Original and thought provoking. And the best of all: currently being read by a film producer! Fingers crossed!
Available on Amazon and Smashwords (50% sampling option)
If you are being terrorised, and have nowhere to go, revenge keeps you going.
When Laura, Natalie, and Jason take part in a medical trial, they're in it for the money.
But
they have no idea what they have really signed up for. Out of nowhere,
love interests, jealousy, and arguments appear. Emotions are smouldering
under the surface, breaking through the cracks, before everything takes
a turn for the worse, and the brutality of the trial shows its ugly
face. Somewhere along the way, the three seem to lose grip on where
reality stops and imagination begins.
This is a full length novel of 270 pages.
Reviews:
5 stars
This is a gripping and fast-paced medical/psychological thriller that is a real page-turner.
Laura,
Natalie and Jason take part in a medical trial for the money. But they
have no idea what they have really signed up for. Love interests,
jealousy, and arguments appear. Emotions are smouldering under the
surface, breaking through the cracks, before everything takes a turn for
the worse, and the brutality of the trial shows its ugly face.
I
thought the prologue and early parts of the book were a bit difficult
to get into. The author could have done a better job in grabbing his
reader, but things soon picked up and my interest didn't wane.
The
three central characters are initially unsympathetic, but perceptions
change as the novel progresses. I found it highly interesting and
challenging, with some solid medical background and research on how
clinical trials run.
The author shows immense promise with this debut novel and I would be interested in reading more from him.
4 stars
This novel is a medical / psychological thriller set in a hospital where
drug trials take place. Three friends, Laura, Natalie and Jason, have
signed up for several days participation in a drugs trial in return for a
large amount of cash. The novel raises the question, how far are you
prepared to go for money? And the answer here is, a very long way
indeed. The writing style in Trial #1322 is immediate and colloquial and
the reader jumps around inside the heads of Laura, Natalie and Jason
which could be confusing but the author manages to stay in control.
Consequently the plot moves along with good pace and a strong forward
drive. As the plot unfolds you get to know the characters very well and
although each has some very unappealing traits you find yourself
developing some sympathy for them too. A good novel from Ryan Butcher
and I shall be keeping a look out for what comes next.
4 stars
This is a good read, with interesting characters and an original premise.
Three
friends take part in a drug trial for money. The drugs they are
testing are mind-altering and it is not long before rifts appear between
not only the three friends, but the other four participants in the
trial. After a slowish start, the action really picks up as the
characters' perceptions of themselves, and the other people involved,
become confused - which is also confusing for the reader as it becomes
difficult to differentiate between truth and illusion.
I think
this book is well-written, with great characterisation and an eplosive,
gripping ending, but an edit to clarify points of view of the main
chracters and t eliminate a few typos would lift it to another level.
4 stars
I was given this book free to read and review.
Initially I could not
see the purpose of the prologue but at the end it all made sense and a
nice touch. At first this was slow going and although set against the
background of a trial for a new drug was more about character
development than anything else and it allowed me to get a real feel for
the characters. None of the characters came over as particularly
sympathetic as all of them seemed to be in it just for the money.
However about half way through things changed and it needed a careful
read as I tried to distinguish if it was really happening or a
hallucination due to the effects of the drugs being taken. Actually I
never found out which but it did not really matter. Not comfortable
reading as it included adult themes and considerable violence which was
necessary for the plot but I did enjoy it and it made me think. The
frightening thing is that it all seemed so real, enough to put anyone
off volunteering for a medical trial.
4 stars
Three flat mates Natalie, Laura and Jason enter a drugs trial. Although
they know exactly how much money they are getting for taking part they
seem to have little or no idea of the nature of the trial. As the trial
gets underway it is obvious that mind changing drugs are involved and I
found it increasingly difficult to tell what was real and what was going
on in the minds of the participants. As the level of violence escalated
so did my sense of unreality and at the end I was left with some
questions unanswered.
A compulsive and exciting if, at times,
confusing read. The rather claustrophobic atmosphere of the hospital is
well portrayed and the three main characters, though not particularly
likeable, are believable. Overall a pacey well written psychological
thriller and a promising debut novel.
4 stars
When this novel begins Laura, a music journalist, and her flat mate
friends Jason and Natalie, enter a hospital for a drug trial. They are
not taking part for altruistic reasons, purely for the money paid on
completion of the trial. Of course they are not the only people taking
part and the small group of seven soon settle into uneasy relationships.
Natalie's jealousy threatens to stop the trial, but can it be stopped?
This
is a very unusual and interesting novel. From the very beginning, the
author makes his three central characters unsympathetic and then begins
to change our perceptions of, not only them, but everyone else. Is the
nurse Anna just abrupt, or is she something more sinister? Why is the
ward on the next floor empty? Should the group be concerned about the
locked doors? This is a gripping and thrilling medical thriller, which I
was unable to put down. Overall, a really good and exciting read and I
look forward to anything else by this author, who shows immense promise
with this debut novel.
4 stars
A gripping and pacey thriller, with a lot of action packed into it. A
clever plot which evokes suspense of both the dread and the anticipation
of this situation, that readers will be tempted to turn to the end of
the book to relieve their anxieties.
The book is centred on three
characters who enter a drug trial to solve their money problems. Even
though, they are only there for a few days, the action and pace begin
from the moment they walk into the ward. Brilliantly written!
From
the first chapter the reader is sucked into the eerie trial. As the plot
unfolds, the reader begins to question what reality is, or is it the
patients' imagination? The reader is practically living and breathing in
the patient's mind, each of them trapped in their own heightened
emotive states.
The plot grabbed my attention from page one, I read it in one day!
Malicious Mind the short prequel to my thriller Trial #1322 will be free this weekend.
Looks can be deceiving. Behind a well-groomed exterior lurks a monster
who cannot outrun his past. Abused and neglected as a child, he blames
all women for what his mother did to him.
This is a glimpse into the
world of a minor character from the medical psychological thriller Trial
#1322. It is to showcase the general writing and what a reader can
expect, but it's only loosely related to the novel.
Contains a sample of the novel.
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