Elixir

by Gary Braver

When biologist Chris Bacon headed for the unspoiled rainforests of Papua New Guinea in search of medicinal plants, he had no idea that he would bring home a rare flower rumored by a tribal shaman to prevent human aging. Driven by fountain-of-youth dreams, he plans to turn the flower into an elixir of youth and health.But as Chris begins tampering with the ultimate secret of nature, he unleashes forces that not only threaten his own family, but expose the world to unimaginably horrific consequences.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Science Fiction, Mystery, Medical, Thriller Suspense, Guinea

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Gary Braver is the pen name of Gary Goshgarian, the author of six critically acclaimed suspense novels: three under his own name--Atlantis Fire, Rough Beast and The Stone Circle--and three under his pen name--Elixir, Gray Matter, and Flashback. He is also the author of four popular college writing textbooks--Exploring Language, The Contemporary Reader, Dialogues, and What Matters in America.

Gary Goshgarian

Reviews

[Don · Rating 1 out of 5]

A good fiction writer makes his writing invisible - that is, the story draws you in and you're oblivious to the writing (e.g., Dan Brown).
A great fiction writer constantly amazes you by using words in delightfully unexpected ways (e.g., Oscar Wilde).
An unmatured ficton writer writes in a way that constantly draws attention to the writing in less flattering ways. Unfortunately Elixir represents the latter. As I was reading this I constantly found myself thinking - "that could have been said better," "that didn't quite work," or "he missed an opportunity there." I made it through chapter 3 and found myself becoming more focused on the writing than the story so I abandoned it. He may have had the elements of a good story - given some of the other reviews - but he needs to work on the writing - especially dialogue.

[Mingo Twain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book with a great story line. Makes you think about what if? Sometimes we like to dream about living forever, but Gary makes you think about the consequences of what that would actually be like. I don't find a lot of books that keep my interest, but this one....excellent.

[Eric C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic high concept novel. I absolutely loved everything about this story, I don't know why there isn't more attention paid to this author b/c this is a super fun read and a page turner!

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elixir
Author: Gary Braver
Reviewed by Fran Lewis


How would you feel if there was a way never to grow old or age on the outside or inside? What would you do to prevent anyone from getting his or her hands on this great Elixir or medicine? Would you believe that this really existed and what would happen if you used it, marketed it for your company and then the unthinkable happens? Welcome to my review of Elixir by multi-talented and bestselling author Gary Braver and enter the world of Christopher Bacon.

The players are dangerous as we meet each one. A tropical plant, rare flower is at the center of this story. A plant that could change the course of your life if the end result, an Elixir is perfectly formulated and work to prevent you from aging for a long time. Imagine being over forty and yet looking twenty something. Wouldn’t that be great especially if the end result last long and there is no side effects from this medicinal plant? But when you get a closer look you might not like what you see. What happens when one waitress thinks she sees a familiar face, the face looks younger and then out of nowhere deteriorates, crumbles and shrivels up right in front of her eyes? What would you think? Added into this intricate plot are some other dangerous players who have a lot to lose if this new Elixir does not work or yield the profits expected. Antoine Duchareme and Quentin Cross are joined together in an unholy alliance. Quentin having his own private secret dealings with the government and hiring Chris Bacon to do the research for him for this Elixir called Veralox. Darby Pharm is the company that should profit from his research. Antoine does not know about Quentin’s alliance with Chris yet the funds needed for this drug that is supposed to cure cancer and the other funds needed for Tabulone, are not there. What he does to remedy that is totally illegal but if he does not get caught, then everyone wins. However, when Chris comes more into focus in this story and tells his wife about his research and the rationale behind it, she expresses another opinion that many people might agree with. Just how far will Chris go to get what he wants? Just how far will Wendy go to change his mind? There is much more to this story that remains to be seen.

As we learn more about Christopher’s research, his true motives for not wanting to share his research with anyone and just who the victim was that died, we become aware of the fact that he has risked more than just the lives of the people who want to try this new wonder drug but many other lives too. Realizing that it is the drug or plant that caused Dexter Quinn’s death does not stop him from continuing his work. The best laid secrets often come out and the best laid plans foiled as Apricot Cay is bombed and the end of Veralox and one man’s dreams come to an end. The lucrative business is gone but what happens next will definitely let you know that Darby Pharma is not down and out even though the President is not happy with what he learned about the other business dealings they had and the end result puts Chris in a different position that might benefit his company and help stop aging. Finding out that they found his notes, his thoughts on the new Elixir and more Christopher is not fired but is told to continue his research and find the answers to the financial problems of his company of course what really happened to Dexter and to the mouse that died in order to slow down the aging process. Wouldn’t that be nice expect for what happened as a result of something going wrong. Will he be able to fix it? Only time will tell.

