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Vergiftigd
Dr. Kim Reggis is pas gescheiden, maar vastbesloten een goede vader te blijven voor zijn enige dochter Becky. Op een avond neemt hij Becky mee naar haar favoriete fastfoodrestaurant, waar ze zich te buiten gaan aan hamburgers en patat. Maar het feestje ontaardt in een regelrechte ramp als het meisje na enkele dagen ernstig ziek wordt. De etenswaren blijken besmet met de ecolibacterie.
Is de vergiftiging een gevolg van onhygiënische omstandigheden? Of werd de besmetting bewust veroorzaakt door een rivaliserende fastfoodketen of een gefrustreerde ex-medewerker? Kim is vastbesloten het raadsel op te lossen, maar stuit al gauw op tegenwerkingen. Instanties hullen zich in stilzwijgen en er wordt zelfs gedreigd met fysiek geweld.
Maar dan belandt Kim op een dodelijk spoor van intrige en schuld dat loopt van slachthuis naar directiekamer. Een spoor dat hij moet
volgen in een race tegen de tijd, voordat er doden vallen.
Is de vergiftiging een gevolg van onhygiënische omstandigheden? Of werd de besmetting bewust veroorzaakt door een rivaliserende fastfoodketen of een gefrustreerde ex-medewerker? Kim is vastbesloten het raadsel op te lossen, maar stuit al gauw op tegenwerkingen. Instanties hullen zich in stilzwijgen en er wordt zelfs gedreigd met fysiek geweld.
Maar dan belandt Kim op een dodelijk spoor van intrige en schuld dat loopt van slachthuis naar directiekamer. Een spoor dat hij moet
volgen in een race tegen de tijd, voordat er doden vallen.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
383 people are currently reading
4508 people want to read
About the author
Robin Cook
186 books5,144 followersLibrarian Note: Not to be confused with British novelist Robin Cook a pseudonym of Robert William Arthur Cook.
Dr. Robin Cook (born May 4, 1940 in New York City, New York) is an American doctor / novelist who writes about medicine, biotechnology, and topics affecting public health.
He is best known for being the author who created the medical-thriller genre by combining medical writing with the thriller genre of writing. His books have been bestsellers on the "New York Times" Bestseller List with several at #1. A number of his books have also been featured in Reader's Digest. Many were also featured in the Literary Guild. Many have been made into motion pictures.
Cook is a graduate of Wesleyan University and Columbia University School of Medicine. He finished his postgraduate medical training at Harvard that included general surgery and ophthalmology. He divides his time between homes in Florida, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where he lives with his wife Jean. He is currently on leave from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He has successfully combined medical fact with fiction to produce a succession of bestselling books. Cook's medical thrillers are designed, in part, to make the public aware of both the technological possibilities of modern medicine and the ensuing ethical conundrums.
Cook got a taste of the larger world when the Cousteau Society recruited him to run its blood - gas lab in the South of France while he was in medical school. Intrigued by diving, he later called on a connection he made through Jacques Cousteau to become an aquanaut with the US Navy Sealab when he was drafted in the 60's. During his navy career he served on a nuclear submarine for a seventy-five day stay underwater where he wrote his first book! [1]
Cook was a private member of the Woodrow Wilson Center's Board of Trustees, appointed to a six-year term by the President George W. Bush.[2]
[edit] Doctor / Novelist
Dr. Cook's profession as a doctor has provided him with ideas and background for many of his novels. In each of his novels, he strives to write about the issues at the forefront of current medical practice.
To date, he has explored issues such as organ donation, genetic engineering,fertility treatment, medical research funding, managed care, medical malpractice, drug research, drug pricing, specialty hospitals, stem cells, and organ transplantation.[3]
Dr. Cook has been remarked to have an uncanny ability to anticipate national controversy. In an interview with Dr.Cook, Stephen McDonald talked to him about his novel Shock; Cook admits the timing of Shock was fortuitous. "I suppose that you could say that it's the most like Coma in that it deals with an issue that everybody seems to be concerned about," he says, "I wrote this book to address the stem cell issue, which the public really doesn't know much about. Besides entertaining readers, my main goal is to get people interested in some of these issues, because it's the public that ultimately really should decide which way we ought to go in something as that has enormous potential for treating disease and disability but touches up against the ethically problematic abortion issue."[4]
Keeping his lab coat handy helps him turn our fear of doctors into bestsellers. "I joke that if my books stop selling, I can always fall back on brain surgery," he says. "But I am still very interested in being a doctor. If I had to do it over again, I would still study medicine. I think of myself more as a doctor who writes, rather than a writer who happens to be a doctor." After 35 books,he has come up with a diagnosis to explain why his medical thrillers remain so popular. "The main reason is, we all realize we are at risk. We're all going to be patients sometime," he says. "You can write about great white sharks or haunted houses, and you can say I'm not going into the ocean or I'm not going in haunted houses, but you can't say you're n
Dr. Robin Cook (born May 4, 1940 in New York City, New York) is an American doctor / novelist who writes about medicine, biotechnology, and topics affecting public health.
