About the Author

Michael Crichton (1942-2008) was the author of the bestselling novels The Terminal Man, The Great Train Robbery, Jurassic Park, Sphere, Disclosure, Prey, State of Fear, Next and Dragon Teeth, among many others. His books have sold more than 200 million copies worldwide, have been translated into forty languages, and have provided the basis for fifteen feature films. He wrote and directed Westworld, The Great Train Robbery, Runaway, Looker, Coma and created the hit television series ER. Crichton remains the only writer to have a number one book, movie, and TV show in the same year.

Daniel H. Wilson is a Cherokee citizen and author of the New York Times bestselling Robopocalypse and its sequel Robogenesis, as well as ten other books. He recently wrote the Earth 2: Society comic book series for DC Comics. Wilson earned a PhD in Robotics from Carnegie Mellon University, as well as master's degrees in Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. He has published over a dozen scientific papers and holds four patents. Wilson lives in Portland, Oregon.

Reviews

"TERRIFYING...IRRESISTIBLY SUSPENSEFUL." -- New York Times Book Review"INTRICATE PLOTTING AND FLAWLESS PACING...you won't be able to put it down." -- Time magazine"CRACKLING...MYSTERIOUS...." -- Entertainment Weekly"Just what his fans expect: A WILD, SCARY RIDE..." -- Detroit Free Press"Another PAGE-TURNING TRIUMPH" -- Charlotte Observer"INCREDIBLY SCARY and relentless" -- Minneapolis Star Tribune"PREY WILL KEEP YOU TURNING PAGES" -- Chattanooga Times"RELENTLESSLY ENTERTAINING" -- Raleigh News & Observer"... a harrowing tale of nanoparticles gone beserk." -- USA Today"A TERRIFYING TALE...combining technological verisimilitude with heart-pounding suspense..." -- The Oregonian (Portland)"Serious and scary..." -- Washington Post Book World"This is how to write a thriller ...Crichton's latest page-turning triumph." -- Detroit Free Press"Crichton has proved he knows how to ratchet up the fear factor." -- Denver Post"...so god-awful scary and relentless, it'll knock your head clear of whatever ails you." -- St. Petersburg Times"Once again, Crichton has proved to be uncannily timely." -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch"Crichton is a master storyteller." -- Detroit News"A cross between Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain...." -- Columbus Dispatch"PREY delivers that expected Crichton charge." -- Seattle Post-Intelligencer"A terrific novelist...He could make most readers lose sleep all night and call in sick the next day." -- San Francisco Chronicle"Readers turn to Michael Crichton's novels for entertainment with relentless drive." -- San Antonio Express"Crichton is a doctor of suspense." -- Des Moines Sunday Register"Crichton writes superbly...the excitment rises with each page." -- Chicago Tribune"Crichton's books [are]...hugely entertaining." -- New York Times Book Review"Crichton delivers." -- USA Today"He is without peer." -- Chattanooga Times"One of the great storytellers of our age...What an amazing imagination." -- New York Newsday"Michael Crichton has written some of America's most fantastic novels." -- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Crichton's latest thriller combines the biotechnology of Jurassic Park with nanotechnology, creating a new menace for the human race. Julia Foreman and her team at Xymos Technologies have developed microscopic artificial organisms designed to function together as a group. However, they used a computer program, developed by Julia's at-home husband and programmer Jack, which employs a hunter and prey behavior model to allow the organisms to achieve stated goals through experimenting with different behaviors. However, the organisms escape the Nevada-based factory and begin to reproduce, evolve, and learn, and they are learning to hunt other life forms. This story is fast paced, with interesting characters and enough twists and turns to hold the listener's attention. Narrator George Wilson effectively tells this exciting tale in both productions; except for the price, the recordings are the same. Recommended for all audio collections.-Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ., Parkersburg Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Adult/High School-An absorbing cautionary tale of science fact and fiction. Jack Forman has been laid off from his Silicon Valley job as a senior software programmer and has become a househusband, while his wife continues her career with a biotech firm involved in defense contracting. Jack is called in as a consultant to debug one of their products, and finds himself confronting a full-blown emergency, about which his wife and others in the organization have been suspiciously deceptive. Crichton's sure hand sustains a tension-filled narrative as harrowing events unfold. Jack discovers that the "problem product" is a lethal, self-replicating swarm of bioengineered particles released into the desert that imperils the environment as well as the scientists who created it. He is pitted against an exponentially growing and increasingly sophisticated organism encoded with predator/prey behaviors, capable of mimicry as well as learning. Final scenes are dramatic, brutal, and jarring, with the outcome tantalizingly unresolved. Significant chunks of scientific information are packaged within the story line, and some segments are blended less smoothly than others. This scarcely matters, however, as most readers will speed past the rough spots and accept improbable leaps of imagination whenever necessary in hot pursuit of the gripping, fast-paced action. Overall, a compelling read for students intrigued by cutting-edge technologies, and rife with opportunities for discussion of ethics in scientific research.-Lynn Nutwell, Fairfax City Regional Library, VA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

"TERRIFYING...IRRESISTIBLY SUSPENSEFUL." -- New York Times Book Review"INTRICATE PLOTTING AND FLAWLESS PACING...you won't be able to put it down." -- Time magazine"CRACKLING...MYSTERIOUS...." -- Entertainment Weekly"Just what his fans expect: A WILD, SCARY RIDE..." -- Detroit Free Press"Another PAGE-TURNING TRIUMPH" -- Charlotte Observer"INCREDIBLY SCARY and relentless" -- Minneapolis Star Tribune"PREY WILL KEEP YOU TURNING PAGES" -- Chattanooga Times"RELENTLESSLY ENTERTAINING" -- Raleigh News & Observer"... a harrowing tale of nanoparticles gone beserk." -- USA Today"A TERRIFYING TALE...combining technological verisimilitude with heart-pounding suspense..." -- The Oregonian (Portland)"Serious and scary..." -- Washington Post Book World"This is how to write a thriller ...Crichton's latest page-turning triumph." -- Detroit Free Press"Crichton has proved he knows how to ratchet up the fear factor." -- Denver Post"...so god-awful scary and relentless, it'll knock your head clear of whatever ails you." -- St. Petersburg Times"Once again, Crichton has proved to be uncannily timely." -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch"Crichton is a master storyteller." -- Detroit News"A cross between Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain...." -- Columbus Dispatch"PREY delivers that expected Crichton charge." -- Seattle Post-Intelligencer"A terrific novelist...He could make most readers lose sleep all night and call in sick the next day." -- San Francisco Chronicle"Readers turn to Michael Crichton's novels for entertainment with relentless drive." -- San Antonio Express"Crichton is a doctor of suspense." -- Des Moines Sunday Register"Crichton writes superbly...the excitment rises with each page." -- Chicago Tribune"Crichton's books [are]...hugely entertaining." -- New York Times Book Review"Crichton delivers." -- USA Today"He is without peer." -- Chattanooga Times"One of the great storytellers of our age...What an amazing imagination." -- New York Newsday"Michael Crichton has written some of America's most fantastic novels." -- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel