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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
A genetic researcher, Jeanie Ferrami, is studying identical twins who were raised apart and where one has turned out criminal and the other turned out law-abiding. She has written software that is able to search medical records to “find” twin pairs raised apart as a way of finding subjects for her study. When Jeanie accidentally crosses paths with one of the evil twins who sets a building on fire and rapes her good friend, only to have the “good” twin that she has begun interviewing be accused of the crime, the hunt is on to learn the truth. This is sort of a lightweight Michael Crichton novel and so fine as an airplane read, but not much more. And the ending was a little too obvious. So, despite the fact that I really like Ken Follett's body of work, this one only gets 2 stars from me.
Wonderfully written book, I love how you're expecting a certain story and that it defies it by adding twists and turns. Good detective work allied with science. A very enjoyable read that I would recommend.
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
2.5-3 stjärnor. Vissa saker gillade jag, andra störde jag mig på. Okej bok men bra tempo, spännande.
This was a fast paced, but kind of silly, thriller which held very few surprises after the first few chapters. I mean the title itself is a sort of spoiler, no? The characters were so one dimensional, I am surprised the bad guys didn’t twirl their mustaches or something.
I read this because a work colleague recommended it and loaned me the copy. It is always a little awkward when someone loans you a book you don’t want to read. I don’t think that this book is the best introduction to Ken Follett (at least I hope it isn’t). I still have The Eye of the Needle on my mental TBR and a copy of the Pillars of the Earth on my shelf.
I read this because a work colleague recommended it and loaned me the copy. It is always a little awkward when someone loans you a book you don’t want to read. I don’t think that this book is the best introduction to Ken Follett (at least I hope it isn’t). I still have The Eye of the Needle on my mental TBR and a copy of the Pillars of the Earth on my shelf.
God almighty, this was the worst book I've read since "Twilight."
This book has reached the level of being offensive.
Jeannie Ferami is a researcher who gains access to medical databases, searches them to find identical twins who don't know they have a twin, then she accesses their address/phone number and invites them to participate in her research. She then informs them that they have an identical twin. She swears up and down that this is not an invasion of privacy or a breach of ethics. Case in point, her very first subject had no idea he was a twin, his parents swear they had a single child. I can't even fathom how she is not freaking out about this massive breach of privacy that she has just perpetrated.
Second - Jeannie's "best friend" is brutally raped. The victim identifies Jeannie's research subject (the one that didn't know he had a twin) as the perpetrator. She looked the guy directly in the face while he was raping her. What does Jeannie do? Tell her "friend" that she is wrong and that she is certain that this guy is not the rapist because she "has a feeling" about it. Fuck you Jeannie.
So all that was annoying and made me mad. But I just came up on a part that has me so seething I want to throw something heavy at the author of this book. Stupid Jeannie is going to have her work shut down due to her ethics violations (which she still thinks don't exist) and her "best friend" asks her what she will study if she can't keep invading people's private medical records and revealing their family secrets. Jeannie then starts explaining that since her "friend" Lisa (who is two days out from being savagely raped) is "just a technician" that she couldn't possibly understand the scientific passion that Jeannie has . To Lisa it's "just another project". Okay fuck you again Jeannie. Get off your high horse that is currently trotting along the plains of privilege land. Jeannie is a highly educated person, who obviously is passionate about science because she made it her career. Guess what? People aren't stupid idiots just because they didn't pay for a PhD. I am so disgusted by this woman and her non-existent ethics and her superiority complex.
The thing that bugs me is not the fact that she's a shitty character. It's that this is our protagonist. We are supposed to identify with her and support her. Please someone tell me that in the end of the book Lisa is vindicated. I am not sure I can continue reading after this latest insult to lab technicians everywhere. (Yes I was a lab tech for 10 years and no I wasn't a lab tech because I was too stupid or didn't like science enough to get my PhD.) If I worked with Jeannie Ferami, I would pour a giant bowl of Cream of Potato soup over her head right now. Then I'd tell her what a nasty witch she is. Then I'd call the paper and explain in detail all of her ethics violations.
Jeannie Ferami is a researcher who gains access to medical databases, searches them to find identical twins who don't know they have a twin, then she accesses their address/phone number and invites them to participate in her research. She then informs them that they have an identical twin. She swears up and down that this is not an invasion of privacy or a breach of ethics. Case in point, her very first subject had no idea he was a twin, his parents swear they had a single child. I can't even fathom how she is not freaking out about this massive breach of privacy that she has just perpetrated.
Second - Jeannie's "best friend" is brutally raped. The victim identifies Jeannie's research subject (the one that didn't know he had a twin) as the perpetrator. She looked the guy directly in the face while he was raping her. What does Jeannie do? Tell her "friend" that she is wrong and that she is certain that this guy is not the rapist because she "has a feeling" about it. Fuck you Jeannie.
So all that was annoying and made me mad. But I just came up on a part that has me so seething I want to throw something heavy at the author of this book. Stupid Jeannie is going to have her work shut down due to her ethics violations (which she still thinks don't exist) and her "best friend" asks her what she will study if she can't keep invading people's private medical records and revealing their family secrets. Jeannie then starts explaining that since her "friend" Lisa (who is two days out from being savagely raped) is "just a technician" that she couldn't possibly understand the scientific passion that Jeannie has . To Lisa it's "just another project". Okay fuck you again Jeannie. Get off your high horse that is currently trotting along the plains of privilege land. Jeannie is a highly educated person, who obviously is passionate about science because she made it her career. Guess what? People aren't stupid idiots just because they didn't pay for a PhD. I am so disgusted by this woman and her non-existent ethics and her superiority complex.
The thing that bugs me is not the fact that she's a shitty character. It's that this is our protagonist. We are supposed to identify with her and support her. Please someone tell me that in the end of the book Lisa is vindicated. I am not sure I can continue reading after this latest insult to lab technicians everywhere. (Yes I was a lab tech for 10 years and no I wasn't a lab tech because I was too stupid or didn't like science enough to get my PhD.) If I worked with Jeannie Ferami, I would pour a giant bowl of Cream of Potato soup over her head right now. Then I'd tell her what a nasty witch she is. Then I'd call the paper and explain in detail all of her ethics violations.
I think this would've been a 4/5 star book if I had read it when it was written (assuming I was old enough to appreciate it of course). That being said, I had the entire book figured out about 20% of the way through and it was really pissing me off that no one could figure out the big mystery. I still enjoyed the book, and it definitely kept me interested, but the story is definitely not as sensational now as I'm sure it was in the early 90s.
One thing that amazed me about this book was that it was written in 1995 - clearly way ahead of its time. I sniggered when they spoke of 'floppy discs'. If they only knew.
It was good, but I felt like they dragged it out a little. Still a good one time read.
It was good, but I felt like they dragged it out a little. Still a good one time read.
A pretty obvious plot.Thank God, I got it second hand.