Mortal Fear [Mar 23, 1989] Cook, Robin

by Robin Cook

A harrowing medical nightmare on the cutting edge of genetic research, Mortal Fear goes into the controversial future of modern medicine. At a large Boston clinic, a world-class biologist stumbles upon a miraculous discovery, a major scientific breakthrough. Soon, healthy, middle-aged patients are dying of old age. And the ultimate experiment in terror begins...

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Mystery, Medical, Suspense, Horror, Science Fiction

364 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Librarian 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

Reviews

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining - much better than some of the other Robin Cook books I have read recently. Action-packed and suspenseful - even if it is far from believable!

Released in 1988 and for some reason, in Cook's 1988 Boston, discos are still a thing. Also, apparently they didn't care too much about HIPAA; every few pages the protagonist is spout of info about patients to pretty much anyone who listens to him. As someone who works in Healthcare, those parts made me cringe.

Finally, I will say that if you like medical thrillers and you are not to concerned about the writing being intricate and deep, it would be worth giving Robin Cook a try.

[Nad Gandia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un thriller médico entretenido y fácil de leer.
No había leído nada del autor hasta ahora, pero; seguro que termino por descubrir más novelas suyas.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting theory and frightening possible. Unfortunately the book is dated and hard to get into at times, no cell phones, etc.

[✨Bean's Books✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Jason Howard works for GHP and when his seemingly healthy patients begin to die of massive strokes and aneurysms he starts to lose his confidence and wonders what he's doing wrong in his practice. But when he starts to talk to colleagues and they confide in him that they are having the same problems with their own patients Jason begins to wonder if there isn't something on an epidemic level going on. When an eccentric colleague confides in him that he's made a major breakthrough in his research but dies before he can divulge what exactly, Jason is left to put the puzzle pieces together and find out what exactly is killing everyone. Can he find out before it's too late?
Perfectly written and executed story. Yet another great one by Robin Cook. He is definitely the undisputed Master of the Medical Thriller!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I will definitely be recommending it.

[Aneela ♒the_mystique_reader♒ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first medical thriller I read and it became my favorite genre. Thank you Dr. Robin Cook for this great book.

Medical thrillers are not everyone's cup of tea. They depict scientific horrors, the ones that make your spine chillled.

The Mortal Fear is about a great scientific discovery or should I say, ironic discovery, the way Alvin Harris described it. What heppens when a great scientific discovery becomes the tool of an evil. Instead of saving lives, they were hell bound to take it from the ome they believe are not worthy of life.

Great and interesting plot.
Good story.
Keeps a grip on your mind.
A bit scary..... yes !

[Vysakh C · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is too much spoon feeding of medical and gene jargon which I found immensely boring.The scenarios involving the main character and a stripper of a club going on a journey to uncover the truth defies all sorts of logic.The tension Cook succeeded to build in his books like Coma and Toxin is also missing here.The story is average and the twist in the end is predictable.Overall a disappointing read.

[lucia hillfort-hoops · Rating 4 out of 5]

bastante entretenido

[Elusive · Rating 1 out of 5]

In 'Mortal Fear', Jason's worry escalates as more and more of his previously relatively healthy patients succumb to untimely death. Post mortems reveal that they had suffered from incredibly poor health prior to death. Troubled by this strange finding, Jason is then approached by his brilliant colleague Alvin who appears to be on the verge of a medical breakthrough. Unfortunately, his sudden and violent demise prevents Jason from getting any answers..

I find it hard to believe that Robin Cook wrote 'Mortal Fear' because it was awful, long-winded and boring - none of the words I'd apply to his superior works such as 'Godplayer' and 'Brain'. The premise was promising but the execution was a letdown in every way. From the beginning to the end, Jason was never convincing as a doctor. He seemed disconnected from his job and showed no passion or interest. I got the impression that he was supposed to be intelligent yet he failed to take necessary actions and precautions and made a myriad of stupid decisions that left me shaking my head repeatedly.

When he realized that his dying patients exhibited the same set of symptoms, he took forever to figure out that someone was to blame, not a new unknown disease. Even by the time that piece of obvious information registered in his little brain, he didn't lodge a police report or keep an eye on the possible suspects namely his colleagues or watch over his patients as much as possible. Oh no, instead he decided to spend tons of time stalking Alvin's gorgeous (as you'll be repeatedly reminded) roommate Carol who's a stripper. Yup, no kidding.

In the meantime, Cook padded up the pages with repetitive descriptions regarding the beauty of the female characters - Carol and Shirley (who works with Jason). He even included intricate details about their outfits which really helped me solve the mystery. None of the characters were remotely believable. Carol conveniently cooperated with Jason, answering his questions and flying to Seattle with him. The latter was so ridiculous I had to re-read that bit to be sure I hadn't misunderstood anything. Why would anyone take leave and fly elsewhere, knowing that the body count will just keep on increasing? Apparently Jason cared about his patients but had no qualms about leaving them to play amateur sleuth.

The identity of the perpetrator could be seen from miles away (more specifically, from the first few chapters) hence there was no sense of suspense. To add to my disappointment, the author never bothered to incorporate some red herrings or present a pool of suspects so it wasn't a surprise when Shirley turned out to be the killer. When Carol was introduced, I knew right away that Shirley was the murderer. Why? Because Cook clearly wanted Jason to end up with Carol.. To make things worse, the pivotal 'showdown' scene came across as rushed. It seemed as though Cook got fed up of his own book (which I can definitely relate to).

Overall, 'Mortal Fear' was a painfully dull, lengthy and directionless story that made me regret picking it up in the first place. There's no doubt that Cook can write way better than this.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book and Robin cook's writing. I finished this book so long ago but never forgot the twists and turns int he story and the suspense. Goodread.

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF.

I attempted to read this and just was so put off by all the creepy medical happenings. This book is exactly when I decided that medical thrillers are not for me.

[Lacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! As a Microbiology student and a lover of mystery, this is a perfect genre for me. I have to say, Jason, the main character was a stressful one for me to follow, as likable as he was. His reckless decisions certainly kept me on my toes. The plot twist near the end was perfect, believable and well-done, but also not too obvious. I only figured it out right before everything was revealed, which is my favorite way to figure out a mystery :). The science fiction part of it was intriguing, some of the science holds water and obviously some doesn’t, which I like. It’s almost plausible in some ways, which makes it all the more horrifying. I think I will definitely be revisiting this author in the future!

[Maryse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Danger mortel est un roman publié en 1988 qui raconte l'histoire de Jason Howard, qui, devant le décès soudain de certains de ses patients, s'inquiète de la possible apparition d'un nouveau virus. Ses inquiétudes et ses recherches se dirigent toutefois dans une toute autre direction lorsque son éminent collègue Hayes lui confie qu'il a fait une découverte scientifique importante et décède d'une façon spectaculaire avant d'avoir pu lui en dire davantage.

Il s'agit du huitième roman de Robin Cook qui est l'auteur de nombreux romans. Le suspense promis par la quatrième de couverture n'est apparu qu'à la fin du roman, ce qui en fit une lecture décevante.

Par contre, j'ai trouvé intéressant que ce roman, écrit il y a 35 ans, évoque une question morale qui est toujours d'actualité.

[Hedoga · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Audiolibro)

De nuevo IMPRESIONANTE. Altamente recomendado.

Mira que cuando lo empecé pensé que me iba a cansar de tanto término médico, tanto pasillo, tanto hospital, pero no, no y no, de nuevo ha sido tremendamente absorbente, me ha durado dos tardes y media y lo he disfrutado como un enano.

Que aún consiga sorprenderme después de lo que le llevo leído es meritorio, así pues, seguiré cayendo en las redes de Robin Cook cada vez que pueda.

[Lea · Rating 4 out of 5]

The plot is refreshing. However, the ending seems to be a bit hanging.

[Nuria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recomendación de papá siempre bien 👍🏻

[Fernando Delfim · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Não admirava que cientistas como Hayes fossem uns tipos estranhos. Sabiam que tinham o poder de manipular a vida.”

“- […] tanto os médicos como os legisladores pensam que toda a investigação médica é inerentemente boa […]
- Faz-me pensar num carro a cento e cinquenta à hora, numa auto-estrada… mas sem condutor.
-É talvez a melhor analogia que já ouvi”

[MikeR · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review: Mortal Fear by Robin Cook
“Don’t fear death,” they say. “It’s natural.” Sure—unless someone’s speeding it up on purpose.

The Plot (Spoilers Ahead, Possibly Fatal Ones):
Dr. Jason Howard is a Boston internist working for the National Health Care Corporation (NHCC), a giant medical conglomerate that prides itself on cutting-edge preventative medicine and... early retirement, apparently.

Patients under NHCC care are dying. A lot. At first, it looks like random cases of natural causes—heart attacks, strokes, a little Alzheimer’s. But Jason starts noticing that these deaths all seem to happen not just conveniently... but strategically. The patients were high-risk, high-cost, and covered by generous health insurance. And they’re dying in droves.

Jason smells something rotten in the air (and it’s not hospital cafeteria food). When his mentor dies under mysterious circumstances and the body is cremated too fast, things get even fishier. Then a young, seemingly healthy man drops dead after a standard consult, and the red flags turn into neon billboards.

Jason goes full Nancy Drew, unearthing a conspiracy involving a computerized database, subtle euthanasia tactics, and a corporate system that’s quietly removing the least profitable patients to improve their bottom line.


"We crunched the numbers, and you’re just not cost-effective anymore."


This isn’t medicine—it’s murder by algorithm.

The Medical Issue Examined:
Mortal Fear tackles a chilling intersection of healthcare ethics and profit-driven medicine. The medical "villain" isn’t a plague or a serial killer—it’s managed care gone corporate.

Themes explored:

Elderly and terminal patient care

Health insurance profitability models

Use of AI and predictive analytics in patient treatment

Euthanasia and assisted death under false pretenses

The dehumanization of patients through bureaucracy

Robin Cook paints a disturbingly plausible picture of a future where decisions about who lives or dies are made not by doctors—but by cost-benefit analysis spreadsheets.

Characters:
Dr. Jason Howard – Our morally grounded, overworked physician-turned-reluctant sleuth. He’s compassionate but not naive, which helps him believably piece things together when others look away.

Melissa – Jason’s love interest and occasional ally, who’s sharp and supportive but occasionally relegated to "concerned girlfriend" territory.

Dr. Alvin Hayes – Jason’s mentor, who dies suspiciously early on, giving Jason his first clue that something is terribly wrong.

Corporate suits at NHCC – A chorus of smiling murderers in lab coats and briefcases. You can practically smell the greed through the pages.

This cast leans slightly archetypal, but Cook’s skill is making you care even when you can predict who’ll get iced next.

Writing Style:
Classic Cook: short, sharp chapters; fast pacing; plenty of suspenseful, late-night reading momentum. He balances real medical terminology with accessible explanations, making it clear enough for non-medical readers but grounded enough for realism.

The tone is clinical and urgent, and the mystery unfolds with a sense of slow dread, punctuated by sudden deaths and escalating paranoia. It reads less like a murder mystery and more like an ethical medical thriller, where the killer is a corporation and the crime scene is a boardroom.

Some of the side characters feel a little one-note, and the romantic subplot isn’t particularly memorable—but the central conspiracy is juicy enough to carry the whole thing.

Final Word:
Mortal Fear is the kind of Robin Cook novel that makes you squint suspiciously at your HMO paperwork and wonder if your health provider thinks your cholesterol is a little too expensive.

It’s not a flashy thriller with gunfights or plague outbreaks—it’s a slow, creeping fear about how our healthcare systems might value our cost more than our lives. It’s thoughtful, relevant, and scarily ahead of its time.

[Svein Dyrnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suomi mainittu, kaikki torille 😊, vitsi vitsinä!! Kirjan lopussa käy ilmi, että Carol Donner, oikealta sukunimeltään ’Kiukkonen’, on suomalainen (Amerikansuomalainen), samoin kuin Arthur ja Bruno.
Tämä oli ensimmäinen Robin Cookin kirja, trilleri, jonka luin. Juoni oli mukiinmenevä ja mukaansa tempaava. Kiinnostavan lisämausteensa tuo mukaansa tuo lääketieteellinen aspekti; monta kertaa googlasin mielenkiinnolla eri termejä.
Kirjan puoleenväliin häiritsi kuitenkin melkoisesti se, että lääkärit eivät reagoineet nopeammin ja vakavammin potilaiden erikoisiin kuolemiin. Monta kuolematapausta tapahtui ja asiaa vain vatuloitiin pitkään. Fiilis oli, ettei tällainen ”huolimattomuus ja amatöörimäisyys” voi olla mahdollista tosi elämässä. Vai, onko amerikkalaisessa ja suomailaisessa sairaalatoiminnoissa eroja? Mukiinmenevästä trilleristä huolimatta koin tämän edellä mainitun puutteen sellaiseksi häiriötekijäksi, että ajattelin antaa kirjalle ”vain” kolme tähteä. Onneksi negatiivinen fiilis hävisi juonen edetessä ja realismi astui kehiin ja sain antaa kirjalle sille kuuluvan sen neljä tähteä😊.

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been meaning to try out Robin Cook for ages and after reading Mortal Fear, I will certainly read more of his offerings in the future. First off, I felt that for a quick-paced mystery, there was pretty solid character development. As with many books, at the end I still had a few questions, particularly about whether there was more to the story about what had driven the villain to act the way that [insert androgynous pronoun here] did. All in all though, I felt that you understood the characters, particularly the main character.

Overall, the mystery was engrossing though I was able to guess the end well before it happened. Even having a pretty strong idea of the what would occur, I still very much enjoyed reading it and getting there with Jason, piece by piece. I also was not bothered by the medical jargon, but in fact enjoyed those pieces very much -- it definitely added to the story, in my opinion. Overall, a very good read, though it will likely give me a lot to think about in terms of medicinal ethics and where we have potential to end up in the future.

[Ежко Таралежко · Rating 3 out of 5]

Малко по малко книжките на Робин Кук почват да ми писват, добре че ми остават само две, защото дори и да ми е интересно да бъда плашен (болестите са едно от наистина малкото неща от които ме е страх) то няма как да не призная очевидното - колкото и да е ерудиран, колкото и интересни идеи да има, Кук всъщност не е добър писател.
Респективно тук имаме приятен трилър, очернен от факта че развръзката е точно като в два или три други романи от автора, а финала е толкова розово захаросан, та ми се наложи да ходя да драйфам (да ти стане байгън, както казват на места).

Не ме разбирайте погрешно. Книжката става. Не е съвременна скандинавска изгъзица, нито претенциозен боклук издаден от Блажев (за справка - предните ми ревюта). Ама...можех да си изхабя няколкото часа и за нещо по-добро.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a good read. I wouldn't call it one of Robin Cooks best books though. The character development is sketchy at times and the plot is extremely predictable towards the end. Some sections of the book seem like they were written out of place just to fit the story together. All that aside... I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys medical thrillers (or Robin Cook). This book is just not as good as say.... Mutation.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick easy read. If you are looking for an easy thriller full of hitmen and doctors, this is for you. The racism of the late 80s was a bit offputing, but aside from the standard that all of the characters were white unless otherwise stated, and the dated descriptors now considered out of place, it wasn't overwhelming.

[Jenny Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Robin Cook book and I was instantly hooked. The suspense, characters and storytelling just reel you right in. I just couldn't put it down! It's been a while since I've been that absorbed into a book and I absolutely can't wait to read another one!

[Etta Kaufman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Curiously interesting subject that has to do with aging. Lots of adventure and strange deaths. Another Robin Cook unique mystery.

[Bookjunk · Rating 2 out of 5]

The plot has potential, but the way in which it's used is not even mediocre.

