The Cure

A medical thriller that asks: What if we had the cure for a catastrophic illness—but it lay hidden inside the blood and bones of just one man?   A mysterious new contagion is decimating the population. It starts in the lungs, like the flu, then moves to the bones, where it weakens and breaks them, eventually killing the host. The disease's origin, methods of propagation, and means of contraction are all unknown. There is no vaccine, and none is expected, as the virus is protean and elusive. If it remains unchecked and mutates into a more virulent form, it will become an extinction level event.   Jason Kramer has the disease, known by its nickname "Trips Lite"—the CDC doctor who discovered it was a fan of Stephen King's The Stand—but his body produces a unique antibody that kills the viruses inside him. This component in Jason's blood can be harvested and given to anyone who needs it. His blood can heal.   But pharmaceutical magnate Phillip Porter needs to keep people believing that only his expensive drug cocktail will slow Trips Lite down, and so if there's any chance someone with the disease will live, Phillip must make sure that Jason does not . . .   "If Stephen King and Michael Crichton had written Double Indemnity, it would have been The Cure." —D.J. Butler, author of Rock Band Fights Evil