I read one other book by Richard Mabry, the first in the series, though I've not read any of the others. The main character here, Sarah, has a fairly lengthy backstory, and from reading my review from the other book Code Blue, it sounds like Mabry's books in the series are all standalones, but it feels like there could be enough material there to be at least a subplot in an earlier book. Likewise, there is an older doctor, Jack, who plays a minor role here but feels like the kind of character who could have starred in his own book earlier in the series.
In 'Lethal Remedy', the medical world is fighting the newest superbug, Staph Luciferus, and Sarah's ex-husband is an infection control doctor who is working closely with Jandra Pharmaceuticals to speed the development of the only antibiotic which is shown to be effective against it. Meanwhile, Sarah is a clinic doctor at the same hospital and sees the devastating effects the infection has on her patients until she enrolls them in the trial for the drug, Jandramycin. The drug has shown to be 100% effective, which holds true for Sarah's patients, as well as those of her colleague, Rip, who holds a fellowship in infection prevention and works closely with her ex, until some of the patients return to the hospital with signs of serious new health crises. Sarah and Rip compare notes and find that the common link among them is treatment with Jandramycin, but when they try to confront her ex with these potential side effects, he shuts them out, knowing that the success of this drug is his key to a life of luxury, even if it mean compromising his standards.
While the Jandramycin plot is well-developed, I felt there were others left hanging. For example, the older doctor, Jack, who I mentioned above, pricks himself with a needle that is in a trash can pointy side up, which feels like an intentional act, especially when it turns out to be infected with S. Luciferus, but Mabry never elaborates on how it got there. There is also a scene at the boardroom meeting of a rival pharmaceutical company that wants to acquire Jandra, and a voice comes from somewhere talking about sabotage, but I couldn't figure out where they fit into the picture, as the rival company is hardly mentioned again.
This book was an enjoyable quick read, but didn't have the whodunit feel of other medical thrillers I've read, as the good guys stayed good, and the bad guys stayed bad, and it was just a matter of sorting things out to come to the conclusion. I rated the other book of his 'Code Blue' very highly, so I'll probably read the other books in this series because I did enjoy this one even though I found some flaws and rated the first one higher.