The team is in place the research being done and one woman questions it all and places the project in jeopardy as she claims that playing God is not what she signed up for and that this Elixir as it is being called is wrong and stopping the aging process is not what God had intended for people. But, one man was in debt and sold out more than just the company but maybe part of his moral soul too as he gives someone a huge percentage of a drug that has not even been FDA approved or knows what the end result will be. Remember, Dexter Quinn used it on himself and what happened? Now, they are using it on monkeys, it appears to regenerate cells but in the long run no one really knows. Added to the mix Wendy and Chris are now the proud parents of a boy and her niece Kelly once again is in the hospital. How will this all play out for the new parents when one is concerned with her family and the other obsessed with this drug? This still remains to be seen.

But, there are some working on this Elixir who had a different take on what they were doing and who felt it was morally wrong. What happens to one researcher will send chills down your spine. What happens to another who proves unfaithful even scarier as this drug can prove deadly but the end result still to be determined as many monkeys are sacrificed and one seems to disintegrate in front of their eyes. But, the research and project will go on and Chris will try to find the right amount to use on humans. Who will be the first real human to use it? Imagine being able to reverse Alzheimer’s or many other diseases? What a great feat that would be? As he watches his father fall into another world having Alzheimer’s I truly wish that what he was doing could really happen.

Then the unthinkable happens and everything changes for Chris and his family. The body count rises as one researcher is killed, the head of Darby murdered and Chris realizes he has been framed. What happens next will change his family’s life forever as leaving his home, changing their names and starting over with the help of Wendy’s sister. But, at what cost and what price to them. Just when things seem to be going fun something happens that causes them to go on a downward spiral. What happens when someone from your past thinks that they have seen you in the present even though you are supposed to be dead or just missing? What happens will shock the reader and make you wonder just how far someone will go to live forever? Just how far will one man go to stop others from interfering in his life and preventing him from just living?

How long does this Elixir work? What will finally happen when they have no more? What happened to the primates was horrific and definitely imbedded in his mind? What happens at the end will make the reader question whether what Chris started out to do was really worth it? Would you want to live forever even if everyone around you did not? Would you confide in your family and friends and let them in on the secret? Would you share the formula with anyone? What happens will send chills down your spine? The ending you will never forget and ever expect. Chris aka Roger, Wendy aka Laura and Adam their son aka Brett, what happens to them you won’t believe unless you read the book, decide whether you can keep the secret of the Elixir and what it does and of course whether you agree: Should people live forever? Would you want to take Elixir if it meant you would never have to deal with any of the horrors of any of the diseases many face today? Think about it! You decide.

What happens to Roger you will have to learn for yourself as he decides to change directions, ask for help but finds himself in the midst of more betrayals, deceits and murders. When a religious fanatic decides to get into the act something happens that will change the direction of more than just Roger, Laura and Brett’s lives. Who lives? Who dies? Who will never grow older? Only the author and this reviewer know the answer to that question and one man named Iwati who started it all. If you could prevent people from dying from Alzheimer’s, cancer and other diseases and live longer or forever, would you want the FDA to approve the drug? What does the President of the United States do with this information? Can anyone be trusted? One potent Elixir: Where does it end up? Read this five star novel to find out for yourself.

Once again author Gary Braver has created a masterpiece plot filled with so many twists and turns and moral questions that the reader needs to ask themselves. What would I do if I was Chris? What could he have done to prevent the final outcome? Characters filled with greed, deceit, betrayals and one fear: Getting older. One great novel. One potent Elixir. One outstanding author. One thought provoking plot.


Fran Lewis: reviewer

[Paula]

DNF, just not my thing.

[Jessica]

DNF 5/26/2021
I really tried with this book, but I just found it so boring.

[Paul Darcy · Rating 3 out of 5]

by Gary Braver, published in 2000.

I’m going to start right off by saying I really enjoyed this novel. At it’s heart is a huge “what if” question, one which is handled well by author Gary Braver.

