Intervention [Paperback]

Robin Cook (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 7, 2009

After performing a post-mortem on a young college student who'd been recently treated by a chiropractor, Jack Stapleton, a New York City medical examiner, decides to explore alternative medicine. What makes people seek help from Eastern philosophies or even faith healers to cure their illnesses? Meanwhile, his old college friend, Shawn Doherty, a renowned archaeologist involved in a dig at St Peter's in Rome, has made a startling discovery with huge ecclesiastical and medical implications. When Kevin Murray, another old college friend, and now Roman Catholic Bishop of New York, gets wind of Shawn's findings, he's desperate to keep them from the public and to disassociate himself from Shawn. Kevin turns to his old friend Jack to help protect this explosive secret - one with the power to change lives forever.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this uneven medical thriller from bestseller Cook (Foreign Body), Dr. Jack Stapleton, a New York City forensic pathologist who lost his first wife and their two children in a plane crash, is devastated when his newborn son by his second wife is diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma. As a diversion from his efforts to find a cure for his son, Stapleton seeks to expose unscrupulous practitioners of alternative medicine. In particular, he investigates the death of a healthy woman whose vertebral arteries were damaged by a chiropractor. Then the plot swerves into Da Vinci Code territory as two of Stapleton's college friends—the archbishop of New York and an archeologist—battle over skeletal remains that may be those of the Virgin Mary. When the characters themselves comment on the events as something out of a horror movie or a book, suspension of disbelief becomes even more of a challenge (e.g., He felt like he was a participant in a kind of unfolding real-life mystery-thriller). (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Robin Cook is widely credited with introducing the word 'medical' to the thriller genre, and over 20 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 over 27 international bestsellers, including Outbreak (1987), Terminal (1993), Contagion (1996), Chromosome 6 (1997) and most recently Foreign Body (2008).

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Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Macmillan; Open market, Australia and New Zealand ed edition (August 7, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0230743641
• ISBN-13: 978-0230743649
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 1.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (128 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,507,837 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

38 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dem Bones, August 17, 2009

By 

C. Wallace (L.A.) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Intervention (Hardcover)

After just finishing a sloppily written/poorly edited book by another author, it was a pleasure to encounter Robin Cook's smooth, error-free prose. Intervention rolls steadily along like old man river for the first two-thirds or so, although I would not say it's breathtakingly exciting.

The three main characters were chums in college. Now, they are all successful men in their fifties living in New York. Jack, easily the most likeable of the three, is a forensic pathologist for the NYC Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. He performs autopsies and determines the cause of death for people who apparently did not die naturally. Shawn is a prominent archaeologist based at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with an interest in early Christian history. He's willing to bend/ignore the rules to advance his career. James is the Catholic archbishop of New York City. He too is ambitious and hopes to rise even higher in the Church.

Jack, whose first wife and two children were killed in a plane crash, is now married to a colleague at the OCME. As the novel opens, he is troubled by his infant son's serious illness, which does not seem to be responding to medical treatment. This contributes to Jack's interest in alternative medicine, as does the death of a young woman which was apparently caused by a negligent chiropractor.

Shawn uncovers evidence in Egypt and Rome which appears to rock cherished Catholic beliefs. His findings focus on what's inside an ancient ossuary, dated at 62 A.D. If you know what an ossuary is, the title of this review will mean something to you. If you don't know what an ossuary is, you will soon enough if you read this book.

James is alarmed by Shawn's findings because they undermine some of James's personal religious beliefs and because James unwittingly facilitated those discoveries. James is afraid that his association with Shawn's work will derail his train to higher Church office, so he wants to quash Shawn's highly controversial research before it becomes public.

Cook writes with a confidence and grace that kept the pages turning. But, as the last hundred or so pages approached, I wondered how Cook could possibly bring this yarn together effectively. He doesn't. The yarn unravels as the conclusion nears. The plot takes some bizarre, unconvincing turns. It seems to all go up in smoke.

I feel that Cook wrote himself into a corner when he tried to have "science" prove or disprove what are, in the end, matters of faith. The accuracy of the sources that concerned James so much simply could not be proven, no matter what Shawn reported. This really undermines the whole book.

34 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Will the real Robin Cook please stand up., August 29, 2009

By 

Jo Christine Heintz "mystery lover" (Augusta, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Intervention (Hardcover)

This couldn't have been written by Robin Cook. It was the WORST book I ever read. Talk about trying to cash in on the Dan Brown train! Nothing in this book was remotely believable. If my infant son had cancer I don't think I would be playing basketball, going to dinner parties and winging to Rome for a diversion!!! Give me a break. I fell asleep reading this too many times to count and normally I can't put a Robin Cook down. Will the real Robin Cook please stand up!

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars worst robin cook novel ever!, December 16, 2009

By 

Chicagofan "topfuel564" (AZ, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Intervention (Hardcover)

This perhaps was the worst book I've read in the past ten years or so. The first half we're preached at incessantly on the dangers of alternative medicine. The second half seemed to be written by a different author altogether. I hated this book, unlike some of the other reviews I finished the book. It was an awful experience that left me very angry. I will think twice before reading another robin cook novel. I think it's time he get back to his roots and writes a solid medical mystery with fresh characters. I for one think the whole jack stapelton character is played out. Let the reader beware!