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When a bout of food poisoning strikes a residence for lively seniors blessed with generous pensions and high-ranking political connections, Dr. Zol Szabo, public health doctor turned medical detective, assembles his investigative team. But the epidemic's source proves elusive; the death count rises and when the scourge threatens someone close to Zol, he calls in his friend and colleague Hamish Wakefield, a microbe connoisseur with a nose for exotic diagnoses.
Though Hamish uncovers other dangers, he can't crack the puzzle, and neither can the health units outbreak-hunting whiz kid. It takes the observant octogenarians to expose the deaths for what they really are: a string of murders.
Fast-paced and intricately plotted, Tampered , second in a series of books to feature Dr. Zol Szabo and his quirky surrounding cast of mystery-solving public health officials.
Though Hamish uncovers other dangers, he can't crack the puzzle, and neither can the health units outbreak-hunting whiz kid. It takes the observant octogenarians to expose the deaths for what they really are: a string of murders.
Fast-paced and intricately plotted, Tampered , second in a series of books to feature Dr. Zol Szabo and his quirky surrounding cast of mystery-solving public health officials.
339 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
About the author
Ross Pennie
5 books48 followersDr. Ross Pennie’s career as a jungle surgeon, intensive-care paediatrician, and infectious-diseases specialist spanned the globe and four decades. Now recently retired, he taught two generations of physicians and took care of hockey stars, doughnut lovers, long-haul truckers, and warrior clansmen, among others. He started writing at age ten by chronicling the four-day train trip he made solo across the Prairies and Rockies between his home near Medicine Hat, Alberta and Vancouver, B.C.
His memoir of Papua New Guinea, THE UNFORGIVING TIDES (2004), continues to delight readers with its grit and charm. His four Dr. Zol Szabo mystery novels, TAINTED (2009), TAMPERED (2011), UP IN SMOKE (2013), and BENEATH THE WAKE (2017) have garnered excellent reviews and two literary prizes for adult fiction. Father of two grown children, Ross lives with his wife in southern Ontario. Visit his Web site at http://www.rosspennie.ca
His memoir of Papua New Guinea, THE UNFORGIVING TIDES (2004), continues to delight readers with its grit and charm. His four Dr. Zol Szabo mystery novels, TAINTED (2009), TAMPERED (2011), UP IN SMOKE (2013), and BENEATH THE WAKE (2017) have garnered excellent reviews and two literary prizes for adult fiction. Father of two grown children, Ross lives with his wife in southern Ontario. Visit his Web site at http://www.rosspennie.ca
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
August 14, 2022
“Old age felt like a dry run for eternity: monotonous days of profound fatigue, relentless pain, tasteless meals and fading eyesight stretching on for ever and ever”.
Listeria is normally a relatively benign bacterial infection but it can be serious, even fatal, for people older than 65 and people with weakened immune systems. It's most commonly caused by eating improperly processed deli meats and unpasteurized milk products. Clostridioides difficile (also known as C. diff) is a bacterium that causes diarrhea and colitis (an inflammation of the colon). So imagine the difficulties that might ensue if the residents of a home for the aged “plagued” with a runaway epidemic of C. diff are treated by an antibiotic that is an immunosuppressant and the home is subsequently invaded by listeria.
TAMPERED, an epidemiological mystery … How do I love thee? Let me count the ways!
Having worked for several years in the management of a local home for the aged, I can tell you that Pennie knows whereof he speaks. His characterization of the life of the seniors in a long term residential care setting, of their interactions with one another, their relationships with their families and the home’s staff and every other component of their lives is absolutely spot on! His description of the equipment shortages and the staff needed to deal with residents’ decline from residential care into long term care, nursing care or active hospital treatment is brilliant. The difficulties that an epidemiologist would face in gathering accurate, meaningful data that would be useful to even define the nature of an epidemic like this one (let alone pinpoint its source) are cleverly revealed to non-medical lay readers. Descriptions of the medical issues involved in the story are clear and understandable but never stray into being pedantic, overly long or condescending. The nature of the mystery underlying the epidemic is gripping and more than complex enough to lift the story from mere medical puzzle well into medical thriller territory. As a long-term resident of Hamilton, I can also tell any potential readers that Pennie’s description of the local geography, streets and highways, rough neighbourhoods vis-à-vis their ritzy counterpoints, and the business areas is beyond well done. It’s graphic enough and so accurate as to airlift me right into the story with his characters. And his characters? They’re human, they’re real, they’re warm and the reader will assuredly care about what happens in their lives beyond what they do as medical professionals.
