Still considered one of the best of the genre, Coma propelled Robin Cook to the top of his field and earned him a reputation as the "master of the ...
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reviews
Apr 22, 2009
Greg of A2
rated it: 
Okay, who hasn't read this book or seen the movie? It was a phenomenon in its day. And it was a decent suspense, thriller novel. But the only Cook novel I ever read.
Oct 28, 2011
Brian
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* Coma starts out so well and encompasses such a wonderfully sinister plot that it's a shame it had to be written by Robin Cook. I read the author's Shock not too long ago. In the nearly 25 years that had elapsed between the publication of the books, Cook clearly hadn't learned a thing about creating believable characters or plot complications. Why should he, when his books are bestsellers?
* Cook writes like a bad TV show: if you don't approach it passively, you can't possibly enjo More...
* Cook writes like a bad TV show: if you don't approach it passively, you can't possibly enjo More...
May 09, 2011
Sara
rated it: 
I’m ashamed to admit, but I picked this book up after seeing a picture from the movie. The picture showed people hanging from the ceiling (just like the cover of the book) and it was intriguing. The synopsis of the book sounded fun, and since I haven’t read a medical thriller, I thought I would give it a try. Granted, it was weird reading about a character struggling with being one of the few females in the medical profession, and all of the sexism that follows…especially since it was written by
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Feb 08, 2011
Deemah
rated it:
اجابات .. اجابات .. اننا نبحث دائما عنها .. فكما ان لكل علبه غطاء .. ولكل بدايه نهايه .. ولكل سؤال اجابه ..
تظل الاسئله كالهاجس دومـا , عالقه بالرأس .. تأبى ان تتزحزح.. تجعلنا ( بطريقتها ) نخضع لها ..
لكن .. هل نركض خلفها .. هل يستحق الجري عكس التيار لأجلها . ؟ فقط لأننا نرى ما لا يرونه الغير .. ونشعر بما لا يشعر به الغير .. انها مسأله نظرة . مسأله ثقه بالذات ربما ..
" لا أدري .. إن شيئا وراء كل هذا .. شيئا خارقا للطبيعه .. شيئاً مشؤماً "
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تظل الاسئله كالهاجس دومـا , عالقه بالرأس .. تأبى ان تتزحزح.. تجعلنا ( بطريقتها ) نخضع لها ..
لكن .. هل نركض خلفها .. هل يستحق الجري عكس التيار لأجلها . ؟ فقط لأننا نرى ما لا يرونه الغير .. ونشعر بما لا يشعر به الغير .. انها مسأله نظرة . مسأله ثقه بالذات ربما ..
" لا أدري .. إن شيئا وراء كل هذا .. شيئا خارقا للطبيعه .. شيئاً مشؤماً "
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Mar 29, 2011
Julia
rated it: 
This book was huge when it first came out. I read it when I was in my teens and loved it. It was probably the first medical thriller I've ever read. I saw the movie when it was released staring Michael Douglas (love those books to movies), and back then it was pretty scary. Probably that was due in large part to my youth. Everything is scarier when you're a kid.
The premise of this book is wicked; going into the hospital for routine surgery and never waking up from the anesthetic. I thi More...
The premise of this book is wicked; going into the hospital for routine surgery and never waking up from the anesthetic. I thi More...
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Jun 25, 2008
Kris
rated it:
I read A LOT of medical mystery books in high school, but Coma is one my favorites of this genre. The storyline is plausible enough that it won't make you roll your eyes, and Robin Cook is good at keeping things tense enough that you want to keep reading. If you like this one, he has a lot of others that are fun to read.
Jan 10, 2012
Samantha
rated it:
Coma is a fun thriller to read if you don't want to think too much. I enjoyed it for its fast pace and it was definitely a page-turner towards the end. On the negative side, the characters (especially the female protagonist) were pretty one-dimensional and the plot line was a bit too predictable for me (I had never seen the movie or had the ending spoiled, but I figured it out pretty early on). The most frustrating part was that it made no sense for the protagonist to suddenly ditch all of her m
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Aug 26, 2011
Sanjay
rated it:
As i am 18 years Old...I have read a few books of indian authors..when i was gazing at the shelves of a book store..i found a row of books by ROBIN COOK...as i am very interested in Thriller type plots...i have bought that book and started reading...as i was not that much connected to foreign authors it seems little difficult for me at the beginning...but as i continue it has taken me to the peak level anxiety...
THe book was well scripted and it was including gruesome situations...the a More...
THe book was well scripted and it was including gruesome situations...the a More...
