The Swarm by Frank Schatzing

"All mankind is trapped within a waking dream of a world that doesn't exist."

Sigur Johanson and Tina Lund are biologists working for the oil company to study worms that have mysteriously cropped up along the sea slopes. Leon Anawak is a cetologist and whale watch guide who’s taken by surprise when the normally peaceful animals begin attacking boats. Schools of fish turn murderous, seafood turns poisonous… The ocean is turning into a battle ground. But why and how? (And that’s just Part One)

Let me start my review by saying I loved this book. There’s not a thing worth complaining about. Originally written in German, I read the English translation, and you know how people always say things get lost in translation? If something was lost, it was lost on me.

I found this book to be highly suspenseful. The science bits were a bit slow, but there were plenty of action sequences to spice things up a bit. And the mystery of why this is happening kept me flipping the pages late into the night.

General Commander Judith Li and Jack Vanderbilt of the CIA are introduced in Part Two… They’re in charge of the investigation into why this is happening, organizing a collective of scientists to research the events unfolding and find a way to put a stop to it. Even though their mission is seemingly useful to the global community, they both turn out to be terrible people.

I found the characters in this book to be very believable. They aren’t all knowing but they’re good enough at their professions to figure it out… eventually. The believability of the characters is enhanced by the fact that their professions were all so well researched.

In fact, the whole book seemed to have been researched with a fine-toothed comb. You’ve got statistics on ocean pollution, animal behavior, geography/topography, hydrates and methane and their effects on the environment, and what happens when the ecosystem begins to break down. I would not call this book science light. It’s a science fiction book worthy of the name.

As the story advances it becomes a little reminiscent of War of the Worlds…I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the movie or read the book but basically, we’re the aliens.

The ending, Part Five, is slower than the first four parts of the novel. It’s a little preachy, monologue-y, and filled with metaphors, but it had a firm and satisfying conclusion.

On the whole, it’s an excellent read for sci-fi lovers.