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Three Complete Novels: The Andromeda Strain / The Terminal Man / The Great Train Robbery
Years before Jurassic Park, Michael Chrichton was known as The New York Times bestselling master of the techno-thriller. The three mesmerizing super-sellers in this collection--including his first novel, The Andromeda Strain--have sold well over 4 million copies and qualify as modern classics. Perfectly plotted stories that are fantastic, unbelievable and yet, somehow, very real, these novels pull the reader into bizarre situations full of spell-binding suspense, offering three great examples of the author's genius.
688 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 1993
31 people are currently reading
887 people want to read
About the author
Michael Crichton
219 books20.2k followersJohn Michael Crichton was an American author, screenwriter, and filmmaker whose prolific career left an indelible mark on popular culture and speculative fiction. Raised on Long Island, he displayed a precocious talent for writing, publishing an article in The New York Times at sixteen. Initially enrolling at Harvard as an English major, he switched to biological anthropology after discovering a preference for scientific study over literature. He graduated summa cum laude and received a fellowship to lecture in anthropology at Cambridge. Later attending Harvard Medical School, he earned his MD but chose not to practice, dedicating himself to writing instead. His medical background profoundly influenced his novels, providing authentic scientific and technical underpinnings that became a hallmark of his work. Crichton began writing under pseudonyms, producing suspenseful thrillers as John Lange, including Odds On, Scratch One, and Easy Go, and as Jeffrey Hudson with A Case of Need, earning him an Edgar Award. His first major success under his own name, The Andromeda Strain, established his signature blend of scientific authenticity, tension, and exploration of technological hazards, leading to its film adaptation. Over his career, he wrote 25 novels, including The Terminal Man, The Great Train Robbery, Congo, Sphere, Jurassic Park, Rising Sun, Disclosure, The Lost World, Airframe, Timeline, Prey, State of Fear, and Next, several adapted into major films, with four additional works published posthumously. Crichton also made significant contributions to film and television. He wrote and directed Westworld, pioneering the use of 2D computer-generated imagery, and later directed Coma, The First Great Train Robbery, Looker, and Runaway. He created the influential medical drama ER, which he executive produced and developed with Steven Spielberg, achieving critical and commercial success. Many of his novels, most famously Jurassic Park and its sequel The Lost World, became cultural phenomena, combining imaginative adventure with grounded scientific speculation, often exploring humanity’s overreach in genetics, biotechnology, and complex systems. His literary style was notable for integrating meticulous scientific detail, suspense, and moral cautionary themes. His works frequently addressed the failure of complex systems—biological, technological, or organizational—demonstrating the unpredictable consequences of human hubris. Employing techniques such as first-person narratives, false documents, fictionalized scientific reports, and assembling expert teams to tackle crises, Crichton created immersive stories appealing to both popular and scholarly audiences. His exploration of genetics, paleontology, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence revealed both fascination and caution about humanity’s technological ambitions, while his early non-fiction, such as Five Patients and Electronic Life, reflected his scientific insight and forward-thinking approach to computers and programming. Standing 6 feet 9 inches tall, Crichton experienced social isolation in adolescence and later pursued meditation and consultations with psychics, cultivating a lifelong interest in human consciousness and alternative experiences. A workaholic, he approached writing with disciplined ritualistic methodology, often retreating entirely to complete a novel in six or seven weeks. He was married five times, fathered two children, and maintained a wide-ranging collection of 20th-century American art. Crichton engaged in political and scientific discourse, particularly regarding global warming, where he was an outspoken skeptic and testified before the U.S. Senate. He contributed significantly to the discussion of intellectual property, technology, and environmental policy, coining concepts such as the Gell-Mann amnesia effect. Throughout his life, he received numerous awards, including Edgar Awards, a Peabody Award for ER, an Aca
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
August 8, 2021
⭐⭐⭐⭐ to The Great Train Robbery.
I really enjoyed most of this. There were many parts that I found myself trying not to skim, but I will give credit that those parts provided helpful background information for particular scenes, areas, and even slang. Fantastic story of someone always one step ahead, even when he falls behind.