I could go on but there really wouldn’t be any point. I think it’s clear that I thought of TAMPERED as a slam-dunk 5-star barn burner medical mystery. EXCEPT I didn’t. One star deduction for his stereotypical, almost cartoonish depiction of the criminal gangster types with a seriously cornball accent at the close of the novel.
That said, I can hardly recommend Pennie’s Zol Szabo series highly enough. If you’re new to this author, go back to the beginning and start with TAINTED. The mysteries don’t need to be read in order but you’ll get a more satisfying feel for the personal development of his characters.
Paul Weiss
Listeria is normally a relatively benign bacterial infection but it can be serious, even fatal, for people older than 65 and people with weakened immune systems. It's most commonly caused by eating improperly processed deli meats and unpasteurized milk products. Clostridioides difficile (also known as C. diff) is a bacterium that causes diarrhea and colitis (an inflammation of the colon). So imagine the difficulties that might ensue if the residents of a home for the aged “plagued” with a runaway epidemic of C. diff are treated by an antibiotic that is an immunosuppressant and the home is subsequently invaded by listeria.
TAMPERED, an epidemiological mystery … How do I love thee? Let me count the ways!
Having worked for several years in the management of a local home for the aged, I can tell you that Pennie knows whereof he speaks. His characterization of the life of the seniors in a long term residential care setting, of their interactions with one another, their relationships with their families and the home’s staff and every other component of their lives is absolutely spot on! His description of the equipment shortages and the staff needed to deal with residents’ decline from residential care into long term care, nursing care or active hospital treatment is brilliant. The difficulties that an epidemiologist would face in gathering accurate, meaningful data that would be useful to even define the nature of an epidemic like this one (let alone pinpoint its source) are cleverly revealed to non-medical lay readers. Descriptions of the medical issues involved in the story are clear and understandable but never stray into being pedantic, overly long or condescending. The nature of the mystery underlying the epidemic is gripping and more than complex enough to lift the story from mere medical puzzle well into medical thriller territory. As a long-term resident of Hamilton, I can also tell any potential readers that Pennie’s description of the local geography, streets and highways, rough neighbourhoods vis-à-vis their ritzy counterpoints, and the business areas is beyond well done. It’s graphic enough and so accurate as to airlift me right into the story with his characters. And his characters? They’re human, they’re real, they’re warm and the reader will assuredly care about what happens in their lives beyond what they do as medical professionals.
I could go on but there really wouldn’t be any point. I think it’s clear that I thought of TAMPERED as a slam-dunk 5-star barn burner medical mystery. EXCEPT I didn’t. One star deduction for his stereotypical, almost cartoonish depiction of the criminal gangster types with a seriously cornball accent at the close of the novel.
That said, I can hardly recommend Pennie’s Zol Szabo series highly enough. If you’re new to this author, go back to the beginning and start with TAINTED. The mysteries don’t need to be read in order but you’ll get a more satisfying feel for the personal development of his characters.
Paul Weiss
January 28, 2013
This was my first Ross Pennie book, but not my last. I loved the character descriptions and adore the main players. I felt like I could savor the well-thought out plot and not be rushed through the story. The pace was comfortable as opposed to some authors who hurry through the plot to get to the conclusion. You get to know the characters on a personal level, almost like living their lives with them. I could root for them and laugh at some of their antics. After reading Tampered, I immediately downloaded "Tainted". I will also be ordering the subsequent books in the series. The technical references were very easy to understand for a person not medically trained. Therefore, I learned from this book which is always a bonus when reading fiction.
June 5, 2011
Another great novel by Ross Pennie who is quickly becoming the best Canadian author of medical mysteries. Tampered takes place in a Hamilton area Senior's Residence and is filled with references to local venues that readers from Southern Ontario will especially recognize. Pennie blends intrigue with medicine and a good dose of humour in a mystery that will keep the pages turning and have you cheering for the geriatric underdogs!
June 9, 2018
liked it enough to try for another in the series, but some of the hero’s heroics (Zol Szabo) are irritating—he seems on the verge of an ulcer. But it’s set in Hamilton, Ontario and the talk of the geography is comforting. Pennie is an infectious diseases specialist, and the talk of food-borne illness as a vector for a listeria outbreak (and a mention, not by name, of Maple Leaf’s response) was interesting.
