Gray Matter

by Gary Braver

Rachel Whitman has everything. She’s young, attractive, and affluent. Her husband is the brilliant CEO of his own company. They have a big new house in a flossy Boston suburb. They have all the brand-name “toys” that go along with wealth. And they have a gorgeous, sweet little six-year-old son named Dylan.

But Dylan has learning disabilities. Although intelligence isn’t everything, Rachel lives in a community where the rewards for brainpower are conspicuous. She fears her son will grow up never fully appreciating the wonders of life. Like so many middle-class parents who would do anything to improve life for their children—whether it means fixing hair, teeth, or nose—Rachel cannot accept that her child is less than perfect.

Tortured by the idea that something she did in the past caused Dylan’s problems, Rachel becomes obsessed with a secret and expensive medical procedure that claims to turn slow children into geniuses.

Should she and her husband sacrifice their new fortune on the risky, experimental procedure for the sake of their son’s happiness? Unaware of the real consequences of the brain enhancement procedure, Rachel can’t know that the costs of the operation go far beyond financial ones.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Medical

400 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Gary Braver is the pen name of Gary Goshgarian, the author of six critically acclaimed suspense novels: three under his own name--Atlantis Fire, Rough Beast and The Stone Circle--and three under his pen name--Elixir, Gray Matter, and Flashback. He is also the author of four popular college writing textbooks--Exploring Language, The Contemporary Reader, Dialogues, and What Matters in America.

Gary Goshgarian

Reviews

[Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this and was quite surprised to see the difference of opinion from other readers. I found the whole premise to be a refreshing change from the usual mystery/thriller/killer which is why I gave this an extra star. I liked Rachel a lot and although she had the obligatory beauty that all lead females seem to have by law in books she did have a lot of flaws. The pace was continually moving and I look forward to reading more from GB.

[Ann · Rating 1 out of 5]

Badly written. Little suspense. Overly caricatured. It was easy to read, but composition was lacking. There was only one likable character and the other two 'heroes' were too flawed for me to sympathize with, the villain lacked any good or interesting qualities. It tried to present moral dilemma, but offered no real excuse for the opposing view....yawn.

[Pendred Noyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slick thriller that plays on a very modern parental anxiety: Is my kid smart enough? Is there something I should be doing to make him smarter? How far would you go to give your child an intellectual boost, to make her gifted or even a genius?

This book weaves together several strands of story: a mourning detective investigating a dead child; a mother mourning the loss of her kidnapped child; two unhappy, misfit teens; and a guilt-stricken mother looking anywhere to help her "slow" child become more intelligent. What do all these children have to do with one another, and what do they have to do with a prominent but secretive medical researcher?

There is horror at the heart of this thriller. I came away with a slight dirty feeling as if I, too, value smarts in my kids too much... though I know I would never do the things this mother does before she wakes up.

[Bonnie_blu · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought I'd enjoy the book based on the positive reviews, but I found the story to be overly long, not well written, and frustrating. The story meandered all over the place until the last few pages when, finally, something happened. I'm so glad I got this from the library and didn't pay for it.

[Merredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reminded me of a Robin Cook book. I've always liked Robin's books (and now he's my neighbor), so I also enjoyed Gary's. A medically type thriller, about brain and intelligence enhancement. Very reccomended.

[Meagan Houle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, while far from great literature, tells a good story based on a great premise. In very brief summary, a seemingly above-board organization, headed by an ambitious neurosurgeon, performs covert "enhancement" procedures on children who have learning disabilities. Wealthy parents of shamefully "slow" children willingly agree to these procedures so their kids can "follow in daddy's and/or mommy's footsteps". In a world where intellect is valued almost as much as money, parents feel bound to ensure their children are as intelligent as possible. Only one problem: the procedure has unexpected (and, of course, well-concealed) consequences--and the organization won't tolerate any whistle-blowing. Not from anyone.
While this author, like so many scifi authors, is better at conveying interesting ideas than telling a story, this was an enjoyable read. There are some grammatical issues and awkward structure throughout, but nothing egregious (and anyway a decent editor should have caught these). It starts slow, but give it a chance; it really picks up near the end. And be careful: there are a few unanticipated bits of horrifying plot line which may be a bit disturbing to the unsuspecting reader.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Gary Braver's Gray Matter, he told us a compelling thriller that deals with sacrifices we make in life. For Rachel Whitman, she had everything she could possibly ask for: a loving human, a great home, and an adorable seven year-old son named Dylan. But her son had learning disabilities. She feared he would never grow up to experience a full and enriched life. Somehow she came to the conclusion that something she did in the past caused him to become this way--this tortured her mind. And she somehow became obsessed with this secret procedure to turn slow children into pure geniuses. Should Rachel and her husband risk a lot of money for this experimental procedure for his happiness? Unaware of the consequences of this brain enhancement operation, she can't know about the costs of the surgery would be something more than financial.

[Gary O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shows the depths to which a human being is capable of sinking.

Some might classify it as a thriller, but I felt no thrills reading it. Chiller would be more apt a classification.

