| Plum Island | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Nelson DeMille |
| Publisher | Grand Central Publishing |
| Publication date | April 1, 1997 |
| Pages | 528 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-446-51506-X |
| OCLC Number | 36277962 |
| Dewey Decimal | 813/.54 21 |
| LC Classification | PS3554.E472 P57 1997 |
| Preceded by | Spencerville |
| Followed by | The Lion's Game |
Plum Island is a 1997 novel by American author Nelson DeMille. It introduces NYPD detective John Corey, convalescing on the North Fork of Long Island from gunshot wounds sustained in the line of duty. The local chief of police Sylvester Maxwell asks Corey to act as consultant in a local murder investigation, the two victims Tom and Judy Gordon being personally known to Corey and, worryingly, employees on the Plum Island Animal Disease Center, a facility suspected of carrying out biological warfare research. The other parties involved in the investigation are Beth Penrose, a Suffolk County detective, George Foster, an FBI agent and Ted Nash, who claims to represent the Department of Agriculture, but is immediately recognised by Corey as a CIA "spook".
While the others pursue the "popular" theory (that the murder had to do with the potential theft of biological weapons) or persist in perpetuating the government's concocted tale (that the scientists stole a secretly developed vaccine), Corey develops his own theory. He continues the investigation, despite being officially released from his duties.
During the course of his investigation he develops a relationship with the president of the local historic society, unearths clues to a centuries old mystery, risks his life on the high seas, and battles modern day pirates. The conclusion is typical of the real world, where things are not wrapped up in 47 minutes, like on TV. Some mysteries are never solved, sometimes the Good Guy does not win completely.