Convinced that someone is introducing the bacteria into his operating room, Merlin is unsure how to discover who this someone is. When his girlfriend, Tory, is brought to the hospital after having been injured by a hit-and-run driver, he makes the decision to perform the surgery on her in the operating room on the obstetrical floor. Then, he secretly moves her out of the hospital to recover at home, convinced that Tory is the next target of the unknown villain.

Hocus Corpus is an enjoyable medical thriller. Surgical resident/investigator, Jack Merlin manages to track down the person responsible for the introduction of the drug resistant bacteria into the hospital fairly quickly, but that is only one small success.

This person is only a pawn in a much more complex scheme. The usual complement of information about surgical techniques and hospital procedure is accurately presented, which should satisfy the medical junkie reader, but the story moves quickly enough so those bored by such detail should not suffer very much.

Author Tucker adds another element to the plot that adds a bit of a twist. Dr. Merlin, true to his name, is a magician. This talent not only increases his popularity with his younger patients, but also provides him with the expertise to confuse some of the villains. The author adds authenticity to the magical aspects of the story by explaining how certain magic tricks are done. He even manages to slip in a lesson on picking locks for those interested.

The characters are reasonably well drawn, although often stereotypical. The cop, Gallagher, overweight and suffering the effects of too little exercise, like many policemen are portrayed, is also plagued with tunnel vision. When he discovers evidence that indicates a specific person is responsible for a crime he looks no further.

Tory, an assistant district attorney, is smart, attractive, likable and the possessor of all sorts of skills which add to Merlin’s talents. Merlin is also very smart, and although he makes a few mistakes (which provide excitement), he sorts out and rounds up the bad guys in short order.

The usual assortment of thugs with limited mental capacity is present. There are no really unusual characters, but they all are appealing, even the bad guys, who are dumb enough to be humorous.

As an added bonus for readers who enjoy word puzzles, the author allows some of the more affluent bad guys to have vanity plates on their cars. He gives the reader several chapters to ponder the meaning of each plate, before revealing the meaning.

--Andy Plonka