Andromeda Strain: Part 2

The team of scientists hunker down in their underground installation, hoping to discover more about this deadly organism. They are equally confused about the two survivors they found in the town that was first exposed to the disease. Two completely opposite people, a sickly old man and a newborn infant, somehow had fought off the disease. The scientists observe them and perform tests on them, yet there is no connection to the disease. The symptom of the disease is the rapid clogging of all the blood in the body, leading to immediate death. Yet the scientists cannot determine the cause of the mysterious phenomenon. They can only wait and hope, knowing that if the disease got out, a nuclear bomb attached to the facility would obliderate anything before it can escape. That bomb would turn out to be a fatal error later on. The book has many twists and turns, but the ending is somewhat unsatisfactory. The reader is lead to believe that the disease would eventually escape the lab and destroy the world, but in the end, nothing happens. Not the best book I have ever read.

The Andromeda Strain: Part 1

The target landed in the middle of the desert, seemingly harmless. But the military serveillence team that was supposed to monitor it encounters something very strange. The object had been carried into a neighboring town, and now all the people are dead. Everyone except for a man in a white robe. The team itself expires after entering the town. Only through pictures and video obtained by a spyplane was the situation fully understood. High ranking leaders in the government had been notified and the mechanisms of a secret project came to life. Probes had been sent into space in an attempt to collect interstellar bacteria and viruses. The most recent one to come back was not carrying something friendly. A lab had been prepared for the eventual discovery of new life, and now this lab, along with many notable scientists was being activiated and mobilized. Everyone hoped to contain the infection just to the case zero town, but that was just wishful thinking. To deal with something so dangerous that it would kill in a matter of minutes was not what people were remotely prepared for. Another michael Crichton novel, the Andromeda Strain explores the possiblities of world catastrope via the introduction of interstellar life. Written in a captivating manner, this science fiction book is a good read for anyone.

Michael Crichton's The Great Train Robbery

Set in 19th century Victorian England, The Great Train Robbery is a fast paced novel focused on the planning and execution of an ambitious plot to steal 12,000 British pounds worth of gold, an enormous sum in those times. The main character, Edward Pierce, is a wealthy gentleman, seemingly harmless and ordinary. His background, however, is ambiguous and shady at best, and his demeanor is one big facade. With quick reactions and a flair for devising plots to rob various institutions, Pierce assembles a motley crew of like-minded criminals to carry out his grand scheme. During the first two parts of the novel, the plot focuses entirely upon the preparation and planning that Pierce's group carries out. Their plan seems simple and ingenious, but a whole host of unexpected changes to the environment as well as major setbacks force Pierce to improvise and make his plot much more elaborate and complicated, almost to the point that it seems highly likely that he will fail and be arrested. Yet he seems to elude every effort, intentional or not, to deter him. Will he be successful? Or will fate catch up with him? Michael Crichton is a great author whose novels are highly captivating and advance the storyline in a rapid manner. This is a great book and I recommend it to anyone who wants to read about 200 pages of good writing.