Product Description

Frank Schätzing's amazing novel is a publishing phenomenon with translation rights sold around the world, drawing rave reviews for both pulsating suspense and great scientific knowledge.

The world begins to suffer an escalating and sensational series of natural disasters, and two marine biologists begin to develop a theory that the cause lies in the oceans, where an entity know as the Yrr has developed a massive network of single-cell organisms. It is wreaking havoc in order to prevent humankind from destroying the earth's ecological balance forever.

The Americans, under the ruthless General Judith Lee, take a more pragmatic approach than the scientists, seeking to wipe out the being of the deep.

The scene is set for a massive confrontation... (20060522)

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #95337 in Books
• Published on: 2007-02-22
• Original language: German
• Binding: Paperback
• 896 pages

Review
'A suspense-packed ecological thriller' (Financial Times 20040221)

'A rip-roaring monster movie of a plot with unexpectedly credible human characters' (The Times 20040325)

'An international blockbuster . . . But think twice about making it your beach book. However hot the vacation sun, this novel may give you the shivers . . . enjoy' (Evening Standard 20040221)

'Good fun, written in fluent thrillerese, and there are some vivid action-thriller moments' (Metro 20040221)

'Having sold more than 800,000 copies in Germany, this riveting eco-thriller is well placed for a repeat performance in the English language.' (Publishing News 20040221)

'An effervescent cocktail of adventure' (Der Spiegel 20040221)

'A gripping thriller starring nature unleashed' (Stern 20040221)

'A gigantic thriller' (Die Welt 20040221)

'A massively good read. A gripping marine biodiversity thriller the like of which I have not seen since "Jaws". I particularly liked the portrayal of biologists as interesting, sexy human beings, rather than just evil or hopelessly mistaken gene-manipulators.'

(Dr James Mallet, Professor of Biological Diversity, University College London 20040221)

'A mind-bending, Crichton-esque fate-of-the-planet thriller that whiplashes the reader from micro- to macro-terrors faster than you can say 'ecosystem'... never ever predictable... enormously entertaining science fiction / horror epic... I recommend you dive right in' (Fangoria 20040221)

'A gripping novel with fast-paced action, interesting and believable characters, and a fascinating look into the uncharted depths of the ocean . . . Enthralling, I was on tenterhooks throughout . . . Comparable in quality to Stephen King, Martin Cruz Smith, and Elmore Leonard' (Peter Constantine, award-winning translator of Thomas Mann's SIX EARLY STORIES 20040221)

'The world could collapse around you [while reading DER SCHWARM], and you wouldn't notice.' (Die Welt 20040221)

'A monster of science-fiction, rich in facts' (Stern 20060715)

'After these 1000 breathtaking pages you see the sea with different eyes.' (Focus 20060806)

'This book wants to be read from beginning to end, morning, noon, and night. The outside world could disintegrate and the reader would not notice because of the spellbinding power of the collapsing world in Frank Schätzing’s apocalyptic thriller.' (Die Tageszeitung 20061118)

'With THE SWARM, Frank Schätzing lifts the German suspense novel up to the international level.' (Süddeutsche Zeitung 20061207)

'THE SWARM must be read quickly because before the reader can finally get to sleep, he must wander far and wide before crossing the finish line happy but exhausted. . . .Whoever has read Frank Schätzing’s novel will be thankful for every inch of dry land and will certainly avoid waterbeds.' (Die Zeit )

'With THE SWARM, Frank Schätzing competes with the likes of Michael Crichton.' (Brigitte )

'One thousand pages of extraordinarily stimulating mental images. At once intellectual and intoxicating, this novel is alarming, unnerving, and overwhelming in every respect. Its composition has a precise grasp on rhythm, language, and lustrous action scenes.' (Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger )

'Topical and thought-provoking' (The Canberra Times )

'Highly entertaining' (The Daily Telegraph, Australia )

'A timely warning and a jolly good read to boot' (South Coast Register )