I really enjoyed most of this. There were many parts that I found myself trying not to skim, but I will give credit that those parts provided helpful background information for particular scenes, areas, and even slang. Fantastic story of someone always one step ahead, even when he falls behind.
July 5, 2020
Read long ago. We're going digital, so rather than retain a physical copy on the bookshelf, I'll use Goodreads as my external memory drive.
Two of these three books are excellent ( The Terminal Man is the weak entry here, but nonetheless entertaining fluff for all that). The Andromeda Strain is really a classic science fiction cautionary tale about the risks of acting without sufficient understanding (ah, xenobiology).
The Great Train Robbery is worth the price of admission alone, and every bit as good (or perhaps even better) a caper than the wonderful movie with Sean Connery, Leslie Downes, and Donald Sutherland. Why should a gentlemen's gentleman seek to rob the Crimean gold train? Simple. "I wanted the money."
Two of these three books are excellent ( The Terminal Man is the weak entry here, but nonetheless entertaining fluff for all that). The Andromeda Strain is really a classic science fiction cautionary tale about the risks of acting without sufficient understanding (ah, xenobiology).
The Great Train Robbery is worth the price of admission alone, and every bit as good (or perhaps even better) a caper than the wonderful movie with Sean Connery, Leslie Downes, and Donald Sutherland. Why should a gentlemen's gentleman seek to rob the Crimean gold train? Simple. "I wanted the money."
September 7, 2022
The Andromeda Strain: 3/5. I really enjoyed this book but things tied up a little too nicely at the end if that makes any sense. I guess without getting into any spoilers, I did not like the ending even though it is believable. Reminds me of Covid a great deal with how much unknowns we had to deal with in the beginning and for me that was the best part of this book.
The Terminal Man: 4/5. I heard this story is one of Crichton's less popular stories, however I enjoyed it quite a lot. It could be because I'm in IT and reading about ancient computers is interesting. This story takes place on the verge of a new technological era and is akin to where we are with artificial intelligence now.
The Great Train Robbery: 5/5. This was my favorite out of this collection. I know some people did not like the history lesson being part of the story but I thoroughly enjoyed learning about Victorain England and it helped me understand the context of the criminals and the robbery they were part of. Following Edward Pierce while he was recruiting and planning the robbery was a lot of fun and now I need to watch the movie.
Overall this was an enjoyable read. It took me forever to finish these since I only read the book during my lunch breaks in the office.
The Terminal Man: 4/5. I heard this story is one of Crichton's less popular stories, however I enjoyed it quite a lot. It could be because I'm in IT and reading about ancient computers is interesting. This story takes place on the verge of a new technological era and is akin to where we are with artificial intelligence now.
The Great Train Robbery: 5/5. This was my favorite out of this collection. I know some people did not like the history lesson being part of the story but I thoroughly enjoyed learning about Victorain England and it helped me understand the context of the criminals and the robbery they were part of. Following Edward Pierce while he was recruiting and planning the robbery was a lot of fun and now I need to watch the movie.
Overall this was an enjoyable read. It took me forever to finish these since I only read the book during my lunch breaks in the office.
July 19, 2025
I think the best books I’ve read have something of the author in them. Not just their ideas, or favorite turns-of-phrase, but some of their life. Lord of the Rings is so engaging not just because of the prose and epic story, but because you can see how Tolkien’s experiences in World War 1 shaped his perspective. To read a good book is to gain a new perspective from someone you’ve likely never met. This holds just as true for Michael Crichton, a Doctor of Medicine-turned author. While Jurassic Park is of course his Magnum Opus among his many novels, the Andromeda Strain, his first, is certainly the most important. That’s why I was delighted to receive this 3-in-1 compilation comprising of the Andromeda Strain, The Terminal Man, and The Great Train Robbery.
Now, all three of these books are very cerebral, very esoteric. But much like his Jurassic Park novel, Crichton does a bang-up job explaining his areas of expertise—that is, medicine and computer programming—on the fly, allowing the reader to understand what’s going on without wasting too much of our time. You won’t find yourself mindlessly thumbing through a surprise chemistry lesson, wondering when it’s going to end (sorry Jules Verne. I still love The Mysterious Island!) There were rarely any points where I felt lost: and these few times, ironically, were trying to understand the 19th century slang used constantly throughout The Great Train Robbery.
