Rating: 
Summary: Mary Shelley woulda liked it...
Review: If the name Michael Crichton is unfamiliar to you, you are not alone. I didn't recognize his name when one of Dave's employees recommended this book to me. Scanning the book jacket made him more familiar to me. His accomplishments include: The Andromeda Strain, Congo, Jurassic Park, and the television show E.R.Prey is a Frankensteinian story about man's messing with nature... like some of the others the author has written. I think that Mary Shelley would approve, and likely enjoy it once brought up to date on our technology, and her ancient warning is still valid... perhaps even more so today than it was when she originally wrote Frankenstein. The story opens with the protagonist taking care of his children while his wife works in a high tech industry. I found much to identify with in that character, so was immediately interested. As I read further, I found other things of interest. Most notably, technophiles will find the inclusion of bits of program code for predator/prey algorithms used with things similar to alife. The mention of a T-shirt that says "Obey me, I am Root", is hilarious... but only Unix and Linuxphiles will appreciate that humor without reading Mr. Crichton's explanation. One might also recognize one's co-workers by their descriptions... I certainly did, and I don't even work in a high-tech field! Prey is somewhat like a Tom Clancey techno-thriller in that the technology discussed is quite well within the realm of developmental possibility. As I see the picture, the only thing that severely limits the industrial manufacture of molecular level machines is the "build time" dilemma, the unfortunate (or perhaps fortunate) fact that any useful molecule would have more parts in it than could be assembled in all the time that the universe has existed. The technocrats of Prey solve this problem by getting bacteria to build molecular level assemblers which then build the individual nanotech devices to the specifications of the military contract... or so it is thought. Unfortunately, the devices, components of a sort of flying compound eye that can dissolve into dust and re-form as needed, fail because the tiny machines are as much a slave to the wind as any dandelion or cattail seed, and lack power to resist it. I will not divulge the method elected to solve the problem as it would wreck the story for the reader, but it combines all the stupidity and danger that narrow-minded pursuit of even a noble goal can result in. What is unleashed is chillingly reminiscent of a swarm of killer bees... only more dangerous by a factor of at least a million. How close to this eventuality are we? Well, the back of the book contains a lengthy bibliography for those individuals who are brave, smart, and crazy enough to want to find out. I think that this book should be required reading for anyone working in the field of nanotechnology... and those who scoff at the premise ought to be banned from working with it. Any new technology is potentially dangerous... and carried to the levels achieved by the fictitious characters of this book where biotech and nanotech are merged with computer science to build bio-mechanical organisms that can write their own specifications would be beyond control... even had they not taken stupid and dangerous risks. The kiss of death takes on a new meaning in this novel... and I certainly hope that enough people read it and take the message to heart that enthusiastic scientists are reigned in a bit before proceeding. We certainly cannot keep the genie in the bottle forever... but we had damned well better make certain we can control it before we get the corkscrew out! Buy this book. Read it. Loan it to others to read. We have been warned. Dale A. Raby
Editor/Publisher
The Green Bay Web
Rating:
Summary: A Great Technology-Gone-Amuck tale
Review: Chricton gripped me once again after Timeline, with the introduction of nanotechnology, something foreign to me until this book. But, aside from the technology that Chricton delves in to (as usual), the story kept me turning the pages. What held me the most was the antagnost that was neither phantomesque nor man, but something one may never conceive of. The story did tend to dwindle a bit toward the end, but it was a quick read. Chricton is now officially out of the dog house for giving us Airframe.
Rating: 
Summary: Dirt Bag
Review: This book gives new meaning to the words, "dirt bag." The predator is a artifically created swarm of robotic dust. The author doesn't seem to appreciate the difference in words like evolution and mutation. His whole world is evolving and his story very nearly unravels. It is just a bit too preposterous to swallow even if the author does believe it possible. It doesn't hold together as well as his swarm. Too bad. Save your money.
Rating: 
Summary: The Swarm vs. The Flock
Review: Before I read the first page of the Prologue, I resigned myself to reading technical material on nanotechnology, willy-nilly, like it or not. Michael Crichton, along with Mary Poppins, is a firm believer that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. The "sugar" being the characters and story line. Actually, the disinterested wife fascinated me right up to the finish line. For this, I was pleased. The story is formulaic: doomed scientists frantically searching for the key to destroy the monster before the monster destroys them (and the world). This monster is only impressive in numbers, not size. Microscopic computer chips programmed to be an "eye in the sky" for defense purposes. Individually, they are dumb; put a few billion together and they evolve very quickly. Because these chips have been formulated in a hunter/prey mode, there are certain short-term defenses that can be taken. When a group of scientists is threatened, one smart fellow yells "Flock!" I confess I would have been struck dead right there, for I haven't the first notion of how one "flocks." It turns out they were to march in step together taking up the most amount of room possible making the swarm think they were facing a huge entity (until said swarm figured it all out, that is.) Mostly I enjoyed the book and had a small glow of self-satisfaction because I had plowed through the technical pages per Mr. Crichton's wishes. I can't help but think it will be a very silly movie, but I suppose a movie it will be, as I believe it is written into MC's contract before he even takes pen to paper. I suggest waiting for the paperback, unless you are a die hard Crichton fan.
Rating: 
Summary: Blah! Didn't Hold My Interest at All After First Section!
Review: The first section of this book was good, but after that it was downhill all the way!! I had to stop reading it after a certain point, (the first 160 pages or so), as it was so boring! Prey takes us into the story of a mechanical plaque, and the desparate efforts of scientists to stop it. It speaks a lot of nantechnology and artificial disturbed intelligence. The plot was weak and never really picked up again. I wouldn't waste my money on this book!
Rating:
Summary: short, but interesting plot
Review: Crichton used to be my favorite author before being replaced by Preston and Child. I like Crichton's books because they usually have an interesting premise and are enfused with technological information. Preston and Child are also able to create fascinating plots by blending historical events, biochemistry, and the supernatural. However, while Preston and Child's books seem polished with excellent character development and dialogue, Crichton's recent books have been short with thin character development and awkward dialogue. The pages are filled with blank space adding to the appearance that this is really a short story and not a novel. Crichton's books are most interesting when he describes what a character is thinking of doing and not when they are speaking. There just isn't enough of this material to justify a full length novel. The book kept my attention, but it is not Crichton's best work.
Rating:
Summary: Good but not Great
Review: Prey starts out slow with the domestic life of the main character. It is only about 100 pages into the book that the plot begins to get interesting. Be sure to stick with it even though the first few chapters are a bore. Once Prey starts going it is hard to put down, and many plot twists keep you on the edge of your seat. There are, however, some major flaws. The book's subject matter seems very far-fetched. It is hard to imagine that something similar to the events in the book could actually happen. Also, the science that lays the foundation for the book was very complex and hard for me to understand. Next, the ending is confusing and leaves a fair number of questions unanswered. Prey will be enjoyed by fans of Crichton, like me, but those not familiar with his work would be advised to pass Prey by. He has written better books, that are more interesting and easier to understand.
Rating:
Summary: The Prey, or the Thing?
Review: Crichton's latest novel is interesting, but as I read it I began to wonder. And then it struck me. Desert sand for desert snow. Helicopters. Isolated buildings in the Nevada desert v isolated buildings in the Antarctic. Shapeshifting aliens v shapeshifting aliens (nanomachines), which can take on human form. Blood in the perti dish test v an awful tasting virus drink test. Flamethrowers v thermite. The result was John Carpenter's "Thing", which was based upon the short story, "Who Goes There?" by John W. Campbell. In the Prey, the nanomachines were an original twist, in that they were man-made aliens, but not much else.
Crichton also dwells on the mundane, and often repeats the science, as if there were going to be an exam after completing the book. And do we really need lines of computer text in the story?
Finally, I did not care for the denoement. As a reader, I am smart enough to figure out how the pieces of a story come together in the climatic scene, if the author is clever enough to tell a good story. Most disappointing.
Rating: 
Summary: Spellbinding Futuristic Possibilities
Review: Crichton's latest, a combination of scientific technology with fictional futuristic possibilities, is a thrill ride from start to finish. Jack Forman, househusband, is looking for another job while taking care of his three children. Wife Julia is a vice president at Xymos, where they are using nanotechnology, manufacturing molecule-sized devices, such as cameras, that can be inserted into the bloodstream to view all areas of the body. Convinced Julia is having an affair, Jack notices her tremendous mood swings and late working hours. Hired as a consultant at Xymos to fix problems on a program that he designed, Jack travels to their manufacturing facility in the middle of the Nevada desert. Switching identities from the neglected suspicious househusband, Jack suddenly becomes immersed in technology gone awry. Lack of proper venting at the plant has caused particles to be released into the environment, where swarms are created and seem to be multiplying. The technological aspects of this novel become more complex, adding depth to this read which increases in pace, thereby immersing the reader in Jack's fight to destroy the predatory swarms before they destroy him and others. The plausibility of Crichton's nanotechnology transforms this brilliant novel from mere sci-fi into a frightening look at future technology.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Bad B-Movie Script
Review: That is all this book is. There are too many plot holes to even mention here. The dialouge is terrible and he sums up the plot lines after each interaction like a soap opera would. The book had a great idea and the book needed to be technical, which is great, but he dumbs everything down to a 5 year old reading level. Wait for the movie and you might be able to see some cool special effects, but don't expect anything you haven't seen before.
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