[Jennyloui]

Did I say Robin Cook's writing is a gem?

[Lmarie P · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've really enjoyed some of Robin Cook's book but not this one. I had to stop reading 1/3 of the way through. The story wasn't interesting, even though the concept and the science was fascinating. Also, there were some really annoying writing techiques. One, although the narrative is written in a colloquial style according to the vernacular of the time and location, every 10 or 20 pages, he would throw in some long obscure word that most people would not be familiar with - including me. It was jarring and seemed pretentious! It's terrible as a writing technique because the reader is "in the story" and suddenly "boom - why did the author use that word - now I'm "out of the story"
critiquing the author or looking up a word or decifering what it means from the context. Why
would a writer interrupt his own story that way??? Also SPOILER: about 20% in...

SPOILER: His friend leaves her own dinner party to pick him up from the hospital because he just watched his male colleague die right in front of him - spraying lots of blood all over his clothes in the process. Nice of her to pick him up, right? In the car, she suggests that, instead of taking him home, taking him to her house to join the party because she thinks he might be enjoy meeting her other friends. He's not shocked but he begs out because he's "a mess." Are you serious??? This Cook forget his character was covered in blood? Or that inviting a freshly traumatized person to a party, might be insensitive? How did this get past proofreaders and editor in 1988?

[Wendy Gamble · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very enjoyable but not quite as in depth as some of my very favourites. I enjoyed the snatches of Jason’s regular life and could sympathise with his sorrow and frustration. It certainly seemed he was doing the job he was meant to, and really had to break out of his mould to deal with criminals and “rough” types. Hence his difficulties were believable. I was intrigued by Hayes and was emotionally affected by what happened with him. Jason’s investigation seemed to go a little slowly, with repetitious circumstances that frustrated him but gave him no new info. It was realistic for how he would think but a bit frustrating for someone who’s read the back cover (or even the prologue).
I really enjoyed the Carol character, and how she puzzled Jason. I got a good laugh at his assumptions about her. Often the first thing people ask you is what you do for a living so they can put you in a category and decide if they should feel superior or not. Perhaps Cook was sending a little message here about judging people quickly.
Action packed as usual, with things to ponder. I love having a bit of education tucked into a lot of fun.

[Deepesh Rammoorthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Medical Malpractice Manual ....(Triple M)

A doctor, Jason Howard, already struggling with personal grief sees a flood of his patients suddenly succumbing to heart attacks.

Their autopsies reveal a shocking degeneration of multiple organs akin to sixty year olds having the body of centenarians.

All deaths happen within a month of undergoing full medical examinations that had given them clean bills of health at the hands of Jason and his colleagues .

When an eccentric but a brilliant colleague collapses in front of Jason, in a manner not dissimilar to the other unusual deaths, Jason is alarmed that something suspicious is at play and the deaths are not natural by any stretch of the imagination.

Through a roller coaster ride that takes him through strip clubs through to getting nearly killed by contract killers, Jason unmasks the ugly conspiracy that relates his colleague's death with the deaths of his own patients ....

Jason realises... That there's a fine line between the elixir of youth and the potion of death.....

And medical malpractices always tilt the balance in favour of vice over virtue...

[Oscar Torrado · Rating 3 out of 5]

A este punto estoy más que convencido que Robin Cook tiene una planilla modelo de donde saca todos sus libros ya que la mayor parte de éstos tiene una misma estructura, aún así, y habiendo dicho esto, no he de negar que el libro es bastante entretenido y más cuando junta su gran manejo del conocimiento médico con partes de suspenso y conspiración, y Miedo Mortal no es la excepción, acá el autor nos pone el dilema de darle un fin rápido a las personas mayores con enfermedades terminales y así aligerar el sobrecargado sistema médico priorizando pacientes jóvenes que, en cierta forma, pueden cumplir un rol más longevo en la sociedad, obviamente todo esto va en contra de la ética médica y ahí es donde se ve envuelto el personaje principal quien lucha por desenmascarar a las personas que están practicando una eutanasia no consensuada en un reconoció hospital de Estados Unidos.