A Heartbeat Away by Michael Palmer

Book Description: RELEASED TODAY!!!!!
The New York Times bestselling author and master of suspense delivers another novel at the crossroads of politics and medicine in this shocker of a thriller
On the night of the State of the Union address, President James Allaire expects to give the speech of his career. But no one anticipates the terrifying turn of events that forces him to quarantine everyone in the Capitol building. A terrorist group calling itself “Genesis” has unleashed WRX3883, a deadly, highly contagious virus, into the building. No one fully knows the deadly effect of the germ except for the team responsible for its development—a team headed by Allaire, himself. The only one who might be able to help is virologist Griffin Rhodes, currently in solitary confinement in a maximum security federal prison for alleged terrorist acts, including the attempted theft of WRX3883 from the lab where he worked. Rhodes has no idea why he has been arrested, but when Allaire offers to free him in exchange for his help combating the virus, he reluctantly agrees to do what he can to support the government that has imprisoned him without apparent cause.
Meanwhile, every single person in line for presidential succession is trapped inside the Capitol—every person except one: the Director of Homeland Security, who is safely at home in Minnesota, having been selected as the “Designated Survivor” for this event. With enemies both named and unnamed closing in, and the security of the nation at stake, Griff must unravel the mysteries of WRX3883 without violating his pledge as a scientist to use no animal testing in his experiments…and time is running out.
Tense, thrilling, and entirely plausible, A Heartbeat Away will make you reflect, wonder, and be truly afraid.

My Thoughts:
Wow! I completely enjoyed this book. Genesis is a group that is terrorizing the United States. The president's State of the Union address is always a much anticipated event and President Allaire's is no exception. Tickets are much sought after and people are proud to be there. Just as he is starting his speech, Genesis releases WRX3883, a deadly virus into the room that holds almost the whole line of presidential successors! Allaire is the only one that understands the ramifications of this virus and the man he believes to be his only hope is in maximum security for the theft of the virus, Griffin Rhodes.
I liked how quick this book was! You can't stop turning the pages because you have to know what is going to happen next and if the virus will kill everyone. The subplots are intriguing and lead you to believe a 'red herring' and I so fell for it! The medical mixed with the political was a nice touch, there was a lot of research involved here. I also appreciated the list of presidential successors at the front to know exactly which character when into what slot.
This is a 5/5. If you like suspense, you will enjoy this book!

Thank you to bostick for the review copy of this book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.