The Surgeon
by Tess Gerritsen
★ Top 25 book of 2001 · #16 on Best Books of 2001
A Boston killer targets women living alone, and his surgical skill suggests he may be a doctor. Detectives Moore and Rizzoli uncover a link to Catherine Cordell, a medic whose past attacker she believed dead.
Best for: Fans of gripping crime thrillers about serial killers and stalked survivors
The Surgeon is #16 on BookWard's Best Books of 2001, out of 35 2001 books that cleared our data bar.
What The Surgeon is about
Boston is being terrorized by a killer nicknamed "the Surgeon," who tortures and kills vulnerable women with unsettling medical skill. Police suspect he is a physician. The story opens with the death of Elena Ortiz, a murder that links back to an earlier victim, Diana Sterling, killed a year before.
Homicide detective Jane Rizzoli leads the investigation alongside her partner, Thomas Moore. Trauma doctor Catherine Cordell knows this kind of violence personally: years earlier she nearly died in much the same way at the hands of another psychopath, whom she killed. That history leaves Rizzoli wondering whether she is chasing a deranged copycat. As the killer claims a third victim, Nina Peyton, he moves closer to Cordell, while she and Moore grow close in their own way. This is the first book in the Maura Isles/Jane Rizzoli series, suited to readers who like suspense built around trauma, survival, and the feeling of being watched.
The Surgeon on the Best Books of 2001
The Surgeon came out in 2001. Of the 35 books first published in 2001 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #16 on our Best Books of 2001 list.
Why it made the list: 209 readers have shelved it on Open Library. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 2001 list
- Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman Dav Pilkey, #14
- The Noonday Demon Andrew Solomon, #15
- Ella Minnow Pea Mark Dunn, #17
- Tell No One Harlan Coben, #18
See all Best Books of 2001 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2000 Best Books of 2002.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 176 want to read it, 11 are reading it now and 22 have read it, according to Open Library.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 46 | 55% |
| Reader love | 80 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 54 | 20% |
Questions about The Surgeon
When was The Surgeon published?
The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen was first published in 2001.
Was The Surgeon one of the best books of 2001?
The Surgeon is #16 on BookWard's Best Books of 2001, out of 35 2001 books that cleared our data bar. 209 readers have shelved it on Open Library.
Why is The Surgeon on the Best Books of 2001 list?
209 readers have shelved it on Open Library.
More of the best books of 2001
- American Gods Neil Gaiman, #1
- Eat That Frog! 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time Brian Tracy, #2
- Crucial Conversations Kerry Patterson, #3
- Point Blanc Anthony Horowitz, #4
- Getting Things Done David Allen, #5
- Unbroken Laura Hillenbrand, #6
See the full Best Books of 2001, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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