From watching Jurassic Park it seems plausible that Michael Crichton thought, “Hey, what if dinosaurs and people had been around at the same time? People are so helpless. We are small, with no claws and teensy teeth. We’d just get eaten!” Which made an exciting (albeit gory) story. I am guessing that the idea for Micro started in a similar way. Michael Crichton thought, “What if people were as small as insects? We’re just soft and squishy. No exoskeleton and only two legs. We’d just get eaten!”
And sadly for the characters, that is exactly what happens in Micro. Not for the faint hearted or the weak stomached, Micro is extremely violent and extremely gross. Have you ever seen a nature documentary where the parasitic wasps lay their eggs in the caterpillars, then the larvae hatch and eat the caterpillar from the inside out? Yuk! You can’t get much grosser than that. But imagine the victim isn’t a caterpillar, but a person? My stomach is uneasy just typing this. But it doesn’t stop there, the many other nasty ways that insects have of killing and eating each other are explored in exciting, but grisly, detail in Micro.
Michael Crichton died in 2008 before Micro was finished. To complete the book they selected Richard Preston, whose best books are non-fiction books about diseases and science, try The Hot Zone or Wild Trees. I think this was an inspired combination. The book has Michael Crichton’s thrilling pace and Richard Preston’s eye for plausible biological detail.
Micro was an exciting, escapist read that I consumed in one weekend. Perhaps it is not great literature, and it didn’t receive very good reviews, but when you add an evil corporation, a mad scientist, an exotic tropical location, and a budding love affair, it kept me reading.
Check the WRL catalog for Micro.
Blogging for a Good Book 
Well I never thought I’d see the day that Jan was reviewing a mass market book. Although not the kind of book she regularly reads, it sounds right up my alley as far as easiness to read and goriness; perhaps I will check it out.
Kathy
Sometimes I’m just in the mood for a book where the people are too busy getting eaten to indulge in much character development. And this book filled that need very well.
Jan
Reblogged this on Passions and Folly under the Scott's belt and everything else. and commented:
Mental Note *Read This Book*
Reblogged this on alltaylorwrites and commented:
I want to read this!
I have read every Michael Crichton book thus far. I picked up Micro not long ago and got about 100 pages in before I had to put it away. I will eventually go through it all, but the plot-driven nature and convenient story line kind of put me off. I don’t think Crichton would’ve wanted Micro published this way. Like you said, it’s an easy read for those that are wanting to take a break reading something heavy, but don’t expect the same quality as classic Crichton.
Thanks for the review!
I forgot to mention, Pirate Latitudes was published after Crichton’s death too. That one was also not as readable as his earlier work
Thanks for your comment – I have to admit I haven’t read any other of Micheal Crichton’s books, although I have seen the movie of Jurassic Park a long time ago. If they are ascompelling and exciting as Micro, but with more character development, I will have to check them out!
Jan
Crichton was mostly a plot-driven style writer. His characters, for the most part, are all relatively flat. They’re meant for mass markets, and they did well, but if character development is your thing, I’d maybe shy away from Crichton. Thanks for all the great book recommendations!
I think Crichton did a pretty good job of fleshing out his characters in The Great Train Robbery, but that was a storyline which required him to put his people into historical context, not the (slightly) future world of his technology-driven novels.
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