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11th out of 14 books
—
13 voters
Swimming Monkeys
by
Steve Hadden (Goodreads Author)
An impossible promise…a remarkable discovery…a decision on behalf of mankind…
A cross between Jurassic Park and The Da Vinci Code, Swimming Monkeys is a powerful coming-of-age thriller that examines the on-going struggle between science and religion.
Ryan Webster is a seventeen-year-old swimmer who despises his father, protects his mother and barely keeps gas in his truck. W...more
A cross between Jurassic Park and The Da Vinci Code, Swimming Monkeys is a powerful coming-of-age thriller that examines the on-going struggle between science and religion.
Ryan Webster is a seventeen-year-old swimmer who despises his father, protects his mother and barely keeps gas in his truck. W...more
Paperback, 397 pages
Published
July 2012
by Telemachus Press
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I'm just kind of middle of the road on this one.
It was good from the standpoint that it's interesting, has a decent premise, and leaves you wanting more. The main characters, meaning Ryan, Thad, Addy, and the monkeys are also interesting.
The problem is the villains. Grandby, Cyrus, Karl, and the Christian militia are all completely cookie cutter, carbon copy, predictable and not very interesting. Not only that, but it seems the author is trying to portray some of them as badasses but leaves them...more
It was good from the standpoint that it's interesting, has a decent premise, and leaves you wanting more. The main characters, meaning Ryan, Thad, Addy, and the monkeys are also interesting.
The problem is the villains. Grandby, Cyrus, Karl, and the Christian militia are all completely cookie cutter, carbon copy, predictable and not very interesting. Not only that, but it seems the author is trying to portray some of them as badasses but leaves them...more
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I absolutely cannot believe how stunning this book is! From the very first paragraph, I was sucked into a different world, consumed with the already building suspense and mystery. It was non-stop amazement throughout the entire book. I started reading late at night with the intention of maybe completing a chapter or two before bed - you can imagine how surprised I was when I glanced at the page number and realized I was on 206! The only reason I didn't finish it right away, is because I wanted t...more
I got this book for free from good reads. I especially was excited by the personal note from the author included with my copy. It makes it hard for me to be critical, but I have to review as my feelings tell me. It reads more like a tv movie, than a novel. A novel is intended to build characters you can believe are real and that you can sympathize with. I never really believe either of the two groups pursuing our young hero. I did find it credible that the naive 17 year old would be just trustin...more
An exciting, entirely contemporary premise is examined in Steve Hadden's story, Swimming Monkeys: Genesis. Ryan, our tale's designated hero, finds it a struggle to keep a deathbed promise to his grandfather. He first encounters danger from a greedy descendant of a professional adversary of his great-grandfather and the mercenaries he hires. That rich man joins forces with a Darwinian atheist ringleader to pursue Ryan on his quest for the swimming monkeys. Opposing them is a cabal of Christian li...more
I got this book as a free giveaway from the author and had no idea what to expect. I thought it would be a fun read, and it was free! I was very pleasantly surprised with how much I liked the story. It is a fast-moving cliffhanger that I found very difficult to put down. The biggest surprise was toward the end of the book, when I learned that one of the main characters, whom I sometimes found very annoying, had depth and wisdom to impart. Thank you, Mr. Hadden, for sending me the free copy. The...more
This book was fairly good. I thought the emphasis on the fact that the monkeys could swim was odd, (view spoiler) The ending didn't really make me feel that reading anymore was necessary, i never desired to read further into the series. (I actually forgot that it was part of one until looking at other reviews). I don't know if i will try to read any books that come after this one but...more
I am going to go totally counter to a lot of the reviewers here. This book is one of the most creative premises that I have read in years and I read about a hundred books a year. Even if the protagonist's uncle says"dude" a few too many times and even if I guessed what was going to happen in the end the moral questions that this book brings out are mind blowing. If you read it with an open mind it takes the issue of evolution and turns it on its ear. I rarely give five stars, but Mr. Hadden thin...more
This book could be described as "The Da Vinci Code" meets "Mighty Joe Young." Fortunately this is a young adult kind of book so churches won't be making fools of themselves debunking its premise they way they did when "The Da Vinci Code" came out. Good fiction is just that - good fiction. This is one of those adventure stories that in its own way supports the idea of making judgements based on one's conscience as opposed to greed or fanaticism. It was a fun read.
This book was absolutely adorable! The monkeys and their relationship with Ryan is as heart warming as their adventure is dangerous. The tug of war between atheists and religious extremists makes you question what you would do if you were in the same position as Ryan, and it gives you a really profound connection with the story. There were so many points in the story where I found myself either chuckling, saying "awww" or being worried. It's definitely a page turner and I can't wait to read the...more
Won at firstreads. I want to thank you for this AWESOME surprise.
