Rating: 
Summary: Best book I have ever read
Review: This is one of the best books that I have ever read. It is ammazing the detail of the events that happen in the story. This book has inspired me to do more research on the Ebola virus.
Rating: 
Summary: The Hot Zone
Review: Richard Preston a Best Selling author shows his great talent once again. In this stomach turning novel The Hot Zone. This is the book for a person who enjoys adventure, excitement and someone who is into learning about deadly, infectious viruses. This was the first book I have read by Richard Preston and it caught my eye. This book provides you with front row seats to the Ebola virus and the scary affects it can have on someone if they become infected. This virus does what Aids can do in ten years in ten days. That's how lethal this virus is. Nancy Jaxx is the leading lady of the level 4, the hot zone. She is one of the main characters. She is the leading sergeant in charge of finding out if a host (monkey) has the Ebola virus. The Ebola virus started deep in the rain forest. A scientist went to the rain forest to visit Kitum Cave and he later died. His cause of death was unknown. This book is slow in the beginning but gets faster in the end. Its freaky to know that something this lethal was lose in a laboratory and monkey house in Washington DC.
Rating: 
Summary: Gruesome, detailed, and quite good
Review: A gruesome descriptive true story about a single strain of virus, called Ebola. The first 30 pages nearly made me throw up, because of all the details; details that put the virus into perspective. It starts out in the middle of Africa, with a single man, who traveled to a cave, and later died a horrible death. Written in a very journalistic style Preston, gives many details while developing his story. Preston is the narrator and often refers to himself as I. When doing this and talking about his various interviews and experiences, it helps put Preston as a more accessible person and not so much a mindless narrator. Having the book written in this way made it even more interesting as it does not follow the common writing style. I found it to be very interesting. I read this book for pleasure and found that while this book is very informative it is also a good read. The hot zone is also very thought provoking and helps put the world today into context. You hear about all the different diseases around the world and The Hot Zone puts all of the new viruses into perspective. It tells you exactly how bad a virus can be, and certainly makes you want to stay away from any of the unknown viruses. The book doesn't make the viruses any worse, all it does is tells you exactly what the viruses, mainly Ebola, does. What makes it even scarier is the fact that it is a true story. I thought the book was good and recommend it to anyone looking for a good book and who ever wants to know a little or a lot about viruses.
Rating:
Summary: Good book if you have the stomach for it
Review: This is a good book considering it is very descriptive and very detailed. It starts out talking about one of its (the Ebola virus) victims. It tells how he possibly got the virus and how he died from it within days of contact. It is pretty freaky. It is slow in the beginning but will speed up near the end. Overall I would recommend the book if you are able to handle it.
Rating: 
Summary: The Hot Zone
Review: The Hot Zone by Richard Preston is a good book for educational purposes, but definitely not for entertainment or fun. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about the Ebola viruses. But I was bored, disgusted, scared and annoyed. It was really descriptive and gory. The way that the book described the way somebody died of the Ebola virus scared me to death!!! It also got really interesting and easy to follow until the end of the first chapter. Then I was so bored that I couldn't even follow the book. I couldn't concentrate. I ended up reading part of the book, then starting totally over a few times. I would read for a while then realize that I had been so distracted that I had no idea what I had just read.
The book would build up a lot of suspense then nothing would happen.
Once I read the book all the way through I realized that I had actually learned a lot, but I wouldn't chose to read it again.
Rating:
Summary: Reality Check
Review: This book is absolutly amazing. Most people walk around in their sheltered little world with no thought or idea of what is beyong their boundries. This book really smacks the reader in the face with the truth about what is really out there. If you want a good thrill and can handle the intesity, or even if you are looking for a good book, read this one!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: GREAT BOOK
Review: I'm not a big English book reader, but this book is really fascinating. I got "hooked" with reading this book and I actually read it twice! It's a great book.
Rating:
Summary: The Hot Zone--Hauntingly true, remarkably compelling.
Review: In a manner typical for non-fiction, Richard Preston begins the Hot Zone with a statement regarding the authenticity of what is about to follow. However this breath of normalcy is followed by the most compelling and disturbing bit of journalistic documentary narrative imaginable. Like the proverbial car wreck, the Hot Zone is delectable in its graphic brutality. It is a page turner which keeps suspense neither through plot twists, nor character jumping--but simply through its form and mastery of subject matter. Preston is magnificently thorough, and his writing works by functional simplicity. The Hot Zone is not a book that will grant the warm and fuzzies but it is one which will foster prudence and wisdom. It ought to be read simply because not knowing some of what Preston knows might be the most dangerous form of ignorance. Preston shows that perhaps the most frightening aspect of deadly viruses is not simply the virus but the human response to viruses. Beyond this fact, the Hot Zone is truly unforgettable, life altering, and a highly recommended read.
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Summary: Truly fascinating account of virus outbreak
Review: I picked this book up after I had finished taking a microbiology class because I had heard it mentioned during a lecture on hemorrhagic viruses and Ebola. I never had any idea that there was actually an outbreak of the virus in the States, so reading this account was truly fascinating. Preston aptly details the events surrounding the outbreak of the virus in suburban Virginia, replete with enough drama and suspense to rival any work of fiction. We get access to the inner workings of the Army's Medical Research Institute of Infections Diseases during this period and it is fascinating, as well as terrifying, to learn what actually occurs in these places - especially when something goes wrong. The best part of the book, in my opinion, is the description of the drama that enfolded when a strain of the Ebola virus was found to be killing off monkeys in Virginia: how the Army initially handled it, the impact on the lives of the individuals involved, the posturing between CDC and Army for control of the situation and the virus, and the ultimate conclusion. If you are remotely interested in the potential devastation that can be wrought by viruses, especially in this age of bioterrorism, then I would definitely recommend reading this book.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely terrifying - and its not fiction
Review: This is the 1st book of what Richard Preston now refers to as his Dark Biology trilogy. He is undoubtedly one of the most informative writers on this topic, which certainly should be giving great cause for concern.
This account is well researched, and certainly gives you the 'horrors' of what could yet come to pass.
After reading this, do read his other 2 works : The Cobra Event is a novel, all the more effective for the background knowledge he had acquired, and The Demon in the Freezer is a non-fictional account about Anthrax & Smallpox.
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