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Double Helix

by Nancy Werlin (Goodreads Author)

3.53 of 5 stars 3.53 · rating details · 1,631 ratings · 198 reviews

Eighteen-year-old Eli discovers a shocking secret about his life and his family while working for a Nobel Prize-winning scientist whose specialty is genetic engineering.

Paperback, 256 pages

Published May 5th 2005 by Puffin (first published March 30th 2004)

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Dec 09, 2009 booklady rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone interested in bioethics

Shelves: 2008, mystery, youth, fiction, historical-fiction, education, crime, health

10 December 2008 update added at the end.

Double Helix by Nancy Werlin is young adult mystery which my daughter handed me recently. The main character, Eli Samuels, a recent high school graduate, is at a crossroads in his life in more ways than one. His mother is completely debilitated and dying of Huntington's disease. He can't afford college but his father vehemently opposes a lucrative job offer with prestigious Wyatt Transgenics by its founder, a legendary molecular biologist. And yet Eli's f...more

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Apr 19, 2009 Thomas rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Sci-fi Fans

"Double Helix" is about Eli Samuels who has just graduated as saludictorian as his class. He has a number of problems to deal with - his new job at Wyatt Transgenics that for some reason has his dad angry, his mom who is suffering from Huntington's disease, and his girlfriend Viv who is having trust issues with him. He starts to spend time with a famous scientist named Quincy Wyatt, and through him he finds out dangerous secrets about not only his mom and dad, but he, Eli, himself.

I enjoyed this...more

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Mar 07, 2013 Fernanda added it

Double Helix is a very good read! This book is a type mystery. As you read along, you find new revelations and a new question.
Eli Samuels is graduating High School. Most kids would already be choosing their college. Not Eli. He wants to take a year off before going; his dad on the other hand doesn't approve of this. Then, Eli gets offered a job at Wyatt Transgetics by Dr.Quincy Wyatt, the legendary molecular biologist. The work is interesting, and the salary's amazing, and Dr.Wyatt seems to be...more

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Mar 28, 2013 Kristina Lareau rated it 3 of 5 stars

It has been a long time since I have read any book labelled a “mystery”. Nancy Werlin’s Double Helix is a mystery as Eli–brilliant, athletic Eli–on the verge of high school graduation loses his mother to Huntington’s Disease. Questioning his own chances of inheriting the degenerative disease, he asks for a job at Wyatt Transgenics in hopes of understanding his mother’s relationship with the genius Dr. Wyatt. Not only does Eli discover the nature of their relationship, but he discovers his own na...more It has been a long time since I have read any book labelled a “mystery”. Nancy Werlin’s Double Helix is a mystery as Eli–brilliant, athletic Eli–on the verge of high school graduation loses his mother to Huntington’s Disease. Questioning his own chances of inheriting the degenerative disease, he asks for a job at Wyatt Transgenics in hopes of understanding his mother’s relationship with the genius Dr. Wyatt. Not only does Eli discover the nature of their relationship, but he discovers his own nature, how he can live despite his mother’s genetic failings, and how Dr. Wyatt puppeteered these events in Eli’s life.

Immediately: this book takes place in Cambridge, MA; this fact delights me. I thoroughly enjoy being able to envision the setting of a novel in real geographical terms. The fact that there multitudes of private labs and technology companies surrounding MIT and Harvard in Cambridge pushes the events of Double Helix into the realm of the possible. The science and genetics explained in the novel seem very and highly plausible (especially to the non-science-minded). Why wouldn’t scientists be able to isolate specific genes, alter them and prevent diseases? Why would the creation of chimeras be beyond current-day science? Ethically, this novel could pose very heated debates. Using genetics to prevent and cure diseases seems like a noble cause, but where do we draw the line in this type of research? When do the disposal of ”waste products” become unethical and even inhumane?

This novel immediately launched my brain into a series of questions, some which I very kindly suggested for you above. The technology for the events in this novel is available, and who can say that such events have not ALREADY transpired at some point, some where in the world. The genetic possibilities and social implications that Werlin presents in this novel are truly disturbing because of its possibility that it could happen NOW. Much science fiction, like Nancy Farmer’s House of the Scorpion also creates a novel based around eugenics; however, Farmer’s novel is CLEARLY SET IN THE FUTURE (which is emphasized by the presence of hovercars and an 140 year old man who created several clones of himself).

