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Der Schwarm

3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 · rating details · 4,410 ratings · 404 reviews

"Die Yrr haben die Welt für alle Zeiten verändert." Letzter Tagebucheintrag, nachdem die Welt haarscharf am Untergang entlanggeschrammt war. Alles hatte angefangen mit einem peruanischen Fischer. Das letzte was Ucañan in seinem Leben zu sehen bekam, war eine riesige silbrig glitzernde Fläche, die näher kam. Ein Schwarm Goldmakrelen, dachte er erfreut. Ucañan irrte. Was ihn...more "Die Yrr haben die Welt für alle Zeiten verändert." Letzter Tagebucheintrag, nachdem die Welt haarscharf am Untergang entlanggeschrammt war. Alles hatte angefangen mit einem peruanischen Fischer. Das letzte was Ucañan in seinem Leben zu sehen bekam, war eine riesige silbrig glitzernde Fläche, die näher kam. Ein Schwarm Goldmakrelen, dachte er erfreut. Ucañan irrte. Was ihn das Leben kostete, sollte sich sehr bald zu einer unheimlichen und existenziellen Bedrohung für den gesamten Planeten auswachsen.

Unter der Meeresoberfläche brodelt es neuerdings gehörig. Im Nordwesten Amerikas verschwinden Wale spurlos, um bald darauf gar nicht mehr artgerecht wieder aufzutauchen. Australien gibt Quallenalarm. Vor Norwegens Küste entdecken Ölbohrfachleute eine unbekannte Wurmspezies, deren monströse Kauwerkzeuge einen halben Kontinent zum Einsturz bringen können. Dem Meeresbiologen und Schöngeist Sigur Johanson schwant Übles: Die gesamte Meeresfauna und -flora scheint sich ferngesteuert gegen die Menschheit zu wenden. Ein wissenschaftliches Dreamteam nimmt den Kampf auf.

Unglaubliche 1.000 Seiten (angeblich Verlagsrekord!), routiniert erzählt und -- so weit es sich überblicken lässt -- solide recherchiert (immerhin ging ein wissenschaftlicher Beraterstab von annähernder Heeresstärke dem Autor zur Hand). Die Ökothematik zerdehnt zwar die Story, aber so nebenbei erfährt man allerhand über die Ölgewinnung auf den riesigen Plattformen vor Norwegens Küste und wird mit dem weit gehend unerforschten Ökosystem Tiefsee vertraut gemacht.

Für den spannenden Plot hat Tausendsassa Schätzing (der Mann leitet eine Werbeagentur, ist Musikproduzent, sieht gut aus und hat eine mehr als bewegte Website), diverse Erfolgsrezepte zusammengerührt und mit Öko abgeschmeckt. Nicht unclever und präventiv erwähnt Schätzing im Roman das Quellgebiet, das er geistig angezapft hat. Michael Crichtons uvre, Independence Day, Contact mit Jodie Foster und ganz besonders James Camerons Erfolgsfilm Abyss, sie alle grüßen herzlich aus nicht allzu großer Ferne.

Im letzten Drittel wird kräftig (Methan-)Gas gegeben. Tsunamis schwappen, Gallertartiges triumphiert. Höllengleich mutieren Zellverbände zu formenreichen Glibberwesen voller Tentakel. Knietief jagt Schätzing uns durch den intelligenten Schleim, der die Menschheit vor ihre größte Herausforderung stellt. Beängstigender Ökothriller! Bitte sofort die Ölheizung abdrehen! --Ravi Unger

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Paperback, 987 pages

Published October 26th 2005 by Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag (first published 2004)

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Nov 22, 2012 K.D. Oliveros rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to K.D. by: 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2008-2012)

Shelves: 1001-core, sci-fi, environment, suspense-thriller, german, award-winning, challenging, thriller

