The Games
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4.2 • 130 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Jurassic Park meets The Hunger Games in this stunning new high-energy, high-concept tale from first-time novelist Ted Kosmatka, a Nebula Award and Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award finalist.
Brilliant geneticist Silas Williams oversees U.S. selections for the Olympic Gladiator competition, an internationally sanctioned bloodsport with only one rule: No entrants may possess human DNA. Desperate to maintain America’s edge in the upcoming Games, Silas’s superior engages an experimental supercomputer to design the ultimate, unbeatable combatant. The result is a highly specialized killing machine, its genome never before seen on earth. But even a genius like Silas cannot anticipate the consequences of allowing a computer’s cold logic to play God. Growing swiftly, the mutant gladiator demonstrates preternatural strength, speed, and—most chillingly—intelligence. And before hell breaks loose, Silas and beautiful xenobiologist Vidonia João must race to understand what unbound science has wrought—even as their professional curiosity gives way to a most unexpected emotion: sheer terror.
“Blends the best of Crichton and Koontz.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Outstanding . . . very like something Michael Crichton might have written . . . [a] bold mix of horror and SF . . . Expect big things from [Ted] Kosmatka.”—Booklist (starred review)
“Kosmatka successfully captures the thrill of groundbreaking technology. . . . The pleasure of his polished, action-packed storytelling is deepened by strong character development. This near-future SF thriller . . . seems destined for the big screen.”—Library Journal (starred review)
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this tense debut, Kosmatka embraces scientific horror, envisioning a future in which genetic engineering is used to create terrible crossbreeds. These creatures are pitted against each other as gladiators in the Olympic Games, with fortunes and careers riding on each battle. While most competitors resemble their natural "parents," America's latest creation is unique, designed by an ultra-advanced AI that was given one simple operating directive: survive the competition. As the nameless gladiator grows to maturity, it demonstrates feral cunning and intelligence, a taste for human flesh, and a murderous agenda. Now Silas Williams, the head of the U.S. gladiatorial program, and Vidonia Jo o, a brilliant xenobiologist, must unravel the monster's genetic secrets before things get out of hand. Exacting science and meticulous attention to detail provide the backbone for this thriller, which blends the best of Crichton and Koontz.
Customer Reviews
pretty darn good
How is this not an absolutely terrifying movie by now?
Almost too smart
If your not a geneticist or a scientist, it is hard to follow in the beginning an at some parts. A lot talk about genetics and computers and stuff that made me feel almost dumb. But weather through it, overall, a phenomenal read that makes you think about our next step in evolution.
A fighting future
A fun and interesting read about how our obsession with sports, reality shows and Olympic fervor can grow out of control in the future as we play god with GMOs (genetically modified organisms-it's not just for food anymore) to a Frankensteinian extent. I particularly liked how the author humanized the geneticists, showing that smart people make bad choices, too, that they regret and try to rectify.