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Nov 11, 2011
Mac
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This was the first book of his I read; it was a great medical thriller. Unfortunately the author settled into a formula for most of his other stories: the villain is always someone close to the protagonist; either a mentor or(if of opposite sex) a sexual chemistry develops between the two but the hero never consummates the relationship. Other books of the author I would recommend are: "Fever", "Brain", and "Mutation". The rest are OK reads but I guarantee, you'll kn
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Dec 17, 2011
Eman
rated it:
بحب الروايات الطبية اللي فيها جو المستشفيات
كان ممكن أبقى دكتورة لولا أني لا أتحمل المواقف الصعبة فأعصابي تتأثر بسهولة
حتى أنني اذا وصف أي مشهد للدم أو حدث سوءا للمريض لا أستطيع مسك القصة بيدي أو أسند نفسي جيدا
يصبح كل شيء فجأة مؤلما في جسدي وتتخدر يدي وأجاهد لأجعلها تتماسك
أذكر مشهدا لذلك وأنا أقرأ الجزء الرابع من أجزاء توايلايت " بزوغ الفجر " مشهد الولادة كان رهيبا لم أستطع الامساك بالرواية والتي كانت تزن عدة كيلو جرامات :)
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كان ممكن أبقى دكتورة لولا أني لا أتحمل المواقف الصعبة فأعصابي تتأثر بسهولة
حتى أنني اذا وصف أي مشهد للدم أو حدث سوءا للمريض لا أستطيع مسك القصة بيدي أو أسند نفسي جيدا
يصبح كل شيء فجأة مؤلما في جسدي وتتخدر يدي وأجاهد لأجعلها تتماسك
أذكر مشهدا لذلك وأنا أقرأ الجزء الرابع من أجزاء توايلايت " بزوغ الفجر " مشهد الولادة كان رهيبا لم أستطع الامساك بالرواية والتي كانت تزن عدة كيلو جرامات :)
أ More...
Sep 21, 2011
Maggie
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Really disliked this book, and the author's writing style. I read this when it was first released years ago and havent read anything by the author ever since. His writing style is very limited, with no development of character, but plenty of bias and improbable totally unbelievable storyline. The plot comes at you - wham bam, and is ridiculous. I am all in favour of not letting the truth get in the way of a good story but this book goes beyond that. The lead character, Susan, is a know it all me
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Sep 16, 2010
Lloyd
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In what has been hinted at as the first novel where author Robin Cook comes into his true style, he breaks the somewhat dragging early plot wide open in the last hundred or so pages for a BIG payoff.
When patients at Boston Memorial Hospital start dropping into comas at a somewhat alarming rate, third year med student Susan Wheeler decides to poke around a little. What she finds is startling in terms of plot and even more startling in the fact that it could be true-to-life.
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When patients at Boston Memorial Hospital start dropping into comas at a somewhat alarming rate, third year med student Susan Wheeler decides to poke around a little. What she finds is startling in terms of plot and even more startling in the fact that it could be true-to-life.
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Jan 22, 2011
Jennifer
rated it:
Coma is a medical mystery written originally published in 1977. The medical world and the average person's knowledge of health and medicine have expanded hugely in the thirty-plus years that have passed. I was delighted to find that amongst the predictable parts of the book, there were still some surprising twists to find. The mystery was very good, even now, and must have been mind-blowing in its day.
My rather large problem with the book was in the form of the main character, Susan. S More...
My rather large problem with the book was in the form of the main character, Susan. S More...
Mar 30, 2010
Bill
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I was expecting more from this book. After all, it was a best-seller and launched both a major motion picture and Robin Cook's career. I'm not entirely sure why. Somehow the story manages to stumble along and keep the reader interested, but it has a number of problems. I personally hung with it only because I knew something would (or should) eventually happen.
First is the matter of the heroine, Susan, a third-year medical student whose one strength is that she's convinced that the tw More...
First is the matter of the heroine, Susan, a third-year medical student whose one strength is that she's convinced that the tw More...
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Sep 10, 2008
Marc
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"Coma" is a medical mystery/thriller by Robin Cook. It was the initial book that earned him the reputation as a successful author. It's a pretty good book. A little weird in places. And the main character has all the common sense of a doorknob.
Susan is a third year medical student in Boston just starting her first day at Memorial hospital. She soon comes into contact with two patients who have inexplicably ended up in comas. For some reason, she immediately becomes ob More...
Susan is a third year medical student in Boston just starting her first day at Memorial hospital. She soon comes into contact with two patients who have inexplicably ended up in comas. For some reason, she immediately becomes ob More...
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Nov 14, 2010
Prospero
rated it:
La trama risulta interessante in quanto verosimile; ricordo che lo scorso anno si sono verifiati degli incidenti in alcuni ospedali proprio a causa delle tubature dei gas utilizzati nelle sale operatorie. tuttavia lo stile di scrittura e molti dettagli narrativi sono decisame,te scadenti e fanno pensare molto ad uno scrittore alle prime esperienze.
Il romanzo, tuttavia, ha ispirato anche una pellicola, quindi come trama e suspance non é terribile.