August 21, 2018
Great book
Great chats that you meet in tainted. However this is a stand alone book. I am a former nurse and really enjoyed this quick action packed read. But you don't need medical training to enjoy this novel. Can't wait to read more from this author.
Great chats that you meet in tainted. However this is a stand alone book. I am a former nurse and really enjoyed this quick action packed read. But you don't need medical training to enjoy this novel. Can't wait to read more from this author.
May 2, 2021
Interesting read during a pandemic! As a retired pharmacist, I enjoyed that part although it is a little hard to believe one person could do that. But I haven’t lived through a war. I know Larry K would have helped with the medical details.
September 16, 2018
Who knew working in public health was so dangerous? I enjoyed this medical mastery set in Hamilton, ON of all places. Second in the series.
January 9, 2019
Book was OK. I'm just not into medical mysteries.
January 1, 2022
Enjoyed this mystery, set in the Hamilton, Ontario area. Drug tampering can be serious, and deadly.
March 16, 2023
A good mystery story for those who like science and medicine.
June 5, 2011
An enjoyable medical mystery/thriller, second in the series featuring a Hamilton, Ontario public health doctor. I ws afraid the piano on the cover might signal the solution (somehow!), but happily this is not the case. The main plot features affluent seniors in a retirement residence, who, for the past few months, have been suffering from gastro-enteritis, resulting in death for a few residents. The kitchen has passed all inspections and the public health team must find the source. There are affectionate and positive characterizations of the seniors involved, some of whom help in the research.
February 23, 2012
Dr. Zol Szabo is alerted to an outbreak of a gastroenteritis in a care facility in Toronto. The seniors are from the higher class of society. Zol and his team are unable to discover the source of the infection. One, by one, the residents are contracting the infection and when it affects someone close to Zol, he turns up the heat. His adopted grandfather is extremely observant and gives Zol a clue as to what actually might be happening. Is this just an infection or is it murder? Gives an reader information on listeria, a bacteria that has been in the news during the past few years. Looking forward to his third book involving this public health employee.
April 9, 2017
The second entry in the Zol Szabo "epidemiological detective" series is a mostly fun read, although as in Tainted, the author feels it necessary to add a melodramatic climax when the solution to the underlying puzzle would have been enough. Warning to the faint of stomach: The epidemic in the story has to do with unfortunate GI symptoms, and if you're not used to discussions of unpleasant bodily secretions, you may feel a little queasy about the repeated discussion of them, although it's in medical or euphemistic terms and needed for the plot. This is better written than the first book and I enjoyed revisiting the characters. If there's a third book, I'll read it, too.
August 24, 2011
I thought this started out so well. Interesting plot line, with the elderly and the socialized medicine in Canda and good start of a mystery. Had my attention until the last 20 pages, when it started to get very elementary and it felt like the author was really wanting to be done with it. I hate when a good book ends badly!
November 18, 2015
It's fun to read a book set in Hamilton, where the characters eat at Tim Horton's! It has a Canadian feel to it; the cadence of the prose, the familiar idioms, and the attitudes of the people. The mystery unfolded slowly and realistically, without getting too bogged down in medical jargon, nor being patronizing. I picked it up randomly and finished it quickly.
November 29, 2011
This is an elegantly written mystery that captured my interest from the first page. it made me worry about what will happen to me when I get older. The elderly characters were well drawn and a real hoot. Two thumbs up. Can't wait for the next Zol Szabo mystery.
June 20, 2012
These books are written by a local author and I find his medical mysteries intriguing because I work in the medical field. I like his writing style. As soon as he published another book I will want to read it.
July 28, 2012
This book is the best. You will love the two main characters - Zol and Hamish. You will find yourself trying to help them to solve the "crime" It's a book that you can not and should not put down until finished. Kudos to Ross Pennie.
July 31, 2014
A bout of food poisoning strikes a seniors center, Dr. Zol Szabo, public health doctor, assembles his investigative team. But the epidemic’s source proves elusive, the death count rises and when the scourge threatens someone close to Zol. An interesting book and a very similar to his first novel.
October 31, 2011
An enjoyable, well-executed procedural with some fresh angles. See my review of this book at New York Journal of Books: http://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/revie...
August 12, 2011
Second in the Dr. Zol Szabo medical mystery series this entertaining entry features a returning cast of engaging characters untangling a web of complicated crime.
December 23, 2011
Entertaining light read with local flare
July 8, 2012
Some interesting medical facts but I found the writing very simple.
January 26, 2013
Medical mystery
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews