Rating: 
Summary: GIVING UP THE GHOSTS
Review: Could it be that this talented writer was showing off in this his first novel under the name of Holden Scott? (Scott had written a few novels in his real name, Ben Mezrich). "Skeptic" has a marvelous premise, and if Scott had followed up a little more with this, instead of the James Bond espionage, he might have provided a truly original novel. As it stands, though, once the premise of how "ghosts" are made is introduced, it is used only once more effectively in a harrowing scene in a stable. Other than this additional scene, Scott doesn't truly explore how much fun this could have been. Instead he goes into the unbelievably chaotic scenario of having this brutal Chinese assasin out to dominate the world. By the end, though, one is not truly quite sure what exactly this new find would do in that regard.
I enjoyed most of the book; Amber Chen is way too "perfect" and Mike Ballantine is too James Bondish for a doctor. But suspending belief is nothing I'm opposed to doing; but in this particular novel, the characterizations are so undeveloped, and the plot so confusing, one ends up admiring Mr. Scott's skills and wondering why he didn't use them a little more effectively.
There is one huge surprise though in the "insider", but I'll leave that one original injection to your discovery.
RECOMMENDED BUT ONLY AS A DIVERSION.
Rating: 
Summary: Skeptic
Review: Do you believe in ghosts?
That is the question Dr. Mike Ballantine is forced to confront--with
explosive results.
SKEPTIC begins fast and doesn't let up: Dr. Ballantine's best friend, the
newly elected governor of Massachusetts, dies in a bomb explosion, the
victim
of foreign assassins. But why? How could the murdered governor possibly be
connected with Chinese killers?
That's what Amber Chen, beautiful CIA operative, wants to know. Cold,
efficient and cunning, she is on the trail of an executioner from the
Chinese
Revolution, a brutal killer who slices off his victims' ears and scoops
out
part of their brains. His methods of torture are sadistic and infamous,
and
he knows she is after him.
Soon after his friend's murder, Mike finds himself plagued by strange
visions: a horse in the hospital hallway--one no one but him can see--and
frightening glimpses of conflagration and a gaunt Chinese man. He tries to
pass them off as manifestations of his grief, but is there more to it?
Deep in the bowels of Metro hospital a young woman has discovered a
secret,
one that will revolution science's understanding and acceptance of the
paranormal. But she is being watched and her work might just become the
most
terrifying weapon the world has ever known.
SKEPTIC is a lightning-paced, chilling mystery that explores alternate
explanations for the supernatural and blends in international intrigue and
political thriller. Can ghosts be isolated in the laboratory? Can they be
turned to evil? Pages hurl by and the tension builds to a fever pitch. A
couple of escapes near the end stretch believability a hair, but who
cares?
The action flies fast and furious and Amber Chen would probably give James
Bond a run for his money.
Warning: this book contains one of the most graphic descriptions of
torture
readers are likely to come across. There are some other pretty brutal
scenes
in the book as well.----
Howard Hopkins...
Rating:
Summary: A Guilty Pleasure - Cheesy but Fun.
Review: Even though the writing was kind of cheesy, I found myself unable to put the silly thing down. I ended up reading it all the way through in one night. I loved the premise, the writing wasn't that bad for a debut novel, but I hated the ending. I don't know whether the science was accurate or not, and frankly, didn't care. The idea behind it was fascinating. Would I read other stuff by this author after reading this book? Yes.
Rating:
Summary: Science was interesting but...
Review: I decided to read this book because of the intriguing idea of explaining a scientific viewpoint of ghosts. While I found the sections of the book that dealt with this aspect very interesting, I was dismayed with the cardboard characters. Why do all main characters have to be incredibly good looking, young, extremely intelligent, etc.? Especially the character of Amber, the CIA agent? Tall, beautiful, smart, fearless, you name it. Just once it would be interesting to have an action novel where the characters were a little more "normal". Otherwise, the book was paced well but I agree with the other reviewers that the ending left much to be desired.
