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Hal Cousins is one of a handful of scientists nearing the most sought after discovery in human history: the key to short-circuiting the aging process. Fueled by a wealth of research, an overdose of self-confidence, and the money of influential patrons to whom he makes outrageous promises, Hal experiments with organisms living in the hot thermal plumes in the ocean depths. But as he journeys beneath the sea, his other world is falling apart. Across the country, scientists are being inexplicably murdered--including Hal's identical twin brother, who is also working to unlock the key to immortality. Hal himself barely eludes a cold-blooded attack at sea, and when he returns home to Seattle, he finds himself walking into an eerie realm where voices speak to him from the dead ... where a once-brilliant historian turned crackpot is leading him on a deadly game of hide-and-seek ... and where the beautiful, rich widow of his twin is more than willing to pick up the pieces of Hal's life--and take him places he's never been before. Suddenly Hal is trapped inside an ever-twisting maze of shocking revelations. For he is not the first person to come close to ending aging forever--and those who came before him will stop at nothing to keep the secret to themselves. Now every person on earth is at risk of being made an unsuspecting player in one man's spectacular and horrifying master plan. From the bottom of Russia's Lake Baikal to a billionaire's bionic house built into the cliffs of the Washington seashore, from the darkest days of World War II and the reign of Josef Stalin to the capitalist free-for-all that is the United States, Vitals tells an astounding tale of the most unimaginable scientific secret of all--exposed by the quest for immortality itself.… (more)
User reviews
You'd think the secret of eternal life would be an eagerly awaited boon to
This novel is so utterly convoluted and hard to follow. It was almost as if the author was intentionally trying to confuse the reader, and after a while it caused me to lose interest. There is absolutely not a shred of believability to the novel. The premise is neat but the mechanics of the plot is groan inducing. The characterization in the novel is weak. There were loose plot points that were never resolved. It was solid for about the first quarter of the book before it became dreadful to read. I kept holding out hope that this novel would right itself and get better but that never came to fruition, and toward the end I just wanted it to be over. This was the first and last book by Greg Bear that I will read.
Carl Alves - author of Reconquest: Mother Earth
I remember the fact of having read this book (in 2008), but no more than that. There’s something about “the little mothers” that resonated with me—and frightened me and stuck with me. It was only recently that I stumbled upon the book again and it all came back and
In 2003 Greg Bear painted a horrific picture of how humans could be manipulated by the very bacteria that make us what we are, much less keep us alive. While the basic story focuses on the mitochondria that form the basis of our genetic make-up, it’s only now that we can see how our gut bacteria are molding our physical and mental health…and desires. And that’s what makes this story so frightening. In “Vitals” Bear describes how the average man/woman on the street can be influenced to try to kill the protagonist and force him to try to hide from everyone—because he knows that anyone/everyone is capable of destroying him. How do you hide from ‘everyone’? Who can you trust? What does he know that makes him so dangerous to “someone”? This is a dark and gloomy tale with no real ending. And all the more exciting for being a bit prescient.
In Michael Pollan’s book “Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation”, his chapter on fermentation provides a most succinct statement of what we should be aware of, and why, while avoiding any scaremongering. And I definitely recommend “Super Gut” by Dr. William Davis, for more detail of how humans are manipulated by our gut bacteria for their own ends; and how to use them intentionally for our own ends. In fact, Davis gave me the strength to eliminate almost all sugar from my diet when he pointed out that my craving for sugar was caused by a particular bacteria, that feeds on sugar, manipulating me to “want” sugar…with all its negative effects on my body. After working with his recommended “good” bacteria for a few weeks I’ve come to accept his claims by seeing my “cravings” disappear.
And that’s why “Vitals” is so scary. Look up “Toxoplasma gondii” and read how this parasite manipulates mice so that they allow themselves to be eaten by cats so that the parasite can complete its life-cycle within the cat’s body. For sure, I don’t believe we have any real danger of someone gaining control over us in this way, but Bear’s story might frighten you into putting more attention into what you eat from now on.