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mamakbear1116's review against another edition
4.0
Terrifying all on its own but reading it during a global pandemic made it much more stomach-churning and nightmare-inducing. Fascinating read.
jimmyfission's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
tense
fast-paced
5.0
I genuinely adored this book. All my life I've been terrified of viruses and pandemics, but that paralyzing terror has morphed into a morbid curiosity over the years. This book fed that curiosity. It was impossible to put down, by turns beautiful, with delicate prose, and absolutely vile, full of nauseating descriptions of death and destruction that made my throat dry and my stomach turn. This book made me afraid but it also fascinated me. It's a perfect picture of the end of the world, of a brush with death, and of the total power of the natural world. I'm a huge horror fan, but I have to say this is the only book I've ever read that actually gave me nightmares. Not just once, but night after night.
gossamerwingedgazelle's review against another edition
3.0
First off, this book has some very disgusting sections, so be ready. I ended up skipping some of the more nausea-inducing text. That said, it had an interesting story to tell. It isn't high literature, but it was worth reading.
dreamofbookspines's review against another edition
medium-paced
3.5
Gross enough that I probably won't read it again, but it was super interesting. My search history looks like hell after looking up a lot of the viral crises and areas Preston talks about. I read this initially around 1999 and remember as a kid (I was 13 or 14 that year) being terrified of ebola. Re-reading this certainly clarified why! I don't remember knowing it was nonfiction as a kid though...🤔
I was frustrated that Preston exaggerated what ebola does to the human body though. It does not liquify your insides. Yes, it has awful symptoms, but not that. Why go so nuts with a very real and terrifying disease? Also he used enough passive voice that I thought it worth noting.
I was frustrated that Preston exaggerated what ebola does to the human body though. It does not liquify your insides. Yes, it has awful symptoms, but not that. Why go so nuts with a very real and terrifying disease? Also he used enough passive voice that I thought it worth noting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Medical content, Animal death, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Vomit
Moderate: Excrement and Gore
carlyccarter's review against another edition
Blood, needles, and gore made me feel faint and uncomfortable. Good book probably for someone less queasy
chanidev's review against another edition
4.0
Hidden all over the world are incredibly infectious and fatal diseases, waiting to make the jump from non-human animals to humans. Filoviruses, including Ebola and Marburg, started spreading to humans in known cases in the 1970s. At least two people contracted Marburg after visiting Kitum Cave in Kenya, which was also later identified as a possible origin point for HIV. These viruses are known to cause quick and violet deaths, with continuing spread from the blood and vomit of those infected to the ones caring for them. The book gives backgrounds and initial known cases for the filoviruses, and tells the story of a 1989 outbreak of something in a primate research facility near Washington, D.C.
I thought this book was well written, although its age can be evident at times. Richard Preston is thorough and includes his own anecdotes along with scientific facts. Absolutely terrifying and sad, and includes depictions of graphic deaths as a warning.
https://ucplbookchallenge.blogspot.com/2024/05/the-hot-zone.html
I thought this book was well written, although its age can be evident at times. Richard Preston is thorough and includes his own anecdotes along with scientific facts. Absolutely terrifying and sad, and includes depictions of graphic deaths as a warning.
https://ucplbookchallenge.blogspot.com/2024/05/the-hot-zone.html
gayatriii's review against another edition
5.0
If like me, you're also morbidly obsessed with tiny, virulent microorganism that will eat through your flesh and reduce you, sitting comfortably at the top of the food chain, to little more than a putrid pile of liquified mush, this book is for you. When you learn how a few molecules of proteins (seven to be precise) can potentially be a slate wiper for an entire species, going to the mall in a hazmat suit suddenly seems like a great idea. Incredible read. Lots to learn. Lots of truly scary graphic description of what the Ebola virus can do to your body.