A Case Of Need [Hardcover]

Michael Crichton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1993

Written by the author of "Jurassic Park", this medical thriller won the USA's Edgar Award for Best Crime Novel. Was it murder, or horribly botched surgery, or was someone in the great Boston medical centre violating the Hippocratic oath? One doctor is willing to seek out the truth.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

I love anything Michael Crichton writes, but his early medical thrillers have been favorites of mine. (Stephen King) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 319 pages
• Publisher: Dutton (July 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525938028
• ISBN-13: 978-0525938026
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #865,180 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chrichton's first novel., June 17, 1999

By 

R. D. Allison ([e-mail]) (Gainesville, Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Case of Need (Mass Market Paperback)

This book won the 1968 Edgar Award for best mystery novel of the year. An obstetrician has been accused of performing an illegal abortion in Boston in the late 1960's. A pathologist discovers that the girl, who died in the emergency room of a hospital, wasn't even pregnant. He sets out to clear his friend of the charges. Although some of the discussions on abortion may seem dated, this is still a good mystery. Michael Crichton originally published this book under the pseudonym Jeffrey Hudson. Some earlier reviewers have suggested that he did this because of the controversy generated by the topic of abortion. While this undoubtedly was a factor, we also have to recall that this was his first book and Crichton was a medical student in Massachusetts at the time he wrote much of this book. I'm not sure if his faculty would have been too keen on having a student devote a significant fraction of his time to writing a novel instead of to his studies, had they known. But, I may be wrong. Some other reviewers gave it a low rating because it contained too much jargon. Of course, that is a trademark of this category of books; however, I seem to miss the jargon in this novel. Perhaps I missed it but "A Case of Need" seems to be the least technical of Crichton's books.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A rightful Edgar Award winner!, May 6, 2000

By 

Siddharth Bhatt (India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Case of Need (Mass Market Paperback)

Sci-fi wizard Michael Crichton wrote this novel when he was still in medical school. In fact, he wrote many such novels under pseudonyms to pay his way through college. Then, this book won an Edgar Award, and everything changed!

'A Case Of Need' is a medical thriller along with a murder mystery thrown in. The story revolves around Dr. John Berry who works in a Boston Hospital. His best friend Dr. Arthur Lee is arrested and charged with murder caused by an abortion gone wrong. The deceased is the daughter or Dr. J. D. Randall, one of the most prominent doctors in town. Was it deliberate murder? Was it accidental malpractice? The police are under a lot of pressure, and finally slap charges on Dr. Lee. John Berry is convinced that Lee is innocent. He sets out on his own investigation into the matter.

It's a fast-paced mystery with the hero uncovering shocking secrets about the girl's life. Of course, it isn't as good as other mystery writers. After all, this was Crichton's first attempt at such a topic, and hardcore mystery fans may not find it much exciting. But the fact that Crichton is a doctor himself, makes up for this. The book has quite a few medical details about surgical procedures and the functioning of hospitals and also a lot of arguments on medical ethics.

Quite reminiscent of Robin Cook's medical thrillers but with a very different writing style, the story moves quickly, and seems to have lots of unexpected twists. All in all, it's a superb novel, combining elements of mystery and authentic medical detail making it one of the best books of it's kind.

Any fan of Crichton should not miss this book. Originally written under the pseudonym of Jeffery Hudson, this one's a rightful Edgar Award winner. Michael Crichton deserves all the praise he gets. Don't miss this one!

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It was the _______ who did it!, February 21, 2005

By 

Kcoruol (Florence, SC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Case of Need (Paperback)

I thought this was a good book, which was dated, yet dealt with an important topic yesterday as it is today; abortion. It was well written and easy to read. Actually had trouble putting it down. If you are strictly anti-abortion you may not like this book, if you're able to put that aside you may like it. I did slam nurses though and I didn't like that aspect of the book. Given the times when it was written, nurses were really looked down upon. Unfortunately many of those stereotypical misconceptions from the point of view of the doctor still carry over today 37 years later. Also brought up the unwritten law of medicine, never to turn against your brother MD no matter how incompetent and dangerous they practice. Another code still largely unbroken today.