A fast-paced dark-fiction/bio-thriller that will have you begging for more.
4.5 out of 5 stars
A wave of violence is taking over people, and it seems to come out of nowhere. Meat is spoiling way before its sell-by dates. Insert a new investigator for the CDC, Dr. Kyle Sommers. He and others are trying to solve this mystery and piece together everything before it’s too late.
This novel I believe is doted as “dark fiction” and I’ll tell you what, numerous times throughout this book — I agree, it was DARK. But this was the definition of a page-turner. I found myself staying up way too late to get to the end to figure out what was going to happen. I cannot write a full description of how I feel because it would contain far too many spoilers. Just know, if you’re a fan of CDC-mystery type novels — this will intrigue and suck you in. I loved the investigative portion of this book with the other stories sprinkled in. The ending left me feeling incredibly powerless and asking more questions. I don’t know if Lisa von Biela plans on writing more but I would like to know what happens with the two forward thinking farmers if you do!!!
This was another book that the cover art sucked me in — that damn bio-hazard symbol really has power over me. But again, I’m happy to have read what felt like a well-researched book. It definitely has some hard science within that makes this feel even more real. Yes, there were a few “preachy” parts, but the fact that something half this bad could happen and have similar ramifications is just utterly terrifying.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in return for my honest review.
An unprecedented wave of senseless and brutal violence is sweeping the nation.
Livestock are mysteriously dying in droves—and there is no cure.
Meat and dairy products are rotting before their sell-by dates.
Why?
Dr. Kyle Sommers is one of a team of CDC doctors deployed nationwide to find the cause. Along with his wife Gretchen and young daughter Lara, he travels to St. Joe, Minnesota to investigate after a particularly gruesome murder shocks the small town. Frantic to find the answer before more people die and haunted by the secret that destroyed his father, Dr. Sommers uncovers the shattering truth behind the seemingly unconnected crises. And when he does, he discovers his own family is in grave danger.
Something has gone horribly wrong with the food chain. And nothing will ever be the same.
Part medical detective story, part post-apocalyptic tale, Broken Chain examines what might happen if a major component of our food supply had to be destroyed and banned because of its malignant effect on those who consume it.
You are what you eat…
Lisa von Biela worked in Information Technology for 25 years, and still claims there is no application she cannot break in testing. She left the field to attend the University of Minnesota Law School, graduating magna cum laude in 2009. She now practices law in Seattle, Washington. One of her legal articles, a research piece published in the Food and Drug Law Journal, was cited in an amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Just after the turn of the century, Lisa began to write short, dark fiction. Her first publication was in The Edge in 2002. She went on to publish a number of short works in various small press venues, including Gothic.net, Twilight Times, Dark Animus, AfterburnSF, and more.
She is the author of THE GENESIS CODE, THE JANUS LEGACY, ASH AND BONE, BLOCKBUSTER, SKINSHIFT, and BROKEN CHAIN.
