The Bone Room

by James Vitarius

Dr. Zeke Oswald thought he was getting a fresh start with his new job working the night shift at a small city hospital in Albany, New York. Until, that is, he stumbles across a dead body in the middle of the night. One of the hospital’s nurses has been murdered and soon, beautiful yet inexperienced detective Selinda Bruchart is looking into Zeke’s involvement--and his past. Because Zeke isn’t your average hospitalist. After a foolhardy experiment gone wrong when he was in training, he has carried a dark secret for the past twenty-five years. Along the way, Zeke made some dangerous enemies, and he is afraid that one has resurfaced. And out for revenge. With much more at stake than being a murder suspect, Zeke becomes an amateur sleuth. His path crosses with Patience McMorris, a medical student with some problems of her own. Her life is in a downward spiral and a terrifying accident provides unintentional help to Zeke and a chance at redemption.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

310 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 2014

About the author

Known as the "cardiologist by day, novelist by night," James Vitarius began his writing career when his medical research funding dried up. Along with the funding, he lost a creative outlet, so James turned to his childhood dream of becoming a novelist.
Trained in Internal Medicine, Cardiology, and Molecular Biology in some of the finest medical institutions in New York City, James still practices cardiology full-time. He lives in Northern New Jersey and has lived in the Garden State most of his life. In addition to writing and doctoring, James enjoys sports, cooking, music, and visiting the Jersey Shore.

Reviews

[Patty Brandl · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the spirit of full disclosure, I received this book free as part of Goodreads first-reads giveaway. "The Bone Room," a novel by author James Vitarius, is a bit of a rocky read, but overall, a good who-dunnit. The characters are well developed, and the story has some great twists, turns and surprises. The novel is set in an Albany hospital, and starts out with a bang when hospitalist Dr. Zeke Oswald, during the course of his graveyard shift, happens upon the body of a nurse in "the bone room," hospital slang for the orthopedic radiology suite. It's immediately obvious to Oswald that the nurse was murdered, and probably rather recently. Oswald is a fascinating character, with a past that will blow your mind, but I wouldn't want to spoil his backstory for other readers. It is one of the best parts, and I think the novel would have been better served if Oswald's character would have been more developed and played a larger part in the story. Medical student Patience McMorris is another unique character. Quirky and intelligent, she has some personal problems, but she still does her best to make it to medical rounds on time, stay out of trouble with her superiors AND stay involved in the murder investigation. Part medical thriller and part murder mystery, the book's storyline and continuity were great. The medical jargon is spot on, due to the fact that author Vitarius is also a cardiologist. His insider knowledge makes details of the day-to-day running of the hospital feel very real. The murder investigation, featuring lead detective, Selinda Bruchart, keeps the reader involved and eager to keep reading. I liked the fact that she was a newer detective as well as a woman trying to command respect in a male-dominated department. The biggest problem overall for me was the lack of editing - a number of missing words, punctuation mistakes and style errors that definitely marred my enjoyment of the story. At the beginning of the book I was hoping it would just be a few minor lapses, but it continued throughout until the very end. I would have also liked more focus on Dr. Oswald, undoubtedly one of the most interesting medical characters I've come across in a long time. I believe this book is part of a trilogy featuring Oswald, so I'll just have to wait until the next book to get to know him better. Overall I would recommend this book to other readers and eagerly look forward to the next installment.

[Katherine P · Rating 4 out of 5]

The characters are very well developed. All 3 of the main characters, Selinda, Zeke and Patience, have flaws but they're also developed in such a way that you still root for them. There is a decent amount of medical related details but it never felt unreadable or was confusing. There were a few things about hospital staffing and budgeting that I had never really know before which I found interesting. The mystery itself was very well done. While I had some wild guesses about what was really going on I didn't know for sure until everything unraveled. This says book 1 and I was a little worried about a cliffhanger ending because as I was reading this I wanted to find out what was going on! No worries though, the mystery itself is resolved and I was satisfied with the ending though I do want to find out what happens next. I was expecting a paranormal mystery do to some shelving on GoodReads (which I can't find now. Did I imagine it?) and while Zeke has a secret that could kind of be considered paranormal there isn't really anything other-worldy. I don't want to tell you too much because figuring out what is going on is definitely part of the fun but don't go in expecting serious paranormal.
While I found all the medical details interesting I do think there was were too many explanations. It slowed the pacing on some parts that would've been really page turning. As well, since Patience and Zeke are so well developed Selinda's character seems a little extraneous. While a detective was necessary and having her inexperienced but intelligent helped explain Zeke's involvement knowing so much about her seemed unnecessary and it some cases distracting. In the scenes about her - especially her dealing with her colleagues - I kept wanting to get back to the hospital.

Overall: This was a fun medical thriller with an interesting spin. The characters are likable even when you want to shake them (well that mostly applies to Patience) and unusual. While there were a few flaws it definitely didn't effect my enjoyment of the book.

Full Review - http://iwishilivedinalibrary.blogspot...

[Steve Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book reveived through Goodreads Giveways,

I enjoyed reading this mystery/hospital thriller written by James Vitarius who, from the brief biography contained in the book, appears to a part time novelist and full time cardiologist. Certainly the book contains quite detailed medical information which I am certain would appeal to those who require such authenticity in their reads.. While I am not of that group, the medical terminology and detail did not detract from, or overwhelm, the plot line which centres around a mysterious death which occurs in the Bone Room( X Ray reading room) of a for profit hospital. A second mysterious death of a nurse compound the problem.

The story focuses on three major characters: Dr. Zeke Oswald a physician with a mysterious and secret past life who works only night shifts at the hospital. Detective Salinda Bruchart who is assigned to investigate the case and is characterized as being less than confident in her detective abilities and who views the case as a potential to gain respect from her colleagues and as a means to bolster her self-esteem. And thirdly Patience, a medical student suffering from her own demons which can only be controlled through alcohol consumption.

The author weaves these three characters together in an interesting plot line which move along at a quick pace and is enjoyable throughout.

[Derek Balaam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book from Goodreads. James Vitarius has written an incredibly good book. I started reading it and figured it would take me a while, but I was wrong. Every time I had to put it down I hated it. The story progressed at a great pace, the information filled in from the past as you went and I look forward to other books. The only negative thing I could really say about the book would be the end felt rushed, maybe an additional 50 pages and a little more detail into the finish could have been added. This was definitely a fast read book, I think I read it in two days. I would really recommend the book.

[TerryJane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received The Bone Room in a Goodreads giveaway.

I truly enjoyed the characters in this medical thriller. Their back stories and human challenges gave them dimension. The murder mystery surrounding the characters caught me from the start. I also liked learning a bit more about both the human body and the inner workings of a hospital that came through from the author's medical background.

I initially reviewed this book when it was filled with errors. Corrections were since made and the author kindly sent the revised edition. Thank you! I'm pleased to upgrade my rating from 2 stars to 4.