In order to lure young adults into exploring this science fictive mystery, it might be fun to suggest that the very popular, athletic and smart student–you can even ask for a name (for the sake of example, we’ll call her Angela)–may not be exactly…natural. Is Angela good at basketball without trying? Does she bother studying for tests? Does she have great skin and hair? These students of seeming perfection exist in high schools, engage potential readers in the topic of eugenics by alluding to the possibilities of being genetically enhanced before birth. What if we could all have perfect skin, brains and athletic prowess? What does that do to social hierarchy? This is the perfect novel to delve into the possibilities of biotechnology.(less)

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Nov 27, 2012 Sarah Dean rated it 2 of 5 stars

I was really excited to read this when I first picked it up. Normally, I really love Nancy Werlin (I fell completely head-over-heels for Impossible). Contrary to what some people are saying, this book does have a lot of good elements of suspense, and I got through the whole thing in one day, easily.

The probably I had with this book was the relationship between Eli and his girlfriend, Vivian. His attitude towards her appalled me. He said he loved her, and was very close to her, but he was basical...more

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Nov 18, 2012 Kieran rated it 1 of 5 stars

I would not recommend the book Double Helix by Nancy Werlin to a friend because it wasn't suspenseful, and it was not entertaining, I could put the book down whenever I wanted. This book never once left me wanting to read more. Someone might recommend this book because of the plot twists that kept them invested in the book. I would completely disagree because of the strong amount of foreshadowing that took a lot of the surprise away from the plot twists. Eli is the main character who gets a job...more I would not recommend the book Double Helix by Nancy Werlin to a friend because it wasn't suspenseful, and it was not entertaining, I could put the book down whenever I wanted. This book never once left me wanting to read more. Someone might recommend this book because of the plot twists that kept them invested in the book. I would completely disagree because of the strong amount of foreshadowing that took a lot of the surprise away from the plot twists. Eli is the main character who gets a job at Wyatt Transgenics. His farther wants him to give up the job because of some reason that he won't tell Eli. Eli believes that something happened between his mother, his father, and Dr. Wyatt. There was many contributors to why I wouldn't recommend the book. One of these reasons is relatable situations. “Maybe I was glad she couldn't live with us now. Maybe I was glad it would be over-relatively-soon.”(72) Eli is visiting his mother in a nursing home, because she has Huntington's disease. I find it very hard to believe that someone could wish their mother died soon. Although People say that he is just trying to move on with his and his father’s lives. This is not the case it should be his dad's decision when to move on. Only he will know when he wants to move on and when he wants to move on too. How could you ever wish the person who brought you into this world to die? “ I was crying- oh Eli. Your mother. Oh, Eli. I am so sorry.”(99) Viv and Eli's had been going out for a long time Viv had finally found out about Eli's mother from his dad and Eli was trying to keep it a secret. He broke up with Viv later that night because of this. Later in the book Viv wanted to get back together with Eli. Which is really unrealistic because who would ever brake up with their boyfriend or girlfriend because they found out that their parent had a disease that could not be cured? Nobody. Then want to go back out with that same person? If you can't connect with a book's situations you cannot be invested in it. Another reason I would never recommend this book to a friend is its resolution. The ending left me very disappointed. “ I fight my way through the snow and the wind and then I am home.” (248) This is the last line in the book, it sounded like a fourth grader had written it! Eli had just had a conversation with Dr. Fukuyama about Dr. Wyatt and what Eli thinks about what happened to Dr. Wyatt is doing now. Eventually they talked about Transgenics and how it can be used to get rid of diseases. Dr.Fukuyama lets him come to her next seminar. He questions her only talking about not fixing human suffering to only a handful of people. An example of human suffering is Down syndrome and how we could even with the “best of intentions” not be fixing the “eradicated suffering” (245). Eli thinks it should be shared with everyone. Then Eli leaves and walks home in a blizzard and is thinking about Kayla and genetics. Then it just ends just like that, one second he's thinking about Dr. Wyatt and the ability to change someones future while there still an egg, and the next the story is over. Although someone might say that all of this wraps up the story because it answered some questions. I don't believe so, it left a couple questions unanswered. It ended too fast. My Third and final reason why I could never let one of my friends read this book is the imagery. Some of the imagery in this book was just useless it wouldn't paint any picture in your head. “I was only wearing a plain T-shirt and shorts and sneakers” (85) I could picture his clothing but that's it. I couldn't picture his face or expression, I just pictured the clothing. I couldn't imagine any of Eli. Not being able to picture an entire person definitely brings the entertainment out of reading. Although a lot of people think that the author wasn't being so descriptive on purpose because she didn't want to bore the reader. I think that you should always have an idea about what the character looks like. The book Double Helix was not a good book from my perspective at all. I would highly recommend that you don't read this book.(less)

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Aug 26, 2012 Lia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

The story is interesting ... though it foreshadows with too heavy a hand, so the "big revelations" don't come across as big. This also means that the plot is basically character angst, and his angst is bigger and moodier than the answers turn out to warrant, at least for me. I felt let down by how much lesser the real happenings of the book turned out to be, especially in relation to the main character's mother. His big issues with her are never parsed out in a meaningful way.

The writing style...more

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May 10, 2012 Stacie rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Sci fi readers and people who enjoy philosophy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Nov 08, 2011 Miranda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Double Helix by Nancy Werlin is an interesting page-turner that makes you think about the possibilities of many things. I would definitely recommend this book. At one point in the story the main character, Eli, explains to the reader what he sees. “This time the door was closed. I read the sign on it. It didn’t say ‘Elevator’ it said ‘Utility Room’.” (p.150) This line created the suspenseful mystery in the story. It got me thinking about where the plot would go from here. Where would the door l...more

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Sep 21, 2011 Daniel Osborn rated it 4 of 5 stars

So it's no surprise that I like science fiction. However I was surprised that I liked this book. Thought it was going to be a droopy Ya romance. Although it has some of that affect in there it's really a good story that held my interest. It's about a boy named Eli whose mother had HD Disease and is living with his father as she is in a mental institute. Eli writes a nasty letter to Dr. Wyatt who then he gets a call as he wants to meet Eli. He than offers him a job working for him. While there he...more

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Jan 29, 2011 Angie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction, teen-fiction

I can't remember why this got added to my "to read" list, but it did and I can't say it was really worth adding. The main character of Eli is not that likable or sympathetic. His attitude towards his girlfriend is frankly appalling and I can't believe that she ends up taking him back after the way he treats her. His relationship with his parents is also very troubling. His mother has a horrible disease and he just wants her to get on with dying so he can get on with his life and his father can m...more

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Jul 16, 2010 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Snapshot: One drunken night Eli sends an email to Dr. Wyatt asking for the opportunity to work in his company. To his amazement, Dr. Wyatt calls him in and offers him a position in Wyatt Transgenetics. Eli has never felt completely normal and knows that there is a link between Dr. Wyatt and his family. To top it off, his father refuses to explain his animosity against Dr. Wyatt. This and the unforeseen introduction of a beautiful college student who resembles Eli’s deceased mother, motivates Eli...more

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Mar 25, 2010 Ben Chvatal rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: english-1-honors

This book is science fiction, written by nancy werlin
Eli Samuels is a bright senior student, saluditorian in his class. But he isn't going to college next year. He wants to take a year off. He and his father have been fighting a lot lately. College is one more thing to argue about. Eli wants to earn the money for school. His dad and him have had money issues ever since their mother got sick, and was checked into a mental hospital. She is in a nursing home, dying of Huntington's Disease.

Eli gets...more

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Feb 08, 2010 stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, young-adult, mystery

i love Nancy Werlin. oh, i do.

this story is told from eli's POV, a high school graduate who knows what he wants - and it's not college.

the plot actually reminds me of an early The Adoration of Jenna Fox, though not quite.

i love the rabbits. foo-foo #14!

okay, so. eli's mother has huntington's, which is a genetic hereditary disease. his girlfriend, viv, doesn't know - in fact, no one knows. no one knows how smart eli really is, or how easy it is for him to play basketball, or do anything reall...more

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Mar 15, 2013 Landry rated it 4 of 5 stars

I thought the book was lot simplier to read and understand than expected. Although it was still a very fun read. I feel a connection with the main character Eli in the way he has a little interest in science. Though not in a way where he gets a little alcohol in him and sends an email to Dr. Quincy Wyatt. Other than that the book was very suspensful thoughout the whole read. This is a book that doesn't settle down in the action for long periods of time. It's full of questions that you won't get...more

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Oct 04, 2011 D.M. Dutcher rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, science-fiction

Interesting tale about a young man wrestling with problems. He is distant from both father and girlfriend, and his mother is suffering from Huntington's disease. he meets up with the charismatic scientist of a major transgenics firm who seems to have some history with both him and his father. That scientist offers him a job, and it leads to some startling revelations about who he is.

