Rating: 
Summary: A Familiar theme for Crichton...
Review: This most recent novel by Michael Crichton is another deep expression of concern about the misuse of science and technology by future-blind, irresponsible scientists and corporations bent only on the 'bottom-line'; and as a result, blind as to the dire consequences of their actions. As he writes in the introduction, '...our self-deluded recklessness will collide with our growing technological power.' In fact, this has been Crichton's pre-occupation for over twenty-five years, beginning with one of his first novels, 'The Terminal Man.' His most successfiul novel to date, 'Jurassic Park', expressed this concern in no uncertain terms - genetics gone terribly wrong - in this case, however, nature retaliates in the form of dangerous dinosaurs. In ~Prey~ the new villian takes the form of self-reproducing machines - nanoparticles or micro-robots - a highly creative merging of nanotechnology, biotechnology and computer science.What I personally enjoy about all Crichton's novels, is that you never come away from the reading experience without learning something. The man does immaculate research for each project and it shows. This novel is no different. Crichton fans will not be disappointed with this novel because it reads at a cracking pace, maintaining tension until the last page. ~Prey~ is a highly informative and entertaining read.
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutlely gripping
Review: Being a long time crichton fan, I have been waiting for a new novel by him for some time. I wasn't disappointed. Prey is a high paced ride to the end. I just couldn't put the book down. I had to find out what happened next. I guess the only thing that i would complain about is the ending leaves a little to be desired. But, I guess it is better this way, because true to the content, the story really doesn't end there. Someone else is bound to pick up and carry on the stupidity. Other then that small wrinkle. I still give this book a full five stars. A must read, hope the movie will do it justice.
Rating:
Summary: If I had only...
Review: "Vancouver is lovely. There is no other word for it. High, snow-capped mountains dominate the town, and the land-locked, green-shored bay with its pellucid waters makes a wonderful setting. The town itself is very American in appearance with its high buildings. Here also there can be no great expansion until Western Canada is more populous, but sooner or later Vancouver will certainly be another San Francisco." -- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1923
British author of "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes"
Rating: 
Summary: rehash-retread
Review: I waited for the release of this book with such anticipation and was so let down. There wasn't an iota of originality and no cutitng edge sci fi tale told. This was the most disappointing read of my life and it is from an author that I've loved all my life so that made it worse. I ended up reading my sister's new favorite book Cloned Love.
Rating: 
Summary: Great start, but then - WHAT???
Review: I rated this book relative to the author's genre and previous books. I generally enjoy Crichton's prose - by no means great lit, but well structured and fun to read. The book, narrated by the central character, develops an amazing sense of dread. While Jurassic Park, for example, is a much much better book, the sense of foreboding and suspense in Prey is much more intense. The villain is, as usual, man's own folly, and the personification of this is microscopic.
Unfortunately, these tiny robots don't stay microscopic. What could have been (and is for the first half of the book) an intense human thriller, degrades into a bad Hollywood action script, with the nanobots "swarming" to form visible clouds.
The swarms, however, are still very Crichton and pretty neat stuff. The sequences with them are scary and suspenseful - a read till 2am series of events. But then everything falls apart.
I will not "spoil" the end, but suffice it to say that it is unbelievably silly (emphasis on unbelievable). I love Crichton because he can convince me to believe things that are impossible. He fails in Prey. Not only is the finale dumb, but it leaves huge holes in the plot unresolved. While Crichton is by no means a Steinbeck-like character writing, you are also left feeling completely perplexed at the interactions between the characters and the emotional reactions they have. Great personal loss is treat blasé and is marginally offensive. I did not give a lower rating only becasue I enjoyed the first half of the book quite a lot. In the end, you are left with the feeling that Crichton wrote this as an excuse to make another movie, and what began as one of his best ended up along side Sphere as one of his silliest.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I have always enjoyed Michael Crichton's work but this was a complete disapointment. The book reads like a B Zombie movie. It follows an obvious plot line (heroes trapped in isolated outpost and faced with horrible monsters) and doesn't even try to hide this fact. It creates the situation using comepletly unbelievable circumstances. The story was predictable, the character's shallow and the science forced. Too bad.
Rating:
Summary: Nanoscare
Review: Red Herring chose a nanotech backlash as a trend for 2003, and mentioned Prey. It was compared to Jurassic Park and its impact on biology. I would read the Foresight guidelines on nanotech safety, and David Forrest's initial guidlines, written in 1988.
Good read, but consider the upside.
Rating:
Summary: Next Movie
Review: This book is going to make a great movie, just like Jurassic Park. Remember how Jurasic Park's theme was that nature cannot be harnessed? I cannot give this book a 5 star rating (save those for "The Count of Monte Cristo" or "Pillars of the Earth" (Ken Follet). However, Prey is a good read. I could not put it down until I read the whole thing - it made me late for work.
Rating:
Summary: Chilling scientific thriller
Review: Crichton's latest novel shows he's still at the top of his game, and he carries us along on a fast-paced thrill ride filled with horror and suspense. Crichton's books generally center on some new and potentially disastrous technology (i.e. the dinosaur cloning in Jurassic Park), and in Prey he addresses nanotechnology. In the near future, he warns, these tiny machines may group into a "swarm" and rapidly evolve into a threatening intelligence. This is the premise the hero of Prey races to resolve, as he also tries to find a new job, deal with his wife's adultery, and take care of his kids. The plot details are well summarized by others, so I won't go into them. Although in many ways this novel is typical Crichton fare, I found it more horrifying than most of his other works, reminiscent of King. Although there are perhaps a few too many coincidences in Prey, Crichton's introduction does a good job of telling us that nanotechnology is coming whether we like it or not, and must be thought about and dealt with before it is too late.
Rating: 
Summary: Semi-compelling
Review: A disappointment. While the premise of nanotechnology run amok is full of possibilities, the characters in this novel are utterly forgettable - especially the protagonist Jack. It seems that the author wanted to make sure no one was left behind in the plot development so we're left reading lowest common denominator character development. Main characters die off and....who cares? Even the other characters in the novel seem oddly unaffected by the unfolding events within the story. This book isn't horrible. There are a few moments of spooky tension but overall it's not up to Crichton's other work.
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