Casting Demons Into Swine

by Ronald Erskine

The career of Malcolm Cromarty, D.V.M., was finally settling into a routine, despite his recent divorce and being new to the valley. After all, life among cows, stoic dairy farmers, a steadfast dog, and an occasional 'wee dram' of single malt tends to be rather mundane. However, the daily grind veers off course with the arrival of a disease outbreak that seemingly doesn't stay on message with the textbooks. To cope with this challenge, Malcolm must rely on a patchwork of inhabitants to guide him through the peculiar culture in which he lives. The problem is, while some of the locals are helpful, others have their own motives, engage only within their limits of religious dogma, or are outright hostile. With each passing day, Malcolm stumbles deeper into a community that holds science, change, and outsiders under a high degree of suspicion, and a family feud with a dark and malevolent past. Hardly a promising path to control the outbreak.

318 pages, Paperback

Published July 5, 2017

Reviews

[Julie Herringa]

Let's get right to it, I LOVED this. Cows, rabies, blood feuds, culture clashes, distrust of science, cave adventures!

I am not typically a fiction reader. I find it hard to get through side dialogue and lose interest in predictable plotlines. Holy cow, this book did not disappoint and I was walloped by the ending! My favorite part about the book was learning basics of procedures and ailments. I felt like a vet apprentice while reading. I also very much liked the disease ecology facets in the book. Unfortunately some of the distrust of science content was very relevant to the state of the country today.

Overall I really, really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who likes good storytelling, slow-burns, thrillers, animals, disease outbreaks, disease ecology, or has veterinary interest.

[Cindy]

A novel in search of a story.

[Robin]

A good first novel. There was some interesting info about the Amish as the vet protagonist practised in Pennsylvania in Amish country. Lots of interesting vet goings on with cows and horses. I always love that. The author is a professor at MSU and so there is local interest in supporting. I met him at an author talk and he is a nice guy.