The Baby Squad

by Andrew Neiderman

In the mid-twenty-first century, as the quest for the perfect human has been accomplished, thanks to breakthroughs in bioengineering, and natural pregnancies are forbidden, Natalie Ross, a young pregnant woman, is forced to flee underground, with the Baby Squad, created to track down women who break the law, in hot pursuit. Original.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 1, 2003

About the author

Andrew Neiderman is the author of over 44 thrillers, including six of which have been translated onto film, including the big hit, 'The Devil's Advocate', a story in which he also wrote a libretto for the music-stage adaptation. One of his novels, Tender Loving Care, has been adapted into a CD-Rom interactive movie.

Andrew Neiderman became the ghostwriter for V.C. Andrews following her death in 1986. He was the screenwriter for Rain, a film based on a series of books under Andrews name. Between the novels written under her name and his own, he has published over 100 novels.

Reviews

[Lois Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy Neiderman's horror books. I wish they were easier to find. So many are now out of print.

[Adam Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Baby Squad struggles with so many issues that I am still surprised that I gave it three stars. It is one of those books that I did enjoy, but when trying to tell

someone else why I found it to be a fun read, I come up blank and rapidly say something like "well, I'll recommend something by Stephen King." The largest issue I had

with it is that, although I am not all that familiar with science fiction, this seemed to be a plot that has been done before. It felt like the zombies or vampires of

science fiction. In a not so distent future, women are not permitted to have babies naturally and this is supported by the law and the people alike. So, when word gets

out that a member of the community may be preggers, ring! ring! for the Baby Squad who will sort out the problem quick, fast, and in a sharpish hury. The book takes

another turn as the Carrie clown comits a murder and the book suddenly begins choking to death on a genre smoothy made with a blender from the stone ages. "But I didn't

think that blenders were made back then blablabla!" Oh oh, psychological thriller type situations arise in the later part of the novel, reminding me strongly of a

fantastic novel by Mr. Koontz called The House of Thunder, or, to simplify this, Rosemary's Baby. What bothered me most of all was that this book could have been great

instead of just kind of fun. The effort was minimal though and so people's enjoyment of the book will reflect that. The ratings seem to show it quite well enough

without my help.

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book because it's "soon to be leaving Kindle Unlimited!" Well, I wouldn't have missed much. Besides what I noted in my reading updates, this story has a few too many characters, only two likable characters, and a synopsis that hadthe potential for a much, much better book.

[Candiebarr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel a little bad that some of this follows my ideals. Ya know, the whole testing to receive permission to have children and forced sterilization if you don’t pass. I wrote a thing on it back when I was about 10 and called it the BLT. It didn’t go over well for the assignment I wrote it for then. I rewrote it for high school with a bit more of an informed opinion and got around 95% for it though… Anyway, it was an interesting book, but I feel a little bad for Natalie at the end there. I really do hope she finds happiness though.

[Stephanie O'rourke]

I wanted this to be great. What an awesome concept! the execution was flawed. Choppy dialogue, characters hard to care about. Why give a baby squad that.much power when there were so few pregnancies? How did people even find the black market in a tiny town like this? I finished only because I wanted to see how the end played out. It earned three stars because I liked the ending, saving it from two stars.

[Lauri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but not great. And kind of bizarre how he describes faces. He seems obsessed with describing people’s faces.

[PurplyCookie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in the late 21st century, this nightmarish novel of Neiderman portrays a world where sterility is mandated, pregnancy is a crime and children are born under clinical supervision, ensuring that every twist of their double helixes will result in a "Perfect Child."

Naturally, there are those who yearn for pregnancy the old-fashioned, "Abnormal" way. Neiderman's fast-moving tale weaves together several such characters, but focuses on Natalie Ross, a romance novelist who was born an Abnormal. Despite her best efforts at using black-market birth control, Natalie finds herself pregnant -- which could ruin her lawyer husband.

To ensure the faultless future of the human race, The Baby Squad is created to track down all women who defy the law, and exact punishment.


Book Details:

Title The Baby Squad
Author Andrew Neiderman
Reviewed By Purplycookie

[Tab · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't get passed the awful prose and narrative in the prologue and first chapter. I'm not really sure how this got published. I think the movie, "Zero Population Growth," is better then this book, if only for its campy value. I'm pretty easy-going when it comes to books, but I knew something was wrong when I saw the name "Hattie." Why do bad writers always name female characters "Hattie?" Why?