Plague

A Medical Thriller

By: Victor Methos

Narrated by: Marilyn Ghigliotti

Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

The deadliest disease in history....

A lethal pathogen appears on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Dr. Samantha Bower of the Centers for Disease Control is handed the case and asked to investigate its origins and containment.

A mysterious figure that is not who he appears to be....

Samantha discovers a lethal pathogen unlike any she has encountered in her lifetime. Extremely contagious with a mortality rate higher than any disease ever recorded, it is an extinction level event. A man with an intimate knowledge of the microorganism offers her help. But Samantha Bower begins to suspect he is not who he says he is.

Humanity hangs on the edge of a cliff....

Samantha begins to realize there are forces at work that she can't understand. Pressures are being applied from outside sources and not all of them wish for a vaccine. But Samantha is sure of one thing: If a vaccine isn't developed, humanity may soon be an endangered species....

About the author: Victor Methos is the best-selling author of The White Angel Murder, the number-one mystery book in the United States and United Kingdom for over eight weeks. He is a former prosecutor specializing in violent crime and is currently a criminal defense attorney in the United States. He is on a quest to climb the "Seven Summits", the seven highest peaks on Earth, and attain his certificate as a deep-sea submersible pilot. He can be reached through his blog at www.methosreview.blogspot.com

©2012 Victor Methos (P)2013 Victor Methos

Book is okay, Narration is abysmal!

I'm trying to finish this book. The book itself is okay, but wow, the narration is probably the worst I've ever heard, and I've been listening to audio books since they were "books on tape" (yes, actual cassettes in the 1990s!). She cannot do character voices, they all sound alike. The director gets as much blame as the performer because, wow, you'd have to be absent from the booth to not know this was a disaster in the making! I stupidly bought this one without listening to the clip first, as has been my habit. I was rushed and didn't do my due diligence. But, I like the book enough I'm putting up with it, and not returning it, however painful it will be to finish...

Started out well, ultimately disappointing.

I had high hopes for this book, and the first half of it seemed to reward those hopes. The plot was interesting, it was well paced, and I couldn’t wait to hear what came next. The last 1/3 to 1/2 was too full of plot holes and inconsistencies (for example, how does someone fire a pistol when they are wearing a biohazard suit?), and rather than eagerly listening to the end I was forcing myself to finish it.

The narration was another problem for me. A doomsday story with a virus that could wipe out mankind is better suited to a male voice that is deep and somewhat ominous, rather than a medium to high pitched female voice. In addition, when there were breaks within a chapter (such as changing to different characters & locations), The narrator plowed right ahead without the hint of a break. It was very disorienting. In addition, the voices she created for the characters were not distinct enough to know who was talking when there was multi-character dialogue.

If you have a lot of extra credits to burn this might be worth listening to, but I wouldn’t spend money on it.

The PlAgue

Brilliant! Will take you to the Covid pandemic. Think about what we went through. Do not let our enemies take over the world.

Needs better pronunciation.

The plot was ok but the reader mispronounced much of the technical/medical terminology. If this is being billed as a medical thriller- you need to get it right.

Good story....but not a fan of the narrator

Would you consider the audio edition of Plague to be better than the print version?

Cannot say as i did not read the print version.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I guess Sam was my favourite character. A strong woman, educated and dedicated. Though the narrator made her sound a bit whinny at times.

Did Marilyn Ghigliotti do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

She did do a good job, but her voice had a tendency to be annoying almost...i found it reminded me of a teenager asked to read in front of the class (somewhat monotone, with infliction of being bored). I feel that this narrator was the wrong choice and would be more suited to young adult books.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

i listen to my audio books while hiking with my dog...1 to 1.5 hours at a time....but if i had been on a long car ride or plane ride, i would have had no problems listening to it all at once.

Any additional comments?

Good story, simple, nothing out of the box here though.

Chilling haunting and terrifyingly realistic.

Victor Method spins a chilling tale about how an unknown pathogen similar to smallpox and the black plague enters Honolulu and decimates the island. They think they've kept it contained to the island and morn it's loss. However, 2 courageous doctors lay it all on the line to go to Peru to find the first patient that survived the initial outbreak . Barely making it back to the states alive to tell the tale of what really happened they believe the crisis is over...but is it.
This book could actually happen which terrifies me on certain levels. I'm thankful I'm a Christian and have God to rely on because in a scenario like this, you really don't have much else. Don't read if you're squeamish.

Nice story, interesting characters

Would you try another book from Victor Methos and/or Marilyn Ghigliotti?

Yes. I enjoyed the story once I decided not to dwell on medical inaccuracies.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Mispronounciations ("filling" from the plane instead of "filing" from the plane). Inconsistent Aussie accent. Were the lesions "pustules" or "papules"?

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

I would see the movie if it had one of my favorite actors.

Any additional comments?

The author should listen to his medical advisor more closely. Have the advisor listen to the audio script as well.

Terrifying Scenario

What did you like best about Plague? What did you like least?

The premise was interesting and quite valid, considering what we have been seeing in the news about outbreaks. I learned a lot about the CDC and what its purpose is, and how very common outbreaks are around the world.....which is quite terrifying in itself! What makes the book so terrifying is the prospect of how the military and government could possibly treat such a scenario. Quite thought provoking.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

We are bombarded with negative horrors in our news daily.....I would prefer a somewhat more positive outcome......as much as possible anyway with the prospect of an outbreak.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Probably, its almost like the accident you can't look away from, although your are horrified by what you see.

Clearly written pre Covid, but still kept me listening!

I really enjoyed the characters and the plot despite the clear plot gaps Re pandemics. In person meetings, go visit the house of the sick, no masks, oh and let’s go out before lockdown even though black pox is going around? Despite the naïveté of the pandemic part, one just has to recognize this was written pre COVID-19. I stuck with it and enjoyed it anyway. Definitely did not like the narrator though. She sounded like she was 12 and the voice did not fit what I’d imagine Samantha to sound like. Despite all my ranting, I can’t wait to listen to book 3.

Really interesting story!

I'm always fascinated by things (typically microscopic) that challenge human arrogance and this novel really delivered. I was anxious to see what would happen next and though I generally avoid serial novels, I'll certainly be reading the follow-up to this one. The only negative was the narrator. I was surprised to learn that she's an actress, because her narration of this book was so poor. It seemed as if she hadn't read the book before recording the narration. She paused sentences in the wrong places, and most egregiously, she consistently mispronounced words. There's no "d" in the word, "exponentially," Ms. Ghigliotti. Other than the narration, however, I highly recommend this book.