'Schätzing may be telling a story that relies on his vast imagination, but the research he uses to back it up remains firmly in the realm of facts...fascinating' (Herald Sun, Australia )

'Admirably informed...riveting...an engaging summer read...except that after reading THE SWARM you may want to avoid beaches forever' (Globe and Mail, USA )

'A work of eco-sadism par excellence…. The Swarm isn't just clever and engrossing. It deftly and entertainingly manipulates all the clichés of disaster drama' (Chicago Sun-Times )

'Great stuff' (The Times )

'May be closer to reality than we would like' (Science Magazine )

About the Author
Frank Schätzing has made a career as a marketing executive as well as author of several highly successful historical crime novels. THE SWARM (Der Schwarm) has topped the German bestseller charts since 2004. (20060601)

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Customer Reviews

Science thriller with real depth
This book was a surprise bestseller in Germany and the paperback verison I got for Christmas was already the 10th reprint edition within a year. So I took it on a one week holiday in January and despite the 700 densely packed pages it ran out well before the return flight. This is not only a riveting read ala Michael Chrichton it is also an introduction into a huge number of current scientific theories that are brought across with both ease and depth alike. Not only will you be turning the pages to find out how the story unfolds you will also learn a great deal about marine biology, geology, genetecis, intelligence theory and numerous other scientific advances without actually realising it on the go. This is a book I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone and when the next holiday comes along I might just read it again...

Great, good, but boring and bad, also
I have seldom been so torn in the review of a book. In retrospect i have so many fond memories of this, and yet at the same time i remember the long periods of time when i simply couldn't be bothered picking it up to read because the narrative was flailing and little seemed to be happening. The opening part of the book is simply stunning, i don't deny. Some of the (for want of a better description) set-pieces involving whales and zebra mussels are simply excellent and some of the ideas brought into the novel throughout reflect this early enthusiastic and imaginative approach to the "monster movie" plot. Some of the characters are nice and believable, and each has their own personal demons to contend with, which makes the mix that little bit more exciting.
Scientifically the plot seems sound; i don't claim to know much about the genetics of amoebae, but i do know a fair whack about whales, dolphins and other denizens of the sea (I'm a Marine Biologist). I wasn't expecting a scientific account with no holes, i was expecting a Jurassic Park-esque almost-believable story, and thats near enough what i got.
The novel fails, however, on three counts. One; the middle section. Not much happens for a great deal and unless you're on a flight or have a particularly nice sunny day for some outdoor reading, or have a great deal of time (none of which befalls a marine biologist masters student in Scotland) then its difficult to battle through the lull in the pace. Two: the ending. Too complicated for its own good, it would have been easier to flunk for something less scientific and less confusing. However, it's original, i'll give it that. Three; the wish / desire to be the monster movie its alluded to be. I love reading novels and picturing my favourite actors in various roles, etc. It helps me visualise the action. So i don't lke it when the author tells you who his characters look like. Maximillian Schnell, Jodie Foster, to name a few, get name dropped, just in case the reader was having difficulty picturing their characters. Plus, in the same vein, the plot (or rather, confusing elements of the plot) are explained by using examples from other movies. To this end, The Abyss and Contact are referenced. There is simply no need for this. The reader should be able to use thier own imagination / intelligence to understand whats going on.
However, the reason it does manage 3 stars is that there ARE some truly spectacular moments; the global disaster half way through being a good example.
I fight to decide whether i actually recommend this or not. Its a bit of a struggle for non-committed readers to keep returning to, but where it is good it really does excel.

Unstoppable reading treat
I have read this book in German. Even though the theme of deep sea science does not match my usual fields of interest I simply could not put the book down and I read it as fast as no book in the recent past. The plot is intelligent, extremely well researched (as I found out after watching a documentary on this book and author on German television) and reasonably plausible. The story is gripping, the characters compelling. I was also astonished to find out that most of the leading scientists mentioned in this book are real people and experts on the field of deep sea exploration and that Frank Schätzing extensively conferred with them during his researches.
I can highly recommend this book to anyone, even outside the Sci-Fi community.