A Case of Need

Rating:
Summary: A Case of Need...Underrated
Review: A case of need is a book that you can't put down. It is highly underrated and even some Crichton fans haven't heard of it. I definitely recommend reading this book, it is well worth the time

Rating:
Summary: An Old Case of Need
Review: The conflict contained on this book is not too good. You cannot expect something like "Sphere" since eventhough, as usual, Crichton widen our insight by his knowledge, the story is not so "suspense"

Rating:
Summary: Story Line for A Case of Need
Review: A Case of Need is a page-turner. A pathologist called John Berry is investigating the arrest of one of his best friends, Arthur Lee. He is convicted for aborting a girl named Karen Randall. As he goes deeper and deeper into the case, he finds more and more secrets and scandals until he finds a surprising culprit. You'll have to read the rest to find out who. If you like a thrilling story with some medical background then this is a book you'll enjoy

Rating:
Summary: "A Case of Need" educates and entertains
Review: This book is both mentally stimulating and hard to put down. It educates on some of the basics of medicine while maintaining a very good story line and character set. The medical establishment and some of the associated lifestyle choices are brought to question while examining the ramifications of dishonesty and false implications. This book is well worth your time to read!

Rating:
Summary: Decent, but don't expect much
Review: This was an okay book to read. It was entertaining, however, very forgettable. Having finished the book last night, I had already forgotten the main characters name. Crichton deals with abortion in an evenhanded manner. What the story lacks however seems to be any real substance. The story seems very trite and easy to predict each turn that it will take. It does keep you interested while you read it, but only to confirm what you figured out early on. All in all three stars for the lack of depth found in this novel (unlike most Crichton novels.)

Rating:
Summary: It was the _______ who did it!
Review: I thought this was a good book, which was dated, yet dealt with an important topic yesterday as it is today; abortion. It was well written and easy to read. Actually had trouble putting it down. If you are strictly anti-abortion you may not like this book, if you're able to put that aside you may like it. I did slam nurses though and I didn't like that aspect of the book. Given the times when it was written, nurses were really looked down upon. Unfortunately many of those stereotypical misconceptions from the point of view of the doctor still carry over today 37 years later. Also brought up the unwritten law of medicine, never to turn against your brother MD no matter how incompetent and dangerous they practice. Another code still largely unbroken today.

Rating:
Summary: A good "Robin Cook type" novel!
Review: The main character of this book, Dr. John Berry, seems a heck of a lot like Robin Cook's Jack Stapleton. In fact, this book is a lot like a Cook novel except the conspirators that are usually after the hero as he methodically pieces together the clues, are noticeably missing from this book.

Berry is investigating the death of a rich college co-ed who died from an apparent botched abortion. Berry's friend who clandestinely does abortions (this is the pre-Roe vs. Wade era) is the main suspect. Berry uses his medical credentials and general ability to intimidate people to interview everyone that might have known the co-ed or who could be a lead to where she went to have her procedure done.

The author gives a lot of explanation to many medical terms and the book is a fairly quick read. I would have rated it higher but I felt that the lack of the suspense that normally exists in a Robin Cook novel where the main character has to fight the bad guys, slightly detracted from the book.

Rating:
Summary: How did this book win an award?
Review: I am a fan of Michael Crichton's. Having said that, I felt that the writing style of this particular book was incredibly choppy, and that certain characters were not well developed at all (e.g. the wife!)

The basic premise was very interesting and the book was suspenseful; it moved along at a fast pace. However, Crichton added too many characters, and made the book too dense. I had to skim the last several chapters because I wanted to know what happened at the end, but I was getting extremely bored.

Obviously, he has come a long way since this book :-)
Sigrid


Rating:
Summary: Yes!!
Review: Am I correct in stating that this book is very underrated because it is his oldest work? I assume I am. That is unfair judgement in opinion. A Case of Need is an excellent medical thriller that was written after Crichton graduated from medical school. The plot is very fast paced and the suspense is plentiful. The case is a very serious and heavy one, and is solved throughout the book as more clues are unravelled and revealed.
WARNING: SPOILERS*
The plot concerns a medical doctor, John Berry, who is working in his office one afternoon when he hears of a colleague that has been jailed for the murder of a young woman. Berry immediately takes action, and asks his friend about the situation. He denies to the crime. He also states that the woman came into his office and requested an abortion. He declines the request, and the girl is mysteriously brought in the following morning and dies of vaginal hemorrhage. John Berry attempts to clear his colleague, after a sequence of autopsies, clues, and more mysterious findings. I feel I should not reveal anymore of the plot to you. You need to read the book for yourself and appreciate it. By the national bestselling author Michael Crichton.

Rating:
Summary: An oldie but a goldie
Review: This was a fantastic read, especially considering how long ago this book was written and published. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and in some ways prefer it over his more recent books. I found it somewhat similar to the better Jonathan Kellerman novels. It is a good read for those who enjoy medical thriller/mysteries.