Duty to Die — Janice Thompson

Duty to Die, a "what-if" fictional thriller set in the not-too-distant future, comes almost too close for comfort in a society lacking a sanctity for life. Can death be packaged in such a way that it actually begins to look like a viable option for those in distress? If so, what will the consequences be for the elderly, terminally ill, and disabled? When does life end...When the body ceases to function properly? When the quality of life doesn't meet certain standards? And who has the right to make the decison...except God? Duty to Die attempts to answer all of these questions.

The story is shockingly close to reality: Congress has enacted the "Duty to Die" law, forcing euthanasia on wide groups of children and adults who find themselves meeting the definition of "defective" according to the new law. A frightened young woman with a terminal illness, a new mother with a baby born with birth defects, a young man marked with HIV, and others fight against all odds. The "Duty to Die" law interferes with the rights guaranteed every American citizen in the Fourteenth Amendment. But who has the courage to fight this injustice? How can the raging tide be turned in time to save innocent lives?