He is best known for being the author who created the medical-thriller genre by combining medical writing with the thriller genre of writing. His books have been bestsellers on the "New York Times" Bestseller List with several at #1. A number of his books have also been featured in Reader's Digest. Many were also featured in the Literary Guild. Many have been made into motion pictures.
Cook is a graduate of Wesleyan University and Columbia University School of Medicine. He finished his postgraduate medical training at Harvard that included general surgery and ophthalmology. He divides his time between homes in Florida, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts where he lives with his wife Jean. He is currently on leave from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. He has successfully combined medical fact with fiction to produce a succession of bestselling books. Cook's medical thrillers are designed, in part, to make the public aware of both the technological possibilities of modern medicine and the ensuing ethical conundrums.
Cook got a taste of the larger world when the Cousteau Society recruited him to run its blood - gas lab in the South of France while he was in medical school. Intrigued by diving, he later called on a connection he made through Jacques Cousteau to become an aquanaut with the US Navy Sealab when he was drafted in the 60's. During his navy career he served on a nuclear submarine for a seventy-five day stay underwater where he wrote his first book! [1]
Cook was a private member of the Woodrow Wilson Center's Board of Trustees, appointed to a six-year term by the President George W. Bush.[2]
[edit] Doctor / Novelist
Dr. Cook's profession as a doctor has provided him with ideas and background for many of his novels. In each of his novels, he strives to write about the issues at the forefront of current medical practice.
To date, he has explored issues such as organ donation, genetic engineering,fertility treatment, medical research funding, managed care, medical malpractice, drug research, drug pricing, specialty hospitals, stem cells, and organ transplantation.[3]
Dr. Cook has been remarked to have an uncanny ability to anticipate national controversy. In an interview with Dr.Cook, Stephen McDonald talked to him about his novel Shock; Cook admits the timing of Shock was fortuitous. "I suppose that you could say that it's the most like Coma in that it deals with an issue that everybody seems to be concerned about," he says, "I wrote this book to address the stem cell issue, which the public really doesn't know much about. Besides entertaining readers, my main goal is to get people interested in some of these issues, because it's the public that ultimately really should decide which way we ought to go in something as that has enormous potential for treating disease and disability but touches up against the ethically problematic abortion issue."[4]
Keeping his lab coat handy helps him turn our fear of doctors into bestsellers. "I joke that if my books stop selling, I can always fall back on brain surgery," he says. "But I am still very interested in being a doctor. If I had to do it over again, I would still study medicine. I think of myself more as a doctor who writes, rather than a writer who happens to be a doctor." After 35 books,he has come up with a diagnosis to explain why his medical thrillers remain so popular. "The main reason is, we all realize we are at risk. We're all going to be patients sometime," he says. "You can write about great white sharks or haunted houses, and you can say I'm not going into the ocean or I'm not going in haunted houses, but you can't say you're n
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 630 reviews
September 26, 2022
I read this book a long time ago and it was a true horror read for me. I found it had excellent writing that became so graphic for me that it was a unexpected wakeup call and after I finished reading this book and I couldn't eat red meat anymore without thinking about this story. So shortly after I stopped eating all meat and became a vegetarian which I am proud to say but it was not a planned move on my part. This book hit my psyche so hard that I had total imagery and guilt and had to find my new way eating. So I just want to add a warning to any reader who may possibly have a sensitive psyche as I did to be careful when you read this book. It was Absolutely, Positively, Disturbing!
This book deserved 5 Horrific AND DISTURBING 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS!!
This book deserved 5 Horrific AND DISTURBING 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS!!
April 29, 2010
I read this book many years ago after borrowing it from my grandmother's library. It did not make me a vegetarian but it definitely has made me more conscientious about the meat I consume. To this day, I refuse to eat much hamburger or ground meat. I have officially reread it and I now have the upsetting renewal to stay away from all hamburger or ground meat. The story is harrowing as well as completely possible. Hell, it's already happened. The fear of E. coli and its effects is an ever-impending, dismaying concept that plagues the United States. In recent years, E. coli and its many versions has not only affected meats but other resources as well, making many individuals extremely ill with relatively few symptoms until it is a full-blown disaster. The book focuses around a fictitious, but sadly realistic case of a particularly deadly strand of E. coli finding its way into the daughter of Dr. Kim Reggis. A vendetta endeavor begins with stomach-churning results. Great drama, a great flow to the story and sickeningly true.
My only dislikes for this book is the language in which the individuals speak, since it seems forcibly contrived and far too heavy. I also dislike the unreal connection Tracy and Kim eventually rediscover. I feel it would have been a more appropriate ending if it had not dipped ever-so-slightly into the romantic genre. Despite these small issues, the book has a special, albeit unfortunate place in my heart.
My only dislikes for this book is the language in which the individuals speak, since it seems forcibly contrived and far too heavy. I also dislike the unreal connection Tracy and Kim eventually rediscover. I feel it would have been a more appropriate ending if it had not dipped ever-so-slightly into the romantic genre. Despite these small issues, the book has a special, albeit unfortunate place in my heart.
