Mount Dragon

By: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

Narrated by: David Colacci

Length: 15 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

Guy Carson is a brilliant scientist at GeneDyne, one of the world's foremost biochemical companies. When he is transferred to Mount Dragon, GeneDyne's high-security genetic engineering lab, his good fortune seems too good to be true.

Carson soon finds that it is. He learns that GeneDyne geneticists are tinkering with a common virus with an eye on the enormous profit to be had from a cure for the flu. Their cure involves permanently altering DNA in humans, and Carson's job is to stabilize the virus. But Carson starts to wonder if this is justifiable, even for the most noble medical cause. Altering genes is a risky job, and the possibility of creating another killer virus is very real. What's more, Mount Dragon harbors another secret that puts the world at horrifying risk.

©2008 Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (P)2008 B00FO6WK0S

Fun Read, but predictable

Good book, well written. However, in the end, it is very predictable and much like every other "killer virus" sci-fi thriller.

Pretty technical at times

Overall, I thought this was a good story and definitely glad I downloaded it; however, it really got technical at times and seemed "pitchy" with storylines flailing in directions that took away from the the main plot. For example, the entire trip into the desert just didn't seem needed. You know the authors did quite a bit of research. Maybe it was the authors' intention, but the narrator also made everyone seem so angry and sarcastic.

yah dah yah dah yah dah

THERE IS A LOT OF TECHNICAL TERMINOLOGY Then a real story about people. Then kaboom.

Exciting but flawed. Nowhere near The Ice Limit.

Preston and Childs apparently have written many books. I was spoiled by reading The Ice Limit first, which is a true masterpiece. This is not. It is clever, with a lot of thought and a whole lot of research behind it. It is far-reaching and science-fictiony for 1996. It is a very strident argument against genetic modification of medications, and indeed of anything these guys tinker with. It does keep you reading, as David Colacci virtually always does. However, the detailed descriptions of the computer programming and of the lab and science being addressed will test the patience of many readers. The chief computer freak is a cleverly imagined character who is nonetheless as over the top as any character I have ever heard. The (spoiler alert) romance between Carson and Cabeza de Vaca is something that you can see coming from a mile away, but it takes about a thousand figurative miles to happen, and it comes at almost the end of the book. The lab itself is excruciatingly well drawn, and the ambition of the boss is so over-reaching as to try one's patience, as (another spoiler alert) he eventually tries to sell his virus for 5 BILLION dollars to the Army. There are many things to praise about the book, and I gave it a higher rating than I thought I would. It takes a lot of patience to wade through some parts, which scream for an editor. You might enjoy the reading, but you may find yourself wishing it were about three hours shorter than the book ends up being.

Loose on science and tech, but good for its time.

The main character was excellently developed, and it had a fairly strong plot, although it changed gears on me at the end and fell short. As someone deeply entrenched in the biological sciences, i love a good bio thriller although unfortunately the science must be top-notch in order for me to buy it-- this one just didn't quite cut it for me. Still, kept me reading to the end, which is saying something. Meh.

Excellent except for lame ending

Would you consider the audio edition of Mount Dragon to be better than the print version?

Don't know.

What did you like best about this story?

The suspense was great and I couldn't predict what was going to happen next.

What does David Colacci bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I prefer reading books but don't have time. David Colacci did what good narrators do best and this is he read so well I didn't get focused on his voice or what I didn't like about his narration. I'll add him to my list of acceptable narrators.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Kept me listening when I should have been doing other things.

Any additional comments?

I don't know what happened at the end but it seemed like the writers just got tired of writing so they ended the book. The entire rest of the book was well written and highly suspenseful. I would recommend it even with the ending. It's a good book. I'll listen to more Preston and Child. This was the first time I've listened to a book by them.

Another Great Story!

I thoroughly enjoyed this multi-layered suspense thriller. The narrator did an excellent job with the characterizations and pacing. How can you miss with a story by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child?!

Great read

Relic was the only book from ,these 2 writers that I had read before. I enjoyed this one immense will recommend it. I enjoyed the narrator and how his voice was enhanced .

Had a hard time connecting

I have never had a bad experience with these authors before, so it was a little odd. I don’t think the performance or overall book is bad it did not grab my attention enough to follow along closely enough and i found that I kept losing my place. I did re-listen to a lot of different parts. And I don’t know if I fully understand what the book was about. It’s a book you’re going to have to pay closer attention to, maybe. I will say I kept thinking I was listening to Pentecost narrating and my expectations were confused. However, I enjoy these authors, and it will not stop me from picking up another one of their many many books or trying new series. Thanks!

OK it's them, however....

Preston and Child do it again..and this time sans Scott Brick. Frankly, I am becoming quite a fan of Colacci, and I feel he does great work here bringing this multifaceted story to life. Lots' of stuff going on here, and not the cleanest of work this team have done, but overall very compelling ( and excellend summer yard work/barbeque/beer drinking listening! my July 4th ribs were done to the sound of this book in our backyard! ) Enjoy.