A deadly virus running rampant and killing almost everyone who comes into contact with it. Scientists believe they’ve got a way to contain it, but the President won’t make the call. And now, the coronavirus Andromeda Strain may be spreading even further!
The Andromeda Strain
Author: Michael Crichton
Pages: 288
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Published: September 1, 1969
Publisher: Ballantine Books
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Date Completed: June 20, 2024
My rating: 
Thoughts
Although Michael Crichton had written several books before this, The Andromeda Strain was the first one published under his own name. And it was a hit!
Written as if it is the account of true events, based on interviews with the survivors and scientists, this could have been a then-modern day War of the Worlds radio broadcast. If it was written today, it wouldn’t have “A Novel” on the cover and would probably be marketed like a found-footage movie. Like, I could see this being marketed as if it was something that was finally declassified.
The first half or more of the book is quite engrossing. We the reader get to discover the facts of what’s going on at the same time as the characters. I enjoyed the science-y parts and the dramatic elements really had me hooked.
What really took this down a notch for me was the ending. Now, obviously in works of science fiction you go in with a certain suspension of disbelief. But the solution to all this seemingly came out of nowhere and was fairly anticlimactic. I know that Crichton sowed the seeds of the ending throughout the book. Maybe I was too dumb to catch on. But I’m a pretty detail-oriented guy. But the discovery at the end kind of slapped me across the face. I felt like if no one had done anything, everything probably would have turned out okay anyway.
Still, it was quite a ride. So I gave this one 4 out of 5 stars. I can forgive the ending – it had to end somehow at some point. And best to end on a more positive note.
