Deficiency

Rating:
Summary: Not a bedtime tale...
Review: I made the mistake of taking "Deficiency" to bed with me ...results...so scared I couldn't sleep and imagined an intruder was in my house...if you want scary, you get it inside the covers of "Deficiency"...just ask the little old ladies in the book, if you could...oh, and avoid mentioning pillows...that freaks me out after reading this awesome novel...brought a whole new meaning to "pillow talk"...(SCREAM NOW)
And I've only touched on the easy to read parts...I'll leave the creepy graphic rest of it to the reader...just DON'T READ "Deficiency" IN BED!



Rating:
Summary: AS GOOD AS ANY DEAN KOONTZ NOVEL!
Review: Imagine a beast-man that, when he makes love to you, he withdraws from your body all your life-giving vitamins. And you die. Not exactly a pleasant way to go, is it?

Once again, Mr Neiderman (the official ghostwriter of the fabulous V. C. ANDREWS novels) scores with a direct hit. This is a great thriller. More and more, Mr. Neiderman's books remind me of DEAN KOONTZ. So why aren't the ANDREW NEIDERMAN books published in hardcover? At least the VCA books get the hardcover treatment!

You have to pick up this medical thriller. It is an easy and compelling read. You truly care about the heroine and the rest of the characters. DEFICIENCY requires a sequel... and why not a prequel?

Bravo, Mr. Neiderman, for another fine read. And the preview of THE HUNTED in the back of the book looks fantastic!

Rating:
Summary: Modern Medical Thriller
Review: Neiderman has hit a nerve here with Deficiency. He's cleverly exploited the health craze in America and developed a fast moving suspensful thriller that's a level above most because of the way he depicts the villain. I love the way he gets into this evil mind and more importantly shows how vulnerable we all are to our own hungers for youth, sex and good times. A winner!

Rating:
Summary: TAKE YOUR VITAMINS
Review: Niederman has penned about thirty novels, but this is my first exposure to him. DEFICIENCY is an unusual novel focusing on the mysterious deaths of young women from very rare diseases, such as beriberi and scurvy. Dr. Teri Barnard finds herself embroiled in what appears to be a series of these types of murders, all the victims completely drained of certain nutrients or vitamins.
The novel is told in narrative form and also through the eyes of the demonic killer, who has no real name and doesn't really know much about his past. He kills for the nourishment he needs...and he's getting away with it.
DEFICIENCY works because the situations are so unusual and the reader of course wants to know why this killer kills and just who he is. The usual government coverup is involved, and the ultimate resolution fairly obvious. Niederman does slow things down a lot with the killer's internal ramblings and the up and down relationship of Dr. Barnard and her lawyer fiance, Curt Walcott.
But overall the novel holds your interest, even if the finale does seem a little rushed.
It does however make me want to sample some more of Mr. Niederman's works.

Rating:
Summary: will appeal to fans of Robin Cook and Michael Palmer
Review: Paige Thorndyke is supposed to meet her friend at a bar but she never shows up. Instead, she meets a handsome stranger and after uncharacteristically taking a few drinks, she goes to a hotel with him. After having sex with him, she becomes very ill; she is rushed to the hospital where she dies. An autopsy shows that she was suffering from an acute form of scurvy unheard of in modern in America; to add to the mystery, witnesses at the club tell investigators she was energetic dancing up a storm.

Dr. Terri Barnard, the doctor who was going to treat Paige, is going home when the police pull her over. Kristen Martin is very ill and dies before Terri can give her any treatment. An autopsy shows that she was suffering from beriberi, another vitamin deficiency disease. The man who had sex with Paige also had sex with Kristen Martin. A phony BCI Investigator questions her, but when a third woman dies in a similar manner after being seen with the same man, Terri realizes she knows enough to conclude that her life is in danger.

The story is told from the points of view of the heroine and the antagonist so that readers can see the juxtaposition between the caring doctor and the socially detached man who does not even know his own name. Andrew Neiderman writes reality based horror novels that involve humans battling other humans in the eternal battle of good vs. evil. DEFICIENCY will appeal to fans of Robin Cook and Michael Palmer.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: No Deficiency in Plot
Review: Terri is a young doctor. One night while working in the ER she sees a patient who dies in her arms from a massive case of scurvy. To make things even more strange, the victim had been healthy just the night before. This medical mystery leads attracts attention from a number of directions including police, the DA, and special investigators. These investigations trap Terri in the mystery.

Unable to separate herself from the growing mystery as other women die from acute vitamin deficiencies, Terri finds herself in the middle of one of the strangest of stories. She soon finds herself walking the line between truth and keeping herself alive. The answers and secrets that are uncovered point to a true medical horror.

A very interesting story with a pretty original mystery. Terri is a good main character and her reactions to the events around her a quite believable. The final 200 pages really flew by and I could not put the book down. A fine addition to Neiderman's body of work.