Sometimes People Die by Simon Stephenson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Simon Stephenson is absolutely one of my favorite writers alive today. His last book, Set My Heart to Five, was a brilliant, hilarious science-fiction romp. He followed that up with the medical thriller Sometimes People Die that is a fascinating character study about a young doctor faced who comes face-to-face with the reality that somebody in his hospital is killing patients.
But y’all, this isn’t a book about uncovering a crime, although certainly this book’s plot is about uncovering a crime. It’s also an interesting rumination on human motivation and redemption. I know that sounds like a heavy, boring set of ideas, but in Simon’s hands it’s really not. (Hell, I don’t even know if he’d say that’s what his book was about.)
Whatever! I was hooked on this book on the first page, and nothing changed about that until I put it down. (I am very interested to re-read it with an eye on the asides about medical serial killers.)
This is a fast, smart, witty, and…did I say smart?…thriller. Pick it up. You won’t be sorry!
