The Woman with the Cure by Lynn Cullen

Discover the extraordinary true story of a woman who changed the world by stopping a deadly pandemic in this gripping novel from the bestselling author of Mrs. Poe.

Set in the 1940s and ’50s America, polio is a constant threat that haunts everyone. The disease kills or paralyzes its victims, especially young children, and outbreaks regularly bring American cities to a standstill. With some of the world’s top scientists competing to find a vaccine, the stakes couldn’t be higher.

But for Dorothy Horstmann, the goal is not simply to beat her colleagues to the finish line. Her focus is on making sure that everyone, no matter their background or status, has access to a cure.

Drawing on the same fierce determination that propelled her from a humble immigrant upbringing to become a doctor, often the only woman in the room, she sets out to track down the virus where it hides: in the blood.

Her groundbreaking discovery, coupled with a rival’s misstep, puts her closest colleague in the lead to develop a vaccine. When his chance to save the world arrives on a global stage, Dorothy is faced with a fateful decision: should she risk everything to validate his vaccine, or is there a greater price to pay in the pursuit of a cure?