Rating: 
Summary: Interesting book playing off an issue of the time
Review: This book was written around 1969, when astronauts were first landing on the moon. There was a serious concern about the possibility, however slight, that there were micro-organisms on the moon that might return to Earth and cause an epidemic. This concern led to the quarantine of returning astronauts (and the rocks they collected) from the first few missions that landed. This ended when the fears proved unfounded. (There is an interesting side note. The second moon landing recovered several pieces of an unmanned probe that had landed several years earlier. It was found that bacteria in the probe had survived the launch, the landing on the moon, and several years on the airless surface of the moon with temperature swings of hundreds of degrees.)This book plays off of this idea of "bad stuff from space causes problems on Earth." There are more than 300 other reviews, so I'll mostly leave the plot alone here. What I liked about it was the sense it gave of scientific investigation of an important topic on a short time scale. Trying to "beat the clock," the scientists have to come up with and discard theories for how the unfamiliar organism works with unaccustomed speed, which (as you might imagine) stresses them out. In parallel with other Crichton books, the action takes place over about a week, with simple errors and accidents costing valuable time. The book is newly relevant with the possibility of "designer" biological agents from labs in rouge nations (or from terrorists) playing the role of the alien infectious agent in the book.
Rating: 
Summary: The Father of the techno thriller at his best!
Review: This is Michael Crichton's first novel (not considering the pseudonym thrillers he wrote while in college). It's also his best and the most thrilling science fiction novel I've ever read. If science fiction to you means aliens, spaceships, monsters and all those things, you're in for a big disappointment. A scoop satellite sent into space to collect micro-organisms for study crash lands in a desolate area of Arizona. Two army officers are sent to retrieve the satellite. But before they get there, people from a nearby town find the wreck, and try to investigate. When the officers reach the town, all they find is deathly silence. Miles away, in Mission Control, the transmission from the officers is monitored, and the last thing heard is a high pitched scream. Further investigations reveal that all the people in the town have been killed. Some just dropped dead on the streets, their blood clotted, and others driven hopelessly insane and finally committing suicide. The only survivors are a drunk old man and a young baby. It's a biological disaster that wiped out the entire town. Immediately, a team of experts is gathered in a top secret underground laboratory to investigate the deadly bacteria code-named 'The Andromeda Strain'. The team must race against time to learn more about the organism, which begins to mutate and take on even more dangerous forms. The biggest mystery, of course, is why the two individuals who seem to have absolutely nothing in common survived... Definitely a best-selling plot. Once again, the high point ot the novel is the technological detail. The secret lab is amazing. It has a decontamination process that takes almost a whole day. The bacteria itself is entirely authentic. As in most Crichton novels, the action is accompanied by essential illustrations to better explain the tests carried out by the scientists. Even if you're a layman, Crichton makes you feel quite comfortable even with all the seemingly technical gibberish. Although there's not much action, the plot is quite thrilling. I read the entire book in a single sitting! The only disadvantage is the climax which is slightly disappointing. Still, it's a fabulous book you simply can't afford to miss. I loved it, and I suppose you will too!
Rating: 
Summary: Stereotypical Crichton Book
Review: This is now the sixth Crichton book I've read and I always seem to come away with the same feeling...slightly disappointed. I always enjoy the immense amount of detail he provides in his books about the subject matter at hand but am always disappointed in character development. His characters are typically very thin and I am left at the end of the book not really caring about how the story ends. If rating this book based on the interesting background on biochemical studies I rate this book a five. If rating the book on character development I rate it a one. Overall a three.
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