Book description
In the Nevada desert, an experiment has gone horribly wrong. A cloud of nanoparticlesâmicro-robotsâhas escaped from the laboratory. This cloud is self-sustaining and self-reproducing. It is intelligent and learns from experience. For all practical purposes, it is alive.
It has been programmed as a predator. It is evolving swiftly, becomingâŚ
Why read it?
2 authors picked Prey as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Highly relatable domestic strife sucked me into the stay-at-home dadâs plight before ratcheting up into world-shattering stakes.
I love how grounded in reality the suspense is. First, in the characterization, then in the technology, which never became too technical. This all confirmed for me why Michael Crichton is the master of the techno-thriller.
The chilling premise is just as big as Jurassic Park, but given this yearâs advances in artificial intelligence, much more credible to me and all the more worrisome.
To me, Crichtonâs strength was taking scientific knowledge/achievements and crafting stories that showed how they could impact us.
Yes, he took those to extremes (DNA sequencing to create dinosaurs, robots that revolt against their human masters, and so), but thatâs the job of a writer. Prey is not his best-known work but is mesmerizing in terms of the type of future that could exist. His story uses a mix of swarm technology, biology, and AI to craft a cautionary tale, with a main character who has to fight to save his loved one.
Crichton uses biology as part of hisâŚ
From Michael's list on a future we probably want to avoid.
If you love Prey...
Aggressor
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to runâŚ
Want books like Prey?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 84 books like Prey.
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,210
readers submitted
so far, will you?
đ If you like Prey, you might also like...
Old Man Country
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the worldâs most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the bookâŚ
Lane and the Inventor
A grumpy-sunshine, slow-burn, sweet-and-steamy romance set in wild and beautiful small-town Colorado. Lane Gravers is a wanderer, adventurer, yoga instructor, and social butterfly when she meets reserved, quiet, pensive Logan Hickory, a loner inventor with a painful past.
Dive into this small-town, steamy romance between two opposites who find loveâŚ
