Critical

June 11, 2007
Last seen in 2006's Crisis
, New York City medical examiner Laurie Montgomery diligently investigates an abrupt rise in infection deaths at the start of bestseller Cook's lively new thriller. All the deaths can be traced to three Manhattan hospitals owned by Angels Healthcare. Unbeknownst to Montgomery, Angels, which specializes in high-profit surgeries of amply insured patients, is on the verge of going public and can't risk any bad publicity. She's also unaware that Angels' main financial backer is a local Mafia don, who's prepared to kill anyone standing in the way of his investment. Cook smoothly juggles several subplots—one involving Montgomery's husband and fellow coroner, Jack Stapleton, who's suffered a serious knee injury playing basketball—and ekes out maximum value from one of his regular standbys, bumbling hoods. It all adds up to an entertaining mix of suspense, action and education about medical issues.

CRITICAL is Robin Cook's latest book featuring recurring characters Laurie Montgomery and Jack Stapleton. George Guidall's performance is spot-on, as usual, but it's hard to imagine him keeping a straight face in the booth. First, there's some atrocious dialogue between two violent thugs. It's hard to take them seriously when they say "Hispanics" and refer to Rohypnol as "the date rape drug," as opposed to a "roofie." Other than the silly dialogue and shallow characters, the story is engaging as it recounts Laurie's travails in solving a series of gruesome staff infection deaths. Still, despite Guidall's perfect performance, this is more of a movie of the week than a blockbuster. E.D.H. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine