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Fatal Cure
Doctors Angela and David Wilson believe that they have found personal and professional bliss when they leave the stresses of urban life for a state-of-the art medical centre in Vermont. Swiftly, their happiness disintegrates as mysterious and unexplained deaths become more than coincidences.
447 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
122 people are currently reading
2,634 people want to read
About the author
Robin Cook
182books4,881followersLibrarian Note: Not to be confused with British novelist Robin Cook a pseudonym of Robert William Arthur Cook.
Dr. Robin Cook (born May 4, 1940 in New York City, New York) is an American doctor / novelist who writes about medicine, biotechnology, and topics affecting public health.
He is best known for being the author who created the medical-thriller genre by combining medical writing with the thriller genre of writing. His books have been bestsellers on the "New York Times" Bestseller List with several at #1. A number of his books have also been featured in Reader's Digest. Many were also featured in the Literary Guild. Many have been made into motion pictures.
Cook is a graduate of Wesleyan University and Columbia University School of Medicine. He finished his postgraduate medical training at Harvard that included general surgery and ophthalmology. He divides his time between homes in Florida, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where he lives with his wife Jean. He is currently on leave from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He has successfully combined medical fact with fiction to produce a succession of bestselling books. Cook's medical thrillers are designed, in part, to make the public aware of both the technological possibilities of modern medicine and the ensuing ethical conundrums.
Cook got a taste of the larger world when the Cousteau Society recruited him to run its blood - gas lab in the South of France while he was in medical school. Intrigued by diving, he later called on a connection he made through Jacques Cousteau to become an aquanaut with the US Navy Sealab when he was drafted in the 60's. During his navy career he served on a nuclear submarine for a seventy-five day stay underwater where he wrote his first book! [1]
Cook was a private member of the Woodrow Wilson Center's Board of Trustees, appointed to a six-year term by the President George W. Bush.[2]
[edit] Doctor / Novelist
Dr. Cook's profession as a doctor has provided him with ideas and background for many of his novels. In each of his novels, he strives to write about the issues at the forefront of current medical practice.
To date, he has explored issues such as organ donation, genetic engineering,fertility treatment, medical research funding, managed care, medical malpractice, drug research, drug pricing, specialty hospitals, stem cells, and organ transplantation.[3]
Dr. Cook has been remarked to have an uncanny ability to anticipate national controversy. In an interview with Dr.Cook, Stephen McDonald talked to him about his novel Shock; Cook admits the timing of Shock was fortuitous. "I suppose that you could say that it's the most like Coma in that it deals with an issue that everybody seems to be concerned about," he says, "I wrote this book to address the stem cell issue, which the public really doesn't know much about. Besides entertaining readers, my main goal is to get people interested in some of these issues, because it's the public that ultimately really should decide which way we ought to go in something as that has enormous potential for treating disease and disability but touches up against the ethically problematic abortion issue."[4]
Keeping his lab coat handy helps him turn our fear of doctors into bestsellers. "I joke that if my books stop selling, I can always fall back on brain surgery," he says. "But I am still very interested in being a doctor. If I had to do it over again, I would still study medicine. I think of myself more as a doctor who writes, rather than a writer who happens to be a doctor." After 35 books,he has come up with a diagnosis to explain why his medical thrillers remain so popular. "The main reason is, we all realize we are at risk. We're all going to be patients sometime," he says. "You can write about great white sharks or haunted houses, and you can say I'm not going into the ocean or I'm not going in haunted houses, but you can't say you're n
Dr. Robin Cook (born May 4, 1940 in New York City, New York) is an American doctor / novelist who writes about medicine, biotechnology, and topics affecting public health.
He is best known for being the author who created the medical-thriller genre by combining medical writing with the thriller genre of writing. His books have been bestsellers on the "New York Times" Bestseller List with several at #1. A number of his books have also been featured in Reader's Digest. Many were also featured in the Literary Guild. Many have been made into motion pictures.
Cook is a graduate of Wesleyan University and Columbia University School of Medicine. He finished his postgraduate medical training at Harvard that included general surgery and ophthalmology. He divides his time between homes in Florida, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where he lives with his wife Jean. He is currently on leave from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He has successfully combined medical fact with fiction to produce a succession of bestselling books. Cook's medical thrillers are designed, in part, to make the public aware of both the technological possibilities of modern medicine and the ensuing ethical conundrums.
Cook got a taste of the larger world when the Cousteau Society recruited him to run its blood - gas lab in the South of France while he was in medical school. Intrigued by diving, he later called on a connection he made through Jacques Cousteau to become an aquanaut with the US Navy Sealab when he was drafted in the 60's. During his navy career he served on a nuclear submarine for a seventy-five day stay underwater where he wrote his first book! [1]
Cook was a private member of the Woodrow Wilson Center's Board of Trustees, appointed to a six-year term by the President George W. Bush.[2]
[edit] Doctor / Novelist
Dr. Cook's profession as a doctor has provided him with ideas and background for many of his novels. In each of his novels, he strives to write about the issues at the forefront of current medical practice.
To date, he has explored issues such as organ donation, genetic engineering,fertility treatment, medical research funding, managed care, medical malpractice, drug research, drug pricing, specialty hospitals, stem cells, and organ transplantation.[3]
Dr. Cook has been remarked to have an uncanny ability to anticipate national controversy. In an interview with Dr.Cook, Stephen McDonald talked to him about his novel Shock; Cook admits the timing of Shock was fortuitous. "I suppose that you could say that it's the most like Coma in that it deals with an issue that everybody seems to be concerned about," he says, "I wrote this book to address the stem cell issue, which the public really doesn't know much about. Besides entertaining readers, my main goal is to get people interested in some of these issues, because it's the public that ultimately really should decide which way we ought to go in something as that has enormous potential for treating disease and disability but touches up against the ethically problematic abortion issue."[4]
Keeping his lab coat handy helps him turn our fear of doctors into bestsellers. "I joke that if my books stop selling, I can always fall back on brain surgery," he says. "But I am still very interested in being a doctor. If I had to do it over again, I would still study medicine. I think of myself more as a doctor who writes, rather than a writer who happens to be a doctor." After 35 books,he has come up with a diagnosis to explain why his medical thrillers remain so popular. "The main reason is, we all realize we are at risk. We're all going to be patients sometime," he says. "You can write about great white sharks or haunted houses, and you can say I'm not going into the ocean or I'm not going in haunted houses, but you can't say you're n
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 239 reviews
January 9, 2021
I love hospital series and am a total fan of medical thrillers. Hardly any medical thriller manages to be so bad that I don't want to read it anyway.
