The Terminal Experiment by Robert J. Sawyer

The July Reading Group activities started on July 2 with a splash — a pool party at Elaine Powell’s house. We had lots of fun eating pizza and watermelon, and most of the nine of us got into the pool. In the midst of all the party atmosphere, we actually did spend some time discussing Robert J. Sawyer’s The Terminal Experiment. This novel, a techno-thriller about a medical researcher delving into the nature of human consciousness, recently won the Nebula Award and is a current finalist for the Hugo Award. Our members all appreciated Sawyer’s slick writing style — none of us had any trouble finishing the book. We were divided in how much we liked the premise of the book. The book’s fictional advances in medical technology are used for some controversial purposes that troubled several in our group. We all found it to be a thought-provoking story that prompted interesting discussion, and many of us will be looking forward to reading Sawyer’s next book.

–A. T. Campbell, III