TammyRich Posted December 29, 2006 Share Posted December 29, 2006 I am a great fan of Michael Crichton having read almost all of his books. Many of his books have been made into films including Jurassic Park, Lost World, Timeline, Rising Sun, Congo and Outbreak amongst others. He researches his subjects well and usually builds a great story around some scientific subject of potentially controversial or unlikely premise. However I was not impressed with State of Fear one of his most recent books. Has anyone else read it and what did they think of it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Posted December 29, 2006 Share Posted December 29, 2006 I agree he's a good writer, but I'm not sure I've read all of his. I do know I loved Jurassic Park and Timeline. I like the look of 'Next', but it's getting mixed reviews. Has anyone read that one yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kell Posted December 29, 2006 Share Posted December 29, 2006 The only one I've ever read was Jurassic Park, but I've read it several times now, as I enjoyed it so much. I loved all the scientific bits - the descriptions were never too complicated to understand, but Crichton never "dumbed down" either, & they added to the story. All the Chaos Theory sections were great too - describing how, no matter what happens, nature will always find a way to thrive against all odds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maureen Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 I read his Disclosure, but have since totally forgotten whether I liked it or not. Might read it again, although if it were that good I would have remembered it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kell Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 I did have Timelineon my TBR pile, but when my list got ridiculously long (there were more than 100 books at one point) I decided to trim down as there were several books on the list I'd changed my mind about reading by that time & that was one of the ones I just didn't fancy any more. I may well come back to it at a later date, though, as I have heard good things about it & I did enjoy Jurassic Park a lot (enough to read it several times). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pontalba Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 I enjoyed Timeline and Air Frame, and probably a few others I can't remember the names of at present. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louiseog Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 I enjoyed Timeline and Air Frame, and probably a few others I can't remember the names of at present. I love that! Happens to me all the time (the forgetting bit) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angerball Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 I finished Next last night. Ho hum. It was a bit of a strange book - just a hodge podge of characters all somehow connected with genetic manipulation. I don't quite know if I liked it - it seemed to be a bit too far fetched, though a lot of parts of it were true. I was enjoying it, until the last quarter - then it just seemed to be a bit silly. I think Crichton was pushing his agenda too hard. It would have been better if he'd written a non-fiction book about his opinions on genetic manipulation, rather than trying to wrap a story around it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudyB Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 My OH didn't enjoy it either - don't think he finished it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 Michael Crichton is one of Mr Bagpuss' favourite authors, along with Harlen Coben. I didn't know he had a new book out, and Mr B has a birthday coming up... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrathofkublakhan Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 I finished Next last night. Ho hum. It was a bit of a strange book - just a hodge podge of characters all somehow connected with genetic manipulation. I don't quite know if I liked it - it seemed to be a bit too far fetched, though a lot of parts of it were true. I was enjoying it, until the last quarter - then it just seemed to be a bit silly. I think Crichton was pushing his agenda too hard. It would have been better if he'd written a non-fiction book about his opinions on genetic manipulation, rather than trying to wrap a story around it. Yeah, sometimes I think he's writing for a movie to be made - it's happened with so many of his novels. I wonder if it's changed his writing style? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiona Posted June 11, 2007 Share Posted June 11, 2007 I want to get around to reading more, but not sure which... I've read Jurassic Park/The Lost World and Prey. His other books though, don't seem to interest me. I think I should just get stuck into one. My favourite has to be Jurassic Park it's better then the other two of his that I've read. It's so different to the movie, but I think they're both good in their own right even if a lot was changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angerball Posted June 12, 2007 Share Posted June 12, 2007 Yeah, sometimes I think he's writing for a movie to be made - it's happened with so many of his novels. I wonder if it's changed his writing style? I definitely prefer his earlier books (Jurassic Park in particular). His latest two books (Next and State of Fear), seem to be pushing an agenda a bit too hard, as though that's his main inspiration for writing a book. Like I said earlier, I think he'd be better off sticking that in a non-fiction book; I'm sure there would be people interested in his view. But, I don't like to feel like I'm being preached at when I read a novel - I just want entertainment, and it's a bit off-putting when an author is so obvious about it. Having said that, I think I'll still continue reading his books, but I'll just borrow them instead of buying them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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