DOUBLE HELIX
Nancy Werlin
Dial Books for Young Readers
Mystery
ISBN: 0803726066
244 pages

Whiskey and email make a bad combination, discovers Eli Samuels, as he somehow, some way finds himself interviewing for a job with the company run by world-famous geneticist Quincy Wyatt. With no plans to go to college in the fall, Eli figures that his job at Wyatt Transgenics, working with rabbits and milk proteins, will be a good way to earn some decent money and talk occasionally with one of the most respected minds in modern genetics.

Eli's father, however, is not so thrilled by this offer. Dr. Wyatt is a sore subject within Eli's family, but it's not until Eli's mother dies of a degenerative illness that the truth behind his father's animosity towards Dr. Wyatt is revealed. Eli finds himself in the middle of a genetic mystery as twisted and complex as DNA itself, caught in a double helix built of half-truths and bonded by secrecy.

Without being preachy or too technological, DOUBLE HELIX raises many important questions on genetic engineering, free will, families, loyalty and how much success in a chosen field is worth to one person. Fascinating, believable characters, including Eli's steadfast girlfriend and a mysterious beauty he meets through Dr. Wyatt, add an emotional dimension to the story, elevating it above the average mystery or science thriller. Even if the only thing you know about DNA is that it's used to catch criminals on CSI, you must pick up this book.

   --- Reviewed by Carlie Webber

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