Reviews


GENESIS

With Genesis, [Robin Cook] successfully sheds light on genetic genealogy and some privacy concerns involving its ever-expanding DNA databases.” Associated Press

PANDEMIC

“When there's a scientific breakthrough, Robin Cook doesn't just stand up and cheer. He uses his fertile imagination and writes a novel about its possible perils... By graphically showing what could happen were CRISPR/Cas9 to fall into the wrong hands, the author rings a much needed warning bell about gene editing technology.” Associated Press

NANO

"[Pia] has blossomed into a perfect protagonist for a thriller — gutsy, tenacious, expert in the martial arts and willing to take risks to get to the bottom of a mystery. Nano is one of Cook's best." Associated Press (read the full review)

HOST

"Engrossing... Cook does a good job of making the medicine intelligible." —Publishers Weekly

"Blending a witch's brew of weird science and unbridled greed, Cook's newest medical thriller will boost the blood pressure of anyone facing hospitalization." —Kirkus Reviews

"A medical thriller cannot get any better than "Host." —Associated Press

"[A] terrifying excursion into the world of medicine, money, manipulation and one of the most pressing ethical and public policy issues of our time." —Huffington Post

CURE

"Thirty years after Coma, best-selling medical-thriller writer Cook puts the controversial area of stem cell and intellectual-property research on the examination table." Billy Heller, The New York Post's required reading

"Throw biotech billions, mobsters, Yakuza heavies and brainiac baddies into a metaphorical Mixmaster, whip on high, and you have this soufflé of a thriller from Cook." Kirkus Reviews

"Cure is an exciting medical thriller...The storyline is fast-paced from the moment Laurie begins her autopsy and never slows down...fans will enjoy the latest Montgomery-Stapleton tale." Genre Go Round Blog

"Cook provides an interesting study of the strange bedfellows the biotech business and the mob might make..." Publishers Weekly

INTERVENTION

"Cook can write up a storm and spin a taut tale, every chapter of which ends on a cliffhanger all the way up to an unforeseen conclusion. In the hands of a master, in other words, such confections have real possibilities—and Cook more than delivers. Just the book for the beach bag." Kirkus Reviews

"An exciting medical thriller with a desperate personal spin...Action-packed." Midwest Book Review

"The author...does an excellent job in describing the psychodynamics of Stapleton, whose infant son suffers from neuroblastoma, a childhood cancer. Cook, who was trained as an ophthalmologist, has obviously done a lot of research and acquired extensive knowledge of religion and archaeology." Associated Press

FOREIGN BODY

"Medical-thriller writer Cook has made a tidy sum scaring the bejesus out of his readers with medical catastrophes ranging from Coma (1977) to Seizure (2003). His latest homes in on the phenomenon of medical tourism, a new trend that sees many U.S. citizens traveling to foreign hospitals to obtain low-cost surgical procedures, often spending their recovery time in five-star resorts...Should appeal to the author's many fans." Joanne Wilkinson, Booklist

"As a fan of Robin Cook, I felt reasonably sure I would like Foreign Body before I ever picked it up. I wasn't wrong. The topic of medical tourism is a timely one and raises questions of safety and standards of care outside the U.S. The character of Jennifer Hernandez is very likable, and her ability to gain answers and justice for all of the victims is inspiring. The non-stop action and format of the book make it one that you'll read quickly just to see what happens next." Bookreporter.com

CRITICAL

"Flesh-eating staph germs and for-profit hospitals share billing as the top villains in this year’s medical thriller from Cook." Kirkus Reviews

"Critical is the usual Robin Cook medical thriller filled with plenty of non-stop action and cleverly intermingled with health information, especially about infectious disease in hospitals. Fans of Mr. Cook will appreciate the return of Laurie and Jack, stars of the entertaining Crisisand Marker...The medical master has cooked up another magnificent suspense thriller that will have the audience wondering about hospital stays." Midwest Book Review

"Cook smoothly juggles several subplots...and ekes out maximum value from one of his regular standbys, bumbling hoods. It all adds up to an entertaining mix of suspense, action and education about medical issues." Publishers Weekly

"Critical is a top-notch thriller with the freshness and impact of his earlier efforts...Jack and Laurie...make ideal vehicles for Cook's campaign to raise public consciousness about medicine's pitfalls...Critical is tightly written, and each supporting character is vivid and memorable. The novel is a credit to the medical thriller genre, which Cook is generally thought to have created and made popular." San Francisco Chronicle

CRISIS

"Like his other successful novels, Robin Cook's Crisis mixes relevant social issues with murder and mayhe...Concierge medicine—a health care trend that allows wealthy patients to pay a hefty retainer fee that buys them unlimited 24/7 access to their doctors—sets the stage for Crisis." Carol Memmott, USA Today

"Medical-thriller writer Cook's latest page-turner is played out more in the courtroom than in the hospital...Shocking." Booklist

MARKER

"As in his other novels, including Coma, Outbreak and Harmful Intent, Cook richly develops characters, allowing us to share their most personal thoughts and professional concerns. Add to these likable heroes a compelling medical mystery and growing suspense, and the result is a highly entertaining read. By throwing in scientific and medical procedures as well as philosophical and moral dilemmas, the book also takes on the persona of a social commentary. Commercial fiction at its best is pure entertainment. But Cook, like Michael Crichton, offers readers a smart dissection of contemporary issues that affect us all. Who says science can't be fun?" Carol Memmott, USA Today

"The bestselling physician/author is in top form as he revisits the love/hate relationship between New York City medical examiners Laurie Montgomery and her lover, Jack Stapleton (last seen in 1999's Vector) in this gripping medical chiller...True love runs a rocky course, and the plot thickens before the denouement crackles to an electric edge-of-the-seat finale." Lynn Nesbit, Publishers Weekly

"Fans of Cook's previous thrillers will be happy to see the return of two popular characters." Kristine Huntley, Publishers Weekly

SEIZURE

"A sound message: ambitious doctors and scheming politicians only increase the suffering that, deep down, both want to cure." Kirkus Reviews

SHOCK

"Bestselling Cook (Vector, 1999, etc.) lets loose another infectious medical thriller...Delightfully readable...The girls' masterful verbal swordplay is quite enough to keep the pages singing." Kirkus Reviews

"What a shock: Robin Cook fuses stem cells with a suspenseful tale. Robin Cook's latest medical thriller may seem like yet another example of the author's uncanny ability to anticipate national controversy, in this case the uproar over federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. After all, the Harvard-trained medical doctor-turned-novelist has been writing well ahead of the public-debate curve since his breakout novel, Coma, nearly 25 years ago." Jay MacDonald, BookPage

"Robin Cook's name is synonymous with medical thrillers. He's landed many books of this kind on the national charts over the last two decades. His latest, Shock, focuses on subjects that are in the headlines—embryonic and stem cell research." Daisy Maryles, Publishers Weekly

ABDUCTION

"If you've yet to read Robin Cook's innumerable...medical thrillers, start now." Michael Hudson, Amazon.com

VECTOR

"Robin Cook has written plenty of scary medical thrillers, but his latest, Vector, is probably the scariest...One very cleverly plotted thriller." Waka Tsunoda, The Baltimore Sun

"Doctor Cook, King of the Mind-bending Medical Thriller (from Coma to Invasion to Toxin), returns with a swoon-worthy killer-poison more dangerous than any before it...Cook himself believes that a bioterrorist event is, without question, locked into our future. Not really a thought to minimize, as his cautionary tale observes." Kirkus Reviews

"Readers know they can count on Robin Cook for a thriller that never lets up in intensity until the final page, and Vector is no different. It's a true page-turner, with a little levity thrown in for good measure...Cook has a super-charged story to tell, and as usual, he tells it very well." Lloyd Armour, BookPage

SPHINX

"Rates top marks for unmitigated tension and surprise...Cook weaves ancient past and wicked present marvelously together." Los Angeles Times