Deep Water by Christine Poulson

This is a British mystery of rather low intensity and suspense. The plot revolves around the discovery of a drug to treat obesity. Another company is challenging the discovery, saying they developed it first. David, a patent lawyer, is asked to defend the biotech company's claim. Adding to the plot is that David and his wife have a daughter with a blood disease and the biotech company is developing a possible cure. A mystery develops when events go wrong in the biotech lab and one of the lab journals documenting a critical time in the obesity drug development is gone missing.

This novel is a combination of reading about research lab work and the many relationships of the characters. David and his wife have issues. Many of those working in the lab have issues too. We are also made aware of the many ethical issues involved in developing a drug. When should it be tested on humans? How easy is it to falsify results, making the tests look more productive than they really are?

I recommend this novel to those who like to read a novel of little suspense that deals with current research issues in developing new drugs. You will get to know how research labs work, how experiments are monitored, and the pressure put on the lab technicians to produce. There are plenty of red herrings included and I was a little surprised that there was not more suspense.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Christine Poulson is the author of several novels and works of nonfiction. She lectured in art history at Cambridge college before she turned to writing crime novels. You can find out more at http://www.christinepoulson.co.uk/.

Lion Fiction, distributed in the U.S. by Kregel, 256 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kregel. My comments are an independent and honest review.