Nature strikes back. This is the most important message of this book: we have to take care of our environment and that definitely includes the sea, the ocean. In this wonderful sci-fi book, a group of scientists have to fight against the Yrr, an alien kind of one-celled microorganisms found in the bottom of the sea that have the ability to eat away the continental drift and when these pesky creatures destroy the drift, it causes tsunami and flooding. These Yrr can even pollute small crabs and lo...more Nature strikes back. This is the most important message of this book: we have to take care of our environment and that definitely includes the sea, the ocean. In this wonderful sci-fi book, a group of scientists have to fight against the Yrr, an alien kind of one-celled microorganisms found in the bottom of the sea that have the ability to eat away the continental drift and when these pesky creatures destroy the drift, it causes tsunami and flooding. These Yrr can even pollute small crabs and lobsters and when these delicious creatures are eaten in New York, it causes epidemic of wide magnitude. Red tide, right? But Schatzing did not use that term here. These Yrr can also trigger the mutation of mussels (I am not kidding) so they become highly mobile and attack whaling ships. These small microorganisms can also be sniffed by whales and orcas that can make these huge sea animals to get crazy and turn ocean liners upside down and sink into the bottom of the sea.

The first time this book was published in Germany in 1998, it stayed in their bestsellers' list for 7 years. This English translation came out in the US in 2004. Hollywood actress and producer Uma Thurman and the German producers bought this book's film rights. On May 9, 2007, it was announced that the film was in the works. Ted Tally has finished writing the screenplay and Dino De Laurentiis was to be one of the prime financial benefactors of the project. The release date is estimated to be in 2015. (Source: Wiki). Eight years to make a huge movie out of this well-written sci-fi. It should be a MUST see movie!

I say that this is a well-written sci-fi because its mind-boggling claims are backed by scientific explanations. What I mean is that Schatzing really did his research (he is a marine biologist by profession) while writing the book and so each of what the Yrr can do is well-explained to make the whole thing plausible to happen. Each sub-plot - chains and chains of tragedies happening in the different parts of the world - is well-structured and well-developed and reading it felt like you are watching different cable channels announcing different sea-related incidents and catastrophes happening if not at the same time, close to each other. The whole book leaves a scary tone but it is a definitely a wake up call for all of us. That's why this probably woke up German readers to put this book into their top spot of their bestsellers' list for 7 years.

The only little criticism that I'd like to point out is that the characters seem like bystanders in this whole thing. What I mean is that if you are fond of reading character-driven plots, this book is not really for you. I mean, by nature sci-fi are event-driven but some great authors still able to incorporate well-developed characters into event-driven plots like Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 or Walter M. Miller, Jr.'s A Canticle for Leibowitz, the last sci-fi I read prior to this. Both books have mind-boggling premise but the characters are involved in those and they "evolve" as the plot progresses.

Also, caveat should be given to those sci-fi aficionados who read sci-fi only for entertainment. You might find readng some scientific details boring. This is the reason why it took me too many days to finish this book. But if you also read sci-fi to further your scientific knowledge on the matters that the author included in the book, then I promise that you will not get bored at all with this Schatzing's masterpiece.
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Mar 15, 2010 Gudmundur rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty good yarn if not taken too seriously. The strengths are that the story is obviously well researched and the biological and scientific explanations given look quite convincing (although my knowledge of the field is admittedly limited). The "enemy" is interesting and adequately mind-boggling for a sci-fi yarn. The cons: The characterization is pretty weak, and some of the characters are far too cartoonish to be convincing (Judith Li, Greywolf...); the technique of the all knowing narrator i...more

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Aug 30, 2008 Reina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Reina by: Gálceran

Reseña, tomada de:
http://nopuedoparardeleer.blogspot.co...

"Probablemente muchos pensarán que no serán capaces de leer un libro de 969 páginas. Es cierto que es difícil mantener el interés durante una obra tan extensa, pero estoy seguro de que El quinto día, de Frank Schätzing, no os defraudará. Con un ritmo trepidante, casi desde la primera página y hasta la última, cabalgando entre la ciencia ficción y la divulgación científica, este autor alemán os mantendrá enganchados y os sorprenderá con un...more

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Sep 11, 2007 Jake rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi

This is probably the only non-political book where I wanted to punch the author in the face after reading it. Possibly the most irritating book I have read since The Dark Tower. the book is fine for about 600 pages, then Frank loses it completely.

