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| Michael Crichton, Prey |
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Jack is a stay-at-home dad, a computer programmer
who lost his job when he stumbled onto a fraud involving his
boss. He takes care of his three kids, while his wife, Julia,
works as a manager for Xymos technology, a company trying to develop
nanotechnology, also known as molecular manufacturing.
As Xymos is about to make a breakthrough,
Julia is working long hours. She shows Jack a tape in which
nanoparticles, injected through the bloodstream, gather into a kind
of eyelike camera and enable people to
see inside veins. This could have great medical implications, such
as early detection of blood clots...
As things become more and more complicated in
Jack's family (the baby gets a strange skin disease, Julia becomes
moody and Jack suspects her of having an affair), Jack
is called by an ex-colleague: his ex-boss wants to hire him back as a
consultant working for Xymos, since Xymos bought one of their
programs which Jack engineered, and they now seem to have a problem with it...
Worried about his wife's behavior and
concerned
about his lengthy unemployment, Jack accepts the job and is flown
by helicopter to a fabric in Nevada. Jack soon discovers that people
are trying to hide things from him, and that something quite
unexpected has happened: a swarm of particles has escaped the
laboratory and can't be called back. Moreover, they seem to evolve
somehow, their behavior become more and more organized and
intelligent. And this is just the beginning...
Prey is an interesting science-fiction
novel that denounces the dangers of "science without conscience".
Nanotechnology and its implications are amazing, frightening also,
and considering the long bibliography at the end of the novel, it
seems that Crichton has made extensive research. However, after a
point, things become completely unbelievable, sounding like they are
coming out of books we've read before or movies we've seen before.
All in all, it remains entertaining and fast-paced throughout and,
based on these criteria, Prey is a great book to
read for a little adrenaline rush...
Rating: 
© Discussing Books, 10/17/2003 |
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| Further Readings |
Novels by Michael Crichton:
Crichton, Michael (1969) The Andromeda Strain
Crichton, Michael (1972) The Terminal Man
Crichton, Michael (1975) The Great Train Robbery
Crichton, Michael (1976) Eaters of the Dead
Crichton, Michael (1980) Congo
Crichton, Michael (1987) Sphere
Crichton, Michael (1990) Jurassic Park
Crichton, Michael (1992) Rising Sun
Crichton, Michael (1994) Disclosure
Crichton, Michael (1995)The Lost World
Crichton, Michael (1996) Airframe
Crichton, Michael (1999)Timeline
Crichton, Michael (2002) Prey
Links:
Michael
Crichton Official Web Site
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