Robin Cook's Fatal Cure, however, is so paralyzingly boring that after 20% of the book I simply can't read on.
The medical aspects of the novel relate almost entirely to hospital administration and health insurance billing. And the thriller aspects, which so far have only appeared in homeopathic doses, are so predictable that I don't have to read any further to know what's going to happen.
The book is almost 30 years old and has probably aged really badly. However, I think it wasn't great when it just came out either.
Since one of my resolutions for this year is not to torment myself with books that I don't like at all, this novel will find its way straight onto the public bookshelf.
And no question, from my side this makes 1 star.
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Ich liebe Krankenhausserien und bin ein totaler Fan von Medizinthrillern. Kaum ein Medizinthriller schafft es, so schlecht zu sein, dass ich ihn nicht trotzdem lesen will.
Robin Cooks Todesengel ist allerdings so lähmend langweilig, dass ich nach 20 % des Buches einfach nicht mehr weiterlesen kann.
Die medizinischen Aspekte des Romans beziehen sich fast ausschließlich auf Krankenhausverwaltung und Krankenkassenabrechnung. Und die Thriller-Aspekte, die bisher nur in homöopathischen Dosen aufgetaucht sind, sind sowas von vorhersehbar, dass ich nicht weiterlesen muss, um zu wissen was passieren wird.
Das Buch ist fast 30 Jahre alt und vermutlich wirklich schlecht gealtert. Ich glaube jedoch, dass es auch nicht toll war, als es gerade frisch herausgekommen war.
Da ein Vorsatz von mir für dieses Jahr ist, mich nicht mehr mit Büchern abzuquälen, die ich so gar nicht mag, wander dieser Roman ohne Umwege in den öffentlichen Bücherschrank.
Und keine Frage, aus meiner Sicht gibt das 1 Stern.
Robin Cook's Fatal Cure, however, is so paralyzingly boring that after 20% of the book I simply can't read on.
The medical aspects of the novel relate almost entirely to hospital administration and health insurance billing. And the thriller aspects, which so far have only appeared in homeopathic doses, are so predictable that I don't have to read any further to know what's going to happen.
The book is almost 30 years old and has probably aged really badly. However, I think it wasn't great when it just came out either.
Since one of my resolutions for this year is not to torment myself with books that I don't like at all, this novel will find its way straight onto the public bookshelf.
And no question, from my side this makes 1 star.
---------------------------------------
Ich liebe Krankenhausserien und bin ein totaler Fan von Medizinthrillern. Kaum ein Medizinthriller schafft es, so schlecht zu sein, dass ich ihn nicht trotzdem lesen will.
Robin Cooks Todesengel ist allerdings so lähmend langweilig, dass ich nach 20 % des Buches einfach nicht mehr weiterlesen kann.
Die medizinischen Aspekte des Romans beziehen sich fast ausschließlich auf Krankenhausverwaltung und Krankenkassenabrechnung. Und die Thriller-Aspekte, die bisher nur in homöopathischen Dosen aufgetaucht sind, sind sowas von vorhersehbar, dass ich nicht weiterlesen muss, um zu wissen was passieren wird.
Das Buch ist fast 30 Jahre alt und vermutlich wirklich schlecht gealtert. Ich glaube jedoch, dass es auch nicht toll war, als es gerade frisch herausgekommen war.
Da ein Vorsatz von mir für dieses Jahr ist, mich nicht mehr mit Büchern abzuquälen, die ich so gar nicht mag, wander dieser Roman ohne Umwege in den öffentlichen Bücherschrank.
Und keine Frage, aus meiner Sicht gibt das 1 Stern.
July 26, 2012
I continue to read Robin Cook's novels because they are always suspenseful, with clearly drawn characters, some of whom are the goody-goodies, and others who are the villains. Also he brings something a little different to the thriller by writing about medical situations, an area he knows about as he is a physician. Fatal Cure, insofar as all of this is concerned, is no exception. I read it in only two days so clearly it is a suspenseful story. However, I never think of his novels as being worthy of more than two and a half stars. Wooden dialogue, characters who are often too good or too evil, unlike most real people, and endings that don't quite tie up all the loose strings (well, DID Dr. Portland kill himself or was he murdered????) and, in this particular novel, I have a few specific complaints: the family is offered jobs in a seemingly idyllic town in Vermont and all of a sudden, in one week, Boston, the big, bad city, is a nightmare, with break-ins, sixth graders selling drugs, etc., etc., and conveniently, Cook forgets why people live in big cities and put up with such issues, things like the museums, the nightlife, the cultural activities, the restaurants. In Fatal Cure the family moves to a fictional Vermont town with exactly one movie theatre and two restaurants. That's idyllic? Also, the couple in the story, two of the stupider characters Cook has made up, are both doctors, and the wife has the more lucrative position and earns twice as much as her husband. I suppose that makes Cook think he is liberated, to write such a character, but guess who does 90% of the cooking in the story? Guess who is accused by her husband, at least ten times throughout the story, of being a hysteric? They find a dead body in their basement and he accuses her of being hysterical. C'mon now, she wasn't hysterical enough. Nevertheless, the suspense is why I don't just stop reading his novels. I just wish, after all these years, and all his books, Cook had improved some of the more flawed aspects of his writing.
March 3, 2017
In Fatal Cure, David and Angela Wilson are young doctors who have relocated to Vermont to work in a state of the art medical facility while raising their daughter, who suffers from Cystic Fibrosis. All is not as happy as it seems in this little small town Nirvana. The hospital is in financial trouble due to a contract with an HMO. Patients are dying unexpectedly, and the people at the hospital don’t care.
This novel is very heavy handed in its approach. It’s more about making political statements than telling a good story. This is something that Robin Cook suffers from. He often has good ideas, but his prose and storytelling is weak, as evidenced in this story. Ultimately the story is really about the current situation with healthcare and medical insurance, and not a tale of intriguing fiction. This was a weak novel, one that I would recommend skipping.
Carl Alves – author of Blood Street
This novel is very heavy handed in its approach. It’s more about making political statements than telling a good story. This is something that Robin Cook suffers from. He often has good ideas, but his prose and storytelling is weak, as evidenced in this story. Ultimately the story is really about the current situation with healthcare and medical insurance, and not a tale of intriguing fiction. This was a weak novel, one that I would recommend skipping.
Carl Alves – author of Blood Street
January 1, 2021
3.5
A pesar de que me confundí bastante con la cantidad de nombres creo que me gustó. No me esperaba exactamente cierta técnica que resultó ser el "tratamiento letal" pero sí se sospechan varias cosas nada más al comenzar.
Comencé con "Coma" y seguiré leyendo al autor.
A pesar de que me confundí bastante con la cantidad de nombres creo que me gustó. No me esperaba exactamente cierta técnica que resultó ser el "tratamiento letal" pero sí se sospechan varias cosas nada más al comenzar.
Comencé con "Coma" y seguiré leyendo al autor.
November 23, 2021
Two young doctors complete their residencies in Boston and move out to a small community hospital in the country town of Bartlet, with their nine year old daughter, who has a chronic respiratory condition. With surprisingly high pay packets, two mortgages being offered by the Bank to purchase their own house, and the beautiful countryside, its fresh air and lack of pollution perfect for Nicki’s health condition, it all seems to be too good to be true. And so it proves. The discovery of a body in the cellar of their house, a series of unexpected and unexplained patient deaths, the insistence of the CMV (Comprehensive Medical Vermont) to cut costs, even if patient care is adversely affected, together with the emergence of sexual harassment in the workplace, and the threat of a serial rapist in the hospital parking lot turn their ideal world upside down. While the book has all the requisite elements of a good medical thriller, the recipe backfires. I would rate it as one of the worst Robin Cooks that I have read. Both the physician and his pathologist wife appear to be very thick headed. Can you imagine a doctor losing patient after patient to similar symptoms resorting to the same tests, the same consultants and the same treatment without looking for alternative explanations, even when they stare him in the face? His wife is no better, running to the Police Chief for help time and again, though she is well aware of his antagonistic attitude, and persisting on following her own one track route, despite the threat of physical violence, even death. It is not till nearly the end of the book that a ray of light breaks through the clouded head of the doctor, and the solution to the mystery begins to emerge. Like many of Cook’s female protagonists, Laurie Montgomery, for example, Angela is adamant and refuses to change direction come what may, then, actually appears surprised when the worst happens. A story, which may have been good, but did not make the grade.
March 10, 2019
Robin Cook's Fatal Cure is a Medical Thriller, that fallows the Wilsons a could who are both Doctors. Who move to Barlet, Vermont, eager to start new jobs at the local rural hospital. However we soon , find out that Bartlet is a town with many skeletons in its closet.
Cooks characters are well drawn . However, I did not like Dr.Wadley , nor did I see a point in having his advances toward Angla as a need addition to the story. I found Angla to be someone that I could root for , she seems to be a strong woman, who loves to take charge, even at risk of losing her livelihood.
As for the plot, I think it got stuck on subplots. I think this effacted the pace of the story a while in a negative way. I loved the slice of life element in the plot.
Overall, Fatal Cure gets three stars , because I like it as a whole. The Dr.Wadley thing ruined this books chances of being anything more than a Three.
Cooks characters are well drawn . However, I did not like Dr.Wadley , nor did I see a point in having his advances toward Angla as a need addition to the story. I found Angla to be someone that I could root for , she seems to be a strong woman, who loves to take charge, even at risk of losing her livelihood.
As for the plot, I think it got stuck on subplots. I think this effacted the pace of the story a while in a negative way. I loved the slice of life element in the plot.
Overall, Fatal Cure gets three stars , because I like it as a whole. The Dr.Wadley thing ruined this books chances of being anything more than a Three.
January 10, 2013
I deleted this review by accident but I wanted to say a couple of words about the book. Read it last September 2012 as a new author for me. The book was slow at 1st but picked up steam and really sent the reader in unexpected twists and turns.
While I thought a story based on healthcare would be boring it proved me wrong. The story was good to borderline great. The underlying problem that is causing medical health histaria is so on the mark with this book that it left me wondering about my own medical care I have gotten in past years.
I found myself struggling with the fact that this hospital's medical administration found they could "kill" a few terminal, or near terminal, people and no-one would notice all in the name of "PROFIT". It seems to be too close to reality that I shudder to think that it may actually be happening and no-one really knows it. Goes to show you that you have to always be questioning what is being done to our love ones in the name of humanity and medical treatment.
A must read for people who DON'T believe that the "medical administration machine" is more concerned about making a great profit ahead of our individual medical care is going to find it hard to put this book down.
Would I read it again: yes. Would I recommend it to others: yes.
While I thought a story based on healthcare would be boring it proved me wrong. The story was good to borderline great. The underlying problem that is causing medical health histaria is so on the mark with this book that it left me wondering about my own medical care I have gotten in past years.
I found myself struggling with the fact that this hospital's medical administration found they could "kill" a few terminal, or near terminal, people and no-one would notice all in the name of "PROFIT". It seems to be too close to reality that I shudder to think that it may actually be happening and no-one really knows it. Goes to show you that you have to always be questioning what is being done to our love ones in the name of humanity and medical treatment.
A must read for people who DON'T believe that the "medical administration machine" is more concerned about making a great profit ahead of our individual medical care is going to find it hard to put this book down.
Would I read it again: yes. Would I recommend it to others: yes.
December 3, 2013
The author of this book is in love with his own intelligence. He uses so much medical jargon that it is annoying. He also has an ongoing sexual harassment between an employee and employer while the husband of our victim is constantly demeaning his wife. I only gave this book the 2nd star because through out the book I couldn't guess how the patients were being killed and I kept turning the pages to figure it out.
October 25, 2009
Robin Cook was an MD, and he is apparently disgruntled with the
way the medical field is managed. I don't disagree with him, but reading about it was not much fun. The plot was a bit far-fetched, and the characters were a bit flat. I won't say they were two-dimensional, but I wouldn't go three, either. Is there a 2.5 dimension?
way the medical field is managed. I don't disagree with him, but reading about it was not much fun. The plot was a bit far-fetched, and the characters were a bit flat. I won't say they were two-dimensional, but I wouldn't go three, either. Is there a 2.5 dimension?
July 6, 2012
I don't expect high art from Robin Cook. However, his other books tend to have satisfying endings. This one ended rather abruptly and the shadow of doubt over the main characters was never resolved. Sure, it may be more true to real life than everything tied up in a neat package, but hey, if you're going to make me fear ever going to the doctor again, give me the bow.
June 2, 2023
(4,5)
la verdad empecé a leerlo de casualidad porque no tenía nada para leer y lo encontré en uno de los muchos armarios de casa llenos de libros. sin embargo, me ha sorprendido gratamente y me enganchó mucho más de lo que me esperaba.
la trama te hace quedarte con ganas de saber más al final de cada capítulo y cuando te das cuenta ya llevas casi todo el libro, es genial!!! yo creo que también afecta el hecho de que trata sobre medicina y ya se sabe que es un tema que me interesa mucho jiji
anyways un libro bastante chulo y recomendable:)))
la verdad empecé a leerlo de casualidad porque no tenía nada para leer y lo encontré en uno de los muchos armarios de casa llenos de libros. sin embargo, me ha sorprendido gratamente y me enganchó mucho más de lo que me esperaba.
la trama te hace quedarte con ganas de saber más al final de cada capítulo y cuando te das cuenta ya llevas casi todo el libro, es genial!!! yo creo que también afecta el hecho de que trata sobre medicina y ya se sabe que es un tema que me interesa mucho jiji
anyways un libro bastante chulo y recomendable:)))
April 12, 2018
Robin Cook'un klasik şablonundan bir macera. Özel bir hastane hastaları tedavi etmektense öldürmenin daha ucuza malolduğunu farkeder ve olaylar gelişir. Şimdiye kadar okuduğum Robin Cook romanları içinde istisnasız en sıkıcı olanı.
June 9, 2021
From the very beginning, I was drawn into the plot of this book. It is very well written, has characters that are very well developed and is very suspenseful. This is an excellent example of great fiction. Highly recommended.
May 23, 2019
Blij dat in dit verhaal niet de gedetailleerde lichamelijke beschrijvingen van de vrouwelijke karakters zitten.
December 13, 2019
Thrilling!
June 20, 2012
I have been a Robin Cook fan since his very first book. I recently reread this one as I am always re-reading old favorites.
I am not quite sure what it is I love about this book but I do love it. In the small Vermont town of Bartlet, people are dying mysterious deaths at Barlet Community Hospital and retired doctor (and former hospital administrator) Dr. Hodges wants to know why. He crashes a hospital board meeting, waving the files of several of his former patients, all now dead for strange reasons after staying in the hospital. After being brushed off, he walks home and someone comes to the door. He lets this person in and is beaten to death and then his body disappeared.
Dr. Angela Wilson and Dr. David Wilson are a married couple in Boston who are just finishing up their medical residencies. Angela is a pathologist and David is a doctor of internal medicine. They have an 8 year old daughter Nikki who has cystic fibrosis.
Since they are finishing up their residencies and need to find jobs, they have narrowed it down to three options- fellowships in Boston, academics in New York (thanks to her doctor father) or jobs in Bartlet, Vermont. In Vermont, Angela would become a pathologist at Bartlet Community Hospital and David would join the clinic practice of the HMO who insures most of the town and is the sole HMO holding up the hospital from bankruptcy.
What David and Angela don't know is that the hospital signed a contract where the HMO pays them a set amount per year per person and that is it. The amount was too low and the hospital can't get them to raise the rate. As a result, the hospital is losing money. The board has also been skimming money off the rebuilding efforts and now need a flux of money. One of the patients who died left a 3 million dollar life insurance policy to the hospital. Also, someone is raping nurses in the parking lot but the media does not report it because the hospital asked them not to.
There are some extremely unrealistic things that happen at this point. They had the job interviews and while Angela was being interviewed, the hospital administrator had her, David and Nikki in for the interview then walked them to the professional building for David's interview with the HMO where again, the whole family sat in on the interview. They went home thinking of the idyllic peace and quiet of the town to have trouble parking near their Boston walk up (4 flights of stairs) to find that someone had broken in and then Nikki goes to school only for there to be a 6th grade drug dealer shoot a gun on the playground near her. Cook lays it on too thick.
It gets thicker when the family decides to revisit Bartlet in light of all of that. Would you believe that David and Angela decide on the spot to take the jobs because Nikki asks for a puppy and one of the townspeople offers to sell them one? Or that when they go to tell the HMO and the hospital that they send them over to the bank where the president is waiting to give them first and second mortgages with no application nor credit approval based on having the two new jobs despite the fact that they are deep in school loan debt to the tune of $150,000? And how about this- the banker sends them to a real estate agent who shows them 5 houses immediately, they settle on one, and the papers are signed, the bank mortgages are put into force, and they close on the property the same day. It just doesn't work that way in real life.
The family is pleased to move in but small town life and work at the hospital and the HMO are anything but idyllic and soon becomes a nightmare. On his first day, David is told that the doctor who previously had his office committed suicide in it. Another doctor confides to him that it wasn't done like a suicide and in fact looked like a murder. Angela becomes victim of sexual harassment by her boss. Then the murdered body of the missing doctor is found walled in their basement but the local cops (who hated him) and the local citizens don't care and refuse to investigate.
When Angela begins investigating, she is nearly killed in the hospital parking lot. When she hires an investigator, things take a dangerous turn for the worse. Meanwhile, 6 of David's patients who come into the hospital for things like an abcessed tooth or other problems, suddenly become ill with the same symptoms of drooling, seizures, nausea, vomiting and low white blood counts and often fever and then die. When Nikki's young friend Caroline dies there, David and Angela have to race to save Nikki's life while protecting their own.
There is a lot of mystery, suspense, thrills and chills in this book. Small towns can hold deadly secrets. Will David, Angela, and Nikki all survive to tell the tale?
I am not quite sure what it is I love about this book but I do love it. In the small Vermont town of Bartlet, people are dying mysterious deaths at Barlet Community Hospital and retired doctor (and former hospital administrator) Dr. Hodges wants to know why. He crashes a hospital board meeting, waving the files of several of his former patients, all now dead for strange reasons after staying in the hospital. After being brushed off, he walks home and someone comes to the door. He lets this person in and is beaten to death and then his body disappeared.
Dr. Angela Wilson and Dr. David Wilson are a married couple in Boston who are just finishing up their medical residencies. Angela is a pathologist and David is a doctor of internal medicine. They have an 8 year old daughter Nikki who has cystic fibrosis.
Since they are finishing up their residencies and need to find jobs, they have narrowed it down to three options- fellowships in Boston, academics in New York (thanks to her doctor father) or jobs in Bartlet, Vermont. In Vermont, Angela would become a pathologist at Bartlet Community Hospital and David would join the clinic practice of the HMO who insures most of the town and is the sole HMO holding up the hospital from bankruptcy.
What David and Angela don't know is that the hospital signed a contract where the HMO pays them a set amount per year per person and that is it. The amount was too low and the hospital can't get them to raise the rate. As a result, the hospital is losing money. The board has also been skimming money off the rebuilding efforts and now need a flux of money. One of the patients who died left a 3 million dollar life insurance policy to the hospital. Also, someone is raping nurses in the parking lot but the media does not report it because the hospital asked them not to.
There are some extremely unrealistic things that happen at this point. They had the job interviews and while Angela was being interviewed, the hospital administrator had her, David and Nikki in for the interview then walked them to the professional building for David's interview with the HMO where again, the whole family sat in on the interview. They went home thinking of the idyllic peace and quiet of the town to have trouble parking near their Boston walk up (4 flights of stairs) to find that someone had broken in and then Nikki goes to school only for there to be a 6th grade drug dealer shoot a gun on the playground near her. Cook lays it on too thick.
It gets thicker when the family decides to revisit Bartlet in light of all of that. Would you believe that David and Angela decide on the spot to take the jobs because Nikki asks for a puppy and one of the townspeople offers to sell them one? Or that when they go to tell the HMO and the hospital that they send them over to the bank where the president is waiting to give them first and second mortgages with no application nor credit approval based on having the two new jobs despite the fact that they are deep in school loan debt to the tune of $150,000? And how about this- the banker sends them to a real estate agent who shows them 5 houses immediately, they settle on one, and the papers are signed, the bank mortgages are put into force, and they close on the property the same day. It just doesn't work that way in real life.
The family is pleased to move in but small town life and work at the hospital and the HMO are anything but idyllic and soon becomes a nightmare. On his first day, David is told that the doctor who previously had his office committed suicide in it. Another doctor confides to him that it wasn't done like a suicide and in fact looked like a murder. Angela becomes victim of sexual harassment by her boss. Then the murdered body of the missing doctor is found walled in their basement but the local cops (who hated him) and the local citizens don't care and refuse to investigate.
When Angela begins investigating, she is nearly killed in the hospital parking lot. When she hires an investigator, things take a dangerous turn for the worse. Meanwhile, 6 of David's patients who come into the hospital for things like an abcessed tooth or other problems, suddenly become ill with the same symptoms of drooling, seizures, nausea, vomiting and low white blood counts and often fever and then die. When Nikki's young friend Caroline dies there, David and Angela have to race to save Nikki's life while protecting their own.
There is a lot of mystery, suspense, thrills and chills in this book. Small towns can hold deadly secrets. Will David, Angela, and Nikki all survive to tell the tale?
May 19, 2017
I think that this book is pretty good so far. I also like the medical aspect of the book.
compared to the 1st part, the second part is much better.
compared to the 1st part, the second part is much better.
June 20, 2015
Honestly, I had a love-hate relationship with this book the entire time I was reading it. Mostly hate-hate, though. I don't think I would have gotten through the novel had I not been trying to escape end of the year homework and studying for finals. It was so long and tedious, and just plain boring for more than half the book. And I am not kidding when I say half the book. Nothing. Happens. At. All. It's, like, 500 pages and 200 of those could be thrown away, thanks to the excess and unnecessary details Mr. Cook likes to add in there. I'm all for description, but when the author basically writes intricate paragraphs about the weather or how pleasant the town was repeatedly, all I can think is, "You think you're so smart, don't you?" My favorite line that displays his arrogant diction: "...he commenced his walk". Commenced? Seriously? What couldn't you just have said, "He continued to walk", or something less formal and snooty?
I'll give him this however: when the plot starts going, you can't pull yourself away from the book. And... that happens, like, five times throughout Fatal Cure, and each example is spread out from the others. I was really excited at the end, because of this, and for a few chapters I thought maybe I'd end up giving it three stars instead of two. I was wrong, unfortunately. The "disease" turned out to be something stupid, the killer was just plain dumb, and the resolution was so... cliche. And not even in a good way, where you feel all warm inside while knowing you're being pathetic.
All in all, I'm glad I read this book -- just so I can say I finished such a monsterous read -- but I can't say I enjoyed it much. I'll admit this guy's pretty darn smart, and I still applaud him for writing and publishing several novels (as well as starting his own genre, or so I've heard). I mean, how much can I really judge an author's work when I can barely sit down and write a chapter of my own story? Heh.
I'll give him this however: when the plot starts going, you can't pull yourself away from the book. And... that happens, like, five times throughout Fatal Cure, and each example is spread out from the others. I was really excited at the end, because of this, and for a few chapters I thought maybe I'd end up giving it three stars instead of two. I was wrong, unfortunately. The "disease" turned out to be something stupid, the killer was just plain dumb, and the resolution was so... cliche. And not even in a good way, where you feel all warm inside while knowing you're being pathetic.
All in all, I'm glad I read this book -- just so I can say I finished such a monsterous read -- but I can't say I enjoyed it much. I'll admit this guy's pretty darn smart, and I still applaud him for writing and publishing several novels (as well as starting his own genre, or so I've heard). I mean, how much can I really judge an author's work when I can barely sit down and write a chapter of my own story? Heh.
Read
January 28, 2011In this book, Robin Cook did an amazing job of keeping you on the edge of your seat. The Wilson’s family moved to Bartlet after a serious of unfortunate events in their life. Bankruptcy and a robbery were just a part of the life they were living. They moved to Bartlet in hopes that it would be a better life for them but something different than what they were asking for. The first few days were awesome until things around the town started seeming suspicious. A suicide of a doctor occurs because all his patients are dying for no apparent reason. When this starts showing up for David Wilson he doesn’t know what to do. A murder crime scene is made in the basement of their house when they find a dead body behind of handmade wall. But this is just the beginning…
Robin Cook had a great way of showing you through words that dreams aren’t always good. Don’t expect too much out of situation because sometimes it can turn on you and you’ll be the one at stake. I loved the way she put the characters in a situation that may actually happen in life. Thousands of people are murdered and hidden every year and in this book that one body changes their whole life. I liked the way you could easier put yourself in a characters position and try to feel what they might have felt. If I had a choice to recommend this book to others, I defiantly would.
Robin Cook had a great way of showing you through words that dreams aren’t always good. Don’t expect too much out of situation because sometimes it can turn on you and you’ll be the one at stake. I loved the way she put the characters in a situation that may actually happen in life. Thousands of people are murdered and hidden every year and in this book that one body changes their whole life. I liked the way you could easier put yourself in a characters position and try to feel what they might have felt. If I had a choice to recommend this book to others, I defiantly would.
December 13, 2013
Another classic.. A really long and good book to keep you coming back for more. The characters strike you as a little stupid because the conclusions and diagnosis is all out there. If I can figure it out, surely the doctor-couple could :). While you're waiting endlessly for this to happen, Cook has managed to unleash several nightmares, all leading up to a delicious, satisfying and a nail biting climax. Too many unwanted deaths but they start becoming predictable. You learn to grow unattached to that detail and focus on how such an overload of suspects could neatly tie up to that one guy.. or gal ;) Guaranteed 20 gasps of horror. :)
October 23, 2021
Robin Cook wins every time. In this well-crafted novel he exposes a danger of the transition of hospital management to business men instead of doctors and of bottom line profits instead of patient care.
David, his wife and child move to an idyllic New England town where the couple can begin their medical careers and work down the huge debt their medical training had created.
The plot thickens when the young couple learn too much about what is wrong at the hospital, and they pursue answers to the questions no one else wants to ask or to be answered.
The novel is an engrossing read.
David, his wife and child move to an idyllic New England town where the couple can begin their medical careers and work down the huge debt their medical training had created.
The plot thickens when the young couple learn too much about what is wrong at the hospital, and they pursue answers to the questions no one else wants to ask or to be answered.
The novel is an engrossing read.
November 9, 2015
Малко по-добра от последните книги на Робин Кук които ми попаднаха, но все пак страдаща от главния му недостатък - авторът просто не може да създава реални персонажи.
Наистина, всичките му герои са толкова глупави, че на моменти ми се иска да има как да ги ударя. Книжката иначе не е лоша - е, вероятно освен ако не сте с лоботомия, ще разплетете загадката много преди "неочаквания" финал, но това не пречи.
Наистина, всичките му герои са толкова глупави, че на моменти ми се иска да има как да ги ударя. Книжката иначе не е лоша - е, вероятно освен ако не сте с лоботомия, ще разплетете загадката много преди "неочаквания" финал, но това не пречи.
January 25, 2020
Not a Jack and Laurie book, but still good. This one centers on HMOs and gee, surprise, the people with more expensive illnesses are inexplicably dying. But at the same time, nurses and doctors are also getting some of the same symptoms at a milder level. Of course, there is the usual side drama including dead bodies and small town cliques, assaults and egos. The end is not what you’d expect.
September 11, 2021
Un inicio un tanto confuso por la cantidad de personajes que se presentan. Una vez que la familia Wilson se muda a Bartlet empieza a ponerse interesante. Como en los libros que llevo leído del autor, abundan los datos y términos médicos, así como algunas situaciones inverosímiles pero que, si se pasan por alto, permiten una lectura entretenida y ligera.
November 26, 2024
Nostalgie
September 21, 2018
I rereadFatal Curea few weeks ago. It was a very fast re-read, while searching for the other book I was reading then (which was finally found under a sofa cushion). I'd planned to look up just a few pages, but ended up reading almost the whole book again. Sigh. I should be less easily distracted, but it's not my fault.
Robin Cook sprang upon our attention in the 70s, coming up with one best-seller after another. Mostly, the protagonist of the books was a young woman doctor, facing some or the other prejudice (sometimes, extreme prejudice!) and a mystery. There would be some life-or-death situation, medicine, more medicine, friends, supporters, evil villains, you name it, basically the paradigmatic medical thriller. As a result, I was firmly convinced the writer was a woman, and poutily refused to believe that he was, in fact, a man after all.
And, despite the change in technologies and many more writers entering this field, Robin Cook remained a name to conjure with.
Now, looking back with a more jaundiced eye, I feel the characters in the books were less solid than I'd originally thought, and the writing was more simplistic than simple. Or maybe the editors felt less confident in tackling a Big Name author as the bestsellers piled up.
Anyway, this one starts with a bang. Para three onwards:
Part of Sam's good fortune had always been his health, yet at half past four on February seventeenth, something strange began to happen. Numerous water molecules within many of his cells began to split apart into two fragments: a relatively inoffensive hydrogen atom and a highly reactive, viciouslydestructivehydroxyl free radical.
As these molecular events transpired, Sam's cellular defenses were activated. But on this particular day those defenses against free radicals were quickly exhausted; even the antioxidant vitamins E, C, and beta carotene which he diligently took each day could not stem the sudden, overwhelming tide.
That's actually the key to the whole mystery. If you know what the diagnosis is, you can work out the who, why, andhow of the rest of the story as the rest of the clues come up. But you can't, can you? Even if you are a doctor. Robin Cook specialises in the obscure medical fact and the complex interconnections of hospitals and doctors and the entire ecosystem. You think it's a spoiler? Hey, it's paragraphs 3 and 4 of the whole book! Blame Cook, not me.
So, you have new doctors Angela and David Wilson joining a town hospital after getting sick of the big city. (This part is very reminiscent of Grisham'sThe Firmin how the new recruits are wooed).Their paradise gets its first jolt when a missing man turns up dead and buried in their new house. Then David's patients start dying despite all his very best efforts, just like those of his suicide predecessor. And Angela's boss starts harassing her. The more they probe, the more the locals close ranks against them.
Despite some clunky scenes every now and then, the book pushes on relentlessly to its inevitable conclusion. (Actually, I don't believe that people are so grimly decent and polite as American novelists make them out to be. But that's a quibble.)
To be honest, the story is better than I'm letting on, and the writing is, well, Robin Cook. An easy read for a lazy Sunday or two. If you like medical thrillers, this is a shoo-in.
[Reviewed in 2012, uploaded here now].
Robin Cook sprang upon our attention in the 70s, coming up with one best-seller after another. Mostly, the protagonist of the books was a young woman doctor, facing some or the other prejudice (sometimes, extreme prejudice!) and a mystery. There would be some life-or-death situation, medicine, more medicine, friends, supporters, evil villains, you name it, basically the paradigmatic medical thriller. As a result, I was firmly convinced the writer was a woman, and poutily refused to believe that he was, in fact, a man after all.
And, despite the change in technologies and many more writers entering this field, Robin Cook remained a name to conjure with.
Now, looking back with a more jaundiced eye, I feel the characters in the books were less solid than I'd originally thought, and the writing was more simplistic than simple. Or maybe the editors felt less confident in tackling a Big Name author as the bestsellers piled up.
Anyway, this one starts with a bang. Para three onwards:
Part of Sam's good fortune had always been his health, yet at half past four on February seventeenth, something strange began to happen. Numerous water molecules within many of his cells began to split apart into two fragments: a relatively inoffensive hydrogen atom and a highly reactive, viciouslydestructivehydroxyl free radical.
As these molecular events transpired, Sam's cellular defenses were activated. But on this particular day those defenses against free radicals were quickly exhausted; even the antioxidant vitamins E, C, and beta carotene which he diligently took each day could not stem the sudden, overwhelming tide.
That's actually the key to the whole mystery. If you know what the diagnosis is, you can work out the who, why, andhow of the rest of the story as the rest of the clues come up. But you can't, can you? Even if you are a doctor. Robin Cook specialises in the obscure medical fact and the complex interconnections of hospitals and doctors and the entire ecosystem. You think it's a spoiler? Hey, it's paragraphs 3 and 4 of the whole book! Blame Cook, not me.
So, you have new doctors Angela and David Wilson joining a town hospital after getting sick of the big city. (This part is very reminiscent of Grisham'sThe Firmin how the new recruits are wooed).Their paradise gets its first jolt when a missing man turns up dead and buried in their new house. Then David's patients start dying despite all his very best efforts, just like those of his suicide predecessor. And Angela's boss starts harassing her. The more they probe, the more the locals close ranks against them.
Despite some clunky scenes every now and then, the book pushes on relentlessly to its inevitable conclusion. (Actually, I don't believe that people are so grimly decent and polite as American novelists make them out to be. But that's a quibble.)
To be honest, the story is better than I'm letting on, and the writing is, well, Robin Cook. An easy read for a lazy Sunday or two. If you like medical thrillers, this is a shoo-in.
[Reviewed in 2012, uploaded here now].
December 4, 2022
En el género thriller, si hay una fórmula que siempre resulta efectiva es la de las historias que se desarrollan en pequeños pueblos con una comunidad muy unida, donde se pueden esconder los más oscuros secretos.
Robin Cook, maestro y pionero del thriller médico, utiliza este recurso para crear una historia muy atmosférica (detalle que no acostumbra usar en sus más de treinta publicaciones) que posee un reparto de personajes coral donde todos y cada uno (hasta los más secundarios) tienen un protagonismo relevante que pondrá a prueba al lector hoja tras hoja.
El hospital donde ocurren los hechos también se erige como un personaje principal debido a que hasta el jefe del banco está conectado de alguna manera con la trama.
Los detalles que conforman a lo que Cook describe como el pueblito de Bartlet, Vermont, recuerdan a esos idílicos parajes en Estados Unidos donde parece que la gente es muy unida y servicial; de hecho la historia comienza casi como algo que no estuviese escrito por el autor.
Robin aprovechó el pico de su fama en los años noventa para hacer crítica con respecto a la reforma del sistema de salud que se desarrollaba en aquel momento, donde se priorizaba las ganancias de las instituciones médicas por encima de la calidad asistencial así como también el desplazo de autoridades con conocimiento médico en cargos de dirección para colocar a empresarios que poco sabían de medicina. En muchos pasajes del presente libro fue muy tajante al respecto, reflejando una preocupación por una reforma que finalmente se logró y que se mantiene hasta el día de hoy, para desgracia de todos los norteamericanos: Medicare.
Yendo hacia el final de la historia, se puede decir que se desarrolla de manera escalonada: Cook no coloca todos los elementos juntos y en pocas páginas (como suele hacer en sus últimos libros) sino que va armándolos de tal manera que sea el lector que tenga que prestar especial atención a las piezas colocadas para luego deducir en el prefacio como todas estaban conectadas de una manera fascinante.
Robin Cook en los noventa publicó muchos libros con gran éxito (se podría decir que muchos de ellos superaron el suceso de su primera obra, "Coma") que lo cimentaron como el referente del género. Se destacan de esta época el presente libro que se está reseñando y algunos otros como "Contagio", "Invasión" (el Cook que más se acerca a la ciencia ficción), "Cromosoma 6", "Terminal", que cimentaron el género y generó una oleada de autores que siguieron la fórmula médica con resultados similares en la era pre CSI (Patricia Cornwell, Michael Palmer, Michael Crichton - Que incluso dirigió la adaptación cinematográfica de "Coma" protagonizada por Michael Douglas - ). El que escribe estas líneas dirá siempre que el mejor Robin Cook, estuvo en los años noventa. Lo que vino después se puede discutir.
En síntesis, "Curación fatal" es un libro que vale mucho la pena ser leído. De lectura rápida y amena, si se tiene algo de voluntad se puede leer casi en su totalidad en una sola noche. Otra cosa que hizo este lector que escribe y que quizá recomendaría hacer, pero que no es saludable hacerlo siempre (:P).
¡Hasta la próxima reseña!
Robin Cook, maestro y pionero del thriller médico, utiliza este recurso para crear una historia muy atmosférica (detalle que no acostumbra usar en sus más de treinta publicaciones) que posee un reparto de personajes coral donde todos y cada uno (hasta los más secundarios) tienen un protagonismo relevante que pondrá a prueba al lector hoja tras hoja.
El hospital donde ocurren los hechos también se erige como un personaje principal debido a que hasta el jefe del banco está conectado de alguna manera con la trama.
Los detalles que conforman a lo que Cook describe como el pueblito de Bartlet, Vermont, recuerdan a esos idílicos parajes en Estados Unidos donde parece que la gente es muy unida y servicial; de hecho la historia comienza casi como algo que no estuviese escrito por el autor.
Robin aprovechó el pico de su fama en los años noventa para hacer crítica con respecto a la reforma del sistema de salud que se desarrollaba en aquel momento, donde se priorizaba las ganancias de las instituciones médicas por encima de la calidad asistencial así como también el desplazo de autoridades con conocimiento médico en cargos de dirección para colocar a empresarios que poco sabían de medicina. En muchos pasajes del presente libro fue muy tajante al respecto, reflejando una preocupación por una reforma que finalmente se logró y que se mantiene hasta el día de hoy, para desgracia de todos los norteamericanos: Medicare.
Yendo hacia el final de la historia, se puede decir que se desarrolla de manera escalonada: Cook no coloca todos los elementos juntos y en pocas páginas (como suele hacer en sus últimos libros) sino que va armándolos de tal manera que sea el lector que tenga que prestar especial atención a las piezas colocadas para luego deducir en el prefacio como todas estaban conectadas de una manera fascinante.
