Dangerous Medicine, Book 3 of Medicine for the Blues trilogy, follows Carl Holman's struggles to navigate his medical career in Portland while facing social and personal obstacles from the KKK, society, and other dangers.
Assessment:
Plot: Stookey’s Dangerous Medicine is the third in a trilogy and despite that stands alone in its story and construct. The story moves through Carl’s life as he tries to navigate a bigoted, hateful Portland and holds the reader's interest through both historical facts (Klan, Eugenics/birth control) and the created world of Carl and his friends.
Prose/Style: With the ability to set a scene, Stookey’s prose shows the compassion and love Carl and Jimmy have for one another as well as the tensions in Carl’s life—his job at the clinic, his faked engagement—and the horrors that underlie the community.
Originality: Pulling from the history pages, Stookey combines his characters and the reality of life in the 1920s/30s in a clever and dynamic way. From the faked relationships of Gwen/Carl and Charlie/Jimmy to the ever-present role of the Klan (Invisible Empire) in society.
Character Development: The characters are believable and are easy for readers to connect with. Their struggles, hopes, desires (and even the ones readers will loathe) flow from them and through them.
Date Submitted: June 18, 2019
Thank you for this novel, and for this trilogy, Jeff Stookey. This has by far been one of the most exceptional reading experiences I have had in many, many months. It started off well in “Acquaintance”, got even better in “Chicago Blues”, but it this one “Dangerous Medicine” it’s like he was almost saving the best for last, having it all come together the way it did – that epilogue gave me chills, it was so powerfully, eloquently delivered. There is so much story and life, happiness and heartbreak in these pages, and Stookey did an impressive job facing head on many ‘controversial’ topics, from racism, birth control, family sexual abuse, STD’s, the ‘invisible’ influence of the KKK in society, … and just how anybody who was viewed upon as ‘different’ seemed to pose a threat and were treated so poorly. Carl, Jimmy… even Charlie and Gwen (and the many others who visit us here) are light years from the stock, typical protagonists, but instead all had problems and struggles, secrets, and serious obstacles to overcome….
“Jeff Stookey’s engaging novel is a brilliantly written story set in the tough Prohibition era. It brought back memories of my time as a Portland Police officer in the early 1960s. When I worked Vice, we were pressured by our older lieutenants, seasoned veterans from the 30s and 40s, to harass and arrest gay folks who were just out socializing. An excellent contribution to the history of our city, the book is also a page-turner. I had to know what happened next.”—Don DuPay Behind the Badge in River City
“Portland in the 1920s was a dangerous place—if you weren't a straight white Anglo-Saxon Protestant. Stookey’s deeply researched, deeply compelling novel traps us in a dark chapter of American history. This story of public and private resistance offers lessons for the modern #Resistance.”
—Merilee D. Karr, MD, MFA, who blogs at MerileeDeborahKarr.com
“Take one part gay love affair, sift in details of 1920s medical practice, add a resurgent Klan, and you have a rich stew of a story. Disturbing, and a great read.”
—R. L. Porus, MD, FACP
Thank you, inspired author, for the gripping and colorful read! I came to like Jimmy so much more in the second book. All I “knew” about that mob-music situation before you was from “Some Like It Hot,” you made it a lot more real and concerning. Eric is your greatest creation in this book. Magnificent. Your telling of his mother captures the aspirational black bourgeoisie aptly. Sympathetically. Your music passages are incredible, and linking it to sexual freedom is intriguing.
I did not nibble your book...I DEVOURED it. Book I provided a great foundation for all characters & introduced readers to the political climate. Book II's content was painful. Book III was beautifully written. Totally satisfied with resolutions. Thank you for this wonderful literary ride!!