Despite this, I’d say these books do require some patience. Crichton’s style itself is to typically have a lot of talking, a lot of explaining, and a lot of discussion, all culminating in an edge-of-your-seat finale. Even if you start getting bored, keep at it. The climax is always worth the wait.
With all that said, I want to dive into the individual books.
The Andromeda Strain is about a group of world-class doctors and scientists investigating the mysterious mass-deaths of an entire town—all save a drug addict and a constantly crying baby. They discover that the townsfolk were exposed to a crashed satellite carrying a dangerous new type of bacteria they quickly call Andromeda. To their horror, they find that Andromeda is rapidly mutating and evolving to adapt to its environment. So begins a race against time to discover a permanent immunity to Andromeda before it mutates into something unstoppable. In a post-COVID world, wherein many of us have experienced firsthand the threat a microorganism can pose, this story is more relevant than ever.
The Terminal Man is a bit funny, because it’s Crichton’s least favorite book. He felt it was the weakest novel he’d ever written. But that’s a bit like back in the day when people told me Ratatouille was the worse Pixar movie: all things considered, it’s still pretty dang good. This story is about a man suffering from blackouts who receives an electronic implant in his brain. The idea is that it would “cure” his condition by resetting his brain whenever it felt a blackout coming on. Instead, the man’s brain begins to adapt and triggers the reset more and more frequently. During these resets, he experiences a 6-minute window where he mindlessly kills anything he can find. Again, this story is becoming more relevant today as the first ever brain implants have been announced by Elon Musk.
The Great Train Robbery is my personal favorite of the three. There’s no computer talk, no medical jargon: it’s just a really good heist story about a squad of criminals attempting to steal £12,000 of gold from a moving train. It’s very loosely based on the real-life Great Train Robbery of 1963, though the novel is based in 1800’s instead. It feels like this is Crichton flexing his writing muscles: proving that he’s a competent writer in more than just the genre of techno-thrillers. The glut of 19th century Cockney-slang can feel like a fog at times, but Crichton explains several of the key phrases early on, and the rest you can glean the meaning of through context like in any book.
What really strikes me about these books, however, is their timelessness. The Great Train Robbery is just a great read in any age, and as for the rest? There will always be room for stories about the good and bad of technological advancement. Sometimes we use it to combat natural threats like the Andromeda Strain. And sometimes we are laid low by our own hubris like the Terminal Man. Its a complex issue even in real-life, with questions about the ethics of A.I. and new medical procedures pervading our modern discussions.
But Crichton is easily one of the best to ever tackle it.
Now, all three of these books are very cerebral, very esoteric. But much like his Jurassic Park novel, Crichton does a bang-up job explaining his areas of expertise—that is, medicine and computer programming—on the fly, allowing the reader to understand what’s going on without wasting too much of our time. You won’t find yourself mindlessly thumbing through a surprise chemistry lesson, wondering when it’s going to end (sorry Jules Verne. I still love The Mysterious Island!) There were rarely any points where I felt lost: and these few times, ironically, were trying to understand the 19th century slang used constantly throughout The Great Train Robbery.
Despite this, I’d say these books do require some patience. Crichton’s style itself is to typically have a lot of talking, a lot of explaining, and a lot of discussion, all culminating in an edge-of-your-seat finale. Even if you start getting bored, keep at it. The climax is always worth the wait.
With all that said, I want to dive into the individual books.
The Andromeda Strain is about a group of world-class doctors and scientists investigating the mysterious mass-deaths of an entire town—all save a drug addict and a constantly crying baby. They discover that the townsfolk were exposed to a crashed satellite carrying a dangerous new type of bacteria they quickly call Andromeda. To their horror, they find that Andromeda is rapidly mutating and evolving to adapt to its environment. So begins a race against time to discover a permanent immunity to Andromeda before it mutates into something unstoppable. In a post-COVID world, wherein many of us have experienced firsthand the threat a microorganism can pose, this story is more relevant than ever.
The Terminal Man is a bit funny, because it’s Crichton’s least favorite book. He felt it was the weakest novel he’d ever written. But that’s a bit like back in the day when people told me Ratatouille was the worse Pixar movie: all things considered, it’s still pretty dang good. This story is about a man suffering from blackouts who receives an electronic implant in his brain. The idea is that it would “cure” his condition by resetting his brain whenever it felt a blackout coming on. Instead, the man’s brain begins to adapt and triggers the reset more and more frequently. During these resets, he experiences a 6-minute window where he mindlessly kills anything he can find. Again, this story is becoming more relevant today as the first ever brain implants have been announced by Elon Musk.
The Great Train Robbery is my personal favorite of the three. There’s no computer talk, no medical jargon: it’s just a really good heist story about a squad of criminals attempting to steal £12,000 of gold from a moving train. It’s very loosely based on the real-life Great Train Robbery of 1963, though the novel is based in 1800’s instead. It feels like this is Crichton flexing his writing muscles: proving that he’s a competent writer in more than just the genre of techno-thrillers. The glut of 19th century Cockney-slang can feel like a fog at times, but Crichton explains several of the key phrases early on, and the rest you can glean the meaning of through context like in any book.
What really strikes me about these books, however, is their timelessness. The Great Train Robbery is just a great read in any age, and as for the rest? There will always be room for stories about the good and bad of technological advancement. Sometimes we use it to combat natural threats like the Andromeda Strain. And sometimes we are laid low by our own hubris like the Terminal Man. Its a complex issue even in real-life, with questions about the ethics of A.I. and new medical procedures pervading our modern discussions.
But Crichton is easily one of the best to ever tackle it.
May 10, 2024
I had seen the original Andromeda Strain and wanted to read the book to see how it compared. The movie was actually close to the book. The remake TV miniseries was not so much. Michael Crichton has a medial degree but chose to write and late direct films based on his books. There's a lot of his medial training and research incorporated in the first two novels in this tome. The Terminal Man gets deeper into the workings of the brain. Fascinating reading for anyone who likes to learn about human character.
The third novel, The Great Train Robbery, was written about an actual account of the train robbery in Victorian England, 1855. He used trial transcripts and other evidence to recreate how the deed was done. He peppered the story with assumed conversations to bring it to life. Anyone who has read hie later novels will enjoy these even more.
The third novel, The Great Train Robbery, was written about an actual account of the train robbery in Victorian England, 1855. He used trial transcripts and other evidence to recreate how the deed was done. He peppered the story with assumed conversations to bring it to life. Anyone who has read hie later novels will enjoy these even more.
June 12, 2017
This of course contains three books. The Andromeda Strain is an excellent work on the first extraterrestrial life we will probably face. The Terminal Man is about an attempt to operate on the brain to curb criminal behavior. The final book is more historical and is the Great Train Robbery which occurred in the mid 1800s. Crichton researches each book well and contains information that is historically or scientifically correct. The weakest is probably Terminal Man and the reason I only give it a 3.
May 31, 2024
Andromeda Strain: Good for 2/3rds and then painfully anticlimactic. The whole ending made me think, "Why did you even bother to write this story?"
Terminal Man: Improvement on Andromeda. But still missing the later flair that Crichton would exhibit.
Train Robbery: Stunning! Totally made up for the previous two. Nice to see Crichton putting his attention on something not science-based. The story and the lengths to which these criminal masterminds went to pull off this Crime of the Century, blew my mind.
Terminal Man: Improvement on Andromeda. But still missing the later flair that Crichton would exhibit.
Train Robbery: Stunning! Totally made up for the previous two. Nice to see Crichton putting his attention on something not science-based. The story and the lengths to which these criminal masterminds went to pull off this Crime of the Century, blew my mind.
July 6, 2022
I’ve read the first 2 books and found Crichton’s writing very different. Andromeda Strain was clinical yet not dry, it was a page turner. The Terminal Man was like reading about monkeys trying brain control compared to what is actually going on in the world today. It’s an older book so most likely horrified readers back then. Right now many, not most, people are aware of current mind control efforts and the assholes behind it.