June 5, 2009
I was forced to read this book for my high school English class, and I have decided I will never read anything by Robin Cook again.
The characters are unbelievable and fail to engage the reader. The storyline is typical, lacking anything that would surprise someone, even if they had the IQ of a doorknob.
I stand firm by the belief that (most) doctors should not try their hand at writing and stick to what they do best.
The characters are unbelievable and fail to engage the reader. The storyline is typical, lacking anything that would surprise someone, even if they had the IQ of a doorknob.
I stand firm by the belief that (most) doctors should not try their hand at writing and stick to what they do best.
April 12, 2019
¿por dónde comienzo? sinceramente, no lo sé.
que le pongo 5? bueno, lo cierto es que fue para mí un libro magnífico. una grata sorpresa, y el segundo libro que leo del autor. tal vez aún no tengo el suficiente criterio para decir que todo lo que cook escribe es lo más espectacular del mundo, pero de algo estoy seguro: el subgénero de thriller médico, me está gustando bastante, y más porque no se ha visto que haya muchos autores que se aventuren a escribir bajo este camppo.
La medicina es algo que me tiene realmente fascinado; desde niño me ha gustado aprender todo lo referente al cuerpo, a las enfermedades , sus curas y tratamientos... pero bueno, al grano.
¿Hasta dónde podemos confiar hoy en día de todo lo que comemos? No es ningún secreto que la industria alimentaria tiene cierta parte de culpa en el procesamiento de lo que nos llevamos a nuestra mesa: se conoce acerca de los transgénicos, de lo que se le inyecta al pollo para que se vea mejor, para que engorde, aparentandoque es de gran calidad; se ha hablado de la alteración de la leche de las vacas y los químicos que se les suministran para que produzcan más leche... desde luego que las carnes no podían quedarse atrás.
Leyendo este libro puedes entender perfectamente cómo es que hay un gran número de personas que evitan el consumo animal y se vuelven veganos. y este libro va en torno a esta línea. lo que puede resultar tan cotidiano y simple como irte a comer una hamburguesa con papas fritas llega a costarte hasta la vida. y el pacto lo pagan Kim Reggis, un famoso cardiocirujano que lleva a su ija de 10 años a justamente eso: comer una hamburguesa. No imagina que eso sería sólo el comienzo de una terrible pesadilla para la familia.
deteniéndome en este punto, me indigna la burocracia que toman para con algunas personas cuando se trata de atender a alguien con algún padecimiento sólo por creerla de menor importancia. eso incita a la desesperación, la rabia e impotencia de ver cómo no hacen nada, cuando realmente sólo se la pasan charlando entre sí simulando que hacen su trabajo. y eso se puede ver constantemente en algunos lugares.
por un lado vamos a seguir de cerca el caso de Becy y lo que realmente tiene, mientras que por otro nos internaremos en los oscuros secretos de la industria de carne y todo lo ocurrido. funcionarios que no quieren que todo lo echen en saco roto y que no se metan donde no se les llama. bajo este punto de la novela estamos tremendamente enganchados, en suspenso por saber si se va a resolver este asunto, y más cuando entra en juego un personaje importante que ayudará a Kim.
Sí. totalmente recomendable, me la terminé en un día. espero seguir leyendo más libros de este autor. no se la pueden perder.
que le pongo 5? bueno, lo cierto es que fue para mí un libro magnífico. una grata sorpresa, y el segundo libro que leo del autor. tal vez aún no tengo el suficiente criterio para decir que todo lo que cook escribe es lo más espectacular del mundo, pero de algo estoy seguro: el subgénero de thriller médico, me está gustando bastante, y más porque no se ha visto que haya muchos autores que se aventuren a escribir bajo este camppo.
La medicina es algo que me tiene realmente fascinado; desde niño me ha gustado aprender todo lo referente al cuerpo, a las enfermedades , sus curas y tratamientos... pero bueno, al grano.
¿Hasta dónde podemos confiar hoy en día de todo lo que comemos? No es ningún secreto que la industria alimentaria tiene cierta parte de culpa en el procesamiento de lo que nos llevamos a nuestra mesa: se conoce acerca de los transgénicos, de lo que se le inyecta al pollo para que se vea mejor, para que engorde, aparentandoque es de gran calidad; se ha hablado de la alteración de la leche de las vacas y los químicos que se les suministran para que produzcan más leche... desde luego que las carnes no podían quedarse atrás.