Robin Cook en los noventa publicó muchos libros con gran éxito (se podría decir que muchos de ellos superaron el suceso de su primera obra, "Coma") que lo cimentaron como el referente del género. Se destacan de esta época el presente libro que se está reseñando y algunos otros como "Contagio", "Invasión" (el Cook que más se acerca a la ciencia ficción), "Cromosoma 6", "Terminal", que cimentaron el género y generó una oleada de autores que siguieron la fórmula médica con resultados similares en la era pre CSI (Patricia Cornwell, Michael Palmer, Michael Crichton - Que incluso dirigió la adaptación cinematográfica de "Coma" protagonizada por Michael Douglas - ). El que escribe estas líneas dirá siempre que el mejor Robin Cook, estuvo en los años noventa. Lo que vino después se puede discutir.
En síntesis, "Curación fatal" es un libro que vale mucho la pena ser leído. De lectura rápida y amena, si se tiene algo de voluntad se puede leer casi en su totalidad en una sola noche. Otra cosa que hizo este lector que escribe y que quizá recomendaría hacer, pero que no es saludable hacerlo siempre (:P).
¡Hasta la próxima reseña!
January 27, 2020
I have read several books by Robin Cook because I find the medical aspects interesting, most of the time. I took this one from the book box at Starbucks because I wanted some escape reading, frankly. Good thing I wasn't looking for something earthshaking medically.
As is often the case with Cook, the hospital system is under attack. The hospital in this case is in bed with a new HMO, and the HMO calls the shots. Meaning no consultations with professionals outside the network, no "unnecessary" admittances to the hospital, encouragement to cut short times with patients, and so on. A litany of issues we have heard about (or experienced) before.
The HMO issues are the background for the mystery here. Certain patients, who come in for minor issues, are dying unexpectedly. Except that their deaths are not entirely unexpected because they have histories of serious illnesses: cancers, diabetes, other longterm issues that can crop up again. Some doctors are concerned and express that concern but others, and the nursing staff, don't see problems. Symptoms are remarkably similar.
When David and Angela Wilson join the teams (Angela as pathologist for the hospital, David as doctor for the HMO), they are excited about the small city, the clean air, the lack of traffic, the potential for a good life, especially for their daughter, who is afflicted with Cystic Fibrosis.
But it isn't long before they both run into issues. Angela faces sexual harrassment from her supervisor while David faces these strange deaths of his patients. He notes that the symptoms are similar to each other and even when he brings in specialists nobody can find a cause. However, because of the previous illnesses, even the specialists are willing to accept the deaths as "normal". David initially has doubts about his ability as a doctor, but finally comes to realize it isn't his doing. It takes some time for him to come to this conclusion, however.
But what really is happening? and why?
Adding to the complications is the grisly discovery in the family's new house.
It's a story. It hangs together. There is the usual cast of evil characters, primarily administrative types. And there is the usual crusading doctor, David, who is a little less than an understanding husband much of the time. In fact, the discussions between husband and wife often jump to defensiveness and accusations rather quickly. I didn't buy the simplified characters, but that is typical for Cook. The overall story takes precedence.
It's good enough for the airplane.
As is often the case with Cook, the hospital system is under attack. The hospital in this case is in bed with a new HMO, and the HMO calls the shots. Meaning no consultations with professionals outside the network, no "unnecessary" admittances to the hospital, encouragement to cut short times with patients, and so on. A litany of issues we have heard about (or experienced) before.
The HMO issues are the background for the mystery here. Certain patients, who come in for minor issues, are dying unexpectedly. Except that their deaths are not entirely unexpected because they have histories of serious illnesses: cancers, diabetes, other longterm issues that can crop up again. Some doctors are concerned and express that concern but others, and the nursing staff, don't see problems. Symptoms are remarkably similar.
When David and Angela Wilson join the teams (Angela as pathologist for the hospital, David as doctor for the HMO), they are excited about the small city, the clean air, the lack of traffic, the potential for a good life, especially for their daughter, who is afflicted with Cystic Fibrosis.
But it isn't long before they both run into issues. Angela faces sexual harrassment from her supervisor while David faces these strange deaths of his patients. He notes that the symptoms are similar to each other and even when he brings in specialists nobody can find a cause. However, because of the previous illnesses, even the specialists are willing to accept the deaths as "normal". David initially has doubts about his ability as a doctor, but finally comes to realize it isn't his doing. It takes some time for him to come to this conclusion, however.
But what really is happening? and why?
Adding to the complications is the grisly discovery in the family's new house.
It's a story. It hangs together. There is the usual cast of evil characters, primarily administrative types. And there is the usual crusading doctor, David, who is a little less than an understanding husband much of the time. In fact, the discussions between husband and wife often jump to defensiveness and accusations rather quickly. I didn't buy the simplified characters, but that is typical for Cook. The overall story takes precedence.
It's good enough for the airplane.
October 1, 2020
Robin Cook writes an excellent medical mystery. He drops clues but not too many - enough so when the solution is revealed it isn't some thing out of the blue making the reader feel cheated, but not so many that it is easy to figure out. I had some idea and was generally right but the details were intriguing. What he cannot do (in my humble opinion, obviously anybody's mileage may vary) is write characters that I care about. His people are generally fairly one or two dimensional - whatever qualities are needed to move the story forward are there but that's it. This one is impulsive and moody, this one is cheerful and innocent. In fact I don't think it's coincidence that besides the two main 'good' characters, a man and wife medical team, there is a sick child and a dog. You've got to root for the sick child and the dog, right? Even if it wouldn't have bothered me one bit if the two parents had been killed. I cite just one reason among so many. When mom went sleuthing amateurishly after a murderer, trying to find her husband who had already been captured, imprisoned and was facing death after HE had gone to try and find the murderer, she BROUGHT THE SICK CHILD ALONG. Yes, because she could not say no to her child she put her in the car and took her along to chase down the killer. Are you freaking kidding me? I know that was because by now Cook must have known that nobody would give a teeny tiny you know what about the outcome of the conflict between parents and killer unless the child was RIGHT THERE also endangered. So I enjoy his books, they scare me, I read them all the way through, I pick them up at the library when I see them, but I don't seek them out, I don't google other books by Robin Cook. I enjoy them and they pass on with no lasting emotional effect except, of course, the obvious fear of doctors and hospitals.
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