Shock

Rating:
Summary: Fast reading
Review: This is a fast book to read, is not exactly a medical thriller until the last third of the book but it will keep you interested in the story, the way that Joanna and Deborah solve their problem at the end of the book was a little bit naive, but you have another end?
If this book could be real or not is not the problem, the problem is that I really know women that can't have children and they do anything to have them without thinking the consequences, and if a woman can have some money that she really needs maybe she will give some of her "eggs" with out thinking that maybe the doctor will do something to her body.

Rating:
Summary: This robin's nest should be cooked.
Review: Shock was terribly terribly sad. What a waste of trees. I can't believe that there is a supposedly sequel to this story that went from bad to worse and ended terribly. This was my second Robin Cook misfire. I will not repeat this mistake again. I'm sure there are people who enjoy his books, but I am not one of them. What a waste of time and energy. I love to read and was therefore gravely disappointed. :(

Rating:
Summary: If only someone had warned me...
Review: I, unfortunately, am unable to just stop reading a book--no matter how bad it is. Shock was by far the worst reading experience I have ever had. Everyone here has pretty much summed it up, so I won't go into detail, but holy cow, this was an awful book. The fact that I read it all made it worse, and the fact that I read Oryx and Crake just before make it excruciating. Oy!!

Rating:
Summary: The worst Robin Cook novel ever
Review: One of the worst novels I've read (and definitely the worst Robin Cook novel). A good premise, but it reads like Mr. Cook phoned this one in (or had a ghost writer?).

Skip this one.

Rating:
Summary: Quick reading
Review: I'll admit that the plot was a little out there but I did not have trouble keeping interested in it. I have read better but I still thought this book was entertaining.

Rating:
Summary: Horrible
Review: I usually enjoy Robin Cook and have read all of his books. Some are better than others, but rarely a complete let down. This one, by far, is the absolute worse. I could get by with the characters accomplishing way too much, way too easy, but the ending was totally unacceptable. It's not even a good lead in to a sequel. It was as if while writing the last sentence, he just stopped. I listened to the tape first, and thought it was a mistake. I borrowed the book to verify the ending. It felt like I wasted good money for a book that was missing the last pages. It was just a complete disappointment.

Rating:
Summary: This book stinketh!
Review: Given Robin Cook's phenomenal success, his name usually gets my interest. After listening to the audio version of "Shock", I was sadly reminded that consistently good authors are increasily difficult to come by.

The basic premise of this book is the lengths two Harvard graduates, Joanna and Deborah, go to in order to find out what happened to the eggs they donated to the mysterious Wingate Fertility Clinic. The idea itself is not a bad one and could have lent itself to quite a riveting story. However, this one is so badly done that by the time the lousy ending arrives, you're ready to have Robin Cook sent to the Wingate Clinic to have his head examined.

First, let me air my main complaint with the audio "voice" of the character of Joanna. She's a supposed native of Houston, Texas. The reader's use of a Southern accent is comical and comes off as a Tallulah Bankhead wannabe. It grates mightily on the ear. You can sound Southern without sounding like this.

That said, the other fault lie with Cook's assumption that his readers are going to suspend reality for most of the book. Joanna and Deborah go to great lengths to secure false identities in order to become Wingate employees. For a fertility clinic that is supposedly as secure as Fort Knox, it's surprisingly easy to get a job there. They don't even do criminal background checks, drug tests or call references. In fact, the girls get hired the day they're interviewed! How convenient! It's also amazingly easy to hack into the computer files, too.

Cook's other characters tend to be one-dimensional personalities. Founder Spender Wingate is especially awful as an arrogant, self-absorbed egoist in search of beautiful women and financial success. Head of Security Kurt has pyscho written all over him. Especially his desire to rid the world of "trashy" women. None of these characters are even remotely fleshed our or given true identities.

As others have noted, the book's ending is unacceptable. It has "SEQUEL" written all over it. However, I personally no longer cared what happened to any of these people by this time so I suppose it's apropos of my experience.

All in all, this book stinketh!

Rating:
Summary: 0 Stars
Review: There are only three words to describe this book--What the hell? I picked this book up at the library because I heard that Robin Cook was an interesting writer. Bad decision #1. I read the entire book in fairness to the person who recommended the author. Bad decision #2. I did not burn the book before returning it to the library. Bad decision #3.

As others have said, the plot of the book is completely asanine and unrealistic. If some Joe Shmo had written this book, it would have never been published. I've seen better dialogue in erotic fiction lovemaking scenes. Try reading the book out loud, and you will see how ridiculous some of the conversations are. People just don't talk like that.

I'm still confused about the pigs--were they trying to clone the babies and then have the pigs carry the fetuses? Again--What the hell?

The ending capped off what was a total fiasco of a book. I guess I won't give it away for those of you who enjoy torturing yourselves--but, if you don't ask yourself that recurring question, "What the hell?" at the end of this book, there is something seriously wrong with you.

Thanks, Robin, at least it gives us something to write about.

Oh--there was one redeeming quality to the book--Mr. Cook does not use any profanity, and does not have any gratuitous Stephen King-esque sex scenes. You don't see that a lot these days.

Rating:
Summary: Not too bad
Review: I have read several books by Robin Cook and I will admit Shock was not his best. Although, it was not necessarily bad either. It starts out slow, but eventually the farther you read the more interesting it gets. Cook's books always have me wondering what situation he is going to put his characters into. However, this one was different.
To help pay for school two Harvard grad students reply to an ad that offers to pay them $45,000. The catch is they have to donate some of their eggs. Well, they go through with the surgery and after a year and a half, they want to know what became of their eggs. Little do they know what lies in store for them. To find out what happens you will have to read Shock yourself
Shock definitely was not Cook's best, but I still enjoyed reading it as I did any of his other novels.

Rating:
Summary: Eh
Review: This is the first book I have read by Robin Cook. It was a fun read, but kind of boring. The science and medical story behind it can be believable but it was truly odd. The story on the other hand was not all that believable in the slightest. It was a medical story gone pop. But this will not stop me from reading his other books.