Ammon's Horn, or The Mystery of the Brain
A Novel
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- 9,99 €
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- 9,99 €
Descrizione dell’editore
Five cutting-edge scientists compete for $100 million and control of a new institute dedicated to eradicating Alzheimer’s in this edifying, Da Vinci Code-esque thriller.
Spurred by his wife’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis and disenchanted with the slow progress in finding a cure, a rich Swiss businessman launches a contest for promising young neuroscientists who can think “outside the box.” Chosen for their scientific excellence and originality, they must travel throughout Europe in search of the answers to five fiendishly difficult riddles, each combining an enigmatic neuroscientific question with a geographical and historical challenge.
As their personal stories unfold, the competitors share their moments of elation and disappointment when they solve a riddle or reach a dead end. Soon a conspiracy materializes to threaten and endanger the scientists, which at first seems random, but then becomes increasingly deliberate and targeted.
The nature of the riddles and the talents of the competitors open a world of discovery for us too as we learn about some of the most pressing areas in current brain research, such as neurodegenerative diseases, stem cell grafts, artificial intelligence, drug addiction, genetics, and the mechanisms of memory. And as the candidates visit some of the great European cities—Prague, Vienna, Cordoba, Cambridge, Geneva, Venice—we also experience their beauty and intrigue.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Married physicians Pierre (Gilal Man) and Christine Magistretti attempt to bring their medical expertise to this tedious thriller. At the center of the story are five international neuroscientists competing for a $100 million grant and a leadership position with a new Alzheimer's institute helmed by wealthy Swiss businessman Fred Lindenmayer, whose wife has been diagnosed with the disease. The competition—a series of complex riddles that contain "a historical part and a scientific part"—sends the ludicrously accomplished contestants on a tour of European cities to uncover the answers to each one. Soon, the participants begin receiving mysterious letters urging them to drop out of the competition lest "something terrible" happen. Though Lindenmayer strives to put the contest back on course, the threats persist, and the scientists must determine whether the rewards are worth the risk to their lives. The characters rarely interact with one another in meaningful ways, limiting the Magistrettis' ability to develop the plot into more than a series of clever puzzles, and sections meant to illuminate the real-world state of Alzheimer's research fall flat. Astute riddle-solvers might enjoy themselves, but for the most part, this is a slog.