I enjoyed it, but found it lacking. There is very little conflict, and what exists is internal and underdeveloped....more

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Feb 21, 2013 Cheryl in CC NV rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I like science fiction, and YA, but was concerned that this was going to be too plot-driven, too much about the mystery and the suspense. Well, that was there, and I would recommend this to fans of adventure and related genres. But it was also a provocative exploration of science and ethics and human nature. Everybody was flawed, and made questionable choices, but nobody was truly evil - and the key characters grew wiser and more compassionate.

In so far as the revelation at the end, well, sure...more

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Jun 22, 2012 Anja Manning rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-dystopias, 2012

For the thought-provoking ideas this book deals with, the book should receive a five-star review. It deals with a rare topic in young adult literature - genetic science. Finishing the book I find this book an excellent way to introduce this topic, I am not likely to forget this book any time soon.

The reason I only gave this book two stars is that I did not like the first four fifths of this novel. I had to force myself to read page after page, which seemed not pointless but without a point. Mayb...more

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Jan 23, 2011 Lydia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Eli, has just graduated high school and has not applied to college. He is nearly 7 feet tall, but does not like any team sports since he discovered that he could see the mistakes other team members make. He has a girlfriend, Viv, who he loves, but is not ready to truly share with. Eli's mother has Huntingdon's Disease and is deteriorating quickly. His father is a psychotherapist with a declining practice. When Eli takes a job with a genetics research laboratory, his first thoughts are that he wo...more

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Jan 12, 2011 Sally rated it 4 of 5 stars

Double Helix is an amazing suspenseful mystery that had me hooked right away. The main character Eli Samules loves biology and learning about genetics,especially with the medical condition that his mother has. But he doesn’t realize the roll that the work that can be done with genetics plays in his life. This quote helps to develop the suspense in this novel and at this point I couldn’t put the book down, for i had to know what was going to happen.
“It was all over for me then; I wouldn’t be abl...more

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Sep 13, 2011 Lily rated it 2 of 5 stars

Double Helix is a novel about an 18 year old boy, Eli. He drunkenly calls a famous scientist, Dr. Wyatt, pleading for a work position and to his surprise, Dr. Wyatt hires him. During his job as an intern, he finds out things about his dying mother that only Dr. Wyatt and his father knew. Though the plot is interesting, I find the characters to be dull and uninteresting, especially Eli, who seems almost emotionless. There's a lot of potential for this story to be touching, but it falls short. Tw...more

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Jan 24, 2012 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the second book I've read by Nancy Werlin and I admit, I'm hooked. I want more. This book: Against his father's wishes, Eli Samuels lands a swanky job just out of High School at a lab working for the famous Dr. Quincy Wyatt. Little does he know that he was part of an experiment years ago and that Dr. Wyatt has an ulterior motive for hiring him. The reader knows that something just isn't right and the mounting tension is exciting. The characters are real and I like that one of the focuses...more

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Mar 20, 2008 Pam Miller rated it 4 of 5 stars

Good book, great twists and turns. Very thought provoking!!

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Mar 10, 2011 Jaja Alindog rated it 2 of 5 stars

After hearing a few good comments about the book, I didn't like it as much as I thought I would have. I didn'd the book very desciptive. I do find the book somewhat relateable since it is about a teen trying to get a job, but a job that his parents wouldn't want him on having. I also did find find the book interesting because I was a previous bio-tech student and all the gene manipulation along with the mutations has really caputured my attention. I suggest it to readers that enjoys reading scie...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Bernie Li rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-january-2012

This book was about a 18 year old named Eli had just graduated high school and managed to find a job a Wyatt Transgenics he then figures out why his dad hates Mr. Wyatt (owner and creater). As he does so, he uncovers disconcerting things about himself and what Mr. Wyatt did; take his mothers eggs and find one without HD (a disease his mother had) so it would not have HD, but Mr. Wyatt had a cost: to keep the rest of her eggs. He then finds one of his sisters who has HD. Eventually Eli smashed al...more

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Feb 01, 2013 Andrew rated it 3 of 5 stars

The pacing of this book is a little off. It starts slow and with a relatively unlikeable protagonist. Slowly, he comes to a certain epiphany and the book becomes much more interesting. The second half of of the book is a big improvement from the first half. The ending felt a little tepid. The book brought up many fascinating bio-ethical question, most of which have no easy answers. The conclusion of the book tried to hard to provide easy answers to those excellent questions, when it would have b...more

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Mar 11, 2013 Wyatt. H. rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 10, 2010 Willie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Snapshot: When Eli takes a post-high school job with Wyatt Transgenics, his father mysteriously tries to stop him from working there. Eli has decided not to go to college and this job should be seen as a prestigious opportunity for a teenaged scientist. His father won’t explain his reservations, but the more that Eli learns about Dr. Wyatt and his genetics work the more questions that he has. The introduction of a beautiful college student into the story who looks surprisingly like his deceased...more

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May 13, 2010 Jack Doherty rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Double Helix by Nancy Werlin is a book about identity crisis to the extreme. Here, Eli has sent an email to one of the words most famous scientists asking for a summer job at his lab. Eli had no idea what he had unearthed. Deeper in the story, you'll find that the connection between Dr. Wyatt and Eli is more than just employer and employee. Eli's mother was diagnosed with H.D., a neurological disorder, and was told that there was a possibility that if she had children, the gene might be passed o...more Double Helix by Nancy Werlin is a book about identity crisis to the extreme. Here, Eli has sent an email to one of the words most famous scientists asking for a summer job at his lab. Eli had no idea what he had unearthed. Deeper in the story, you'll find that the connection between Dr. Wyatt and Eli is more than just employer and employee. Eli's mother was diagnosed with H.D., a neurological disorder, and was told that there was a possibility that if she had children, the gene might be passed on. Eli's mother went to Dr. Wyatt for help, and found that Wyatt's lab could harvest her eggs and sort through them to find only the H.D. negative eggs. This way, if she wanted to have children, she could be sure they wouldn't have H.D..

The price for this seemingly divine intervention was not measured in money. In exchange for his help, Wyatt wanted the remaining eggs for himself, and to breed them as children of his own. Eli finds out that one of his most recent acquaintances, Kayla Matheson, is one of his long lost fetuses. However, Kayla has taken hold of the situation even earlier than Eli. When Eli accidentally discovers the secret elevator leading to the secluded basement level, B5, after a failed attempt,he meets Kayla in the elevator shaft, and they decide to go to B5 together. At the time, there was no one in B5, but it was clear to Eli that one of the rooms was meant for children.

In this book, Nancy ties the topic of ethics in with identity. While Eli is trying to figure out who's he is, he is also questioning whether or not what Dr. Wyatt did was right. Without Wyatt, Eli might have been born with H.D., or not born at all. And of the other children, was their birth right or ethical? Some may argue that the artificial breeding and cloning of human beings is unjust and unethical because of its interruption with natures courses. But Wyatt saw nothing wrong with the operations.

I can connect to Eli at this point because I believe that I would react similarly in the same situation. Hearing that I was bred like some sort of exotic pet would set me off completely. I really don't know how I would handle it, but I know that it wouldn't be the end of me. Same story with Eli, when he went on this crusade, he didn't know what he would find or how he would react to his findings, but from my perspective, he handled it pretty well.

I would recommend this book to anyone, simply because it's a great read, and a well written novel. The way Nancy Werlin gets you inside the character really portrays her writing as not really unique, but well balanced in terms of analogies, metaphors, flashbacks, and other devices to keep the story from being boring.

(less)

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Jun 04, 2010 Lisa rated it 5 of 5 stars

LOVED this.

I loved the slow build throughout... everything was balanced so well, nothing was given away too early, and as Eli inches closer to figuring out the truth about his family (and "figuring it out" is key here... not "finding out"; I like that the character is truly intelligent and resists actually going and talking to anyone), I was just swept up in the story and, for the second time, stayed up waaaaaay past my bed time to finish a Nancy Werlin novel (the first being "Impossible" last...more

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Join in the discussions!	1	7	Apr 29, 2009 09:51am
Young Adult Book ...: Liked it, Hated it? (spoilers)	21	41	Nov 16, 2008 09:30am
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Young Adult Book ...: Book Status (no spoilers)	18	36	Oct 25, 2008 03:49pm
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About Nancy Werlin

Nancy Werlin writes young adult fiction: New York Times–bestselling fantasy, Edgar-award winning suspense, and National Book Award-honored realistic novels.

Nancy's fantasy, UNTHINKABLE, the sequel to IMPOSSIBLE, is out on Sept 12, 2013. Visit www.nancywerlin.com and click on CONTACT to find out how to get an early copy of UNTHINKABLE to read!

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