Double helix / Nancy Werlin.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Eli has lucked into a job at Wyatt Transgenics—offered to him by Dr. Wyatt, the famed scientist. The salary is substantial, the work is interesting, and Dr. Wyatt seems to be paying special attention to Eli. It’s almost too good to be true. Is there a catch?

Eli’s father is vehemently against his taking the job, but won’t explain why. Eli knows that there’s some connection between Dr. Wyatt and his parents—something too painful for his father to discuss. Something to do with his mother, who is now debilitated by Huntington’s disease. As he continues to work at the lab, and to spend time with Dr. Wyatt, he begins to uncover some disconcerting truths about himself—about his very makeup.

Rich and suspenseful, with a hair-raising conclusion, this is Nancy Werlin’s most dynamic novel yet—one that explores the ethics and amazements of genetic engineering.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

In this mesmerizing novel, Werlin (The Killer's Cousin) adapts the medical mystery genre to explore the bewildering, complex issues surrounding experimental gene therapy. Narrator Eli Samuels, about to graduate from high school, has fired off an e-mail to Quincy Wyatt, a world-famous scientist and head of a genetics research corporation-stunningly, Wyatt summons Eli and offers him a job. Eli is thrilled, but the news horrifies his father, who, without explanation, asks Eli to turn it down (Eli takes it anyway). Eli's father's silence on the subject of Wyatt has many precedents within Eli's home. Eli's mother is rapidly deteriorating from Huntington's disease, a hereditary illness. Eli has not told his girlfriend, Viv, about his mother nor even introduced Viv to his father. Eli has talents he hides, but somehow Wyatt knows of them and even takes pride in them. Meanwhile Eli knows that his father conceals other information-and that Wyatt has somehow been pivotal to his family. The characterizations feel somewhat incomplete, but the plot moves at a tantalizing clip, with secrets revealed in tiny increments, and hints and clues neatly planted. Werlin distills the scientific element to a manageable level, enough for readers to follow Eli as he ponders Wyatt's work and his mother's illness. As the author tackles bioethical issues, the story's climax appeals to reason and love for humanity without resorting to easy answers. Brisk, intelligent and suspenseful all the way. Ages 12-up. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

School Library Journal Review

Gr 8 Up-Eighteen-year-old Eli Samuels, whose once-vibrant mother is losing her long battle with the ravages of Huntington's disease, is hired at the Wyatt Transgenics Lab. Eli's father is dead set against the job because of a secret he harbors concerning the lab's owner, Dr. Quincy Wyatt, and Eli's mother. Shortly after starting work, the teen meets Kayla Matheson, a beautiful girl who eerily reminds him of a photo of his mother when she was young. Slowly, Eli uncovers one layer after another of the shocking truth about Dr. Wyatt's genetic-engineering experiments and their connection to his parents, Kayla, and himself. With the support of his longtime girlfriend and soul mate, he confronts Dr. Wyatt in a taut climax to the story. Werlin clearly and dramatically raises fundamental bioethical issues for teens to ponder. She also creates a riveting story with sharply etched characters and complex relationships that will stick with readers long after the book is closed. An essential purchase for YA collections.-Jack Forman, Mesa College Library, San Diego (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Gr. 9-12. With iller's Cousin (1998), Black Mirror (2001), and now this exciting book to her credit, Werlin has proved herself to be one of the best youth thriller writers working today. Her plotting here is a little creaky, as it has been in past books, but she is a master at building suspense and creating the sort of clever manipulations that keep readers eagerly turning the pages. This time, Werlin delivers more than just a solid thriller-cum-growing-up story. She offers a thoughtful consideration of genetic engineering and takes a stand, but not at the expense of an intriguing mystery. Eli Samuels, 18, can't get close--not to his caring but preoccupied dad; not to his smart, generous girlfriend, Viv; and certainly not to his mother, who has been institutionalized for years with a devastating midlife degenerative disease, the gene for which Eli may carry. Confused, heartsick, unable to get the answers he seeks from Dad, and needing time to think about his life, Eli decides to forgo college and, despite his father's unexpectedly vehement disapproval, takes a job at Wyatt Transgenetics, where he receives a surprisingly warm welcome from world-renowned geneticist Dr. Quincy Wyatt. What's all that about? Readers will be as intrigued as Eli, who discovers more than he ever bargained for. A solidly crafted, thoughtful novel featuring a clever, obsessed kid who finds truths, small and large, about life, family, and, of course, himself. --Stephanie Zvirin Copyright 2004 Booklist

Horn Book Review

(High School) High school senior Eli Samuels ponders the words he's never been able to say aloud to his girlfriend, Vivian: ""My mother is insane. It's a genetic problem called Huntington's disease. It is untreatable and incurable. There's a fifty-fifty chance I'll develop it, too."" The specter of HD haunts Eli's life, though he's not yet ready to take the medical test that will determine whether he has inherited this condition. Aware that his family has a mysterious, unspoken connection with Nobel-winning scientist Quincy Wyatt, Eli impulsively seeks a job at Wyatt Transgenics (""You know what 'transgenics' means? It's when an organism is altered by having a gene from another species transferred into it"") and is surprised when the distinguished biologist not only offers him a position working in a research laboratory but takes a personal interest in his welfare. Kids who can get past the dreary biology-textbook title and cover illustration will discover a tense medical thriller in which a secret sub-basement at Wyatt Transgenics holds the answers to several mysteries in Eli's past--as well as the key to his future. Though this well-written, mature novel comes to an abrupt and somewhat unconvincing conclusion, it raises fascinating ethical questions about the role that genetic engineering--with its astonishing benefits and perhaps horrifying consequences--will have in tomorrow's brave new world. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Book Review

Tragedy and family politics combine for a suspenseful exploration of love and bioethics. Brilliant Eli has been fighting with his father for months. The fight began when Eli refused to apply to college, but the communication breakdown is rooted in their unshared and inarticulate grief over Eli's mother. The genetic disease that will eventually kill her has left Eli's once-loving mother shamefully insane. Desperate to escape home for the summer, Eli takes a job with the brilliant Dr. Wyatt. He's lucky to get a chance to work with the famous geneticist, but his father is furious. Some terrible secret lies between Dr. Wyatt and Eli's parents, which must explain Dr. Wyatt's fascination with Eli, and Eli's father's hatred of Dr. Wyatt. There will be no easy answers for Eli as he explores the mystery of his own past, and of the compellingly beautiful girl to whom Dr. Wyatt introduces him. Thought-provoking, powerful, and rich in character. (Fiction. YA) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.