A Case of Need was Michael Crichton's first novel and it showed. The book was decent, but it lacked the polish of his later work. I was interested, but not engrossed and could have put it down and never missed finishing it. Forgettable.

Una muy buena historia que toca el espinoso tema del aborto, aunque no profundiza en las posturas si evidencia la doble moral de muchos de quienes se proclaman anti aborto.
Me gusta la combinación medico / investigador del personaje principal.
A very good story that touches the thorny issue of abortion, but does not deepen the positions if it shows the double standards of many who proclaim anti abortion.
I like the medical / researcher combination of the main character.

This Edgar Award winner that was filmed as the "The Carey Treatment" and starred James Coburn.

I have to say, wow.

It was written in 10 days. It was good enough to win a prize. It was puzzling, complex, yet simple in a way.

Awesome Chrichton!!!

A cannot put down, read all night until you are done Michael Crichton!!! A racing Medical thriller from the first chapter!!

Wow, that was a whirlwind.

Meh- just an ok read. Interesting but not super thrilling.

Not Crichton’s Best Work…Not Even Close

A Case of Need is the story of Dr. John Berry’s efforts to clear his fellow doctor and friend, Dr. Arthur Lee, after a teenager in his care dies from an illegal abortion. My first thought for a title for this review was, ‘You’ll need a scorecard to follow all the characters in this somewhat preachy, meandering plot involving an obstinate doctor who wants to play detective but has no idea how the criminal justice system works.’ But that seemed a bit long.

As mentioned above, the story deals with abortion and the need to broaden/relax the laws. So, depending on your political and religious leanings, you may find the story anywhere between contemporary and thought-provoking to depraved and immoral. Be advised.

Beyond the ethical position it takes, there is a story here with some suspense and good pacing. The suspense is provided by assembling a myriad of suspects and digging into the background of several witnesses, many of whom have their own secrets – drug use, infidelity, self-destructive behavior, deceitfulness. And surprisingly, Berry, with no authority and only some vague background in the Military Police, unearths all of this information singlehandedly. But after doing so, he doesn’t understand he has more than enough to raise reasonable doubt; then he doesn’t want to use this information because it’s too “dirty;” finally, he complains that the lawyer didn’t use it aggressively enough. The only consistency I could find in Berry was that he always wanted to play it alone and as a result, the circumstances that pitted him against the world were of his own making. That behavior doesn’t gain my empathy and tends to make my mind wander to other books I could be reading.

As a long-time Crichton fan, I thought I’d always be able to recommend one of his stories. I was wrong. My advice, look elsewhere for your reading entertainment.

This first novel by Michael Crichton failed to drawn me into the story. My least favorite of his books.

Not much enthusiasm for this book. It was written in the late 1960's and some of the language was dated and left a sour taste in my mouth.

After a long time read a medical thriller.....
And enjoyed it....

This is the story of a pathologist who fights for.his ObGyn friend who is prosecuted for the alleged abortion leading to uterine trauma, exsanguination and finally, death due to penicillin anaphylaxis shock of a young , rich, well connected female who is surrounded by prominent doctor relatives.
The pathologist is an upright doctor who fights for justice to his friend, Lee, who denies having performed that particular abortion.
Slowly, the complicated threads of the case untangle. .. and finally the culprit is identified.
There were a couple of minor inaccuracies...
And something that was left unexplained in the book.

These two facts, coupled with the fact that the ending was sort of an anticlimax, made me deduct a star from the initial five star book.

why I chose this?
Started this for a weekend challenge on medical theme, along with 'the good doctor" to complete the requisite 300 pages that I'd pledged myself to read.

Michael Crichton has the rare ability to produce stimulating fast-paced fiction mixed with intelligent technical description. The book is a whodunit centered around an abortion that may or may not have been preformed. A good fast paced read.