Leyendo este libro puedes entender perfectamente cómo es que hay un gran número de personas que evitan el consumo animal y se vuelven veganos. y este libro va en torno a esta línea. lo que puede resultar tan cotidiano y simple como irte a comer una hamburguesa con papas fritas llega a costarte hasta la vida. y el pacto lo pagan Kim Reggis, un famoso cardiocirujano que lleva a su ija de 10 años a justamente eso: comer una hamburguesa. No imagina que eso sería sólo el comienzo de una terrible pesadilla para la familia.
deteniéndome en este punto, me indigna la burocracia que toman para con algunas personas cuando se trata de atender a alguien con algún padecimiento sólo por creerla de menor importancia. eso incita a la desesperación, la rabia e impotencia de ver cómo no hacen nada, cuando realmente sólo se la pasan charlando entre sí simulando que hacen su trabajo. y eso se puede ver constantemente en algunos lugares.
por un lado vamos a seguir de cerca el caso de Becy y lo que realmente tiene, mientras que por otro nos internaremos en los oscuros secretos de la industria de carne y todo lo ocurrido. funcionarios que no quieren que todo lo echen en saco roto y que no se metan donde no se les llama. bajo este punto de la novela estamos tremendamente enganchados, en suspenso por saber si se va a resolver este asunto, y más cuando entra en juego un personaje importante que ayudará a Kim.
Sí. totalmente recomendable, me la terminé en un día. espero seguir leyendo más libros de este autor. no se la pueden perder.
February 29, 2024
A different kind of book, about the American beef industry. As the theme of the book is unique, I was instantly drawn towards this book. There were a lot of scenes set in hospitals as one expects from a Robin Cook novel and also in the beef industry. It was informative to know how beef is produced in the beef industry. It's amazing that beef gets contaminated even in a developed country like the US. This was not expected. Got to learn about E. coli bacteria as well. An informative novel but at times the writing was not up to the mark. Not one of Cook's best books but still worth reading.
January 23, 2022
4 Stars
Robin Cook never disappoints. I've always loved a good medical thriller and this one provided some food for thought about where we get our burgers.....
Robin Cook never disappoints. I've always loved a good medical thriller and this one provided some food for thought about where we get our burgers.....
January 19, 2014
This is one of the worst books I've ever read. The author gives us characters that are too dumb to exist in scenarios that go so far past implausible that one's head spins.
Our protagonist is Dr. Regis, a man with an MD that doesn't understand how commonplace e. coli is (in an effort to push the plot forward, the author has Dr. Regis find out key bits of information from a random stranger in an elevator). He gets physically violent with other physicians on several other occasions for no good reason. I suppose this is Cook's effort at giving his character... well, character. However, it comes off as amateurish at best.
Elsewhere in the plot, corporate stockyards purchase diseased cattle from random rednecks. There are so many stereotypes at play here -- greedy corporations, illiterate white country folk -- that it's laughable.
I wouldn't read it again. This turned me off of Robin Cook as an author for good. Somebody that treats his readers so shabbily can't be recommended.
Ostensibly, this book is an indictment of the American meat distribution model. It turns out to be more of a display of how ignorant Mr. Cook is and the disdain with which he treats his subjects.
Our protagonist is Dr. Regis, a man with an MD that doesn't understand how commonplace e. coli is (in an effort to push the plot forward, the author has Dr. Regis find out key bits of information from a random stranger in an elevator). He gets physically violent with other physicians on several other occasions for no good reason. I suppose this is Cook's effort at giving his character... well, character. However, it comes off as amateurish at best.
Elsewhere in the plot, corporate stockyards purchase diseased cattle from random rednecks. There are so many stereotypes at play here -- greedy corporations, illiterate white country folk -- that it's laughable.
I wouldn't read it again. This turned me off of Robin Cook as an author for good. Somebody that treats his readers so shabbily can't be recommended.
Ostensibly, this book is an indictment of the American meat distribution model. It turns out to be more of a display of how ignorant Mr. Cook is and the disdain with which he treats his subjects.
August 13, 2012
This book is the reason I bought another 20 books written by Cook. Different people will get different things out of it but I know that he hooked me with it. Meat eaters beware since this book will really make you think. This book is about the perfect storm in the meat packing industry and how many broken steps along the way it takes for diseased meat to get to you with the disease still active. When I had read just a few chapters I was compelled to go on with it but that may be because of my background in the restaurant business and food safety. I seen some of the other reviews that were not so kind and I think perhaps they were expecting something other than it was. What really interested me with the story was the way they had to backtrack everything to find the source and be able to stop anything else bad from happening. This is an amazing feat to accomplish in real life and probably why I enjoyed reading about it.
January 23, 2022
Como puse en el "avance" se me ha hecho duro, muy duro por varias razones.
El que la protagonista sea una niña de 10 años me ha tocado como padre que soy, el papel del padre me ha representado totalmente, la forma con la que creo que este autor conoce los temas médicos de los que escribe me ha puesto los pelos de punta y para terminar, lo que motiva todo lo que sucede en el libro, la mezquindad y la inagotable e indiferente avaricia humana me ha repugnado por lo realista.
En resumen, una muy buena novela que me va a hacer pensar y replantearme o mejor dicho reafirmar me en algunas de mis convicciones respecto a la comida basura.
El que la protagonista sea una niña de 10 años me ha tocado como padre que soy, el papel del padre me ha representado totalmente, la forma con la que creo que este autor conoce los temas médicos de los que escribe me ha puesto los pelos de punta y para terminar, lo que motiva todo lo que sucede en el libro, la mezquindad y la inagotable e indiferente avaricia humana me ha repugnado por lo realista.
En resumen, una muy buena novela que me va a hacer pensar y replantearme o mejor dicho reafirmar me en algunas de mis convicciones respecto a la comida basura.
November 7, 2020
Okay, the idea that my next hamburger/spag bol/meatloaf could kill me was quite disturbing (I tried to take heart in the fact that I'm Australian and we have really high quality meat and meat producers that I feel we can trust). The main character was pretty unlikeable and not believable. I've read a couple of Cook books (pun not intended) and am well-acquainted with medical terminology thanks to training as a medical transcriptionist, so the medical techno-babble didn't phase me, but the dialogue was rubbish and almost enough to put me off finishing (as if Dr. Whatshisname's personality wasn't bad enough). I have a number of other Cook books (when I was training in medical terminology I got obsessed with books that feature all the words that I finally understood), so hopefully I won't have to deal with anymore idiot Dr. main characters.
March 22, 2025
I normally enjoy Robin Cook's books, but for some reason found the characters in this one a little hard to believe. The couple's daughter dies and their dealing with that is almost incidental next to the mad-cap investigative caper they go off on. He goes from being a really aggressive impatient guy to a wonderful hero in a few pages. I appreciate everyone deals with grief differently but it didn't feel real. And then it's almost like the author loses interest in wrapping up the details, the book is developing nicely and them bam, it's over and the media exposure is a fait accompli and the plant is closed. I mean what about all the bit in the middle. And the journalist's kid getting sick? Is that linked or a red herring? Which batch was the dodgy one? Left me a little disappointed and confused.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 13, 2009
Wow, possibly the worst thriller I've ever read... We start with an utterly unlikeable "hero", who puts his daughter into harm's way then fails to comprehend what's happening until it's too late. His ego manages to stop him noticing anything that's happening until the daughter's at death's door. He then flies completely off the rails, attacking several people and acting like a lunatic until he finally realises the obvious truth (some people in the food industry are unscrupulous, dur). He then makes a half-assed attempt at rectifying the problem. I won't give away the ending, but he causes at least one needless death.
I had to keep reading this, as I wasn't sure how such an experienced novelist could get so much wrong - bad characters, actions that come out of nowhere and "revelations" that seem transparently obvious.
I had to keep reading this, as I wasn't sure how such an experienced novelist could get so much wrong - bad characters, actions that come out of nowhere and "revelations" that seem transparently obvious.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 12, 2012
Very Good Read!
Robin Cook shows us what we already know. What does and will continue to occur when the powers that be turn a blind eye to corporate America's failure to put safety and common sense above the welfare and common good of the people. On the surface it is a a story of 1 sick cow, contamination and a dying child. Digging deeper it is a story of mans blatant disregard for the most elemental laws of God and Nature. Cattle are natural born herbivores. Yet we allow the giant ranching industry to fatten them up with feed containing untold varieties of past life forms including cattle by way of our local rendering plants. Not only have we turned an herbivore into a carnivore but to add insult to injury we have created a cannibal as well.
Would you like fries with that?
Robin Cook shows us what we already know. What does and will continue to occur when the powers that be turn a blind eye to corporate America's failure to put safety and common sense above the welfare and common good of the people. On the surface it is a a story of 1 sick cow, contamination and a dying child. Digging deeper it is a story of mans blatant disregard for the most elemental laws of God and Nature. Cattle are natural born herbivores. Yet we allow the giant ranching industry to fatten them up with feed containing untold varieties of past life forms including cattle by way of our local rendering plants. Not only have we turned an herbivore into a carnivore but to add insult to injury we have created a cannibal as well.
Would you like fries with that?
July 29, 2009
This would have been a lot better if it weren't for the kind of strange dialog Cook utilized in this book. The main character's anger explodes for no apparent reason on a regular basis and you have to stop and try to figure out what's going on. But alas, there is no explanation for these burst of violent dialog so credibilty sufferes.
March 26, 2014
As far as a fiction book goes, it's really not good at all. The suspense/action plot is really lame and unrealistic, not at all engaging. Characters are beyond robotic and unlikeable. BUT, I can't stop reading books by this author simply because I love anything medical. This one's about E-coli in a popular hamburger chain and beef market. Made me glad I don't eat hamburgers.
August 5, 2009
This book was bad. So bad.
June 3, 2024
Toxine de Robin Cook.
L’intrigue est truffée de défauts :
- L’action se déroule à un rythme infernal.
- L’intrigue est parsemée d’actions et de sentiments quasi invraisemblables.
- Le personnage principal, légèrement narcissique, n’est pas nécessairement sympathique.
C’est la première fois que je lis un roman qui m’a dégoutée et qui m’a littéralement coupé l’appétit.
Et pourtant… J’ai adoré ma lecture! Autant j’ai profondément détesté son roman Rapt, autant j’ai adoré Toxine.
Dans ce roman, Robin Cook raconte les malheurs d’une famille dont l’enfant est victime d’une intoxication alimentaire et leurs déboires avec le système de santé américain, mais, surtout, dénonce les conflits d’intérêts qui existent aux États-Unis entre le ministère de l’Agriculture et de l’industrie bovine. Il met également en lumière le peu d’attention qui est portée aux risques de contamination par les différents maillons de la chaine de transformation. Tout ça au nom de l’argent.
Je ne crois pas être en mesure de manger de nouveau un hamburger dans un restaurant de fast-food, même si je suis au Canada. Nenon…
Ce roman, en plus de me faire passer un excellent moment de lecture, m’a confirmé dans mon choix de porter attention à la qualité des aliments que je mets dans mon assiette et de favoriser l’achat local.
L’intrigue est truffée de défauts :
- L’action se déroule à un rythme infernal.
- L’intrigue est parsemée d’actions et de sentiments quasi invraisemblables.
- Le personnage principal, légèrement narcissique, n’est pas nécessairement sympathique.
C’est la première fois que je lis un roman qui m’a dégoutée et qui m’a littéralement coupé l’appétit.
Et pourtant… J’ai adoré ma lecture! Autant j’ai profondément détesté son roman Rapt, autant j’ai adoré Toxine.
Dans ce roman, Robin Cook raconte les malheurs d’une famille dont l’enfant est victime d’une intoxication alimentaire et leurs déboires avec le système de santé américain, mais, surtout, dénonce les conflits d’intérêts qui existent aux États-Unis entre le ministère de l’Agriculture et de l’industrie bovine. Il met également en lumière le peu d’attention qui est portée aux risques de contamination par les différents maillons de la chaine de transformation. Tout ça au nom de l’argent.
Je ne crois pas être en mesure de manger de nouveau un hamburger dans un restaurant de fast-food, même si je suis au Canada. Nenon…
Ce roman, en plus de me faire passer un excellent moment de lecture, m’a confirmé dans mon choix de porter attention à la qualité des aliments que je mets dans mon assiette et de favoriser l’achat local.
May 27, 2025
Prou bé
Llibre que vam trobar per casualitat a una paradeta de segona mà per sant jordi. El títol i la contraportada em va cridar l’atenció ja que parla de temes mèdics/científics i de la corrupció dins la indústria alimentària. Concretament, fruit d’una experiència personal, un metge intenta desemascarar tot el que hi ha darrera d’un tros d’hamburguesa per denunciar les pràctiques de la indústrica càrnica.
A partir de la meitat del llibre, agafa un gir de thriller que no m’esperava i em va desquadrar una mica però al final li he pillat el punt. Lectura molt lleugera i redactada de manera simple però entretinguda.
Llibre que vam trobar per casualitat a una paradeta de segona mà per sant jordi. El títol i la contraportada em va cridar l’atenció ja que parla de temes mèdics/científics i de la corrupció dins la indústria alimentària. Concretament, fruit d’una experiència personal, un metge intenta desemascarar tot el que hi ha darrera d’un tros d’hamburguesa per denunciar les pràctiques de la indústrica càrnica.
A partir de la meitat del llibre, agafa un gir de thriller que no m’esperava i em va desquadrar una mica però al final li he pillat el punt. Lectura molt lleugera i redactada de manera simple però entretinguda.
March 22, 2022
This is Fun with a capital 'F', serious take on the food industry - no, may make you go vegetarian - maybe, encourage you to your nearest drive through - probably not. It's stupid, brainless but what can I say: I know each and every book is produced from the same boilerplate but I love them. Good, harmless, brainless fun!!!!
March 18, 2024
Good enough to turn me pescatarian
January 4, 2026
damn mam nadzieję że na egzaminie z mikrobiologii będzie dużo pytań o EHEC bo po przeczytaniu tej książki wszystko zapamiętam o E. coli
August 9, 2025
I read Toxin in 2002, a time when my reading list swung wildly between the literary and the page-turning, and Robin Cook was an old, dependable thrill provider.
I had already consumed his medical thrillers with the appetite of someone who knew that between the covers there would be scalpel-sharp suspense, science woven into story, and enough ethical dilemmas to make you put the book down for a minute, stare at the wall, and mutter, “Well, that’s unsettling.”
Toxin was no exception—except this time, the terror wasn’t lurking in a hospital corridor. It was on my plate.
The story centers on a father’s desperate search for answers after his young daughter falls gravely ill from what turns out to be E. coli contamination in her fast-food hamburger. From there, Cook drags you into the underbelly of America’s meat industry—slaughterhouses, corporate cover-ups, government indifference, and the sheer fragility of the systems that keep our food “safe.”
Reading it in 2002, I wasn’t just shocked; I was unsettled in a way that had me eyeing street-corner kebabs and school canteen patties with uncharacteristic suspicion.
Cook’s pacing here is relentless. He uses the medical thriller formula—precise clinical detail, procedural authenticity, high-stakes human drama—but channels it into a domain most of us take for granted: what we eat.
There’s an almost forensic unmasking of the meat supply chain, and while some scenes lean toward the graphic, they serve the story’s moral pulse: food safety isn’t just science; it’s politics, economics, and ultimately, human lives.
In 2002, my reading of Toxin came against the backdrop of a post-college, pre-career limbo, when books were as much travel companions as they were teachers.
This one made me think not only about industrial greed and regulatory apathy but also about the invisible infrastructures we rely on every day. It was the first time a novel made me seriously consider the phrase “you are what you eat” as both a biological and cautionary warning.
Robin Cook’s prose can be functional—he’s more about momentum than poetry—but in Toxin, that works. It’s a scalpel cut, not a brushstroke. By the time I closed the book, I felt both educated and mildly paranoid. And perhaps that’s the real point: thrillers entertain, but the good ones leave a lingering aftertaste. Toxin did.
Two decades later, I still can’t bite into a burger without a flicker of that 2002 unease. And maybe that’s Cook’s lasting victory—once he’s put a fear in your head, it stays there, quietly influencing your choices.
I had already consumed his medical thrillers with the appetite of someone who knew that between the covers there would be scalpel-sharp suspense, science woven into story, and enough ethical dilemmas to make you put the book down for a minute, stare at the wall, and mutter, “Well, that’s unsettling.”
Toxin was no exception—except this time, the terror wasn’t lurking in a hospital corridor. It was on my plate.
The story centers on a father’s desperate search for answers after his young daughter falls gravely ill from what turns out to be E. coli contamination in her fast-food hamburger. From there, Cook drags you into the underbelly of America’s meat industry—slaughterhouses, corporate cover-ups, government indifference, and the sheer fragility of the systems that keep our food “safe.”
Reading it in 2002, I wasn’t just shocked; I was unsettled in a way that had me eyeing street-corner kebabs and school canteen patties with uncharacteristic suspicion.
Cook’s pacing here is relentless. He uses the medical thriller formula—precise clinical detail, procedural authenticity, high-stakes human drama—but channels it into a domain most of us take for granted: what we eat.
There’s an almost forensic unmasking of the meat supply chain, and while some scenes lean toward the graphic, they serve the story’s moral pulse: food safety isn’t just science; it’s politics, economics, and ultimately, human lives.
In 2002, my reading of Toxin came against the backdrop of a post-college, pre-career limbo, when books were as much travel companions as they were teachers.
This one made me think not only about industrial greed and regulatory apathy but also about the invisible infrastructures we rely on every day. It was the first time a novel made me seriously consider the phrase “you are what you eat” as both a biological and cautionary warning.
Robin Cook’s prose can be functional—he’s more about momentum than poetry—but in Toxin, that works. It’s a scalpel cut, not a brushstroke. By the time I closed the book, I felt both educated and mildly paranoid. And perhaps that’s the real point: thrillers entertain, but the good ones leave a lingering aftertaste. Toxin did.
Two decades later, I still can’t bite into a burger without a flicker of that 2002 unease. And maybe that’s Cook’s lasting victory—once he’s put a fear in your head, it stays there, quietly influencing your choices.
July 25, 2011
This was not a medical thriller. Instead, it was a commentary on the USDA that involved an angry, violent, out of control and unlikeable surgeon. I simply quit reading when Dr. Reggis stormed into the meat processing plant. I'm a reader who, in real life, has enough concerns about the meat industry to buy locally raised, locally butchered meat from people I know. Even with that ideological slant in Cook's direction I was not able to finish this book. Usually when I give up on a book I will skip ahead and read the last chapter just to find out how it ended...not this book, though. I disliked this book so much that I have no curiosity about the end. I am just assuming the end would be as annoying as the beginning and middle and wrote it off.
October 5, 2011
We all know about Ecoli bacteria and how it can wreck havoc. This book is about how the beef industry in the US is so totally vulnerable to bacterial contamination due to unethical practices such as slaughter of deal cattle without DA approval and due to general unhygienic practices. a Very healthy 10 year old daughter of a cardiac surgeon gets infected and dies within a week after eating a rare cooked hamburger and the father goes about finding the source of the infection and finds more than what he can possibly have bargained for and also gets nearly killed in the process.
This story written in 1999 makes us all the more aware of the problem of food contamination, particularly that obtained from fast food restaurants.
Most certainly worth reading.
This story written in 1999 makes us all the more aware of the problem of food contamination, particularly that obtained from fast food restaurants.
Most certainly worth reading.
August 24, 2015
The subject of this book was so shocking and disgusting! I couldn't believe that things like that could really happen and it's scary to think about. There's so much going on behind closed doors that people just believe are being taken care of in the safety and health of the public but in reality none of us know that. This book definitely paints a very clear picture of the potential risks of eating meat and how easy it is to slip up and get sick from something very serious.
January 11, 2024
An excellent story about the real dangers of animal agriculture and our government.
January 15, 2026
Hay libros que se leen.
Y hay libros que se quedan contigo.
