{"product_id":"a-quiet-contagion-9780857308498","title":"A Quiet Contagion","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSix decades. Seven people. One unspeakable secret.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 1957. A catastrophe occurs at the pharmaceutical lab in Coventry where sixteen-year-old Wilf is working for the summer. A catastrophe that needs to be covered up at all costs. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 2017. Phiney is shocked by the death of her grandfather, Wilf, who has jumped from a railway bridge at a Coventry station. Journalist Mat Torrington is the only witness. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Left with a swarm of unanswered questions, Phiney, Mat and Wilf's wife, Dora, begin their own enquiries into Wilf's death. It is soon clear that these two events, sixty years apart, are connected - and that Wilf is not the only casualty. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e But what is the link? And can they find out before any more lives are lost? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eA Quiet Contagion\u003c\/i\u003e is a powerfully disquieting mystery for modern times, inspired by the 1957 Coventry polio epidemic and the 1955 Cutter Incident (one of the worst pharmaceutical disasters in US history - which saw thousands of American children mistakenly infected with a live polio vaccine) as well as the more recent global coronavirus pandemic.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePRAISE FOR JANE JESMOND\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 'An original voice in crime fiction' - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eCut Adrift\u003c\/i\u003e (A Best Crime Novel of 2023)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 'Jesmond's delineation of her characters as people with plausible flaws and hot tempers adds depth and complexity to a story that might wear its sentiments on its sleeves, yet which is trimly steered and freighted with contemporary resonance' - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eTimes\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eCut Adrift\u003c\/i\u003e (Thriller Book of the Month)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 'In an over-saturated market, finding a new voice with something compelling to say in the crime writing field can be difficult. Thankfully there are people out there trying to deliver a twist on the genre, and Jane Jesmond is one of them' - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOn Yorkshire Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eCut Adrift\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 'This amazing debut novel from Jane Jesmond will give you all the thrills you've been looking for and keep you gripped from the get-go' - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eFemale First\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eOn The Edge\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 'Evocative, compelling and pulse-pounding' - \u003cb\u003ePhilippa East on \u003ci\u003eOn The Edge\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Verve Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/27\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780857308498\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320","brand":"Jane Jesmond","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43448951799989,"sku":"9780857308498","price":14.44,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_e2d52a98-d0c8-42cb-bfca-b85af8fcf04b.jpg?v=1704214941","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/a-quiet-contagion-9780857308498","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}