An alcoholic molecular biologist who does some contract work for the CDD is sent to Central America in response to a puzzling virus. Blood and tissue samples are sent back to Atlanta, but further analysis isn’t fast tracked by the CDC.

Struggling actor Sam finally realizes the stage isn’t in his future so he ‘falls back’ on his college major, journalism. He accepts a position at a Las Vegas paper starting out doing mostly fluff pieces. He’s assigned to do some research on the concept of the internet hoax. If the piece pans out, then maybe a bigger assignment on fake news.

It’s autumn in the Nevada desert. In his research, he stumbles across a single item saying that if society fails to address the opioid crises, they will. He tosses it off as a nuisance. A few weeks later, another web threat appears as does what appears to be random billboards in the US and elsewhere around the world. This 2nd mention also adds a deadline. Do something now or on December 1, The League of Orbis Novus will.

From here, the book is one-part medical mystery and one-part a study in investigative journalism. The FBI takes a bit of an interest assigning a novice agent from the Las Vegas bureau because of the potential terrorist connection. Lots of interviews with computer hackers (to track down the source of the internet posts), media types (those billboards), and medical researchers (the science behind the threats). The investigations are being helped a bit by what they think is an Orbis Novus insider.

December 1 arrives. The stream of addicts showing up at emergency departments begins with a trickle, but the daily rates rise throughout the month and the sense of urgency by the media, medicine, and law enforcements ramps up to high gear to find out how are addicts being targeted, how to treat/save opioid abusers that are affected, and how to find the principles in Orbis Novus behind the focused attacks on users. While the deaths mount up, Big Pharma shuts down production, insurance stops payments, big surgeries are postponed. The scope of the (intended or unintended) consequences keeps expanding.

An interesting concept that requires the reader to accept some leaps in faith regarding practical issues in physiology and medicine. Once Sam takes the bit and runs with the story, this book really flies. Easily read in a single sitting . . . just get past the first 3 to 4 chapters of backstory. All in all, an entertaining, if somewhat implausible, escape from the December crush.

This book follows a young news reporter that has been assigned a case on internet hoaxes. His job: find out what makes a hoax stick around....what gives them momentum...what makes people believe them. In the midst of his research her stumbles upon a secret society that has posted a pretty serious threat online. Is this just another hoax? He can’t seem to shake the feeling that this is more. As time passes, he realizes it is, in fact, no hoax and this secret group may be out to do more than just rid the world of opioids. At what cost will the group go to make sure that no one ever uses an opioid again?

This was a crazy read, it was so good as a mystery and I really enjoyed reading it. The characters were great and I was on the edge of my seat reading it.