Death Benefit (A Medical Thriller) by Robin Cook (Epub)

Description

Pia Grazdani is an exceptional yet aloof medical student working closely with Columbia University Medical Center’s premier scientist on cutting edge research that could revolutionize health care by creating replacement organs for critically ill patients. But when tragedy strikes in the lab, Pia, with the help of classmate George Wilson, launches an investigation into the unforeseen calamity in the hospital’s supposedly secure biosafety lab.

Meanwhile, two ex-Wall Street whiz-kids think they’ve found another loadstone in the nation’s multi-trillion dollar life insurance industry, and race to find ways to control actuarial data and securitize the policies of the aged and infirm to make another killing.

As Pia and George dig deeper into the events at the lab, one question remains unanswered: is someone attempting to manipulate private insurance information to allow investors to benefit from the deaths of others?

User’s Reviews

Review “…a fascinating tale that never slows down.” — Library Journal”Cook provides an interesting study of the strange bedfellows the biotech business and the mob might make…” — Publishers Weekly –This text refers to the audioCD edition.

Reviews from Amazon users, collected at the time the book is getting published on UniedVRG. It can be related to shiping or paper quality instead of the book content:

⭐ This book has two supposedly intelligent med school characters who acted in a way that was not very logical for people that smart. They went against the instructions of the med school dean and of medical doctors at the hospital. The story could have been much better if the main characters weren’t so stupid.

⭐ An unscrupulous speculator finds that his profit will vanish if people live longer. A medical researcher is close to inventing a way of producing replacement organs (kidney, heart) etc. from people’s own stem cells. The first part of the story is rather slow, but then their conflict results in serious crimes which a young female medical student is the only person who an outwit the criminals. This makes the story very thrilling in its second part.

⭐ A youth full of abuse suffered while under the “care” of the New York child welfare system has left Pia Grandazi with deep emotional scars. She has a hard time feeling anything for anybody. But her intense intelligence, dedication, and willingness to work incredibly hard have led her to Columbia Medical School. She is within a few months of graduation when she finds herself entangled in a bizarre plot involving her mentor, Dr. Tobias Rothman, a Nobel laureate.Rothman is on the cutting edge of research on the use of stem cells that will produce an entire new organ. The recipient of the organ provides the stem cells, so there is no danger of rejection. Rothman’s work is apparently only months away from the relatively easy production of organs such as kidneys and pancreases. It would seem that the whole world would rejoice at this epochal medical breakthrough. However, there are those who stand to lose many millions if this research is successful, because they want people to die. They want people to die because…. Well, I won’t tell you. It’s one of the most fascinating aspects of the tale. These soulless monsters who stand to lose a fortune because of Rothman’s work are willing to use methods most foul to thwart him.I found this to be a thrilling read. As usual with the works of Robin Cook, the prose is flawless. The only bump is Cook’s over-the-top treatment of Pia’s family ties. Turns out she has close relatives in the Albanian mob who are as committed to a code of “honor” as Pia is to medical research.This is the third Cook novel that I have reviewed for this site. It’s the best of the three, and the others were quite good.

⭐ I took me quite a while to discover this author although I may have read some of his paperbacks long time ago – he is not that young…Before reading his bio on Wikipedia, I realized that he was a medical doctor – the book is written pretty much from a doctor’s perspective. I do not want to replicate the Wiki article here but his story is not an entertainment only. It is quite informative and, as far as I know, quite accurate.The crime is committed using a fairly new method that became widely known in London 2007 and I remember well. I actually checked the five year old facts before this specific event was mentioned in the book. Impressed that the news stories were reproduced (later in the book) almost verbatim. I just happen to have a member of my family specializing in this particular area – hence my enhanced memory.Notice I am being deliberately vague, I really do not want to spoil anything for new readers.I am very happy with this ‘discovery’ of a good writer before Christmas. It may be warm enough in Palm Springs just before the end of 2012 to sit outside and read my original (cheapest) Kindle there.Highty recommended.

⭐ I was very disappointed in this book. I am surprised it is even a Robin Cook book…….. nothing like any of his other works. I usually enjoy the medical thrillers he writes…….because they are believable, written so someone who is NOT in the medical field can understand them, and have great plots to them. Death Benefit doesn’t fall into ANY of those categories. The main character is so distracting, and the second character has a high school crush on her, and ugh! On and on the story goes of him chasing her, and her rebuffing him, ad nauseum. I wouldn’t recommend this book to Mr Cook’s fans……. they will be disappointed.

⭐ I did enjoy this book , but took off a star because I never could like or even sympathize with the main character. I almost feel bad for feeling that way, but in the end – no matter her background or reasons I don’t feel she can or will change.

⭐ Another Robin Cook hit. Couldn’t put it down. Excellent read fir anytime of the year. Highly recommend. Only wish he would’ve authored more than one Pia Grazdani books. She is such a likeble character-one who most can identify with.

⭐ I love his stories so much that I lose time and don’t want to stop reading. The storyline is so real and compelling that you wonder if it can or did happen. You can’t go wrong if you love mystery to the very end

⭐ If you are a fan of medical thrillers, you won’t be disappointed by this one. A little predictable ( the good guys always win) but just what I needed, post pandemic!

⭐ This book was rather long and took quite some time to get into the “meat” of the story. However, once there, I couldn’t put it down!

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