Turker’s debut is as sharp as the surgeon’s scalpel and jolting as a defibrillator. After he finds himself out of a job from University Hospital, Dr. Martin “Marty” Fischer gets accepted, of all places, into St. Salacious, a hospital that, in spite of its Jesus iconography and literal hall of nuns, is renowned for its scandals involving the staff’s orgies, wife-swapping, and other instances of passionate debauchery. As an agnostic Jew entering a Catholic institution, he’s trepidatious, but he quickly finds himself befriending a staff that’s charmed by his compassion, wit, and what his best friend calls “that cute Fischer smile, and those big-brown puppy eyes.” One woman in particular catches his eye—Sister Catherine, both nun and CEO. But after a literal blind night of passion and finding himself in the metaphorical crosshairs of both a mercenary medical group and the diocese, Marty is determined to let his morals rather than his faith speak to the masses.

As a healthcare provider himself, Turker’s experience in the American healthcare system shines throughout, both in memorable incidental detail and surprising-but-convincing plot points that center on the shark-like nature of donors or patients whose hateful natures demand healthcare providers work doubly hard on their bedside manners. One scene finds Marty giving care to a neo-Nazi, and discovering that his conception of the Hippocratic oath has limits; meanwhile, a bishop is eager to “rid St. Salacious of Marty’s ‘taco-crowd’ have-nots, [and] Sister Catherine’s meddlesome oversight.” This sometimes dark material is handled a fiery wit that keeps the pages turning.

Turker’s own compassion powers the novel, the satire more outraged than outrageous. As he faces religious fervor, bigotry, and good old-fashioned greed in a succession of compelling scenes with whip-smart dialogue, Marty becomes one of the rare voices of compassion and courage in a system that consistently has cared more about the dollar value than the care provided. As Marty becomes a catalyst for change, readers of thoughtful literary fiction, no matter their faith or lack thereof, will find this polished novel’s observations darkly comforting—eventually even hopeful—in the face of rising intolerance and a national health crisis.

Takeaway: Stellar novel of a Jewish doctor bringing change to a corrupt Catholic hospital.

Comparable Titles: Yan Lianke’s Heart Sutra, Kyle Bradford Jones’s Hospital!.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A