If this book doesn't haunt you for a while after reading it I suggest you find a very good therapist.

Very chilling, indeed. A very good read.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a little irritated because at first it seemed like the book was trying to explore the moral issues involved and that there was some moral ambiguity... but then it became clear that there was no moral ambiguity at all, there was very clearly a right and a wrong side, and the book was pure thriller. But that's OK, it turned out to be a lot of fun.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book aloud to my husband periodically on our travels the last few weeks and a few minutes each night before we slept. We both looked forward to what was happening to Rachel and her family. The book kept us interested to the end and was a suspenseful on the edge of your seat type of read.

[Andrea Carlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suddenly I am aware that I read an awful lot of schlock... Rich people want to make their kids smarter by injecting their brains with brain matter from smart poor kids! And honestly, you can see this kind of thing happening in real life. I had fun reading this book.

[Ladeedebra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a scary thought that this can be happening right now. Very thought provoking and some may find it disturbing to read. Mostly it is about parents who will go to any extreme in an attempt to ensure their children excel. Do not read of science bothers you.

[Christopher Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Outstanding premise. The first few pages had me hooked. Dr. Braver combines technical expertise and experience with the human condition to weave a tale that is as haunting as it is intriguing. It's not often that I find myself hurting and angry at the bad guys.

[Jackie]

Couldn't put it down. What would you do if you could help your child by increasing her intelligence? How far would you go? The questions caught my attention since I'm a former elementary teacher who hates standardized tests. This thriller kept me interested right to the end.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chilling - it has a plausible plot, though not medically possible at this time (at least, I don't think so).

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

lord lord... it is possible!

[RedAlly2306 · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was very intriguing and i couldn't put it down. It was creepy, and messed with my mind but I couldn't stop reading it! I'm pretty sure I read it in about 4 days... :D

[Marika Charalambous · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an ok read, but for some reason it was making me constantly uncomfortable. Can't put my finger on why exactly. Maybe there is something in my past that a shrink would have a field day with...

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting crime-fiction based on how low can people sink in treatment of their fellows while in pursuit of their goals of power and status. A detective chases clues for missing (and presumed murdered) children across jurisdictions earning the wrath of his supervisor. Meanwhile we follow the tortuous decision making of a family as husband and wife negotiate whether or not to 'enhance' the intellect of their slow son. Brought to mind the caution in Jurassic Park - just because we can doesn't mean we should.
A good read, builds to an action packed and somewhat surprising climax.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a definite page turner! At first, I really did not know what to expect or what I was getting into, but very early on, I was sucked into a thriller. Gary Braver writes his scenes in a way, where I could literally see them playing out as I read. I will admit, there were some sexual scenes that were a little descriptive, but not enough to make the book "inappropriate." All in all, I really enjoyed this book!

[Holly Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick fluff read with a bit of good suspense and Frankenstein science.

The author gave way to too many details about the area. He's either a local or tried to hard to make the characters feel at home geographically. It reminded me of the SNL California skit where they give directions in between dramatic scandals.

[Sara]

My mind went to that sequer
in that dream thee hunge druge in it
but in my mind there field of red flowers
with my blood i draw it
scream the pain
kill the weakness
shut the kidness
folish
hopeless road
thers isnt break
my mind cant stop
that not smart enugh
its not natural meeting
is not dreamy summer
or soft rain in my window
its pain
mind tell

[Margaret Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy-to-read crime thriller, quite predictable in places.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is interesting and important science-fiction! The story discusses the idea of medical improvement of IQ. If you could raise your child's intelligence medically, would you? Find out what happens when people do!

[Arlene Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

A biotech thriller

[Samantha Radmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great mystery/sci-fi thriller. Easy read, page turner, would recommend!

[Garyjn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book jacket of my copy compared Braver to King and Crichton. That's setting the bar pretty high. Crichton would have focused more on the science/sci-fi aspect and King would have developed the characters better. I'm sure I could've and should've despised the villains more, and I think King could've had fun with Nicole's character. Still, it wasn't a bad read. Started a bit slow but drew me in as it progressed. The ending was a bit abrupt and had a couple of incidents which made me go "what the..." but not enough to ruin the book. A decent time killer, another reviewer called it a good airplane book, but since it's the highest rated of Braver's books, I don't expect to be sampling him again. Especially since I have plenty of un-read King and Crichton.

[Ash · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is a lot of mixed feelings for this book. We definitely shared a love hate relationship for a while. I was also bawling my eyes out at some parts of the story and this is nonfiction no less. I loved every minute of reading it and got way to invested in the characters. Overall I would reccomend this to anyone who'd listen. History is repeating itself and we should have been better prepared for it.

[Rich]

This book is about a parent's pursuit to make their son "fit in" with the brilliant children of the new town they moved to through an underground medical procedure. Some kids end up dead, some really are disturbed after the procedure and in the end....well I don't want to give it away.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't typically read this kindof sci-fi novel, but my dad suggested it to me and I became completely engrossed. An eerie tale of a mysterious cocktail/procedure that can increase the IQ of children.