Regeneration

Rating:
Summary: Well written, ungimmicky horror
Review: A contemporary horror novel set in Chicago and Los Angeles. Like so many other aging baby-boomers, Joyce Lackey hadn't given much thought to her future; it looked rosy and that was enough. So when she's forced into an early retirement and her life goes to pieces, the future begins to look grim...until the X-Gen Agency calls her with an offer that seems too good to be true. Not only do they offer her a new life, they offer her the one thing she thought she couldn't ever have again: her youth.

Most horror relies upon some external agent - ghosts, vampires, psychotic killers - but Regeneration takes a different approach. While the X-Gen Agency and its plans are pretty scary, the true horror of the novel lies in the choices Joyce makes about the way she is going to live her life. To be fair, which of us wouldn't think longingly of renewed youth if it was offered to us? And which of us, in Joyce's position, wouldn't jump at the chance to make a new start at life, particularly when the only other option seems to be suicide? It's not easy to fault Joyce for choosing the paths she takes, and not easy to divorce ourselves from her wholly, even at the end of the novel when most intelligent readers will be shrieking at her to stop and think before she destroys the rest of her life. She's a strong woman with fatal weaknesses, a smart woman who can be willfully foolish and, in the end, a woman who finds it easier to become someone new than to give up all the material considerations she's held so dear: her youth, her job, her image and her lifestyle.

Regeneration is compellingly crafted and highly readable, but if you're not prepared for a story about a group of people who aren't particularly admirable, then don't even bother. There's no happily-ever-after to the romance and, by the end, there's not even a glimmer of hope for Joyce's future. This isn't an uplifting book by any stretch. However if you like well-written horror, and you can find it in something other than raging blood beasts, then Regeneration may well be exactly what you need. Well worth the time.

Rating:
Summary: Well written, ungimmicky horror
Review: A contemporary horror novel set in Chicago and Los Angeles. Like so many other aging baby-boomers, Joyce Lackey hadn't given much thought to her future; it looked rosy and that was enough. So when she's forced into an early retirement and her life goes to pieces, the future begins to look grim...until the X-Gen Agency calls her with an offer that seems too good to be true. Not only do they offer her a new life, they offer her the one thing she thought she couldn't ever have again: her youth.

Most horror relies upon some external agent - ghosts, vampires, psychotic killers - but Regeneration takes a different approach. While the X-Gen Agency and its plans are pretty scary, the true horror of the novel lies in the choices Joyce makes about the way she is going to live her life. To be fair, which of us wouldn't think longingly of renewed youth if it was offered to us? And which of us, in Joyce's position, wouldn't jump at the chance to make a new start at life, particularly when the only other option seems to be suicide? It's not easy to fault Joyce for choosing the paths she takes, and not easy to divorce ourselves from her wholly, even at the end of the novel when most intelligent readers will be shrieking at her to stop and think before she destroys the rest of her life. She's a strong woman with fatal weaknesses, a smart woman who can be willfully foolish and, in the end, a woman who finds it easier to become someone new than to give up all the material considerations she's held so dear: her youth, her job, her image and her lifestyle.

Regeneration is compellingly crafted and highly readable, but if you're not prepared for a story about a group of people who aren't particularly admirable, then don't even bother. There's no happily-ever-after to the romance and, by the end, there's not even a glimmer of hope for Joyce's future. This isn't an uplifting book by any stretch. However if you like well-written horror, and you can find it in something other than raging blood beasts, then Regeneration may well be exactly what you need. Well worth the time.

Rating:
Summary: Worst book I read in a long time
Review: Avoid this book. The plot was simple and stupid; the characters were shallow and unlikable; and there was absolutely no science or clever age reversal process (just plastic surgery and an do-it-all wonder drug with no more detail to it). If I were in the baby boomer age bracket I would be insulted by its generalizations of materialism, shallowness, irresponsibility and desperate desire to be 20 again. As an X-gen, I was insulted by its disingenuous, narrow stereotypes of people in their 20s and early 30s. There was no redeeming qualities of human nature, feelings... anything. What a waste of time. I finished this book only because I had nothing else to do on the airplane ride. I should have done nothing instead.

Rating:
Summary: Great book! I couldn't put it down
Review: I picked up the book on a whim and started thumbing through it. After the first page I was hooked! I am in my late 20s and don't believe that either Gen-Xers or Boomers will find that this book stereotypes or demeans anyone. It is pure suspenseful entertainment tied together with lots of nostalgia and great musical references. A terrific book to begin the new century with.

Rating:
Summary: Great book! I couldn't put it down
Review: I picked up the book on a whim and started thumbing through it. After the first page I was hooked! I am in my late 20s and don't believe that either Gen-Xers or Boomers will find that this book stereotypes or demeans anyone. It is pure suspenseful entertainment tied together with lots of nostalgia and great musical references. A terrific book to begin the new century with.

Rating:
Summary: Three different generations loved the book
Review: I would recommend this book to everyone I know. I have read it and I am 56. My Daughter read it age 28. Gave the book to my Aunt age 78 and she also loved it. We are avid readers and all of us enjoyed the plot of the book. We all agree it should be made into a TV Movie of the week. This book will grab you from page one till the end. You will want more.