by Dirk Wyle

                                 "Cell to the Highest Bidder"

                                        Review by C. A. Jackson

Now that the Human Genome Project has drawn some of life’s darkest mysteries into the light, the endeavor raises many issues. Should this knowledge be available to all, to benefit humankind? Or should it be proprietary, allowing the discoverers/developers to sell it for profit? Author Dirk Wyle presents a disturbing vision of opportunists scrambling after biomedical advances and big bucks in Biotechnology is Murder.

Pharmacology is Murder kicks off this series and introduces brainy protagonist Ben Candidi, who sees the noble pursuits of science led astray by politics and dark human behavior. This second book deals with a similar theme, only this time we find Ben in the middle of mega-bio-business.

A company named BIOTECH Florida claims to have developed several potentially anti- cancer drugs. Ben’s mentor Dr. Westley arranges for Ben to lend his intracellular expertise to Westley’s friend, the English entrepreneur Broadmoore. Should Broadmoore exercise his option to purchase BIOTECH?

Ben’s job is to carry out a "due diligence" study. No problem, except he hasn’t a clue what "due diligence" means, exactly. The notes of Ben’s predecessor are missing; so is the person, although BIOTECH seems strangely unconcerned. After a brief investigation, Ben finds that the company seems to be following clinical protocol. However, a key BIOTECH scientist heads off Ben’s every effort to pose tough questions about the procedures.

Despite a genius IQ, Ben Candidi is vulnerable and low-key, engaging us with his intelligent commentary. He leads us through Miami, as well as patents and protein kinase C inhibitors. Buildings on Brickell Avenue are surprisingly luminous. Ben shows us "a flat, 500-foot wall of wavy glass. It presented a distorted reflection of cumulus cloudscape. Another was a wall curved inward, its blue-tinted glass arranged in jewel-like facets."

Ben’s scientific observations have a high quotient of technical verisimilitude, yet author Wyle does not blind us with science. Instead, he highlights the aesthetics of nature at the cellular level. "The magical process of genetic switching and cellular differentiation unfolds like a lotus blossom but infinitely more beautifully." Ben is no geeky scientist. His doctoral dissertation is on enzymes, but Rimsky-Korsakov and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern also occupy space in his head.

Author Wyle is equally astute in describing business meetings. As Ben watches the minor players with "due diligence," we progress from the "Hello, my name is" tag, to learning details about each possible suspect. We see the BIOTECH bunch carving out their territories of expertise and motives for malevolence. Wyle also gets the details right about cutthroat academic publications. As Candidi has learned, ivory towers have dungeons.

South Florida waterways stream through this book, and Wyle knows boats. The reader’s inner eye appreciates an insider’s view of aft decks, fly bridges, and tuna towers. These are not glossy yacht catalog photos. The book shows us boating in context.

One BIOTECH bonding session takes place onboard a cabin cruiser navigating the "pocked coral" walls and concrete tunnels of Miami waters. "The canal broadened and turned to the left. On the outside of the bend, the coral bluff was 20 feet high. A row of park benches lined the crest." Wyle infuses the usually sunny boating scene on Biscayne Bay with all the drama of a risky run over white-water rapids. Later, a nautical global positioning system provides a nifty piece of incriminating evidence, and an engine compartment encloses Ben in a nail-biting scene of danger.

The narrative is not perfect. The suspense goes slack in spots as mysteries surrounding the obnoxious Dr. Moon are held a bit too long. We might not blame Ben’s employer for the evil people around this cancer cure, but ultimately do we really want Broadmoore to profit from all the mess? And I must take exception to the bizarre villainy of one of the women scientists. That whole line of action strikes me as truly far-fetched, although it fits the stereotype of a male fantasy. (Now you REALLY want to read it, right?)

Overall, Biotechnology is Murder gives the reader a thrilling ride and sets up a number of ethical issues in the bargain. We eagerly wait for the third book in the series, as Ben Candidi is the kind of guy you want to invite over for dinner.

Pharmacology is Murder (1998) and Biotechnology Is Murder (2000) are published by Rainbow Books, Inc.