GROUP A BOOKS 2023-2024: 14 Nominated books. Vote for no more than 7.

A13 Type: Private Detective (PI) Stories Bitter Medicine by Sara Paretsky, 1987 / MVLC: 8 CWC: 50

Basics · Protagonist: V. [Vic] I. Warshawski, an attorney turned private eye, investigates malpractice at a "for profit" hospital. · Setting: Chicogo, IL · Context: This is the 4th book in a series of 22, between 1982 and 2022 (40 years!) · % of Amazon readers giving 5-star ratings: 47% · Combined % of Amazon readers giving either 4 OR 5-star ratings: 81% · Total all Amazon ratings this book: 3,017 Long Form Warshawski knows from the start that Consuelo Alvarado's baby is trouble. Consuelo is sixteen. Diabetic. And the daughter of a friend. When she goes into labor too early, even V.I.'s wild drive to get her to the hospital can't save either Consuelo or her child. Soon V.I. is investigating possible malpractice at the emergency room--and falling for a doctor who works there. Mixing business and love is always bad medicine, but V.I. finds herself listening to her heart, not her head. And when a brutal murder and the violent destruction of a women's clinic put her at the center of a very dirty conspiracy, justice may be the only remedy for a hurt that cuts deep...and chills right to the bone.... ----- "A dense, convincing, fast-moving plot, a dauntless but vulnerable heroine, a fine-tuned ear for real-life dialogue and a sharp eye for the Chicago scene. Superior stuff." — The Kirkus Reviews "Paretsky, author of Indemnity Only, Deadlock, and Killing Orders (all featuring Warshawski), has established herself as a first-rate exponent of the hardboiled school of detective writing. She brings new meaning to the genre with her thoughtful work." — Library Journal "Paretsky is still the best...she doesn't pull punches." — The Washington Post Book World I've loved this PI series since the mid 90s, and since many in the MBC group have not read these books, it seemed like a great idea to add this author to the choices. –Dick Awards for this Book § Finalist 1988 Macavity Award for Best Novel