June 26, 2023
The first three published novels by Michael Crichton under his own name. All three are very fun and entertaining and an amazing start to what would become one of the most successful authors of all time. Both Andromeda Strain and Terminal man, while very different from each other, are both fun sci-fi stories that are quick reads that you can devour in one or two sittings. The Great Train Robbery is a more action packed heist tale about Great Britain's largest and most complex robbery of the time. Do yourselves a favor and read all three of these! 5/5 stars.
October 26, 2020
The Great Train Robbery was very good. The other two books not great.
April 8, 2021
De las 3 novelas, mi favorita es The Great Train Robbery. La terminé 3/4dias. Muy buena.
The Andromeda Strain me aburrió y The Terminal Man me gustó salvo por el final.
The Andromeda Strain me aburrió y The Terminal Man me gustó salvo por el final.
March 27, 2022
Good books.
June 20, 2022
I really liked The Andromeda Strain and The Terminal Man, but found The Great Train Robbery to be somewhat boring.
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January 18, 2025Haha I’m double dipping this is the one I read
January 29, 2025
Entertaining novels, enjoyed andromeda strain the best
November 8, 2019
Hitting three birds with one stone so why the need to complain? I recently got my own copy from a book sale store which I am a regular customer of and have been eyeing for Crichton book titles. So far I have finished Terminal Man and would like to finish the other two books before I downvote my ratings should I find either of the two or everything distateful to my liking.
March 13, 2017
Three excellent novels
October 19, 2021
So far I am through the Andromeda Strain portion of the book. I really like the character development and I have always been a fan of Michael Crichton's writing but I can't believe that ending. It is almost like he got tired of writing it so he said lets just throw a bogus climax in there and say the organism is going to find it's way into the atmosphere eventually not that it is no longer lethal but I guess that is what a sequel is for. Too bad it had to be written by someone else 50 years later. The Great Train Robbery was a masterpiece...I love the nostalgia of the period that Michael Crichton captures in his unique way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2025
The Andromeda Strain - I was hooked from the very beginning, and the buildup kept me in suspense the entire time. Crichton's medical degree really shines through here. Unfortunately, I thought the ending was a bit anticlimactic and things ended a bit too quickly for me. 4/5
The Terminal Man - My least favorite of the three but interesting nonetheless. A commentary on the advancements of technology and a good read in the age where things like AI are becoming popular. 3/5
The Great Train Robbery - I am not usually a fan of historical fiction, so I went into this story not expecting it to be a favorite. It completely subverted my expectations and Crichton did an amazing job at retelling this thrilling account of history. 5/5
The Terminal Man - My least favorite of the three but interesting nonetheless. A commentary on the advancements of technology and a good read in the age where things like AI are becoming popular. 3/5
The Great Train Robbery - I am not usually a fan of historical fiction, so I went into this story not expecting it to be a favorite. It completely subverted my expectations and Crichton did an amazing job at retelling this thrilling account of history. 5/5
January 18, 2013
Probably three of Crichton's best, and certainly better than the twaddle that concluded his career (does Timeline or Prey make me more angry...?) . The first two, read in the context of his later career, are certainly laden with the themes he'd found much of the twaddle in, being broadly "Experts are too narrowly focussed to be trusted", but are less stridently fixated on it.
The Terminal Man is probably closest to his later style, giving almost no time to set up and reiterating the consequences of experts missing the larger picture until one cries out for mercy.
The Andromeda Strain offers relatively light doses of the same, paces them better, and has a rather more believable aggregation of minor screw-ups rather than one vast act of hubris-fuelled stumblebummery. It also uses the faked-documentary conceit rather better than it appears in his other works.
The Great Train Robbery is certainly the jewel of the set, although it does prompt a quick singing of the Sesame Street classic "One of These Things" as it is a fictionalized history rather that a pure fiction of modern or near-future science. There is a little bit of the same sort of editorializing about the roots of criminal behaviour which appears in The Terminal Man which makes it clear that Crichton has no sympathy for the notion that social inequity has any role in the matter, the concluding (and historically inaccurate) action savours of the notions of anti-heroism common in American popular culture in 1975, and the somewhat stilted use of (purported) criminal slang of the era might all catch at the reader, but in general it's a fun piece of business that I would read ten times rather than suffer once more through a single chapter of The Lost World.
