#BlogTour: Sometimes People Die by Simon Stephenson @TheSimonBot @BoroughPress @midaspr #SometimesPeopleDie #SimonStephenson

Book Synopsis:

The year is 1999. Returning to practice after a suspension for stealing opioids, a young Scottish doctor takes the only job he can find: a post as a senior house officer in the struggling east London hospital of St Luke’s.

Amid the maelstrom of sick patients, over-worked staff and underfunded wards a darker secret soon declares itself: too many patients are dying.

Which of the medical professionals our protagonist has encountered is behind the murders? And can our unnamed narrator’s version of the events be trusted?

My Review:

Sometimes People Die is an intriguing book that is part medical memoir and part murder mystery.

Firstly it’s obvious from the beginning that the author has some medical experience as he manages to set the scene perfectly for being an over worked new doctor at a busy hospital. It was quite chilling to realise how much new doctors have to do and the huge responsibility they have. There is lots of details about medical procedure, diagnostic procedures and drug regimes too which was very interesting to learn more about.

There were some very interesting characters in this book who I enjoyed getting to know over the course of the book. The unnamed narrator was very interesting and I felt a lot of sympathy for him as I learned more about his life in the hospital. He had some fantastic supporting characters who I absolutely adored especially the lovely Felix and George.

This was a bit of a slow burner as the author sets the scene but soon gathers pace and becomes very intriguing. There were lots of twists and red herrings that kept making me change my mind as to who was responsible. The ending was very unexpected and I hadn’t managed to figure it out which I always enjoy.

Huge thanks to Midas for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Borough Press for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Simon Stephenson originally trained as a doctor and worked in London and Scotland. He previously wrote Let Not the Waves of the Sea, a memoir about the loss of his brother in the Indian ocean tsunami. It won Best First Book at the Scottish Book Awards, was a Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4, and a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year.

His first novel, Set My Heart to Five, has been optioned by Working Title Films. He currently lives in Los Angeles, where he works as a screenwriter. He originated and wrote the film The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, and wrote on Pixar’s Luca.