It is no surprise that our population is aging as the tidal wave of baby boomers heads into their fifties and sixties. And it is no surprise that the dream of prolonging one’s life is on the minds of many people, people getting ready to retire and would like to live as long as they could.

How about forever?

This novel is a bio-techno-thriller in the vein of Crichton, Sawyer or Clancy. The protagonist, Chris Bacon, is lead to a unique plant by a friend. It is a plant which grows in only one exotic location in the world and it has unbelievable properties.

It can prolong your life as long as you imbibe it’s essence. You need never grow old, you need never die. Could this be a Godsend, or hell on earth?

Armed with a shoot of this plant, Chris Bacon who happens to be working at a pharmaceutical company, begins to work on his own outside his companies knowledge on distilling and creating the essence of the plant. He succeeds and the “Elixir” he has produced will transform the world forever - if it gets out.

You just know things will spiral out of control, and they do to your reading pleasure. Chris eventually goes on the run with his family after being framed. The pace of the novel is good, the scenes well written but the real meat of the story is how people react to the idea of being able to live forever and what others will do for that secret.

It is quite a deep question and I’m sure one we have all thought about at one time or another. But, philosophers aside, how would our society react to such a thing?

Gary Braver paints us a picture inside the corporate, criminal and political minds surrounding the issue of life everlasting.

Who wants to live forever? Read this novel and find out.

Fast paced and entertaining, I would give this novel a 3 our of 5.

[Norm Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars. I really liked it (4 stars) but only bordered on being amazing (5 stars). Braver does an excellent job of character and plot development which results in a book that is a page turner that can threaten your sleep cycle. A few times I thought to myself that it was a lot like John Grisham’s hang on to your hat book, The Firm.

I’ve read some of the reviews that moan about the unbelievable parts and the incorrect science (technically). To those folks I’ll not assault them with the scientific facts that Scotty can’t really beam up Captain Kirk either. Point being it’s a story about some interesting characters in some interesting fictional situations that are extraordinary enough to be on the thrilling side of reading for pleasure.

Mild spoiler alert, stop here.

Elixir is a longevity drug with some fatal withdrawal side effects. In this book Mr. Braver examines many of the situations that would very likely develop were such a thing ever actually concocted. The book is fun to read if only to share some time with the interesting characters and their reactions to the idea of immortality.

[Libgirl16 · Rating 4 out of 5]

What if you could live forever? Would you want to? It would be a life constantly on the move, before anyone gets suspicious. Not to mention, a life of seeing your loved ones get old and pass away while you continue to live at whatever age you were frozen. And what about the most excruciating and agonizing death that is certain if the maintenance dose of the "Elixir" of youth does not reach your body in a timely way? Would you want that? What if the "Elixir" got into the wrong hands, and turned the world into the "have-elixir's" and the "not-have-elixir's"?

These are some of the questions in this thought-provoking novel. Fast paced, provocative story.

My beef? The GLARING grammatical errors, redundancies, and the not-so-impressive ending!!! One is left wondering who was proof-reading and editing that one?

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chris Bacon discovers the fountain of youth in a tropical plant but fears it will fall into the wrong hands. He sees the potential to cure diseases, like Alzheimer's that affects his father, but fears the drug will go only to the rich and powerful. His family goes in to hiding to keep the secret and all is well until he runs into an old friend and is recognized. Soon his family is running for their lives as his ex-employer has made him out to be a thief and terrorist as well as a murderer. I liked this book but is seemed to have a lot of build-up to get to the story and took a while to read. I will not be reading any more books by Braver in the near future. It had an interesting premise but was too long.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Gary Braver's Elixir, he took us on a journey to Papua New Guinea and back home to the USA. When biologist Chris Bacon headed to the forests of Papua New Guinea for medicinal plants, he had no idea on what he would find and take home from him. A rare flower that's rumored by a tribal shaman to prevent human aging. Hooked on his fountain-of-youth fantasies, he planned to tamper with the plant to make an elixir. Unknowingly as he messed around with nature, it leashed dangerous forces to threaten his family and exposed the world to its unleashed and perilous consequences.

[Lisa James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Crichton meets Robin Cook in this medical mystery/thriller about the elusive Fountain of Youth formula! This book hooks you from the first description of Christopher Bacon going through the jungles of Papua,New Guinea with his old school friend turned shaman, Iwati, & keeps you turning pages to the surprising twist at the end, which I won't disclose! I promise, you will NOT be disappointed!

[Gertie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Upon reading the premise of the book (man discovers an immortality drug in a rare orchid) I was concerned it would be your typical "man finds fountain of youth, tries to evade bad guys, while ultimately deciding he should not choose immortality for himself, or let the rest of the world choose it either". Turns out to be more fleshed out than that, so I was pleasantly surprised.

[Brandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definite page turner.... what if we could live forever? There are more reasons to think twice about it than you might realize...

[Gwen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fountain of youth?

[Karissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Very smart and captivating.

[Betty · Rating 3 out of 5]

medical thriller....is Braver's first novel.

[Tymothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent updated take on the 'Picture of Dorian Gray' that I thoroughly enjoyed.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started off slow but turned into a pretty good read.

[Pam Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book. The plot is not new, but the story has enough fresh takes to it to be good reading. A few sections seem to be abruptly introduced enough to make you page back a few to make sure you didn't sleep through a few pages. It gets a bit preachy in a few places and sometimes the conclusions the characters mutually seem to accept are not well supported. But, it was good and I do not regret the time it took to read it or that I had to revert back to printed book (my Nook was lonely).

[Landon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A flower in the Papua New Guinean rainforest can stop the aging process.

Not enough jungle scenes, but all in all it was a fun read. There are a few hiccups on the science, not incorrect, but poor word choice. The story is compelling, there are some really good twists, and the ending is (in my estimation) pretty satisfying.

[Laura Ruetz · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I liked the idea of the novel, parts of the novel seemed so forced, it didn't flow smoothly. Great idea but could have been executed in a better way. Won't give away spoilers, but the ending was terrible, totaly unnecessary "plot twist" thrown in which just made the storyline way more complicated than it needed to be and it added zero to the base story

[Aphrael · Rating 3 out of 5]

fastpaced stuff written well doe the genre. not very special though, and the characters weer a bit dogmatic in their beliefs. Also to me the effects of elixir didn't seem biologically consistent, not sure if it's scientifically plausible as a what if.

[Marci · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK book, although I didn't enjoy some of the swear words used throughout.

[Hilary]

Creepy and poorly written.

[Caron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun! always interesting to explore concepts of eternal life/youth and the repurcussions. Did I spell repurcussions right??? oh well:)

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish there was an elixir I could take to go back and time and leave this book at the book store.

[Dianna Shimizu · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good thriller, made even scarier because it could be true.

[Leonie Tidlund · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alltså Elixir. Jag hittade boken i en bokbytarlåda i skärgården. Men det kom sig inte så att jag läste den förrän jag var hemma, sjuk, utan biblioteksböcker. Elixir var allt jag hade. Jag läste över en tredjedel, 180 av 400 sidor, på en dag. Den var inte bra. Men den var spännande. Den handlar alltså om en kemist som hittar en växt som kan ge en evigt liv. Men om man inte tar den på typ en dag dör man omedelbart. 100% av handlingen utgår från att kemistens chef är jagad av maffian. Kemisten hade kunnat jobba på vilken produkt som helst, men plotten är alltså att chefen piskar på för att betala sin maffiaskuld. Den påminde en del om Breaking Bad.

Boken är från 2000, och den har inte åldrats med värdighet. Boken hade behövt lite Elixir heheheheheheeeeee. Det finns två sorters kvinnor i boken. Sexiga och korkade, samt fula, gnälliga bitches. Sen var det ett EVIGT tjat om hur pass äldre eller yngre än ens biologiska ålder man var.
"Han tittade på sin fru, hon var 42 men tog väl hand om sin kropp och motionerade varje dag".
"Han såg inte en dag yngre ut än sina 47 år."
"han behöll henne för att hon var ung och snygg, men när hennes kropp skulle förfalla skulle han göra sig av med henne, tänkte han"
Osv osv.

För övrigt så kraschade ett flygplan plötsligt, och medierna ba "det var säkert en blixt som gjorde att planet kraschade!!!" Boken är äldre än 9/11 😅

Nu när jag sovit på saken kommer jag inte läsa klart Elixir. Jag kommer kasta den i papperskorgen. Världen behöver inte mer Elixir.

[Gerard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gary does a good job emphasizing the importance of mortality and giving in to nature in this gripping biotech thriller.