First off, if after 600 pages you don't care whether a single character lives or dies, you know your in trouble. Secondly, if you are going to make the argument that everyone is just a mass of DNA and everything we do is the sole outcome of that DNA, w...more

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Sep 29, 2007 elvedril rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, sci-fi

A well written thriller with a very interesting plot. Despite its strengths it is held back by an unlikely premise and the author's inability to stop pontificating about international politics through his characters.

It reads like a bit like a multi-writer Mary Sue story. I don't mean the fact that pretty much every important character is a certifiable genius, that's fine since the story revolves around the top experts in multiple fields working together. Okay, that's wrong, it's not fine. It's...more A well written thriller with a very interesting plot. Despite its strengths it is held back by an unlikely premise and the author's inability to stop pontificating about international politics through his characters.

It reads like a bit like a multi-writer Mary Sue story. I don't mean the fact that pretty much every important character is a certifiable genius, that's fine since the story revolves around the top experts in multiple fields working together. Okay, that's wrong, it's not fine. It's really annoying to read long descriptions of just how wonderfully gifted and intelligent everybody is, and how much they respect each other's brilliant insights in their fields of knowledge, but it's understandable as part of the plot. The part that really got me is the melodrama in character backgrounds. Like I said, all geniuses, but nobody from a standard family background in the lot. Everybody was orphaned at a young age, grew up on some sort of metaphorical or literal "mean streets", or been touched by a dark government conspiracy. And don't get me started on the need to describe just how amazingly charming and attractive some of them are. Or the exaggerated evil of every American in the book. Is that really necessary to make the characters interesting? I find it hard to believe that you can get 20 top scientists in a room and not find one science nerd from the suburbs who worked hard and went to a good school. I'm honestly surprised none of the characters discovered they were the lost heirs to magical kingdoms...

Furthermore, I found the science aspect of the science fiction to be somewhat unconvincing. Though it could be very accurate for all I know, since my background in biology isn't very strong. The author thanks a long list of people with PhDs for their help so it's possible. Then again if you can't write real science in a way that's believable... Eh, that's not fair, fact is sometimes stranger than fiction.

Finally, I found the last 40 pages or so to be really frustrating. It was basically all pontification. It was like reading an empiricist revenge fantasy. A German patriot, environmentalist, empiricist revenge fantasy. It seemed like a weak payoff for 800 pages of reading and makes it hard for me to recommend the book to anyone. (less)

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Feb 15, 2013 Morad Bagoury rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is by far one of the most amazing books I have ever read in my life. First off, the plot is beyond epic. For as long as we can remember, we have always thought about the existence of aliens in outer space, but we rarely thought about them being underwater. This is where Schatzing does his magic and really gets you going. Many of you know the famous line:
We know more about space than we know about our own oceans
Well, this statement is out into action after (view spoiler)...more

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Jan 03, 2013 Elijah Stanley rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A few things that were good about this book were the plot and the character development. After each event and loss you still hold some feelings for the characters and the troubles that they are facing. A few things that could have been better were the translation and the details in the book. It was quite easy to tell that the translation was done quite roughly and without anyone checking over it. Throughout the book you will find many spelling and grammar mistakes along with strangely worded sen...more

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Dec 20, 2012 Kara Jorges rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Norwegian scientist Sigur Johanson is intrigued when his friend Tina Lund, who works for an oil company, brings him a worm that had been found undersea on the continental shelf. The company had been searching for a new area to drill for oil when they came upon a colony of the worms feeding on the seabed. As it is a species never seen before, Tina asks for Sigur’s expert advice on drilling in the area, and he is drawn into a puzzling turn of events.

At the same time, Leon Anawak, a specialist in a...more Norwegian scientist Sigur Johanson is intrigued when his friend Tina Lund, who works for an oil company, brings him a worm that had been found undersea on the continental shelf. The company had been searching for a new area to drill for oil when they came upon a colony of the worms feeding on the seabed. As it is a species never seen before, Tina asks for Sigur’s expert advice on drilling in the area, and he is drawn into a puzzling turn of events.

At the same time, Leon Anawak, a specialist in animal behavior who is also working with a Vancouver whale-watching operation, suffers an attack by a gang of wayward whales who sink his boat and kill several passengers on a whale-watching expedition. The whales are not behaving normally, and when there are several more reports of whales sinking boats and killing people, Leon is at the forefront of the investigation.

Over the next few months, a disturbing trend begins to unfold as the sea seems to be taking its revenge on mankind for its abuses. Sigur Johanson’s worms turn out to be a lot more sinister than they at first appeared, carrying bacteria that wear down the methane hydrates on the seabed and eventually causing a collapse of the continental slope, which in turn creates a massive tsunami that swamps Europe. Diseased lobsters that aren’t really lobsters at all wind up in a restaurant in France and poison an entire city when the poisonous goo inside gets into the city’s water supply. An even more vicious strain hits New York City when poisonous crabs invade Long Island. Somehow, even the Gulf Stream has stopped flowing.

Naturally, the American president immediately declares that we are at war, and he assembles a team to spearhead the effort of combating the threat from the sea. Sigur Johanson, Leon Anawak, and a whole team of talented scientists are assembled to assess the threat and come up with solutions. This team is led by a tough female general, Jude Li, who will let nothing get in the way of America’s success in saving the world. She notices right away that Johanson has a theory about who is attacking the civilized world. When he shares with her that he believes an intelligent life form lives in the depths of the sea, soon the whole team is on board with the theory, and they head for the Greenland Sea in a helicopter carrier to attempt to contact the alien life force and persuade them to halt the attacks against mankind. What they learn about the yrr, the name Johanson comes up with for the undersea terror, intrigues and astounds them. Humanity is running out of time, threatened with destruction of the civilized world as the Earth plunges toward another devastating ice age, and it’s going to take something very clever to save us; that is, if the military’s plans don’t doom the entire human race first.

Weighing in at almost 900 pages, this is quite an epic read. Though the book did begin to feel a bit long around the 700 page mark, it did manage to hold my interest throughout, and the author really researched his topics. The characters he created were all well-developed, and the storyline was a unique one. I was a bit disappointed when the author found it necessary to expound on the “there is no God” theory toward the end, as that theme in science adventure fiction is wearing quite thin, but there are other readers who might find it rewarding. This is one of the most well fleshed out novels I have read in a long time, a real quality piece of work that left no dead ends, yet was not trite. Though it was a pain to lug the thing around for two weeks, it was a satisfying read with a unique premise, and I am very glad I read it.
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Dec 02, 2012 Diego rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a gripping book, and in his first part a thrilling one. The author spent several years to get all the scientific background that let him to write a convincing story. And he really achieved his objective, because the text results highly precise describing the stunning nature, at the same time it never loses pace.

The main focus of the plot is a world biological crisis, although the main characters don’t realize the magnitude of the events until the middle of the book. The story begins slow...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Dave rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

a great sci-fi book mixed in with an ecological theme. It was interesting to follow the perspective of Schatzing's take on the Americans. The American characters with somewhat stereotypical and caricatures that foreigners might imagine. The President was a sort of disturbed Christian that really could only interpret all information handed to him as being a "sign" of the Apocalypse and America's lack of morals causing the crisis. While the fundamentalist President created the perfect "Christian s...more

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Oct 12, 2012 Amber N rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

It's taken me awhile to form a coherent response to this book as the possibilities it presents overwhelmed me when I first finished it. Unlike many of the other books on the 1001 list, this is very much in the here and now. It could be read as a response to the environmental crises the world has thrown itself into, but I don't think that was really the point. After great thought I believe the author just has seen too many movies, especially of the disaster genre.

That should not be taken as a rea...more

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Aug 03, 2012 Crysalis rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Mille pagine di capolavoro intrise di profonde conoscenze su tutto ciò che può interessare: psicologia, biologia, genetica, sociologia, e chi più ne ha più ne metta, e che si lasciano leggere in maniera sorprendentemente veloce e a ritmo serrato.
Semplicemente, a questo romanzo, un difetto è quasi impossibile trovarlo, o quantomeno a me non riesce di vederne uno. I personaggi sono ben caratterizzati, si muovono con estremo realismo e interagiscono a diversi levelli di profondità emotiva. La stori...more

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Jul 08, 2012 Frank rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1001-books-you-must-read, science-fiction

Overall, I thought this was pretty good eco-thriller. It reminded me of Michael Crichton's novels with some Peter Benchley thrown in (JAWS in over-drive). Here’s from Amazon.com’s product description:

Whales begin sinking ships. Toxic, eyeless crabs poison Long Island's water supply. The North Sea shelf collapses, killing thousands in Europe. Around the world, countries are beginning to feel the effects of the ocean's revenge as the seas and their inhabitants begin a violent revolution against m...more Overall, I thought this was pretty good eco-thriller. It reminded me of Michael Crichton's novels with some Peter Benchley thrown in (JAWS in over-drive). Here’s from Amazon.com’s product description:

Whales begin sinking ships. Toxic, eyeless crabs poison Long Island's water supply. The North Sea shelf collapses, killing thousands in Europe. Around the world, countries are beginning to feel the effects of the ocean's revenge as the seas and their inhabitants begin a violent revolution against mankind. In this riveting novel, full of twists, turns, and cliffhangers, a team of scientists discovers a strange, intelligent life force called the Yrr that takes form in marine animals, using them to wreak havoc on humanity for our ecological abuses. Soon a struggle between good and evil is in full swing, with both human and suboceanic forces battling for control of the waters. At stake is the survival of the Earth's fragile ecology -- and ultimately, the survival of the human race itself.

I did enjoy this book. I also enjoy Crichton, Clive Cussler, and other adventure novelists. I do have a few complaints about the book, however. First, I thought it was way too long! At nearly 900 pages, I sometimes had to force myself to continue reading with no end in sight (I am glad I finished, however). Next, some of the characters were very clichéd such as the inept CIA chief and the evil general, Judith Li, who insists America has purview over dealing with the Yrr and who takes extreme measures in meeting her ends. These characters were obviously based on the Bush administration. The book bashes America a little too much for my taste (being American!). What I did like about the book was the obvious amount of research that Schatzing put into this novel. His explanations of methane hydrates and their connection to the continental shelf were fascinating. His geographical knowledge was also impressive. He takes the reader from Norway to Canadian British Columbia to the Arctic Circle with a breadth of information and detail. This includes a visit by one of the main characters to his birthplace, Nunavut, above the Arctic Circle and descriptions of the native way of life there – fascinating stuff! The ending, I thought, was a little over-preachy and theological but the questions left unanswered are things to ponder.

Here’s my biggest question – why is this book on the 1001 list? As I said, I did enjoy the book overall; however, I think there are much better books in the same genre that could have been on the list including several by Crichton. Is it only because the book was written by a German? The scientific aspects of the book are excellent but the long-windedness, clichéd characters, etc., in my opinion make this book just another average sci-fi thriller. (less)

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Mar 26, 2012 Vivienne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: eco-techno-thriller, science-fiction

This science fiction/eco thriller, which topped the German bestseller lists for ages, has a fascinating plot. It becomes obvious from the start that something strange is going on in the world's oceans. There are mysterious drownings, attacks on vessels by whales, mass invasions of jellyfishes and appearances of lobsters and eyeless crabs containing toxic bacteria. Natural disasters begin to occur with increasing seriousness until the entire world is in crises. A diverse team of scientists are br...more

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Mar 23, 2012 Kirschkuchen rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Sigur Johanson is a wormologist (He's actually a biologist at the university Trontheim and an expert for worms). Accidentally, there's a strange species of deep sea worms that eat a lot of stuff with complicated names. Things threaten to collapse on a continental level. Basically, the world as we know it will crumble under the impact of worms (so far so awesome).

Leon Anawak is a whalist (he's a maritime scientist and studies whale behaviour) and is taken aback when he watches whales attack boats...more

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Feb 06, 2012 Francesca rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

1032 intense pagine gustate a pieno, fino alla nota dell’autore e i ringraziamenti finali!
È vero che una risposta è sempre la fine di una ricerca ma è altrettanto vero che più la ricerca si spinge nel microcosmo più esso si rivela immenso e nessun luogo è più sconosciuto delle profondità abissali.
Ed è l’abisso che si solleva contro gli uomini per lo schifo che si ritrova dentro a partire da centinaia di migliaia di km di cavi a fibre ottiche che formano in tutto il mondo la spina dorsale dell’e...more

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Mar 02, 2011 Jule rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

wow, wow. wow wow wow wow wow.

this book stole my nights last december. i almost missed christmas for the sake of finishing it as soon as i could. i dare say it is one of the best books i ever ever read. of the books of its kind, i mean. too many days in december i felt drowsy because i was unable to put the book back on the night stand the previous night.

i read this book in its german original and enjoyed reading in my own language so much. schätzing did an impressive job, researching all the fa...more

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Oct 21, 2010 Free Fall rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After I read this book for the first time, it remained my favorite for half a year. I still enjoy going back and reading my favorite parts occasionally. On the other hand, it's really heavy. Difficult to curl up in bed with.

The plot starts with several scientists scattered around the world who start to notice odd things about the ocean. The odd and disturbing occurrences build up until - bam - apocalypse. Actually, it's a small version of the apocalypse, but close enough.

And the scientists gathe...more

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Jan 11, 2013 Alex rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, musts

A good friend of mine gave me this book (the original version in german). At the time I had read only two books in that language so I was a little anxious to start this huge novel.

I must say that at first I needed the dictionary by my side whenever I was reading because there are so many descriptions and uncommon words that I just couldn't follow the story without translating almost each of the terms. I read slowly but surely, and ended up almost addicted to it ! The author made A LOT of researc...more

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Aug 15, 2011 Erica rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I spent almost 2 years to finish this book. The reason it has taken such painstakingly long time was because of the story's slow momentum. Oh, and of course, the book is thicker than an Oxford dictionary (but I think Harry Potter series still holds the record in thickness).

But nonetheless I have finished reading this book and actually found it quite interesting and mind-stimulating. It is a science fiction thriller about nature bringing in its revenge towards humankind to restore balance in the...more

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Jul 27, 2011 Dave rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a super book! This is one of those rare sci-fi / eco-thriller that you can sit and read with wikipedia in hand to cross check some of his facts, and he's always right. I learned so much about all sorts of things reading this book.

It's long, and the characters are wonderfully realised. The plot races along (I won't bother telling you anything about it as to know more than the back cover gives away would truly spoil it.) Half the fun of the book is guessing what the heck is coming next, and,...more

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May 11, 2010 Valeer Damen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Schätzing has done a great amount of research for this, inquiring at actual marine biology institutes and other knowledge centres. If you look around a bit, you will note that his information is still up to date.

He manages to tread the fine line between too much information and superficiality very well. He makes accessible scientific information to a lay audience, which might be the most praiseworthy author's activity there is. I'd be grateful if he could write a book like this on every other su...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Stefanie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Without a doubt, this is one of the best works of fiction I have ever read. That's not just because I had the pleasure and privilege of doing so while on sabbatical in Munich, Germany. Partly, it's due to the fact that it relates to marine science, climate change and the reality that humans are inextricably connected to all other creatures on our precious planet Earth. It is also partly because the book uses contemporary science and allows fiction to create a speculative other world - a world wh...more

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Nov 06, 2012 Isabell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 21st-century, audiobook, cover-black, ed-german, german-literature, library-books, dramatized, read-2012

The Swarm is one of the few books by German authors that reached real popularity, so naturally I was curious about it. So I grabbed a copy of the audiobook from my local library.
The story follows several characters that start out in different places but will eventually all arrive at the same place and focus their efforts. The reason for this is the necessity to research a threat that comes from the sea. Formerly peaceful whales are beginning to attack humans, worms are destroying the ice in the...more

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Jun 01, 2012 Fabian rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Frank Schätzing beschreibt hier ein sehr realistisches Szenario. Was passiert wenn global verschiedene Umweltkatastrophen eintreten? Welche Institutionen treten ein wenn nationale und internationale Notstände eintreten! Dieses Hat er wunderbar recherchiert und in einen Roman verpackt. Neben der objektiven Sachlage, auch persönliche Schicksale und Dramen miteingebaut. Untypisch für ein Katastophenszenario ist das fast alle Helden am Schluss sterben. Auch damit hebt er sich vom Typischen Holliwood...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Liz Bot rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm not sure I'm the ideal reader for this book for a few reasons. First, I've never been a fan of science fiction or even vaguely dystopian literature, and this dabbles in both of those genres. Second, and maybe more importantly, I really don't like whales, and they happen to be some of the main purveyors of carnage throughout the novel. The length of The Swarm is an issue too, not because I'm afraid of a long book but because some parts of the plot that are meant as "essential" characterizatio...more

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May 30, 2012 Marcelis rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book revolves around an interesting premise; if we weren't the only species with global interests and influence, how would we respond. Would we eliminate our competitors or fold? Is the human race capable of social and cultural paradigm shifts, even when its' very existence is at stake? So far, our ability to adapt has seen off most of natures threats, but what if the threat was just as intelligent as us and pursued our demise with conviction?

Despite the great ideas, this story never really...more

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Jan 03, 2010 Tom rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-thriller, disaster-porn

I still can't decide:
Was this one, "Der Schwarm" by Schätzing, inspired by "Sea Change" from James Powlik or was that one inspired by this one.
They're just TOO similar.
Given: Powliks "Sea Change" is not as bombastic. You could say: It's the Swarm without tsunamis and a bit more well-grounded in biology.
The characters are as cheesy as Schätzings but thankfuly it's a good deal shorter and therefore cut out most of that greasy pathos, that Schätzing has quite overdone.
Additionally, Powlik is an act...more

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Dec 14, 2009 Christiane rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: disaster, fiction

"Whales begin sinking ships. Toxic, eyeless crabs poison Long Island's water supply. The North Sea shelf collapses, killing thousands in Europe. Around the world, countries are beginning to feel the effects of the ocean's revenge as the seas and their inhabitants begin a violent revolution against mankind. At stake is the survival of the Earth's fragile ecology—and ultimately, the survival of the human race itself." (from the book)

I read this last year when I was on vacation---the book has 800+...more

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Feb 15, 2010 Cindy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Cindy by: 1001 Books Group Read

Shelves: 1001-books, book-club, science, mystery, in-translation, fiction, does-my-book-look-big-in-this

I'm wavering between 2 and 3 stars for this Crichton-esque brick of a sea-thriller.

On one hand you have whales, crabs, dolphins, sea worms, shoals, and sharks galore. All awesome. Oh and the top fru-fru Parisian restaurant infested with gooey lobsters. Right on. Also, there's some interesting thoughts on life-forms, consciousness, collectives and intelligence. I'll be thinking about those ideas for a while, even if they aren't anything new. The thriller and horror part of the story was plenty in...more

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About Frank Schätzing

Schätzing was born in Cologne and studied communication studies; he later ran his own company, an advertising agency named INTEVI, in Cologne. Schätzing became a writer in 1990, and penned several novellas and satires. His first published novel was the historical Tod und Teufel in 1995, and in 2000 his thriller Lautlos.

Schätzing achieved his greatest success in 2004 with the science fiction thrill...more

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Quotes from Der Schwarm

“I'm a reasonable kind of guy. If I hear something that seems to make sense, I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. If the alternative explanation has to be pounded into shape before it fits the mould of our experience, it seems to me that it's unlikely to be true.” — 4 people liked it

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