Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview

  • The First Patient

  • A Novel
  • By: Michael Palmer
  • Narrated by: Phil Gigante
  • Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (23 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The First Patient

By: Michael Palmer
Narrated by: Phil Gigante
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £22.99

Buy Now for £22.99

Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Gabe Singleton and Andrew Stoddard were roommates at the Naval Academy in Annapolis years ago. Today, Gabe is a country doctor and his friend Andrew has gone from war hero to governor to President of the United States.

One day, while the United States is embroiled in a bitter presidential election campaign, Marine One lands on Gabe's Wyoming ranch, and President Stoddard delivers a disturbing revelation and a startling request. His personal physician has suddenly and mysteriously disappeared, and he desperately needs Gabe to take the man's place. Despite serious misgivings, Gabe agrees to come to Washington.

It is not until he is ensconced in the White House medical office that Gabe realizes there is strong evidence that the President is going insane. Facing a crisis of conscience - as President Stoddard's physician, he has the power to invoke the 25th Amendment to transfer presidential power to the vice president - Gabe uncovers increasing evidence that his friend's condition may not be due to natural causes.

Who? Why? And how? The president's life is at stake. A small-town doctor suddenly finds himself in the most powerful position on earth, and the safety of the world is in jeopardy. Gabe Singleton must find the answers, and the clock is ticking.
©2008 Michael Palmer (P)2007 Brilliance Audio
Medical Suspense Thriller & Suspense
Show More Show Less
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The Coroner cover art
The Gray Man cover art
Midnight Caller cover art
Digital Fortress cover art
Lightning cover art
Any Means Necessary cover art
Elantris (3 of 3) [Dramatized Adaptation] cover art
Gameboard of the Gods cover art
Coercion cover art
The Foundation cover art
Flash cover art
Thr3e cover art
Altar of Eden cover art
Extinction Red Line cover art
American Assassin cover art
Point of Impact cover art

Critic reviews

"[An] over-the-top yet endlessly entertaining thriller....The roller-coaster ride of a plot builds to an undeniably shocking conclusion." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The First Patient

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    12
  • 4 Stars
    6
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.co.uk reviews

Amazon reviews
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for hjw

Excellent

Stunning book and very well read. One of the best.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Fee

Oh dear!

I couldn’t write a novel, I definitely couldn’t be a narrator so who do I think I am? But... felt formulaic, poor narration and seriously, worst last line ever.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for faye

predictable but still enjoyed it.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Perhaps not

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

A little less obvious. There was no doubt as to the "baddie".

Have you listened to any of Phil Gigante’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Not sure voice is familiar. Not bad at all as a narrator.Very clear.

Could you see The First Patient being made into a movie or a TV series? Who would the stars be?

Possibly - sort of thng I can see as a film with Martin Sheen as the dad.

Any additional comments?

I will try other books by this author despite finding it very predictable. I read, listen to hundreds of suspense/mystery books and really there are only so many stories to be told. Others might find it less obvious.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for ligsy

Mediocre book, awful narrator

I struggled with this until almost the end, but eventually abandoned it. The story is OK-ish. Nothing particularly spectacular, but in the hands of a good narrator like Ray Porter or Scott Brick it would be entertaining. This chap, however, is AWFUL. There's no other way to describe his overblown story telling, appalling pseudo-female voice interpretations, and poor understanding of punctuation when reading aloud. Simply AWFUL. Don't waste your time.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!