Foreign Body - Robin Cook

Recently, on my trip to Banglore I got hold of one of Robin Cook's latest novels "Foreign Body", which is another great addition to his medical thriller series. In this novel the author has tried to highlight the scenario of medical tourism in India. It also deals with issues regarding the Indian way of thinking and the cultural turmoil that still exists in India. And in between these macro issues, he very aptly compares the lives of two females namely, Jennifer Hernandez and Veena Chandra (who happens to be the killer of the Jennifer’s grandmother), and how despite of being from different cultural backgrounds, have faced the same kind of problems earlier in their lives. The author has penned down the Indian scenario very well in this book.

The book revolves around the fast becoming popular concept of Medical tourism to India. The protagonist Jennifer Hernandez comes to know about the death of her grandmother in India through CNN and goes to India to claim the body. She has some disturbing experiences in the hospital that force her to think that some foul play was involved. Meanwhile, there are two more deaths in as many days, and the striking similarities between them add to the doubt.

Twists are at almost every page as the Indian tourism ministry tries to cover up the cases, a big stakeholder in the concerned hospital tries to get Jennifer Hernandez killed, and Nurses International, the subsidiary of a US hospital which trying to hamper the Indian medical tourism industry (also behind the killing of the medical tourists) kidnaps Jennifer to get her killed. A couple of old characters of this author, Jack and Laurie also play a part in the book.
Overall a good read, though it gets a bit predictable at times.

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