| Toxin | Hardcoverby Robin Cook (Other Contributor)
| List Price: | $6.99 | |
| | Binding: | Hardcover | | Publisher: | Bausch & Lombard | | Publication Date: | January 01, 2001 | | Sales Rank: | 2,351,380nd |
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
Dr Kim Reggis takes his daughter for a special night out to a fast-food restaurant. But the good time turns to tragedy when the young girl becomes ill and dies as a result of E coli poisoning. Kim devotes all his energies to tracing the cause of contamination, against even violent opposition. |
Amazon.com Review
Just when you thought it was safe to eat a hamburger again, Robin Cook--master of medical mysteries, deadly epidemics, and creepy comas--returns with an all too likely villain drawn right from current headlines: the American meat industry. If you've ever wondered where the E. coli bacteria comes from, and exactly how it can ravage the human body, destroying everything in its path, this is the book for you. As usual, Cook delivers solid information, well-researched medical arcana, and a scathing indictment of managed health care. His protagonist, Kim Regis, is an all-too-typical ego-driven surgeon, whose arrogance and invulnerability set him up to be brought low by the deadly toxin that takes the life of his young daughter. Sparing no time and barely a paragraph to reflect on his loss, Regis goes right after the culprit, a meat-packing behemoth that brings dead and diseased animals to the slaughterhouse, breaking every health regulation in the book. The scenes set on the killing floor and in the boning rooms will make a vegetarian out of the most confirmed red-meat eater. Toxin is a heart-pounding thriller that hits very close to home. --Jane Adams |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 3.0 based on 267 reviews)
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E. Coli Rampage by NightmareDreams (New York)  5 Stars
October 25, 2009
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.
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Could have been good by Thomas Harold (York, PA United States)  2 Stars
August 23, 2009
The book starts out promisingly, but goes rapidly downhill from there. The characters go from interesting to cardboard in the space of a dozen pages, and the additional bad guys are way too assuming that they can't get caught. The most interesting character in the story is the hired hitman from Chicago, but he plays naught more then a bit part in the last 1/3 of the book.
I spent the last 1/3 of the book flipping pages because everything was too unbelievable at that point. In the end you're left with not much more then a diatribe against the meat industry.
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A Big Bucket of Suck by J. Anderson  1 Stars
August 21, 2009
Reading this book is like watching paint dry. Though I must admit, I haven't eaten a hamburger since...
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Anyone who gave this book 5 stars didn't read it by Marty (North Carolina) 1 Stars
August 10, 2009
What a disappointing book!
It's hard to believe Robin Cook is a professional author.
This book was so unbelievable and poorly done, that my two year old grandson could have done a better job. And he can't even read or write yet. Much like the author of this book.
There are so many things wrong with this book that I don't know where to start. As other reviewers have said the characters were one dimensional and unbelievable, the plot was poorly executed and the ending was incredibly weak. There was absolutely no resolution.
Let me give you four examples of why this book was so far out of touch with reality...
1. The main character, a brilliant cardio vascular surgeon, keeps hitting people and ending up in jail. No real surgeon would risk his hands this way. No real surgeon has this little self control. And oddly, this macho man is named "Kim."
2. In Robin Cook's world, it is possible to find a Mexican who will murder people for you, dispose of their body and hide their car for $100. Even in Mexico, this would cost a lot more.
3. Dr. Kim's only child, a beautiful 10 year old girl, dies due to food poisoning, and Kim and his ex-wife Tracy don't seem to be that upset about it. Rather than greiving, he embarks on a crusade against the USDA and the meat packing industry, hitting people and getting arrested a lot.
4. At one point Kim and his ex-wife Tracy graple with the idea of either finding the out how the meat was contaminated, to save the lives of other children.... or of running off to Sweeden in protest! Because in Sweeden "they don't have contaminated meat. They pay a little more, but it's worth it!"
Did Robin Cook really write this pile of crap?
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Toxin: Flawed but Readable by J. White  3 Stars
May 29, 2009
The book Toxin, while indeed an interesting read, still has several glaring flaws that prevent it from being an outstanding book. The path that Cook takes to develop sympathy for the protagonist, Kim, becomes horribly mangled when Kim is seen acting rashly and irresponsibly. He throws temper tantrums many times and is emotionally out of control, which makes it difficult to be on the side Cook wants the reader to be when the main character acts so childishly. Secondly, blatant stereotyping is also an issue that could potentially turn people off from this book, such as the portrayal of the meat business owners as greedy ignorant red-necks and the main hit-man being a violent, death-crazed Mexican. Stereotypes like these make the book seem very "cut and paste" with little creativity, as well as potentially offensive to some. The realism in some of the events such as a slaughterhouse being able to so easily buy an obliviously infected cow with no difficulty seems extremely unlikely due to standard and regulations are in place in modern times. Kim and Tracy are also able to easily fly to Europe through a commercial airline despite being wanted by the police for many crimes including murder, which would be nearly impossible to accomplish in real life. Finally, the ending is a huge letdown that gives no real conclusion on whether the meat companies get caught or what will happen to those who have also become infected with e.coli. However, the book is very good at building an exciting climax as well as giving the reader serious thoughts about where our food really comes from. Toxin, while still rough around the edges, is still a thrilling and unpredictable read.
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