The Terminal Man is probably closest to his later style, giving almost no time to set up and reiterating the consequences of experts missing the larger picture until one cries out for mercy.
The Andromeda Strain offers relatively light doses of the same, paces them better, and has a rather more believable aggregation of minor screw-ups rather than one vast act of hubris-fuelled stumblebummery. It also uses the faked-documentary conceit rather better than it appears in his other works.
The Great Train Robbery is certainly the jewel of the set, although it does prompt a quick singing of the Sesame Street classic "One of These Things" as it is a fictionalized history rather that a pure fiction of modern or near-future science. There is a little bit of the same sort of editorializing about the roots of criminal behaviour which appears in The Terminal Man which makes it clear that Crichton has no sympathy for the notion that social inequity has any role in the matter, the concluding (and historically inaccurate) action savours of the notions of anti-heroism common in American popular culture in 1975, and the somewhat stilted use of (purported) criminal slang of the era might all catch at the reader, but in general it's a fun piece of business that I would read ten times rather than suffer once more through a single chapter of The Lost World.
June 23, 2013
OMG!!! This book was EVERYTHING. It deserves 4.5/5 Three Complete Novels all in one. I originally purchased the novel for "The Great Train Robbery" which coincidetally was my favorite of the three.
In ranking order:
"The Great Train Robbery" 5/5 - A Stunning novel. Crichton steps away from the techno-science thriller and sets a FIERCE story about a brilliant heist which takes place aboard a train in London. The characters and plot are beautifully woven into a awesome page-turning story that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the end! Crichton really takes you into the mind of a criminal master-mind. In my opinion, it's one of Crichton's best works!
"The Terminal Man" - 4/5 Man versus Machine. A very thrilling novel which is still very relavent today! With all the advancements in technology as well as medicine, this novel deals with all of these issues. Using "mind control" to "help/control/cure" the human brain. Crichton once again mixes science, technology, and thriller to create a captivating and brilliant novel. TWO THUMBS UP!!
"The Andromeda Strain" - 3.5/5 A very intriguing novel, and suspenseful ending! At points I found this novel to be a bit on the technical side because of the subject matter, but Crichton does an excellent job of mixing science with suspense!! Very Enjoyable!
In ranking order:
"The Great Train Robbery" 5/5 - A Stunning novel. Crichton steps away from the techno-science thriller and sets a FIERCE story about a brilliant heist which takes place aboard a train in London. The characters and plot are beautifully woven into a awesome page-turning story that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the end! Crichton really takes you into the mind of a criminal master-mind. In my opinion, it's one of Crichton's best works!
"The Terminal Man" - 4/5 Man versus Machine. A very thrilling novel which is still very relavent today! With all the advancements in technology as well as medicine, this novel deals with all of these issues. Using "mind control" to "help/control/cure" the human brain. Crichton once again mixes science, technology, and thriller to create a captivating and brilliant novel. TWO THUMBS UP!!
"The Andromeda Strain" - 3.5/5 A very intriguing novel, and suspenseful ending! At points I found this novel to be a bit on the technical side because of the subject matter, but Crichton does an excellent job of mixing science with suspense!! Very Enjoyable!
February 21, 2016
I continue to love Michael Crichton's works. The Great Train Robbery was definitely my favorite of these 3. It was just so much fun.
I enjoyed reading The Andromeda Strain more than watching the movie, though the pacing felt irregular. It took me the longest to get through. Still a good read though.
Terminal Man felt very relevant. I liked it quite a bit. I've been reading either this or the Magic 2.0 series when at home (only a small book fits in my purse), preferring The Terminal Man and The Great Train Robbery. The way male and female characters are treated is just so different in the right ways for me and the writing is more my style. As I recall, all of Crichton's books with leading ladies that mention sexism (all of them?) address it appropriately. In The Terminal Man, I think it's important to understand how differently the doctors think and how that affects the events surrounding the terminal man in question.
Each book had thrilling and thoughtful moments. I'm glad I picked these up, despite my concern I would find that Crichton's writing style wasn't as good as I'd remembered. It is so much better. I'll definitely have to pick up the rest of his books that I haven't read yet, and my own copies of the ones I already have read. Solidly enjoyable reads.
