Black Gold: Dr. Whyte Adventure, Book 1

"Black Gold" was an entertaining mystery-thriller, and I would like to read more of Lillian Whyte’s adventures. I empathized with Dr. Whyte’s frustration with some of her patients not doing what they needed to do to maintain their health and just wanting to rely on some ‘miracle pill’ to magically cure what ailed them. She was direct and often rude, but in reality, some people need that. However, her manner extended to her young colleagues, and things were stressful without that attitude. Kudos to the author for setting up where Lillian was mentally and her effect on the people around her. The novel had a lot of action that kept the plot moving forward. There was quite a bit of exposition at the beginning to set up Lillian’s life and the history of “Domino,” but once things got going, they didn’t let up. I liked that Lillian took things into her own hands to get out of danger, and I liked that she retained her suspicions about Sean and the CIA’s part in what was going down around her. I thought the use of horses was a unique device for this genre and enjoyed her helicopter ride. My only negative was the use of French words and phrases by the French vineyard owner. The author sprinkles them throughout his dialogue, and some are just wrong. I knew what the author was trying to say, and it was annoying when incorrect, but not enough to make me stop reading or enjoying the story. I picked this book up for a reading challenge: “Read a book with two different colors in the title.” Well, challenge met, and now I have an exciting, new-to-me series to follow. I recommend BLACK GOLD to readers of mystery fiction or thrillers, especially those who like a medical theme in their stories.