The Games

Starred review from January 16, 2012
In this tense debut, Kosmatka embraces scientific horror, envisioning a future in which genetic engineering is used to create terrible crossbreeds. These creatures are pitted against each other as gladiators in the Olympic Games, with fortunes and careers riding on each battle. While most competitors resemble their natural “parents,” America’s latest creation is unique, designed by an ultra-advanced AI that was given one simple operating directive: survive the competition. As the nameless gladiator grows to maturity, it demonstrates feral cunning and intelligence, a taste for human flesh, and a murderous agenda. Now Silas Williams, the head of the U.S. gladiatorial program, and Vidonia João, a brilliant xenobiologist, must unravel the monster’s genetic secrets before things get out of hand. Exacting science and meticulous attention to detail provide the backbone for this thriller, which blends the best of Crichton and Koontz. Agent: Seth Fishman, Sterling Lord Literistic (now at the Gernert Company).

Starred review from March 15, 2012

A new gladiatorial contest between genetically engineered monsters has proven to be a popular Olympic sport. For this year's games, the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) uses its most sophisticated AI computer to design the latest combatant. Felix demonstrates a precociously advanced intelligence coupled with an insatiable thirst for violence--seemingly an ideal candidate for Olympic gold. Despite disturbing signs that the program's reclusive creator is losing touch with reality, the USOC clears Felix for competition. The stage is set for a catastrophic finale, with international repercussions. VERDICT Kosmatka successfully captures the thrill of groundbreaking technology characteristic of Michael Crichton's technothrillers as well as the intensity of blood sports as envisioned in Richard Matheson's short story "Steel," the inspiration for the film Real Steel. The pleasure of his polished, action-packed storytelling is deepened by strong character development. This near-future sf thriller will capture the imagination of "unstoppable monster" lovers and fans of disaster fiction alike and seems destined for the big screen.

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2012
Somewhere down the road, in the not-to-distant future, the Olympic Games feature a wildly popular event in which artificially created gladiators fight to the death. There's only one rule: the competitors must not have any human DNA. Created by an artificial-intelligence computer, the gladiator for the American Olympic team seems to defy any reasonable genetic-engineering logic: it even possesses features (such as wings) that serve no purpose. Silas Williams, the man in charge of the American gladiator program, soon discovers that the monstrous creature has only one imperative, to survive the competition at all costs and that the supercomputer behind its creation refuses to divulge the parameters used in its design. Unsure what he has on his hands, or what it's capable of, Williams calls in an expert in xenobiology (alien life forms) to determine just how dangerous this thing is. Very like something Michael Crichton might have written, the book is a high-tech monster story. The human characters capture our interestincluding one in particular, whose relationship with the supercomputer borders on the incestuousbut it's the genetically engineered gladiator that keeps us racing through the pages. An outstanding debut novel; expect big things from Kosmatka.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)