THE RED LOTUS by Chris Bohjalian

A pandemic tale..

Rats are hardy. There are rat species that evolved in VietNam after surviving napalm and agent orange. Super rats and potential super spreaders.

This story takes place in Vietnam, NYC medical labs and hospitals. The characters are believable. The plot to genetically create a plague virus, and the chutzpah to sell this biological creation to other countries is so timely.

A good author and a good easy to read story

Sounds like a timely and interesting read, Amy. Thanks for the recommendation!