Historical fiction. Based on the life of Ignaz Semmelweis, an Austrian-Hungarian physician known for his research into puerperal fever and his advances in medical hygiene. In the novel he struggles to prove to his fellow doctors that if they would only wash their hands, they would save the lives of many mothers. Semmelweis saw a link between hand washing and disease before the discovery of germs. His discovery was ignored by his colleagues to the detriment of their patients.