Book Review-State of Mind (Briar Hospital Series)-Lawrence Gold

This is the brand new (just published 1/21/15) novel by my favorite author of medical mysteries/drama. Lawrence W. Gold. MD now author extraordinaire will keep you captivated with the story lines in all his novels. I have read every one of his novels so far. You don't have to worry about reading this series in order--they are all stand alone. Dr. Gold, with his vast knowledge of the medical profession writes about timely topics within a fictional setting. State of Mind is about research and the ethical problems that can arise--especially when dealing with psychiatric problems.

Try to imagine if a way was figured out to cure people of PTSD, Parkinsons and the like by using a non invasive brain altering mechanism. Then imagine if it actually worked--at least for a while. Of course the government is involved which helps muddy the water--and a Judge's son turned psychotic murderer after sustaining a head injury in football-Of course lawyers get involved.

The last sentence in this novel is:

David scanned the room, paused and turned to Kim, “Maybe, our next project for TCPU treatment should be to use the technique to raise the average IQ.” “Great, Michael said, “let’s start with politicians.”

I couldn't agree more!!

About the Book: (from Amazon)

Dr. Kimberly Powell, a Ph.D. in neuropsychology, works in a research lab trying to understand the roots of violence by stimulating the brains of aggressive rats to reduce their savagery.

Her successes lead to phase I safety trials in volunteers and prisoners, and then to phase II and III studies in patients.
Soon it becomes clear that Kim’s brain stimulating techniques, besides controlling aggression, offer the potential to cure a number of medical problems including Parkinson’s disease, depression, PTSD, and many others.
When the court instructs her to treat a psychopathic killer, she’s appalled. What would such a killer, if cured, still owe to his victims and to society?

The ethical implications of the research and especially its application on humans are substantial, but so, too, is her altruistic desire to help.

Where is the balance and how far and how fast should these trials proceed—and, at what cost?

Read a Chapter or two here

Purchase the Book Here


About the Author: (from author's website)

I was born in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn, moved to Queens, and then, as New Yorkers say, my family ascended to the Island. After graduating from Valley Stream Central High School, I went to Adelphi, a college then, a university now, and then to medical school in Chicago. The war in Vietnam interrupted my postgraduate medical training with a year in Colorado Springs and another as a Battalion Surgeon in Vietnam. I spent seven months in the Central Highlands with the 4th Infantry and five months in an evacuation hospital in Long Binh outside Saigon where I ran the emergency room. I returned intact in 1968 to complete my training in internal medicine and diseases of the kidney, nephrology. I worked for twenty-three years in Berkeley, California in a hospital-based practice caring for patients with complicated illnesses often in ICU, and served as Chief of Internal Medicine and Family Practice. For many years, I was an active member of the quality assurance committee. Circumstances permitted my wife, Dorlis, and me to retire in October 1995. Before fate could intervene, we tossed off the dock lines, and sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge for a life at sea in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. Four years later, exhausted from repairing everything on board, (often many times) we sold the sailboat and within a year took the lazy man’s out; we bought a Nordic Tug trawler. We motored around Florida, the Bahamas, and the entire East Coast and completed two ‘circle trips’ to Canada and back, eight months, the first time, five months, the second. I’ve written eight novels, five in he Brier Hospital Series, and one non-fiction book, I Love My Doctor, But…, a lighthearted look at the patient/doctor relationship. I recently published my ninth novel, A Simple Cure, about the search for the cure of the most deadly skin cancer, malignant melanoma. I write primarily to entertain, but I can’t help but pass on to readers observations and beliefs culled from years of practice, and yes, my biases, too. I strive for realism in portraying the medical scene which is gripping enough without melodrama or gimmicks. With even a minor degree of success in writing novels, comes responsibility to readers. I attempt to produce honest material that reflects my beliefs. Exposing these beliefs to the public through my writing requires courage, stupidity, or both. My fans have been generous, and although nobody enjoys criticism, I’ve learned much from that, too. The novel that expresses most clearly my candor, and my bias, is For the Love of God. The novel reflects my attitudes toward those who are willing to sacrifice the lives of their children for their personal religious beliefs.

We live in beautiful Grass Valley with 15 1/2 year old Mike, a terrier mix and Bennie, an 8 year old Yorkie who just looks like he’s on steroids.

Author's Website
Dr. Gold's Fiction and Medical News (this is very interesting)
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I received a Mobi edition of this book for review purposes.All opinions expressed are my own honest opinions. For more information please check my Disclosure Statement. Our giveaways are in no way sponsored or promoted by Facebook.