Peter Rost says he's sworn off writing about pharma geeks and fat cats on his blog, but, one wonders, for how long? Philadelphia-based writer Lisa Tucker, meanwhile, is writing about this crowd in a novel that will be published later this month in which the fictional pharma company, Astor-Denning, plays a role.
Tucker says she began her research with distrust....
More from her publicist:
"...Tucker began her research of pharmaceutical companies with distrust – disliking drug company advertising, feeling skeptical of many new medicines, and having problems with the high costs. Her initial research confirmed some of her concerns. Everything her bioethicist character reports on actually happened. But Tucker also made some discoveries that surprised her. She found that the scientists are some of the most brilliant people she’s ever encountered. She realized how much they want to find new medicines, and that the drug discovery process is much more difficult than most non-scientists can imagine. She came away with a new-found respect for the people who work for the industry, thinks many of them have been unfairly vilified, and wrote about them that way in her book.
The book is already garnering some great reviews:
"Matthew Connelly, very corporate pharmaceutical executive, has become everything Amelia Johannsen despises. Not only does she break off their engagement, but she goes after his company for unethical practices and starts a relationship with his best friend. But Matthew has a side he doesn't even know about when he's cleverly duped into helping two homeless children while their mother is in rehab. Amelia's "holier-than-thou" attitude gets a shakedown as she and boyfriend Ben are drawn into caring for the children too. A look at ethics and responsibility, sure to make book club lists, from the author of Once Upon a Day, 2006."
--Cincinnati Library
The book "should increase Tucker’s male readership and solidify her position as a gifted writer with a wide range and a profound sense of compassion for the mysteries of the human heart."
--Publishers Weekly, starred review
"With each new title, Tucker shows herself to be a natural-born storyteller who is developing an increasingly sophisticated technique. Here she seamlessly weaves together a touching and very modern relationship story with some compelling social issues, including medical ethics, homelessness, and corporate greed. Underlying the whole is a multifaceted analysis of what it means to be a good person in the twenty-first century. This fast-paced, funny, and smart novel is a sure bet for book clubs."
--Booklis
