Code Triage - eBook

In a whirl of IV needles, scrubs, and plenty of stethoscopes, Candace Calvert's hospital drama Code Triage pulls readers in by the heartstrings and lays them on the gurney for an examination of the soul. The realness of Calvert's characters hits home as they find themselves struggling through despondent situations that only grow worse as their lives become deeply intertwined with each other. Calvert writes in a way that shows readers the story beyond an act of adultery, murder, a miscarriage, several dark pasts, and countless other problems that arise beneath Golden Gate Mercy Hospital's passive facade. The result is a novel that brings real pain and heartbreak to life in a way that relates to readers and reveals a tangible hope that can be applied in Christians' lives.

As the story progresses, the omniscient narrator skips from character to character. Trauma unfolds and brings together this tense group of characters with an intensity that has readers strapped to their chairs. Hearts will pound as readers are witness to a heated scene between Dr. Leigh Stathos, the wife of Nick, and Miss “Sam” Gordon, Nick’s mistress. Lying in a hospital bed after a shot to the gut, Sam still has only one thing on her mind: stealing Nick Stathos' heart. An argument erupts between the two passionate women; the door is shut and the two females stare vehemently into each others' eyes and then spit out poisonous words.

The plot is centered on Nick Stathos, a kind police officer, guilty adulterer, and potential ex-husband, and his wife Dr. Leigh Stathos, who is trying to handle her painful situation by divorcing her husband. Other characters such as Sam Gordon, the mistress and Child Crisis Investigator, play roles in shaping the fate of the hospital and the lives of Nick and Leigh Stathos. Throughout the story Leigh pushes away her husband, who in desperation is trying everything he can to make their marriage last “forever and ever.”

Nick Stathos is not a man who will easily give up on any problem. His wife Leigh, through harsh threats and forceful separation, begs him to give up on this one thing: their marriage. Miscommunication and internal conflict, along with the involvement of other characters, guide the fate of their marriage. The characters' reactions has any Christian reader pondering the psalm, “I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from?” The characters struggle until the end to find God as the answer.

For being a person who usually dislikes hospital dramas, I found Code Triage to be an intriguing plot. The story was fairly encumbered with endless struggles that personally brought down my mood and were perhaps a little unrealistic, but the hopeful ending balanced it in a deepness that I have never experienced while reading secular novels. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys soap-opera like drama and wants quick and easy entertainment. – Tara Gnagy, www.ChristianBookPreviews.com