Rating: 
Summary: A Page Turning Thriller with Interesting Technical Info
Review: Rising Sun took the form of most Crichton tech thrillers mixed with just enough action and suspense to keep the reader plunging ahead not only for the plot action but also to learn about the endless technological wonders that are in store. Overall the book was good and opened my eyes to yet another world living "below the surface" of regular society. This time Crichton chose the corporate world of Japanese in America and a relatively simple murder case to ignite an international incident. The book takes the reader on a ride through the upper class businesses and underground bars and karioke clubs of the Japanese in L.A. This mixed with Crichton's exciting explanations of cutting edge technology (this time in digital video) made for a page turner that, when finished, I could even brag that I learned something. This one even came packed with a deep economic warning steering us away from our continued and growing dependence on Japan. The only thing that I didnt like about this one was the first person view in which Crichton chose to write it in. At times it seemed to have a choppy flow and an almost childish "he said she said" way about it. Overall, the book was a fast read and, like almost all Crichton I've read, suprisingly educational and enjoyable at the same time. A good read for any Crichton fan or anyone wanting a fast reading novel with an edge of truth.
Rating: 
Summary: Another Crichton Classic
Review: The books is even better than the movie. It had my total attention! The characters were well laid out. Capt. Conner and his antics were utterly great! At times, he seemed a reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes :-)
Rating:
Summary: I liked it, but hard on Japan
Review: I enjoyed this book. The tech. aspect is what gets me. The overall book is good, but I do feel that it cuts a little too harshly on the Japanese. Throughout his book, he fails to mention that not all Japanese fall into the stereotype he describes. If, as you get into it, you forget that this is fiction, you may come away with some of his views, and that is unfortunate. Apart from that, the book is worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as it should have been
Review: I liked Rising Sun but I felt there were too many comments about the japanese people that polluted the story. The scenario is good, the multimedia/video side of the book is interesting, the political aspect becomes boring after a while. I would however recommend the reading of Rising Sun since I enjoyed it overall.
Rating:
Summary: A murder of a young, American woman; technology solves!
Review: A great novel by Michael Crichton that involves the differences between the Japanese culture and the American culture. A murder takes place in a building where both Japan and the U.S. are making a business deal. The mystery is solved by the uses of modern technology.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice story, terrible economics
Review: Michael Crichton knows his trends. Airline safety, dino-mania, international trade... he's got them pegged. Too bad he didn't bother to learn much about international trade before writing this book, which repeats uncritically the silliest of the anti-free-trade arguments, arguments which have been posed and answered for the past two hundred years.This isn't the only book in which Crichton does this - "Airframe" has a ludicrous speech about safety regulation buried in the middle - but here, it plays a central plot role. Nowadays, of course, the theories of Japan's "managed trade" have been proven wrong by the state of their newly-punctured bubble economy, and some of the policy wonks and journalists who no doubt inspired many of the points in this book have turned around on the "Japanese wealth machine" view. I doubt many people will be reading this book in five or ten years, but if they do, it will be an amusing historical footnote to the times in which it was written - times in which people believed there was such thing as a "trade war," or that foreign investment was somehow bad, or any number of other discredited propositions. Of course, as before, the protectionists have been spouting off for two hundred years without coming up with a single new argument, and yet they still show up around election time every year, so maybe this book will still have an audience.
Rating:
Summary: not bad
Review: A pretty good read -- not too obvious like some thrillers, and full of interesting tidbits on Japanese culture. The author's view of the Japanese "threat" seems a little outdated, given recent economic events.
Rating:
Summary: A VERY GOOD BOOK!
Review: This is a very good book, one of his BEST! The only downside is that there is too much vulgarity. This was one of his best books, and very long. I am very glad of that fact. You should definitly read this if vulgarity does not affect you much.
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Summary: Crichton's look at the Japanesse inside a great thriller
Review: I loved this book. Crichton is perfect. I coundn't put this down. I read this in less than a 24-hour period and its nearly 400 pages. Great book great book great book. It has become a bit dated because the Japanesse business surge has lessen. I still recommend it because of its great story. What I can't believe is the reviews I read here! This book is not offensive to the Japanesse businesses. It simply points out the cultural differences between American dirty business and Japanesse dirty business. He takes a very objective look at both countries people and business and shows why we are losing the battle. He also gives extremely competent opinions of how to fix the problems. I read a review by The New York Times that put into words what I thought after reading this. "Every so often, a work of popular fiction vaults over its humble origins as entertainment, grasps the American imagination and stirs up the volcanic subtexts of our daily life. Uncle Tom's Cabin was that kind of book; so was Laura Z. Hobson's Gentleman's Agreement. Michael Crichton's 8th novel, Rising Sun, a thriller set against the background of current American-Japanesse tensions, is likely to be another...That he should now write so passionately and engagingly on matters of Japanesse culture and the survival of a free and productive America- that is the true surprise of Rising Sun...Rising Sun exposes the raw nerves of a country in profound economic distress, of a people with declining faith in themselves, their leaders and their past, a people very uneasy about their future. Despite the book's provocative tone, Mr.Crichton is no xenophobe, no fool, no ranting bigot. The questions he poses are of great consequence in the debate about America's condition at the end of the American century. What more could one ask of a work of popular fiction?"
Rating:
Summary: An clever and intriguing plot
Review: This is one of the best novel I've ever read since it requires more than a passive reader. To fully appreciate it, the reader must actively put himself in the shoes of the main protagonist in order to keep up with the events in this criminal labyrinth.
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