Rating:
Summary: Science was interesting but...
Review: I decided to read this book because of the intriguing idea of explaining a scientific viewpoint of ghosts. While I found the sections of the book that dealt with this aspect very interesting, I was dismayed with the cardboard characters. Why do all main characters have to be incredibly good looking, young, extremely intelligent, etc.? Especially the character of Amber, the CIA agent? Tall, beautiful, smart, fearless, you name it. Just once it would be interesting to have an action novel where the characters were a little more "normal". Otherwise, the book was paced well but I agree with the other reviewers that the ending left much to be desired.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Amateurish
Review: Modern science goes too far. Again. I had hopes for this book. It starts with an interesting premise but then it doesn't really go anywhere with it except into long and detailed descriptions of, well, gross stuff. And the bad guys, the super bad guys of all time, are the Chinese (big surprise there given our current economical/political situation with China). But their goal seems so small and uncreative. The plot starts out with high tech ambitions but it turns out to be so 1950s. And why does the heroine not only have a great body but a tongue that can perform amazing feats? Geez. If you're desperate for something that won't tax your own brain cells and you like reading about vaporized brain stuff, go for it.
Rating:
Summary: painfully written
Review: the author of this book came up with a pretty interesting plot idea, and some reasonably interesting science behind it, but he should have passed that idea on to an actual novelist. the writing is absolutely dreadful. there are thousands of overdone similes and metaphors, and there must not have been a single adjective left at harvard when he graduated - he took them all to use in this book. mr. scott is totally incapable of writing a noun without at least one adjective attached to it, and in most cases there are two or three just in case. consider this actual, unretouched quote from the book: "her cheekbones were colorado ski slopes, and her eyes were the color of an overchlorinated swimming pool." dear god, what did i do to deserve this?
if you like cheesy writing, this book will absolutely make you swoon. any legitimate literary critic that rated this book highly had to have been paid off by the publisher... the author simply tried way too hard, and the result is agonizing.
Rating:
Summary: painfully written
Review: the author of this book came up with a pretty interesting plot idea, and some reasonably interesting science behind it, but he should have passed that idea on to an actual novelist. the writing is absolutely dreadful. there are thousands of overdone similes and metaphors, and there must not have been a single adjective left at harvard when he graduated - he took them all to use in this book. mr. scott is totally incapable of writing a noun without at least one adjective attached to it, and in most cases there are two or three just in case. consider this actual, unretouched quote from the book: "her cheekbones were colorado ski slopes, and her eyes were the color of an overchlorinated swimming pool." dear god, what did i do to deserve this?
if you like cheesy writing, this book will absolutely make you swoon. any legitimate literary critic that rated this book highly had to have been paid off by the publisher... the author simply tried way too hard, and the result is agonizing.
Rating:
Summary: A skeptic
Review: The plot line of ghosts helping solve a murder is unique which made the book interesting. I kept reading to see how it would end. The story was a bit goofy (villains etc) but then again, it IS a fiction novel. Not incredible, but not a bad one either.
Rating:
Summary: (...)
Review: While I'm certain the author, Holden Scott, being a Harvard graduate, is an intelligent, well rounded person, he neglected to follow the sage advice, "Write what you know" in compiling this book. The premise for the book, ghosts explained as a virus, is intrigueing, though the errors and ancronisims that crept in due, apparently, to the authors lack of knowledge, ruined the story for me. From red oxygen tanks (they're green, as anyone who ever set foot in a hospital can tell you), to a scene where the main character is speeding at 90 MPH over a bridge in a BMW, windows rolled up (it's winter), and holding a conversation with another character "hears" the water "lapping at the bridge columns" (try it sometime!), to a lab researcher working with mice who thinks they eat cheese, the book is one mistake after another. By the time I finished it I was having more fun looking for the errors than I was from the story. It's obvious that Mr. Scott has ventured into areas he knows little about, and that's a shame. Better research and editing could have made this one a real winner.
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