The First Family: A Novel

Michael Palmer · Daniel Palmer

Apr 2018 · Sold by St. Martin's Press

About this ebook

The President’s teenaged son is threatened by a potentially fatal illness that is rooted in dark secrets from a long-buried past.

President Geoffrey Hilliard and his family live in the ever-present glare of the political limelight, with relentless scrutiny of their daily lives. The White House is not an easy place to grow up, so when the President’s son Cam, a sixteen-year-old chess champion, experiences extreme fatigue, moodiness, and an uncharacteristic violent outburst, doctors are quick to dismiss his troubles as teen angst. But Secret Service agent Karen Ray, whose job is to guard the president's family with her life, is convinced Cam’s issues are serious – serious enough to summon her physician ex-husband for a second opinion.

Dr. Lee Blackwood’s concerns are dismissed by the president's team – until Cam gets sicker. Lee must make a diagnosis from a puzzling array of symptoms he's never seen before. His only clue is a patient named Susie Banks, a young musical prodigy who seems to be suffering from the same baffling condition as Cam. Hospitalized after an attempt on her life by a determined killer, Susie’s jeopardy escalates as Cam’s condition takes on a terrifying new dimension.

Is someone trying to murder the President’s son?

As Lee and Karen race for a cure to Cam’s mysterious and deadly disease, they begin to uncover betrayals that breach the highest levels of national security.

Returning to the same Washington, DC setting of The First Patient, which former President Bill Clinton said “captured the intense atmosphere of the White House,” The First Family is a riveting new medical drama from acclaimed novelist Daniel Palmer, in the tradition of his late father, New York Times bestselling novelist Michael Palmer.

Praise for The First Family:

"Terrifying and all too plausible—Daniel Palmer continues his father's tradition of delivering authentic and high-velocity medical suspense. The combination of medical chills and high-level Washington make The First Family irresistible.” —Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of Paranoia and The Switch

"Palmer's The First Family gives you likable characters to root for, a top-notch villain, and enough excitement to make your hair curl. Have fun with this thriller." —Catherine Coulter, author of The Devil's Triangle

“Double the trouble, twice the action, and quadruple the enjoyment, this is a high-octane game changer.” —Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Bishop's Pawn and The Lost Order

“High-stakes and intelligent, The First Family is everything you want in a medical thriller. Chilling!”
—Robert Dugoni #1 Amazon, Wall Street Journal and New York Times bestselling author of My Sisters Grave

"The First Family is adrenaline-fueled entertainment that twists, turns, surprises and satisfies!” -John Lescroart, New York Times bestselling author

"A Palmer novel transports you into the complex world of medical-legal-social ethics. The First Family doesn't disappoint, wrestling with the murky questions of what we can do versus what we should do. Gripping.” —Kathy Reichs, New York Times bestselling author and creator of Bones

Ratings and reviews

This is a phenomenal read that kept me turning pages long into the night. This compelling tale has Lee, a family doctor and talented diagnostician, called in by his ex-wife, Karen, who is a Secret Service agent in charge of the president's teenage son's protection. The son, Cam, has developed some odd symptoms that the White House doctor is far to quick to diagnose as depression. Once Karen calls Lee in, he agrees that the symptoms don't make sense and are worth looking into before labeling as depression. Before long, Cam is suffering one malady after another and Lee is ensnared in a medical mystery that medical school could not have prepared him for. This novel is fast moving and gripping in a way that only a Palmer could tell it. The son, Daniel, is every bit as talented as his father and I am looking forward to reading many more books by him. He's on my must read authors' list and should probably be on yours as well. This is a must read novel.

it was just okay. I was hoping for a faster paced more intriguing plot but it just didn't happen.

About the author

MICHAEL PALMER authored twenty-one novels of medical suspense before his death in 2013, all international bestsellers. His books have been translated into thirty-five languages. Extreme Measures was the basis for a movie starring Hugh Grant and Gene Hackman.

DANIEL PALMER is the author of numerous critically acclaimed suspense novels including Trauma and Mercy. He received his master’s degree from Boston University. Daniel lives with his wife and two children in New Hampshire where he is at work on his next novel.