Before reading this book I didn't know what to expect.
From the first page it had me tooked. The characters are AMAZING. My favorite character was his uncle. I don't want to give to much away but this book has a little bit of everything; action, adverture and more. Really good book.
Before reading this book I didn't know what to expect.
From the first page it had me tooked. The characters are AMAZING. My favorite character was his uncle. I don't want to give to much away but this book has a little bit of everything; action, adverture and more. Really good book.
I received this book for free from the Goodreads first-read giveaway. This book has a little something for everyone. Action and adventure and a religious question that man has been pondering with for quite some time. The title sounds strange, but it's really a good book. I look forward to the second installment.
I won a copy through the Goodreads Firstreads program!
I really liked this concept...it's always interesting to think about different possibilities in adaptation. Although I believe in Creationism, I like to learn about other viewpoints.
Hadden weaves a story that is parts Tomb Raider and Da Vinci Code, but wholly unique. The characters are fun, and the story is fast-paced.
The only downside to this book, for me, was the length. Some parts drag on too long, and made me want to skim over the pages...more
I really liked this concept...it's always interesting to think about different possibilities in adaptation. Although I believe in Creationism, I like to learn about other viewpoints.
Hadden weaves a story that is parts Tomb Raider and Da Vinci Code, but wholly unique. The characters are fun, and the story is fast-paced.
The only downside to this book, for me, was the length. Some parts drag on too long, and made me want to skim over the pages...more
I won this book through Good Reads. I finished it last night. It was really good. I was actually surprised that I liked it as much as I did. I usually like more graphic books. But I can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.
I received this book free through Goodreads First Reads.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Great characters that were well developed, an excellent plot that kept me engaged the whole way through, and lots of action. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Great characters that were well developed, an excellent plot that kept me engaged the whole way through, and lots of action. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
This book was an interesting concept and a fairly quick read. However, it seemed to rely so heavily on the stereotypical clash between the scientific and religious realm that it was almost a struggle to finish. Characters lacked detail in that they followed the aforementioned stereotypical lines and rarely deviated from them. The literary aspects of this book were great. Just challenging enough in the vocabulary realm to be interesting, but not so advanced that it would deter slower readers. Edi...more
Kind of difficult to get interested in and then it felt like the story never really picked up.
Intriguing, if a bit implausible. Fun and entertaining, and I look forward to the sequels...
Won from Goodreads First Reads....There is always the theory of evolution vs. religion. This book delves into the what if's of the fight. What if there really are monkey's that a a hybird of man/monkey that come really close to humans. Animals with human traits of talking, reading, reasoning but with the strength of monkeys. If these monkey's are found what will the world come to and what happens when they are revealed.
Great book! The description that it was a cross between the DaVinci Code and Jurassic park was pretty much right on, yet it was a story of it's own. I hope there are more coming out as I'd like to learn more about these characters. I won this book on firstreads.
I really liked this book. I was drawn in by the plot and by the development of the characters. There were plenty of twists and turns that it keep me on my toes wondering what would happen next. I cannot wait to read the next two books in the series.
Dec 29, 2012
Gregg
added it
I really liked this book because it was an fun adventure as well as an interesting look at evolution. I was not disappointed with the ending. Pick up a copy for a great beginning to this trilogy!
I received this book through Goodreads Firsts reads.
I liked this book, it was a nice read. I look forward to reading the other Swimming Monkeys books!
I liked this book, it was a nice read. I look forward to reading the other Swimming Monkeys books!
Interesting concept. It was nice to see extremists on both sides.
May 23, 2013
Melanie
marked it as to-read
May 23, 2013
Jonesy
marked it as to-read
May 21, 2013
Lisa Duggan
marked it as to-read
May 21, 2013
Christina
marked it as to-read
May 19, 2013
Ðɑηηɑ
marked it as li_unfiltered
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| So excited! | 1 | 8 | Jul 17, 2012 10:48am |
About Steve
Steve Hadden is the author of entertaining and fast-paced thrillers including The Sunset Conspiracy, Genetic Imperfections and the Swimming Monkeys Trilogy. Steve was born in Ohio and lives in Texas with his wife, CJ, and their two Labrador retrievers, Emma and Abby. Look for his upcoming novels, Swimming Monkeys-Revelation and Swimming Monkeys- Exodus, coming soon. Visit his website a...more
More about Steve Hadden...
Steve Hadden is the author of entertaining and fast-paced thrillers including The Sunset Conspiracy, Genetic Imperfections and the Swimming Monkeys Trilogy. Steve was born in Ohio and lives in Texas with his wife, CJ, and their two Labrador retrievers, Emma and Abby. Look for his upcoming novels, Swimming Monkeys-Revelation and Swimming Monkeys- Exodus, coming soon. Visit his website a...more
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