Blindsight (G K Hall Large Print Book Series) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Robin Cook (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1992 | Series: G K Hall Large Print Book Series

Dr. Laurie Engler investigates several unrelated drug overdoses--and uncoversa nightmare. 2 cassettes.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Cook's lack of ability as a stylist generally has been masked by his talent for fashioning a solid medical drama--often ripped from current headlines--that keeps readers turning pages. Unfortuately, that's not the case in his 12th novel (after Vital Signs ), which has a plot so ludicrous that the weak characters and silly dialogue are all too obvious. Most offensive in the latter category are the stilted, out-of-kilter exchanges between a pair of Mafia hitmen who run about New York City "whacking" (murdering) people with increasing frequency. Meanwhile, Dr. Laurie Montgomery, a forensic pathologist in the NYC Medical Examiner's office, finds a pattern of unrelated cocaine overdose deaths among career-oriented people never known to have used drugs. Despite the obvious evidence that she's onto something, her boss couldn't care less, while the homicide detective she becomes involved with is more concerned about the mob killings, and, like her boss, cannot understand why she is outraged by the behavior of two corrupt, thieving uniformed cops in her department. As luck would have it, there's also another man in Laurie's life, a self-centered ophthalmologist whose patients just happen to include the mob boss behind both the cocaine deaths and the murder spree. Readers who plow through this amateurish effort will guess the ending long before any of the characters has a clue.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

An ironically revealing title for ophthalmologist Cook's fuzziest novel in years--an awesomely inept medical/crime thriller about a forensic pathologist up against the mob. As the story opens, the mind of one Duncan Andrews is ``racing like a runaway train,'' his lethargy having ``evaporated like a drip of water falling onto a sizzling skillet.'' Hours and several more clich‚s later, the ``Wall Street whiz kid'' is dead of a cocaine overdose and lying on the autopsy table of generic Cook heroine (young, spunky, pretty doc) Laurie Montgomery, an N.Y.C. medical examiner. Days and several more dead yuppies later, Laurie is convinced that someone is flooding the upscale market with bad cocaine. Of course, no one will listen to her--not her boss, who wants to chill this political hot potato; not silver-tongued, gold- plated ophthalmologist Jordan Scheffield, who's wooing her with limos and swank dinners; not cop Lou Soldano (``a bit like Colombo''), to whom Laurie explains the exact difference between ophthalmologists, optometrists, and opticians and who wants to woo her with his sedan and spaghetti but can't match Jordan's glitz and anyway is busy worrying about the mob-related corpses stacking up next to the yuppies in Laurie's morgue. For meanwhile, in scenes stiff with clich‚, two mobsters are blowing away a seemingly random group of citizens on orders from mob kingpin Paul Cerino, who, Laurie learns, is one of Jordan's patients--and who deals coke. Laurie sleuths; the mobsters lock her in a coffin; Laurie sobs; the mobsters let her out; Laurie remembers the flammable properties of ethylene, handily within reach, and blows up the mobsters. Finally, Laurie dumps Jordan for Lou, and she and the cop talk about the motives behind the whole ``horrid affair''--which owe more than a little to Coma. A slack and ragged retread, with Cook parodying himself in a tale that's about as stylish and suspenseful as an eye-chart. (Literary Guild Dual Selection for February) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 528 pages
• Publisher: G K Hall & Co (November 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816155186
• ISBN-13: 978-0816155187
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,554,633 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Doctor and author Robin Cook is widely credited with introducing the word 'medical' to the thriller genre, and over twenty years after the publication of his breakthrough novel, Coma, he continues to dominate the category he created. Cook has successfully combined medical fact with fantasy to produce a over twenty-seven international bestsellers, including Outbreak (1987), Terminal (1993), Contagion (1996), Chromosome 6 (1997) and Foreign Body (2008).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic, August 20, 2005

By 

Matthew Schiariti (new jersey) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blindsight (Mass Market Paperback)

I've been recommended Robin Cook before but this is the first time I've ever read one of his novels. I was pleasantly surprised. The book sucks you in from beginning to end. The foreshadowing's all there, but it really doesn't become apparent just what's going on until near the end of the book, so it always keeps you interested and guessing. The pages fly by with great action and character moments, and the characters themselves are fun to get involved with. Also, the book never gets bogged down in too much medical explanation. There's just enough to let the reader know what's going on, but you don't need a degree to understand what's being explained.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars SUPPLY AND DEMAND..., September 23, 2006

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Blindsight (Mass Market Paperback)

This is an entertaining book, although perhaps not the best of the author's many books. Sill, fans of the author will enjoy reading and solving this mystery, as Dr. Laurie Montgomery, a young forensic pathologist who works in the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for the City of New York, begins to take notice that an unusual number of young professionals seem to be succumbing to an overdose of cocaine. She begins to suspect that something is seriously amiss, but what is it?

She strikes up a friendship with Columbo-like Detective Lieutenant Lou Saldano with the Homicide Bureau of NYPD. He does not initially share her concerns over these drug induced deaths, as he is more focused on a number of mob related killings, which may signify that an all out mob war may loom in the not too distant future. Despite their divergent opinions on the deaths of these young professionals, Lou has the hots for Laurie, but timing is everything. Despite the mutual attraction, Laurie has just been swept off her feet by a wealthy ophthalmologist to whom her parents have introduced her. As it turns out, this ophthalmologist has a mob boss as a patient, the very same mob boss that Lou is investigating. Laurie's infatuation with this eye doctor causes a little friction between Laurie and Lou. Still, the nature of their work thrusts them together, and they will discover that their concerns are not mutually exclusive.

The author weaves a fine plot, even though the author's cookie-cutter characters leave something to be desired. Still, the clever plot will keep the reader eagerly turning the pages of this book, even though the discerning reader will probably solve the mystery before the Laurie and Lou do so. This book makes for a quick, enjoyable read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fast-moving predictability but refreshing read in bed, April 3, 2001

By 

Patrick - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blindsight (Mass Market Paperback)

I love these medical mystery novels of Robin Cook and Michael Crichton, something akin to John Christopher's natural-earthwide-disaster books in the 1950's. Yes, something starts out slow and small and spreads out viciously, yet one smart scientist, doctor, cop or forensic pathologist will catch on, alert the right people, barely escape his/her own death by the evil villians who've found out that he knows, and yeah! In the end, the bad guys will die, disappear, be arrested, or at least, get some nasty injuries. Yahoo! That's the way life should be.

Robin Cook obviously writes quickly, easily, and throws in lots of clues for a person to grab at. One that was transparent: in the life of the pathologist, as she comes and goes to work, we hear about her nasty "old lady" (role out the stock characters barrel!) neighbor who's always spying on her, even telling her to go back and get her umbrella. I thought immediately, "Okay, here we go, Robin! This nosy snoop (never a young handsome man at home writing his novel, or a beautiful woman kept by her husband, or some such thing), yes, this old mean thing is going to be important in the plot somewhere...and probably to intervene when it gets violent/dangerous/hoodlum-ridden.

Sure enough, I got that clue right!

Also, a strange quirk of Cook's is lacing into the story all kinds of details on how our hero gets her breakfast, changes her clothes, combs her hair and other very indifferent details. In the lives of other characters, we assume that they did eat something, change their clothes sometimes and wash now and again, but we're not put through the paces with them. It's odd. I cannot see, as a writer, why Robin Cook is doing it.

This plot about opthalmologists and organ donor victims is semi-predictable, just by reading the back of the paperback version. But a good read anyway!

I like to nitpick for the heck of it. Certainly I should get on this or some other bandwagon and churn out a few predictable but good stories myself. Let's see, how about some archeologists in the San Francisco Bay Area who keep getting called to examine skulls and bones, found underground on sites for new housing projects? WHy are these projects then delayed for six months or more while the neighbors manage to veto the halfway house or ghetto slum/Section 8 planned housing out of their neighborhood? Why does one evil archeologist have at his home a whole basement full of assorted bones and skulls?

Ah ha. Oops, I've given away most of the plot. But a good read it would be, eh?

No, I'll stick to medical mysteries, not archeological mysteries.