The Chemist: Based on a True Story

by Chris Blewitt

Charlie White leads a simple life in 1920's Philadelphia as a chemist at the Dupont Corporation. One day, as he's walking home from work, he is approached by two men and is forced into the world of bootlegging, corruption and murder. When tragedy strikes, Charlie must decide whether to continue his double-life or tell the world his story before it's too late. The Chemist is based on a true story during Prohibition.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction

30 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 29, 2011

Reviews

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was again completely out of my normal genre...but good...the book takes place in 1927(7 years into prohibition) a man is recruited to help the government...in return they set his brother free from jail...in the end...the man ends up poisoning his brother through a coincidence of acts...not bad...but makes you realize to not to your loved ones for granted..and sometimes your actions can impact others more than you realize..even if you think you're doing something for the greater good

[❀ Hana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pada tahun 1920, sewaktu era 'Prohibition' (era minuman alkohol diharamkan) kerajaan US (di New York) meracuni rakyatnya sendiri dengan mencipta minuman alkohol yang dicampur dengan arsenik, plumbum dan metanol (bahan-bahan utk buat cat) - sebagai langkah untuk menghentikan transaksi minuman alkohol secara 'underground'. Sekurang-kurangnya 10,000 rakyat Amerika mati di atas tindakan 'bijak' itu.

Gila.

[Ty Hutchinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Chemist gives new meaning to the phrase, "alcohol poisoning." I dug this story. I also liked that it was based off a true story. Makes you wonder what we're eating now that's slowly killing us. Blewitt did a great job of taking a fact and spinning a nice tale around it. The writing was smooth and flowed nicely. It could have been an episode for HBO's Boardwalk. Definitely worth the purchase.

[Teri Pre · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a great premise that came out less than spectacularly. The first 10 (out of 30) pages was pretty interesting. Then the author, for some unknown reason, tried to fit the rest of the story into the final 20 pages. If he would have fleshed out his characters a bit, and added some suspense, AND had a decent ending, I bet s/he could have made a complete novel out of it.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

more of a short story than a book, it tells the tale of a young man caught in the middle of the government's prohibition policies. Interesting tale, okay writing.

[Bonnie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Choppy. Didn't flow or transition from character to character well.

[Kathy Chumley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish I could give this book more stars, because the information in this story is quite interesting. I just didn't find it to be very well written. Even though it's a novella, the author could have taken the time to flesh out the story better, but the characters seemed to be made of cardboard, and the "shocking" truth that the government poisoned illegal (not a spoiler - it's in the book description) alcohol didn't have any emotional pull to it.

The ending actually had me thinking there was a problem with my Kindle version. It was so abrupt that at first I was sure there were missing pages.

If I can say anything positive about this story it is that it highlights a little known (to me at least) bit of U.S. history during the prohibition era.

[Therese · Rating 3 out of 5]

0.0

This short story is set during Prohibition and is inspired by true events that will shock you. I thought I knew where the book was going but it took a sudden and deadly turn. The author has changed this setting from New York to Philadelphia and created Charlie White, a chemist for the DuPont Corporation who leads a fairly simple life until a couple of thugs follow him home from work one day. They will let his brother out of jail -- for a price...
You can check out the original article here:
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_...