Il romanzo, tuttavia, ha ispirato anche una pellicola, quindi come trama e suspance non é terribile.
Jul 12, 2010
Devon
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It was a pretty good book, a little bit disconnected, in a way. The main character is a student Dr in a hospital, but the gets hooked on Coma deaths and doesn't attend classes or lectures, just delves into her interest. Of course, she turns out to have had correct intuitions, but I found it annoying that her superiors never really shut her down. Well, they tried to near the end, I will admit. I would still recommend this book. It is worth reading.
Mar 03, 2010
Mike (the Paladin)
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While I'm not really overall a Robin Cook fan...I've liked some of his work and not others, this (in my opinion) is his best. I really enjoyed this story of people who are strangely and for no apparent logical reason ending up in Comas.
The story is well written, laid out in an absorbing manner that progresses from step to step building it's tension as it goes.
Cook's best.
The story is well written, laid out in an absorbing manner that progresses from step to step building it's tension as it goes.
Cook's best.
Oct 01, 2011
Asmita
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well, it isn't a particularly great book. i mean compared to sidney sheldon or james patterson it really is not that thrilling. i medicine and terror fusion crime is supposed to be absolutely
nerve-wrecking. but this book is not and i wasn't even scared when i read it. but there are some things that are pretty interesting, so it's good but it's not great.
nerve-wrecking. but this book is not and i wasn't even scared when i read it. but there are some things that are pretty interesting, so it's good but it's not great.
Dec 11, 2007
Sarah Pi
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This is one of the many, many books I borrowed from the public library of Schroon Lake, NY every summer from the time I was eight to nineteen. The Schroon Lake library fits into one room, and probably contains fewer books than are in my father's basement. With the exception of one shelf that was updated every year thanks to a some sort of grant, most of the books were fairly dated. I started with the children's books and any non-fiction about horses, then moved on to young adult novels. After r
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May 25, 2011
eyup
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I don't understand why susan doesn't call at all police while being chased by a murderer? At least she must have called police when she trapped him in the freezer.it s the same feeling when you watch a horror movie and you hate female character since her stupid unintelligent decisions actions drive you crazy
Oct 26, 2009
Michelle
rated it:
Robin Cook's books are my easy-reads. It's been quite a few years since I've read any - I went through all of them so quickly, I've given him time to write a bunch more. Though his characterizations and relationships are sort of shallow and cliche, I adore his scientific imagination and exciting plots.
May 26, 2010
Anki
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to whom like to watch E.R. (Emergency Room) and any other 'hospital' stuff may like this book. written by the real doctor....this book brought the reader into the hospital world...this book was inspired by factual event about human organ trade...[ I had never thought it really happened ! :]
Dec 17, 2009
Belinda
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The FIRST time that Robin Cook scared the crap out of me. All of Robin Cook's books essentially follow the same formula, so in a sense, if you've read one, you've read them all...but if you're like me, you keep reading them because of his dedication to exhaustive research and fact-checking. There is just enough NON-fiction in his novels to make the stories absolutely terrifying. And the way he writes those cautionary, "This may not have actually happened...yet...but it could at ANY time
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Oct 31, 2011
Theresa
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Read this for a goodreads book club. It was nice to read an oldie but a goodie. I kind of remember reading this one way back and I think I might have seen the movie. It really is a scarey thought as I think this is pretty realistic. Love the non ending ending. Leaving it up to each reader to decide how it came out.
Nov 04, 2011
Tamra
rated it:
It was definitely worth the time. It went pretty quickly and held your interest. The author is VERY FULL OF HIMSELF & likes himself a lot. I don't like him nearly as much as he likes himself. With that said I would still recommend it for a good thriller. There are a few places where the "F" word & a couple of other words are thrown in there for, as far as I can tell, to prove he (the writer) is hip & happening & he knows how to swear. Other than that I don't believe it served a p
Jul 28, 2009
Kelly
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The first Cook book I ever read. I read it in high school and was immediately hooked. I love his intrigue. This book, written so long ago, is still timely. Just watch the news and see the organs that are auctioned off to the highest bidder. Guess Cook was ahead of his time with this idea!
Mar 08, 2009
Amy
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I read this book in High School - it was the reason I decided to study Pre-Med. Then I moved into a dorm, had no curfew, and took Intro to Bio, Intro to Chem, Intro to Psych and Philosophy with the Professor from Hell - all in the first semester...I went to Law School instead.
Feb 28, 2009
Kelly
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It took forever for this book to get around to the reason people were in a coma...I had to read about 3/4 of the way thru it before there was even a clue. Other than that it wasn't bad. This was one of his first books though so I guess that's why it wasn't as good as his others!
Nov 22, 2010
Deedee
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This was the first book I ever read by him (saw the movie too) and instantly became a loyal fan of his medical thrillers. The one thing I like most about medical thrillers is the very real possibility they have of actually happening. That always makes it more exciting.
