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Summary: a grand adventure
Review: A totally compelling story! What a joy! What a pleasure! This author's ability to imbue characters who happen to be children in their early teens, with dignity, character, honor & good moral judgement, is to be applauded - loudly! For mature sci-fi readers, find a copy of DR. FRANKLIN'S ISLAND & re-live those thrilling days of yesteryear, then give it to a kid you know. Adventure is definitely alive & well!
Rating:
Summary: Dr. Franklin's Island
Review: Although I read the book over a year and a half ago, I still think about it greatly. Recently finishing reading The island of Dr. Moreau which inspired Dr.F's island. The author filled in the details of the experiments which Wells left out. The book was exciting to read. If you enjoy sci-fi and drama this book is for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun sci-fi novel
Review: Dr. Franklin's Island was very much like a version of Dr. Moreau's Island for teens. I didn't expect to like it nearly as much as I did. From the very first chapter I found myself sucked in to the story and caught up in the action. I read in disbelief as Semi and Miranda learned of what was to happen to them. The book moves very quickly and, though the subject the book deals with is highly unbelievable, Ann Halam manages to write a very realistic - and horrifying - story of genetic engineering. I could seriously have nightmares after reading this book! The ending, I thought, was left a little bit open... so maybe we can look forward to sequels? Let's hope so!
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Summary: WOWEE ZOWEE!!!!
Review: Not only did I not know that Benjiman Franklin was a doctor, but there is an island named after him too! Is there nothing that this man has ever done?! This Ann Halam chick really knows how to capture the feel and taste of a very strange and magical island filled with fat, balding, middle-aged guys! All I can say is WOW!
A must read!
Rating: 
Summary: oh..
Review: Oh man, what a joke. It has a good start, and then she starts trying to talk science, except that apparently she can't. Ok, so sci fi isn't supposed to be realistic, but it should at least be relatively logical and/or have some figment of rationality or believability to it. This does not. It's pretty funny though. I can see it becoming a hit on Comedy Central someday.
Rating:
Summary: Dr. Franklins Island
Review: Overall, I thought the book was pretty good. Right from the beginning, you want to keep reading. The main character, Semirah, is a shy teenager who has won a trip to the rain forests of Ecuador. When her plane crashes, she is stranded on an island with two complete strangers. Without all of the modern conveniences that they are used to having (the time setting is the year 2000 or so), the three adapt to life on the island. Just as the teenagers are getting used to life on the island, one of them disappears. The other two set off to look for him and fall into the hands of a mad scientist named Dr. Franklin. As the story continues, the teens realize that they either escape or die. This book will appeal to older kids and teens. It is an adventure book with a little bit of mystery that keeps you reading to the end. I liked it because you are never quite sure what will happen next. The book is told in first person perspective (by Semirah), which gives you more of a feeling for what is going on. The word choice is good because it is not too complicated to understand, but not too boring either. I would recommend this book to any teen who is looking for a good book to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Novel Deserving of the Top Awards
Review: Semi is a shy teenager who survives a plane crash with two other teens, Miranda and Arnie. What starts off as a desert island survival story turns into creepy (but not *too* creepy) science fiction. The island turns out to be home to the terrifying Dr. Frankilin and his menagerie of genetically modified animals, and he wants to experiment on Semi and Miranda next! Semi is a wonderful narrator, maintaining her own special humanness throughtout this action-packed story. The plot follows her through all sorts of surprising, and increasingly twisted, events.
Rating:
Summary: Dr.Franklin's Island Review
Review: This book is a very suspenseful yet great book. It is not a horror novel, so don't be discouraged to read it because of other reviews. The beginning might not catch your attention at first, but it gets so good at the end that you won't want to put it down. It is about three Teen British Conservationists who are on their way to Ecuador with 50 other teens. When their plane crashes,Arnie, Miranda and Semirah are the sole survivors. They think they're on an island,all alone. But it turns out that Dr. Franklin, an evil scientist,is there with them. It turns out they are specimens for his evil plan to make transgenic humans. I think it is a very good read and that everyone should read it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent! Suspense, Drama and Wit
Review: This book is what everyone wants to look for on their book shelves. This is an extrordianary book and I usually do not like to read sci-fi books. Who knew genetic transformation could be so scary!
Rating: 
Summary: One thumb up, one thumb down
Review: This book started off GREAT. The main characters, Semi, Miranda, and Arnie were very realistic. The type of main characters you could reach out and touch. The main characters you want to root for. The author's style is very good also, in that she can draw you in and keep your attention. So much so, in fact, that I stayed up until 1am to finish reading this book. That's a RARE thing with books, and the only book that's ever done that to me before was Dark Moon by Meredith Ann Pierce. The book starts off very strong, and for the first half of the book it's a strong well-written survivor story of three kids marooned on a tropical island after a horrible tragedy at sea. Then it suddenly turns into a bad Transformation fanfic. Half way through the novel changes course - it's like reading an entirely different book. Don't get me wrong - I'm a fan of transformation fiction - but this is just sad. Next thing you know three kids are being experimented on by the stereotypical insane/evil genius/mad doctor type, and his drunkard assistant. It's like we're suddenly reading a different story. The writing style still holds my interest, but the bad guy reminded me of a cheesy James Bond or Austin Powers movie baddie, only this was perfectly serious. The Science of it was okay, but I'm not sure the use of altered embrionic stem cells coupled with immunosuppressants can have that kind of effect, but I have to admit it was better than the altered retrovirus and T-cell idea which is a little overdone, but at least the retrovirus technique is established medicine. The transformations themselves were poorly described. In a novel you have the ability to use vivid detail over the course of long period of time. Ann Halam started doing that, but quickly lost it. Miranda started changing, and then she was removed from the POV. Then Semi started changing, there's a chapter break, and next thing you know Semi's a fish and Miranda's a bird, and the sequence is over. There was a lot of talk about the animall insticts later on after the change was finished, but none during the initial stages. Very unfulfilling for a furry transformations fan. Even after the change, when the animal instincts were an issue, the lack of description of what that entailed was still weak and one-sided. The escape was hokey and contrived, but vaguely plausible, but really didn't hold my interest. This was the point I started flipping pages anxious to see a resolution. Okay, they managed to let Semi out and have her change back. I mean, I tried to stand up. Instinct had carried me when I first climbed on board. Now my legs buckled, as if I was a newborn foal. I staggered. In front of me, below the deck, the door to the cabin opened. Bright lights came on all around me. "Excellent!" said Dr. Franklin. "Well done, Semi!" Oh geeze, I saw that coming a mile away. The ending of the book failed to make me want to keep reading for any reason than to get this damn book over with. The baddy and his drunk assistant were cheesy and hokey. Up until the kids left, changed back, and next thing you know they are in civilization again meeting up with their parents again. Then we learn they can change back - out of the blue - and for no apparent medical reason - but don't want to. Then the novel was over - finally. Very convenient - gotta have that sequel possibility in there, don't we? It's like Ann Halam wanted the book finished and wasn't willing to put any effort into it. Sort of like the ending to "Atlantis" - we just ran out of money so better hurry up and contrive an ending so we can run this off Wendy Lamb Books. We never did learn anything about Dr. Stanley or why he bothered to help or why Dr. Franklin even bothered to keep Dr. Stanley around if Dr. Stanley was such a loose cannon. If Dr. Franklin could do all this, he must know better than to keep Dr. Stanley around. Very stereotypical mad scientiest. Dr. Franklin was not a very plausible or believable baddie at all.
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