I enjoyed reading The Andromeda Strain more than watching the movie, though the pacing felt irregular. It took me the longest to get through. Still a good read though.
Terminal Man felt very relevant. I liked it quite a bit. I've been reading either this or the Magic 2.0 series when at home (only a small book fits in my purse), preferring The Terminal Man and The Great Train Robbery. The way male and female characters are treated is just so different in the right ways for me and the writing is more my style. As I recall, all of Crichton's books with leading ladies that mention sexism (all of them?) address it appropriately. In The Terminal Man, I think it's important to understand how differently the doctors think and how that affects the events surrounding the terminal man in question.
Each book had thrilling and thoughtful moments. I'm glad I picked these up, despite my concern I would find that Crichton's writing style wasn't as good as I'd remembered. It is so much better. I'll definitely have to pick up the rest of his books that I haven't read yet, and my own copies of the ones I already have read. Solidly enjoyable reads.
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October 31, 2014I really liked the movie adaptation of The Andromeda Strain and hoped that the book would be better. I was however disappointed by the plot in the book. You really felt like the protagonists were never able to get in control of the situation and that everything really just came down to mere coincidence.
I didn't find The Terminal Man all the interesting most likely because all the technology in the story is so outdated by modern standards, but also the ethical dilema raised by the book doesn't really seems all that horrible considering the pervasivness of technology in our modern lives. Even as a look as a historical piece it doesn't offer anything really interesting.
The Great Train Robbery is the gem of this collection. Crichton's story telling and pacing are so much better in this story and the subject he has chosen is much more interesting.
I didn't find The Terminal Man all the interesting most likely because all the technology in the story is so outdated by modern standards, but also the ethical dilema raised by the book doesn't really seems all that horrible considering the pervasivness of technology in our modern lives. Even as a look as a historical piece it doesn't offer anything really interesting.
The Great Train Robbery is the gem of this collection. Crichton's story telling and pacing are so much better in this story and the subject he has chosen is much more interesting.
April 10, 2008
Finished both the Great Train Robbery and the Terminal Man. Loved them both! Don't remember the Terminal Man as well as I do the Great Train Robbery though, so that must mean something about them.
As far as the Andromeda Strain goes, I've heard such fantastic things about it, but I tried reading it in 5th grade. I think I was a little young to try to tackle that one. And sadly, I haven't picked it up since.
As far as the Andromeda Strain goes, I've heard such fantastic things about it, but I tried reading it in 5th grade. I think I was a little young to try to tackle that one. And sadly, I haven't picked it up since.
July 28, 2012
I love the works of Micheal Crichton. I love the way he plots his story which is fantastic unbelievable but very real. Terminal Man,The Andromeda Strain are a let-downer in the end. But I loved The Great Train Robbery.The novel combines fantastic adventure with the great detail.
More review to come.
More review to come.
September 25, 2008
I really liked The Andromeda Strain, it's a very interesting story. The Terminal Man was pretty good too. I wasn't a big fan of The Great Train Robbery; I might have been if it didn't seem like so much "adult content" was thrown in there for the fun of it.
April 23, 2009
Written 40 years ago (The Andromeda Strain)but,in my opinion,still retains a dominant position in the science fiction genre thanks to the storytelling genius of Michael Crichton. Too bad he's no longer with us.
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September 30, 2009Okay, loved Andromeda Strain (again). A classic. Terminal Man, not so much. It hasn't aged well. I never finished The Great Train Robbery. Just not my style. Victorian Era historical fiction. Yuck!
November 29, 2011
I listened to the Terminal Man and The Great Train Robbery months ago and don't remember them as being anything special. I read the Andromeda Strain and I thought it was exciting. It held my attention and was related like a true story.
November 25, 2012
The Great Train Robbery is the weakest of these three books and less Crichton style than expected but it was still an enjoyable read.
The Terminal Man and The Andromeda Strain can't disappoint a true science fiction fan.
The Terminal Man and The Andromeda Strain can't disappoint a true science fiction fan.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews