THE BRILL PILL

In Brodsky’s debut SF novel, a medical researcher grapples with the implications of a miracle drug.

As Will Dalal worked his way through school, the world was rocked by radical developments in medical technology—specifically, the ability to clone entire organs from small tissue samples: “Immortality had never looked so achievable, so tangible, so close. But as always, there was a catch. Though almost all human organs could be replicated with enough precision to replace the God-given ones, the brain often turned out just slightly awry.” Now Will is a postdoctoral fellow in the Genner Lab, where he’s researching medication to help “victims of brain regeneration” whose new brains didn’t come out quite right. The work gives Will purpose in a life otherwise hampered by feelings of romantic frustration and loneliness. Can the medicine that Will is developing—the eponymous Brill pill—really make a positive difference in the lives of the “zombies,” as he likes to think of them? As figures from his past reappear, Will begins to suspect that his efforts could be making the crisis even worse. The author’s prose is cutting and psychological; she briskly captures the evolving relationship between Will and Margot, a librarian who volunteers with the zombies: “They spent a lot of time together without noticing it. That is, Will did not notice it. Margot did. Her life had changed significantly over the past three years, just a little bit at a time, but she was aware of it, and she had let it happen.” Though the book’s premise might suggest a thriller plot, the story unfolds slowly. Brodsky is most interested in the moral implications of Will’s work and its effects on him and those around him. It’s a deliberative exploration of the murky relationship between medical and technological ethics, one that feels especially timely.

A thoughtful, compelling rumination on the human cost of medical advancement.