prevent the agents of 536 from trying to kill her.
A reclusive, terminally ill billionaire hires Laura to research the possibility that such a cure exists. The billionaire's own body guard, Rick Hayden, a mercenary who isn't who he pretends to be, has to keep her alive as they race to find the legendary panacea before the agents of 536 can destroy it.
A thriller with a hint of the supernatural (or cosmic aliens, take your pick.) I enjoyed the book, though it wasn’t one of my favorites by this author. The characters were likable, though, except for the major two, there wasn’t a lot of fleshing out. The villain was sort of cardboard cut-out, in fact. His villainy seemed rather overdone considering his stated reason for it.
There’s a lot of history to the Panacea, which I found interesting. It gave some depth to the story, as well as giving some well-needed answers. And I could well believe the conflict between those who see the panacea as a gift to mankind, and those who see it as from Satan.
There was a lot of major coincidences, but the reader is led to believe that that might be part of the answer to the puzzle. Still, I would have preferred more answers, though I realize that there are a couple of sequels. As long as Wilson doesn’t drag it out as long as his Repairman Jack series, I’m willing to give it a go.
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