Rating: 
Summary: Seized by Seizure!
Review: Robin Cook has done it again. He kept me up way too late and had me wondering about the correct pronunciation, if not meaning, of medical terms. There was even a timely medical ethics theme. I'm not sure he did what he set out to do however. The further I read the more convinced I was that he intended it to be a black comedy. But after finishing the novel and reading his notes, it seems he was deadly serious. In any event I loved it and can't wait for someone to put it on the screen. I even have a fantasy cast in mind, including Leslie Neilson and perhaps John Travolta. If you liked Pulp Fiction you'll love Seizure. Read it now, then wait for the movie. I'm sure it will come soon!
Rating: 
Summary: Insultingl;y sloppy work from a former decent writer
Review: Robin Cook has produced some intriguing and entertaining novels in the distant past. Even if his work was always stamped with a trademark formula, and was largely "by the numbers" and overly plot-driven, his earlier work nonetheless provided a bit of interest. His thrillers were thrilling, as they should be. "Seizure," however, is remarkably bad. The characterizations are nothing more than cartoons. This isn't even "plot driven," as the novel is so weak, and so flimsy, that it barely has a plot. It is as if Cook had a pretty good idea for a book, then turned the assignment of actually writing it over to his 20 year-old neice (or whomever, but someone of dubious writing talent). The poor craftsmanship and crappy execution of this lame attempt is offensive to me. Cook has demonstrated in the past that he has talent for churning out readable thrillers. If his work has now dropped to this low of a level, however, he may soon find himself out of a market for even his pulp fiction product. Avoid this book! And if you know Cook, tell him he owes me six quid, the price of his lastest ghastly mess.
Rating:
Summary: Insultingl;y sloppy work from a former decent writer
Review: Robin Cook has produced some intriguing and entertaining novels in the distant past. Even if his work was always stamped with a trademark formula, and was largely "by the numbers" and overly plot-driven, his earlier work nonetheless provided a bit of interest. His thrillers were thrilling, as they should be. "Seizure," however, is remarkably bad. The characterizations are nothing more than cartoons. This isn't even "plot driven," as the novel is so weak, and so flimsy, that it barely has a plot. It is as if Cook had a pretty good idea for a book, then turned the assignment of actually writing it over to his 20 year-old neice (or whomever, but someone of dubious writing talent). The poor craftsmanship and crappy execution of this lame attempt is offensive to me. Cook has demonstrated in the past that he has talent for churning out readable thrillers. If his work has now dropped to this low of a level, however, he may soon find himself out of a market for even his pulp fiction product. Avoid this book! And if you know Cook, tell him he owes me six quid, the price of his lastest ghastly mess.
Rating: 
Summary: Forgettable fluff
Review: Robin Cook is considered the master of the medical thriller. A best-selling author since his debut novel COMA, Robin Cook sets the bar as to what it takes to write a solid medical thriller. In this case, his book revolves around the possibility of using genetic engineering to cure diseases.
Senator Ashley Butler has Parkinson's disease. He has Presidential aspirations and will seek out any possible cure of the disease no matter how long the odds are. He focuses in on a promising start up company run by Dr. Daniel Lowell who invented a technique to implant DNA into the brain to stop the disease. The problem is that it has never been tested on humans. Butler doesn't care and demands the treatment while holding over Daniel's head the possible passage of a bill that will kill his company. Will it work?
Cook weaves a whole book around the premise of genetic engineering. Given his long-term history of writing medical thrillers, he has a whole host of stock devices in an attempt to create a more exciting plot. However, the plot gets increasingly contrived and unrealistic as the book moves along. Is it really necessary to throw Italian gangsters into the mix? Why must the DNA come from a certain substance that reeks of divinity? Stock characters do not add any substance to the work. The disappointing and predictable ending is an appropriate exclamation point for this bit of fluff.
Rating:
Summary: It almost gave me one
Review: Robin Cook's thrillers used to pace the genre, worthy of praise like "heart-pounding" and "pulse-racing"...but this book was so wooden, it was dead on arrival. I don't know why the dialogue was so poorly written (the characters never used contractions, and frequently made ridiculous exclamations, like 'my heavens!'), the plot incredibly slow to take shape and the twists telegraphed chapters in advance. Finally, the rapid climax is so unexpected, it feels like half the book is missing and Cook had to get the title to his publisher. Frankly, this was a parody of a good Robin Cook work...the ethics he promises to examine are explored mostly in the afterword. If you want to read this book, just take two minutes and look at the flap jacket--that's the entire story, right there. Just terrible.
Rating: 
Summary: Carpe Diem
Review: Seize the day. Cook has propelled the reader into the brave new world of stem cell technology. The book is the author at his very best. After a lackluster summer, we finally have a winner. The characters are compelling and the action is all too real. You do not need a doctorate in cellular DNA to know that this book is right on the edge. Cook makes people think about the moral dilemna of a technology that is far outstripping its moral code. This may be his best book in a while and I read it non stop. If you buy one book this summer, Seizure must be it.
Rating:
Summary: I didn't seize, I slept
Review: Sorry Robin but this book was a sleeper. Many of the ideas were used and worn out in the author's previous books. A great hot topic but too over the edge.
Rating: 
Summary: none
Review: The modern master of medical suspense returns with one of his best, and surely to be one of his most controversial novels to date. 'Seizure' walks a burning tightrope between fact and fiction, theory and scientific breakthrough, miracles and reality, politics and ethics. What (Cook) writes today are tomorrow's medical headlines.
Rating:
Summary: An anticlimax
Review: The pen of Robin Cook has always kept me riveted until the very end of each and every novel except this one. The expectation of the medical action beginning from the start of the novel was sadly lacking in this one. There was too much preamble and emotional jargon that took away from the essence. Also the title does accurately describe what the story was reaaly about which was HTSR. The ending was an extreme disappointment. A true end was not clearly stated and I felt as though there wasn't completion. I love the artistry of Robin Cook and I hope that his future novels will not go down this same road.
Rating:
Summary: Good Subject Gone Bad
Review: The premise behind "Seizure" by Robin Cook is one that is timely and emotionally charged. I fully expected a well studied story line of medical ethics and religiously skewed politics. What a disappointment.
Within the first 50 pages the story becomes contrived and cliche'. Throwing a few medical terms around does not make for an intelligent book, and incorporating contrived mafia figures into the mix does not make for intrigue. Even the gratuitous love story is shallow and obviously as dissatisfying to the characters as it was to this reader.
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