Books by Amy Rogers
REVERSION
Rabies kills. Can it also cure?
Dr. Tessa Price knows what it’s like to lose a child to a genetic disease. To spare another mother this pain, she invents a radical new gene therapy that might save the life of seven-year-old Gunnar Sigrunsson. Unable to get regulatory approval to treat Gunnar in the US, she takes her clinical trial to the Palacio Centro Medico, a resort-like hospital on a Mexican peninsula where rich medical tourists get experimental treatments that aren’t available anywhere else.
When the hospital is taken over by a brutal drug cartel, Tessa hides with a remarkable trio of Palacio clients-rich Texan Lyle Simmons, his much-younger Brazilian girlfriend, and his protection dog, a German shepherd named Dixie, only to learn that the gangsters aren’t the only deadly threat they face. A rabies-like infection that began in the Palacio’s research chimpanzees has spread to humans. Tessa investigates and finds a shocking connection to her gene therapy experiment. In the wake of this discovery, Tessa must weigh the value of one human life against another-including her own.
Praise for Reversion
“A smart, tightly written, scary science thriller.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Reversion has everything I love about science thrillers: an exotic setting, a brilliant protagonist, a terrifying villain, and a story that takes readers on a wild ride across the frontiers of science. It’s a fun, frightening and memorable novel.” –Mark Alpert, Scientific American editor and author of Extinction
“Rogers artfully blends science and suspense in this top-notch thriller. Fans of Michael Palmer and Robin Cook will love this book.”– Brian Andrews, author of The Calypso Directive
THE HAN AGENT
Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist
Modern biotechnology propels an ancient ethnic rivalry to a terrifying new level…
In the 1930s, Japanese scientists in China committed heinous crimes in their quest for the ultimate biological weapon.
The war ended. Their mission did not.
Eighty years later, Japanese-American scientist Amika Nakamura won’t let rules stand between her and scientific glory. When the ambitious young virologist defies a ban on the genetic manipulation of influenza, she’s expelled from the university. Desperate to save her career, she accepts a position with a pharmaceutical company in Tokyo. Soon after, a visit to a disputed island entangles her in a high-profile geopolitical struggle between Japan and China. Applying her singular expertise with bird flu in a risky experiment may be the only way out. Little does she know that Japanese ultra-nationalists and a legacy of unpunished war crimes lurk in the shadows, manipulating people, politics, and science.
But DNA doesn’t lie. Amika uncovers a shocking truth: a deadly virus is about to put the “gene” in genocide.
Praise for The Han Agent:
“Amy Rogers’s latest medical thriller is as exciting as it is frighteningly realistic. It could be tomorrow’s headline. Here is a story fraught with tension, and threaded through with scientific accuracy and speculation that will leave you stunned.”—James Rollins, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Sigma Force series
“In this gripping thriller by Amy Rogers, World War II-era history, ultranationalism, and biological genocide intertwine. The Han Agent is a surefire genre hit, fast-paced and full of elements of mystery and adventure. Science fiction hounds in particular will dig the information about DNA sequencing, virus detection, and how plagues can spread.” —Foreword Reviews magazine
PETROPLAGUE
UCLA graduate student Christina Gonzalez wanted to use biotechnology to free America from its dependence on Middle Eastern oil. Instead, an act of eco-terrorism unleashes her genetically-modified bacteria into the fuel supply of Los Angeles, making petroleum useless.
With the city paralyzed and slipping toward anarchy, Christina must find a way to rein in the microscopic monster she created. But not everyone wants to cure the petroplague–and some will do whatever it takes to spread it.
From the La Brea Tar Pits to university laboratories to the wilds of the Angeles National Forest, Christina and her cousin River struggle against enemies seen and unseen to stop the infection before it’s too late.
Set in the mountain-ringed Los Angeles basin, this terrifyingly plausible science thriller about good intentions, unexpected consequences, Peak Oil, climate change, experimental biofuels, and the astonishing power of microorganisms will give you pause every time you fill up your car.
Praise for Petroplague:
“It’s wonderful to read a thriller like Petroplague whose author knows her subject backwards and forwards, and demonstrates it on every page…Amy Rogers nails every aspect of L.A., from neighborhoods to our isolation in the event of a disaster like this one.” PopcornReads
“This is the best science-thriller I’ve read this year. Maybe ever.” BookTrib reviewer Seeley James
“Petroplague has earned a spot in the top five on my best of the year list.” ThrillersRockTwitter
“Rogers goes out of her way to actually talk about a scientist and the way science is done as more than just caricatures…” Kevin Bonham, ScienceBlogs.com
SCIENCE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD (nonfiction)
In this fascinating collection, Dr. Amy Rogers holds her nose at a landfill, pets a snake, listens to an iron lung, votes for a science idol, watches fish climb a ladder, buys earthquake insurance, visits a water treatment plant, and much more as she explores the science and engineering behind Sacramento transportation, weather, utilities, ecology, and health.
Whether you live in Northern California or not, you’ll find answers to questions you took for granted, and practical tips that you can use at home—because science is in everybody’s neighborhood.
Where does my garbage go? Why does the price of gasoline go up in late spring? What causes the Delta breeze? Who keeps local mosquito populations in check? What is a vernal pool? Where does my tap water come from? How does Sacramento stay dry during flood season? When should I use a defibrillator? Why is it so hard to roast a turkey? After I flush, what happens?