One night while Dr. Charlotte Reese is working in the intensive care unit, a Jane Doe is transferred to her unit. The victim of an apparent hit-and-run, Jane is unconscious and unidentified. As Charlotte works to get her patient medically stable, she can't help but feel a deeper connection with the woman. Charlotte is plagued by the ethical questions surrounding this deeply ill woman. Who will make the decisions of whether or not Jane lives or dies? Surely someone cares about this woman.
As Charlotte struggles for more time before confronting these questions, her life becomes more entangled with Jane's when Charlotte's boyfriend Eric identifies Jane from an unusual scar on her arm. Together, Charlotte and Eric find themselves on a mission to answer the questions and find solutions for Jane and for their own conflicted relationship.
"A stranger’s life hangs in the balance. What if you had the power to decide if she lives or dies?"
I was drawn into Gemini by Carol Cassella from the first page. Her style and ability to describe situations, settings and characters so they become animate compelled me from page to page in this carefully plotted medical mystery. The medical details are intelligent, well-researched (Cassella is an anesthesiologist) and yet are clear enough for an untrained reader to understand and grasp. Cassella includes small particulars about her characters or shows them participating in moments of life that add to the reality of the situation without becoming mundane or tedious. The characters come alive within her words. Dr. Charlotte Reese, in particular, is a highly capable, brilliant physician who is also very vulnerable in her personal relationships. Her hopes and dreams for the future are in conflict with the love in her heart for another. As a reader it is easy to relate to and sympathize with Charlotte's appealing character.
The story is well paced and engaging. There are glimmers of truth and then unseen plot twists and a fascinating ending. It's a unique story yet wholly believable. There are no real villains though there are people who make bad decisions. There are consequences. There is regret, heartache, forgiveness and healing--all real human themes in a decidedly enjoyable novel.
Gemini by Carol Cassella was published by Simon & Schuster in March 2014.
**I received a complimentary copy of Gemini in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. No compensation was received.**
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