Leí Toxina hace años, siendo muy joven, y aún hoy recuerdo con una claridad inquietante la agonía de una niña que muere por algo tan cotidiano como lo que comemos. No por una bomba, no por un asesino, no por una enfermedad rara: por negligencia, por prisa, por dinero.
Robin Cook no escribe esta novela para entretener sin más. La escribe para incomodar, para obligarte a mirar donde normalmente no miras.
La escena de la niña no es gratuita ni morbosa: es devastadora porque es creíble, porque podría haber sido cualquiera, porque no hay consuelo ni justicia inmediata. Solo pérdida.
Lo verdaderamente aterrador de Toxina no es la bacteria, sino el sistema que la permite. Un sistema donde los controles fallan, donde los trabajadores están agotados, maltratados o descontentos, donde la producción va por delante de la seguridad.
El matadero es solo el escenario; el problema es mucho más amplio.
Después de leer este libro, resulta imposible no pensar en cocinas industriales, restaurantes, cadenas de frío rotas y normas que existen solo sobre el papel.
Años después, el impacto ha cambiado, pero no ha disminuido. Si entonces me marcó el sufrimiento, hoy me marca la conciencia.
Toxina te arrebata la inocencia como consumidor y te deja con una certeza incómoda: todas las precauciones parecen pocas cuando el sistema falla antes de que el alimento llegue a tu plato.
No recuerdo todos los detalles de la trama, ni necesito hacerlo. Recuerdo lo esencial: la rabia, la tristeza y la sensación de que esta historia no es ficción del todo. Y eso es lo que distingue a Toxina de otros thrillers médicos: no se olvida.
Porque hay libros que se cierran al pasar la última página.
Y hay otros, como este, que se integran en tu manera de mirar el mundo.
Y hay libros que se quedan contigo.
Leí Toxina hace años, siendo muy joven, y aún hoy recuerdo con una claridad inquietante la agonía de una niña que muere por algo tan cotidiano como lo que comemos. No por una bomba, no por un asesino, no por una enfermedad rara: por negligencia, por prisa, por dinero.
Robin Cook no escribe esta novela para entretener sin más. La escribe para incomodar, para obligarte a mirar donde normalmente no miras.
La escena de la niña no es gratuita ni morbosa: es devastadora porque es creíble, porque podría haber sido cualquiera, porque no hay consuelo ni justicia inmediata. Solo pérdida.
Lo verdaderamente aterrador de Toxina no es la bacteria, sino el sistema que la permite. Un sistema donde los controles fallan, donde los trabajadores están agotados, maltratados o descontentos, donde la producción va por delante de la seguridad.
El matadero es solo el escenario; el problema es mucho más amplio.
Después de leer este libro, resulta imposible no pensar en cocinas industriales, restaurantes, cadenas de frío rotas y normas que existen solo sobre el papel.
Años después, el impacto ha cambiado, pero no ha disminuido. Si entonces me marcó el sufrimiento, hoy me marca la conciencia.
Toxina te arrebata la inocencia como consumidor y te deja con una certeza incómoda: todas las precauciones parecen pocas cuando el sistema falla antes de que el alimento llegue a tu plato.
No recuerdo todos los detalles de la trama, ni necesito hacerlo. Recuerdo lo esencial: la rabia, la tristeza y la sensación de que esta historia no es ficción del todo. Y eso es lo que distingue a Toxina de otros thrillers médicos: no se olvida.
Porque hay libros que se cierran al pasar la última página.
Y hay otros, como este, que se integran en tu manera de mirar el mundo.
November 30, 2022
Wow! This book made me incredibly sick and so heart broken! It tore out my insides and was horrifying. The description of what Becky was suffering was absolutely horrifying 😭 that heart wrenching wail that Dr. Kim let out broke my heart and had me in tears. While I personally didn't really like any of the characters, I can say that the way the story unraveled was precise and terrifying. And what was going on through out the book was sickening and I know it happens. It was my first book by this author and I'm definitely interested in picking up his other works. The mix of medical and mystery was perfect.
December 24, 2025
This suspense-filled page turner kept me reading another minute, another hour, and dawn came and gone! The grief is real, the emotions are raw and the topic, oh my and the ending!!!! You gotta read this book. The author accomplished excellent writing skills in weaving the specifics of the professional careers of each character into the storyline as the plot thickened. This, in itself, achieved the "non-fiction" feel of this fiction work. Personally, this book helped me as I am experiencing my own grief journey. The meticulous work environment descriptions exemplify the careful research which must have taken hours of preparation by the author.
November 2, 2024
pues me ha molado mucho! nunca me había leído un libro con esta temática, se llama thriller médico aparentemente, y la verdad es que me ha gustado un montón. siempre están pasando cosas y nunca se hace aburrido. además yo pensaba que a ver, no hay mucho que se pueda desarrollar con una sinopsis que casi te explica la mitad del libro pero sí eh, han ido habiendo plotwists muy interesantes y a la vez he aprendido sobre un nuevo tema. me ha sorprendido para bien. no sé si tampoco como para leerme otro libro de este tipo pronto, pero no lo descarto en un futuro.
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