Hi everyone. Today I am featuring Kevin Hwang's book "The Regression Strain." Check out the sneak peek, book details, and giveaway throughout this post. Dive into this apocalyptic thriller today and purchase your copy today. Happy reading :).
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On a cruise ship stricken by the regression strain, primal urges are impossible to resist and the line between civilization and chaos has never been more fragile
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The Regression Strain
by: Kevin Hwang
Genre: Thriller
BLURB:
Nobody’s safe when the inner beast awakens...
Dr. Peter Palma joins the medical team of the Paradise to treat passengers for minor ailments as the cruise ship sails across the Atlantic. But something foul is festering under the veneer of leisure. The brig fills with felons, the morgue with bodies, and the vacation becomes a nightmare.
Peter and his staff face a vile affliction that pits loved ones against each other and shatters the bonds of civil society.
With the ship hurtling towards an unprepared New York, only Peter can neutralize the threat, but he’s hallucinating and delirious.
And sometimes primal urges are impossible to resist.
The Regression Strain is a fast-paced, cerebral medical thriller that'll grab you from the first to the last page.
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As the cab rounded the corner behind the service buildings, the full bulk of the ship rose into view, a floating city gleaming white and blue against the gray Baltic sky. The Paradise would be Peter’s home and workplace for the next month.His shoulders tightened. Had he forgotten to pack anything? It was too late now.
The taxi ejected him into the cool summer of Copenhagen—heaven compared to the stifling heat of Texas. He checked in at the terminal counter, cleared security, and joined the stream of chattering passengers traversing the covered gangway to board the vessel. Most of them spoke in English and a few in Spanish. Others conversed in German, French, or Scandinavian tongues. They seemed affluent and confident, not at all like his impoverished patients in Houston’s Fifth Ward. That guy in front—his Rolex probably cost more than Peter’s Outback.
Peter wheeled his suitcase through a colonnade of clapping crew members and across the threshold of the grand atrium. Its rich wood paneling and glittering chandeliers were as opulent as the brochures promised. He fused with the crush of passengers piling up in front of the diagrams posted near the elevators. Living quarters for the medical crew were on the lowest deck, conveniently adjacent to the clinic.
Amid the throng, a woman was fussing over a teenage boy in a wheelchair. She leaned in and whispered something in his ear, then tousled his thick mop of brown hair. With one hand cranked tight against his chest, he lolled his head back and rewarded her with a crooked smile. Her haggard face lit up. Now that was one tired mama.
“I like his shirt.” Peter pointed to the graphic of Thor wielding his massive hammer.
“You hear that, Calvin? He likes it.”
Calvin’s nose crinkled above the sparse stubble dotting his chin. She retrieved a ChapStick from her floral fanny pack and slathered Calvin’s lips first, then her own.
She offered the tube to Peter with a glistening smile. “Want some?”
He cringed. That was weird. “Uh, no thanks.”
“Want him?”
Peter’s eyes snapped up to hers. “Excuse me?”
“You can take him for a while.” She smiled and tipped her head. “He doesn’t eat much.”
“Ah…”
“Ha ha, it’s a joke.” She licked her moistened lips. “I’ve been on this boat too long. Cabin fever.” She gave him a little nod and wheeled the kid into the elevator.
The adjacent elevator dinged open, revealing a family that looked right at home, mom admiring the decor, two school kids horsing around. Sipping coffee in his striped polo, dad looked a bit like Peter’s microbiology professor—placid and plump.
Peter pulled his suitcase to the side with a smile. It was nice to see people relaxed and carefree. And if they needed medical attention—well, he could offer it. It would be a relief to simply treat patients. No rationing medications against their rent. No fighting through nettles of bureaucracy just to get a CT scan. He wasn’t built for that fight, and the last few rounds had left him bruised.
The younger child in the elevator darted out. Mom lunged and grabbed his collar, jostling dad into Peter. Coffee sloshed out of the man’s cup and down his jeans.
An animal snarl flashed over the man’s pale, doughy face. “Watch it, prick.”
“Sorry, I didn’t expect…”
The man leaned in, eyes glowing hot behind round bifocals.
Peter jerked back. “Whoa, are you okay?”
As the man cocked his fist back, Peter watched the sleeve of his polo shirt ride up his bicep, almost in slow motion. Peter quickly raised his open palms.
“Honey,” mom hissed. She tugged her little one back, and he huddled under her frail wings.
The man lowered his fist, the stench of coffee hot on his breath.
Peter nodded. “It was an accident. I’ll buy you another coffee. Or jeans.”
The heat in the man’s eyes dissipated and he blinked a few times, looking at Peter’s face yet his attention was directed elsewhere. “Ah, shoot.”
Sorry, mom mouthed and hustled the whole family away.
Peter stepped into the elevator among passengers who seemed oblivious to the encounter. His heart hammered in his chest, and his mouth soured with adrenaline. Microbiology professor? Scratch that—this guy was more like that assistant principal caught in a minivan with the high school girl. And here he’d nearly gotten into a fistfight on his first day.
But hey, he’d defused the situation. He was still supposed to be here. This was going to work out. He closed his eyes as the last passengers got off and the elevator continued to the bottom level.
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Kevin Hwang
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Kevin O. Hwang, MD, is a professor of internal medicine at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston where he sees patients and teaches residents. His academic work has appeared in leading medical journals. Nothing excites him more than chicken enchiladas, index cards, and appropriately sized packaging.
Follow Kevin at the Following Links:
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Sounds like a great read. Thanks for sharing.
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