Better than the previous novel - Rated 
In my opinion, the last books from Robin Cook are somewhat disappointing when compared to his previous books such as "Contagion" and "Chromosome 6". In spite of that, I found "Crisis" very enjoyable and a quick read. I must confess it got me hooked until the end although in several parts the book was predictable and some characters deserved more space in the novel. Fortunately, the book is better than "Marker".
Read Not to Be Entertained, But to Learn - Rated
There's a lot to admire about the author. He started writing novels as a way of bringing medical issues into the public eye, and he still does that today. This 2006 novel introduces readers (well, I'd never heard of it before) to concierge medicine, which...well, read the book, and that should explain it. But this novel is more medico-legal than the author's previous medical thrillers. I'm fascinated with all the medical issues the author explores, but purely as a reader I have trouble enjoying the characters and the writing. Though Dr Latasha Wylie is a gem. So I don't read these novels for entertainment: I read to learn, and I'm very grateful to Dr Robin Cook for that.
Some kind of "between" book from Cook - Rated 
I'm one of those devoted fans of Cook who orders his books in hardcopy as soon as they get out (I don't want to wait for paperbacks or translations) and in the past I have enjoyed many of his books taking up ideas completely new and/or settings in exotic places - but this one was a disappointment. This was set more in courtroom than in hospital and was more about the systems around medicine in the States than a thriller. Especially for foreign readers, not having the type of problem with medical treatment the States has (I'm from Finland, Europe), this books is of little interest.
How did this get published? - Rated
It's hard to think when I last read such an amateurish and slipshod piece of work and I'm amazed it ever made it past an editor and into publication. Apart from the paper thin characters, numerous plot holes, narrative inconsistencies, a multiplicity of unresolved loose ends and an entirely predictable and wholly unsatisfactory ending, Cook seems to be using the novel to work out his many and varied prejudices which range from private medicine and medical malpractice litigation, to tobacco, caffeine, traffic and, oddly, Boston. Indeed, if anybody cared enough they could make a case that the book was anti-semitic and racist. Perhaps worse than all this is Cook's bizarre writing style and cloth-ear for dialogue which confuses frequent recourse to the thesaurus with erudition. It is profoundly irritating. But in the end, I hated this book not so much for its many faults, but for the cynicism that lies behind it. This was the first Robin Cook book I have read and it will be the last. But Cook seems to have a devoted fan base who deserve better.
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