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23Faces
Posted May 30, 2009
Good until the end
This was the first book by Robin Cook that I ever read. I did enjoy it and found it to be a good page-turner. The characters were well developed and the story had lots of twists and turns. Unfortunately, the shocking ending that I expected never came; therefore, I felt disappointed at the end. Overall though, good read.
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New_Mexico_Critic
Posted April 8, 2009
This book is full of red herrings
This book has many twists and turns in it. Several "Red Herrings" leaves you guessing until the end about the outcome. It is an excellent book and well worth reading and I suspect re-reading at some future time.
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mrp
Posted March 2, 2009
Crisis give new meaning to Narcissism
Robin Cook has been around a very long time, and still delivers. I was riveted the whole time I was reading this. Good job!
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Anonymous
Posted July 13, 2008
If this is not one of his best, I'm excited to read others that are better...
This is a GREAT plot and ending when you get around the 'stuff'. And the 'stuff' is just maybe a few too many words...it's all great anyway. If you haven't read the book yet, look away quick! Okay gang ... this is how I understood the ending ... Craig Bowman considered Patience Stanhope such a PP 'problem patient' that he decided to get rid of her. His research allowed him to pass on the tetrodotoxin poison residue in the bottle along with the Zoloft which she shouldn't have taken until bedtime (Jack saw the bottle in Craig's medical bag). Being the hypochrondriac she was, she took the pill too soon, which put her death at a very inconvienent time for Dr. Bowman and at a time when she wasn't alone as she might have been at bedtime, meaning her death could have been pronounced by him as a heart attack and no questions asked. Then, he didn't count on his brother-in-law medical examiner coming on to the scene, so he had to hire the goons to threaten his daughters if an autopsy was done. By that time, he already had his house refinanced and the money stashed in banks overseas, so all he had to do was bail if anything was found in the autopsy. Then, he assumed the identity of Ralph Landrum, probably a PP he had already done away with using the same MO. Jack wasn't fooled after he spoke with Alexis, and will call the authorities to tell them Craig is in Cuba so they can be on the lookout for him (my assumption!).
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Anonymous
Posted November 21, 2007
Interesting twist at the end
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was tough for me to keep it down. I usually read when travelling and although I was lseepy at times, this book managed to keep me awake and interested in knowing more. It has a very interesting end, definitely unpredictable. Very weel written, gets a little slow at times, but catches the speed again in 4-6 pages.
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Anonymous
Posted September 24, 2007
Highly recommend
Crisis was my first Robin Cook book. I thoroughly enjoyed the book enough to go and by all 26 of his other books that I¿m now reading. I never thought that I would be truly sucked into a medical thriller enough to look forward to reading every evening. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.
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Anonymous
Posted March 19, 2007
Okay but not great
I have been a fan of Robin Cook's novels since I read Sphinx maybe a decade ago and have gotten exicited whenever a new Robin Cook novel comes out. However, I must say that I was disappointed with Crisis. I think he has written one too many medical mysteries and is running out of scenes and ideas. The most interesting part about the book was the court room scenes. What I found hard to understand was the medical terms, can the average person read those or do they really care. It seems as if he was just trying to fill up the required amount of pages and just wrote the same information over and over again,I skipped alot of the words some of the pages. I might just skip his next book if it mentions anything medical. Another point that made no sense to is why would Dr. Craig Bowman want or allow another autopsy on Patiece Stanhope if he had murdered her. Did'nt he think there was a possiblity that his handwork would have been picked up. The way the book finishes (could hair colour really make such a difference)with an open ending leads me to beleive that while Craig was not a really likeable guy, he was not the killer but he will come back in a later novel to solvle the mystery surrounding the demise of Patience Stanhope.
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Anonymous
Posted March 9, 2007
Highly Recommended
I found Crisis to be one of the best of Robin Cook's books yet. Ranks right up there with 'Toxin'.
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Anonymous
Posted December 11, 2006
Robin Cook doesn't disappoint readers
I haven't finished the book yet, almost, but this is a real page turner. I have read every book he has ever written and I think this tops all other books he has written. Keeps your interest and makes it hard to put down.
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Anonymous
Posted February 8, 2007
intelligent pulp fiction
This book, while a bit slow was well worth the read. It mirrors the pace of life under the circumstances detailed. Still, one can sense the clock winding down on the marriage thing. I don't have a problem with the loose ends ending. The beginning alluded to it. The only thing that I didn't get is why Dr. Bowman didn't object to the autopsy unless he already had his mind made up. He is a sequel unto himself and more interesting than Jack, who is the focus of the book. Overall, it is a book that puts you in the situation with a good fit and takes you for a worthwhile ride. I don't regret taking it.
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Anonymous
Posted December 8, 2006
Disappointing for sure
I have been hooked on Cook since Coma but the past few years have shown a downturn in his writing. It seems the more he 'retires', the worse the books get. He also seems to be becoming fixated on younger women. I see a theme here. Anyway, Cook's use of words that I don't know are increasing. Here are a few examples...antipode, grist, schadenfreude. Cook even has a character explain the meaning of the last word and then another character uses the word 'carp' as a verb. I have no idea what it means to be carped. I also found myself reading only the first sentences of the ending paragraphs because it became boring. I agree with the other critics on this list, the ending was quickly written, the terminology was bad, and overall it was a bit boring. Not even close to his previous suspense thrillers. I would classify this as drama. I am disappointed because for years I would almost salivate at a Cook book coming out. But no more. From now on I will read these reviews with more gusto.
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Anonymous
Posted October 15, 2006
What did I miss?
I am a serious reader and a medical secretary. There was so much medical terminology that without some training, a dictionary would have been needed. I was also confused by the lack of conclusions. I had too many unresolved questions at the end of the read. I wouldn't recommend it.
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Anonymous
Posted November 8, 2006
Not one of the best
This book was somewhat different than his other books. The court room sessions were too long and not enough exciting mystery. Good, but not his best.
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Anonymous
Posted September 11, 2006
Not an Entertaining Read
Too much medical terminology and the characters are stilted and lack depth. A boring book. Disappointing and not up to Mr. Cook's usual style.
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Anonymous
Posted September 14, 2006
What a Disappointment!
Would someone explain the ending of this ridiculous, long winded book to me? I'm fairly intelligent and literate, but am sitting here scratching my head. Nothing is explained! Loose ends everywhere. Im glad I got it at the library and didnt pay for this.
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Anonymous
Posted September 5, 2006
Different from the others
In his latest medical thriller Robin COOK introduces us to Dr. Craig Bowman and brings back Dr. Jack Stapleton. Dr. Bowman has recently made the transition into 'concierge medecine', a form of practice where a doctor is on retainer for a select group of rich patients. Coincidentally he is also in the midst of a mid-life crisis wihch he is indulging to the fullest. Then suddenly one of his patients, Patience Stanhope, a known hypocondriac, experiences chest pains and dies before Bowman gets her to the hospital and her husband sues for malpractice alleging that his wife died because Bowman made a house call instead of having an ambulance transport her immediately to the hospital. The first day of the trial shows that this will not ba an easy case, and so bowman's wife calls her brother Dr. Jack Stapleton who is a medical examiner in New York City and about to get married. He immediately agrees to fly up for a few days and see what he can do help Bowman's case. After reviewing the files he makes a seemingly innocuous decision to exhume the body and run some tests to disprove the alleged malpractice. Unfortunately the results aren't anything expected and so the case takes an unforeseen twist and leads to a predictably surprising end. From surprise to surprise COOK has written yet another topical expose of issues curently confronting the world of medicine. First and foremost, is the comparison of the benefits and draw-backs to concierge medical practices vs. fee-for-services practices. Then there are the issues of medical legal defenses, the insurance company lawyer vs. the the ambulance-chaser-type lawyer. COOK weaves medical science with suspense with legalities as he (again) explores the grey area that exists in modern-day medical and health-care ethics. CRISIS is not as entertaining as his previous books, and COOK has a definite biais against concierge medecine but all in all an interesting read.
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Anonymous
Posted November 2, 2006
BAD ENDING
I found this book quite a page turner, as Cook's books generally are. In fact, his style of writing makes me feel as if I've drunk several cups of coffee in a couple of hours. However, I was dismayed at the ending. It seemed that the author suddenly got tired of writing, and ended abruptly. It didn't make sense. No time in the book did you feel that Craig was a murderer. Okay, he wasn't a very likeable guy, and Cook got that across. The ending just didn't make sense, the author suddenly made a 180 degree turn. It was almost as if he was told by his publisher that the book was too long, finish it now! This book could have been so much better. I like Jack Stapleton, and I look forward to reading about his exploits now that he's married! But, please, take more time and thought on the ending.
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Anonymous
Posted August 15, 2006
I wish...I wish...
Really hate to read a book with one hand and look up words with another. Medical and legal terms aside, do people really talk like a doctoral thesis? Liked the story, didn't like the two-bit words when a one-bit word would do nicely.
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Anonymous
Posted August 14, 2006
to drawn out
i have read many books by mr cook but i have to say this one was a disappointment.. i felt it was to long and i found the people in the story were not very likeable also the ending was anti climatic to say the least.
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Anonymous
Posted August 20, 2006
Better than some
Enjoyed the book but a little too much medical detail. The ending came up quickly and left me with questions not answered--kidnapping for example, who did it? All in all though, a good Robin Cook novel. I would recommend it.
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