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Rollercoasters: Unique
When Dominic finds the photo in his granddad's loft, at first he can't believe what he is seeing. How can it be possible? How can there be someone else looking so like him? And then it beings to dawn on him that this must be his brother. But why has he never been told that he had a brother? Why has it been kept secret? And what happened to him? Published 2023-04-18
244 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
About the author
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If an editor is known, however, Various is not necessary. List the name of the editor as the primary author (with role "editor"). Contributing authors' names follow it.
Note: WorldCat is an excellent resource for finding author information and contents of anthologies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
February 10, 2011
This wasn't bad at all, quite an easy enjoyable read and fairly typical of what you'd expect from a young adult science fiction story.
I liked the ethical questions about scientific advances and the different philosophical viewpoints of the religious and the non-believers, some were nothing like what we would expect them to be. However, the author spent the first half of the book trying to create some mystery around the circumstances of Dominic's secret brother's life and death, this would have been fine if the book wasn't called 'unique' and the protagonist hadn't already found a photo album with pictures of a boy who looked exactly like him but was supposedly just his brother who died in the year before he was born. You'd have to be an idiot not to guess what was going on.
As for Dominic, I felt sorry for him on occasion but, overall, I found him quite a boring and uninventive character. The author was trying to say something about individualism in this novel and make Dominic (2) a unique person that could shine apart from his brother without turning into a psychological as well as a biological clone. The point seemed rather void to me when Dominic didn't have much of a personality - isn't that ruining the whole moral of the story?
The best character by far was 'Pops'. I loved his ramblings and his occasional insane nonsense that he would spurt out; like near the end of the book when he's rushing through the house and shouts "fish balls", he's a bit of light entertainment in an otherwise serious young-adult novel.
Definitely interesting and enjoyable on the whole, I might have a look at some of the author's other writings.
April 7, 2013
It's actually really hard to fault this book. It is written in a way that ensures you only put the book down when you upmost have to. It asks those ethical questions will leaves you thinking for days and still you will be indecisive. An amazing book, one which I would recommend to anyone.
February 2, 2020
Very very interesting read, although, I would not classify this as a thriller as it says on the book.
This is about a boy who finds out that he's a clone of his dead brother. The book focuses on his life, how he feels about being cloned, him finding his own uniqueness and all the morals that goes along with cloning humans.
I love how the author focuses on his struggles about finding himself and being true to himself.
From a psychological point of view this book is spot on in its theory of human cloning in regards to the brain and personality not being able to be cloned.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely pick up another book from this author.
This is about a boy who finds out that he's a clone of his dead brother. The book focuses on his life, how he feels about being cloned, him finding his own uniqueness and all the morals that goes along with cloning humans.
I love how the author focuses on his struggles about finding himself and being true to himself.
From a psychological point of view this book is spot on in its theory of human cloning in regards to the brain and personality not being able to be cloned.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely pick up another book from this author.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 29, 2009
Dominic Gorden's life suddenly takes a shocking turn. Whilst Painting at his Grandad's house he discovers an old family photo album, with pictures of him inside. Thats what he thinks, until he turns the last page and finds himself 5 years older than he acctually is. Then the word 'Brother' flickers across his mind. And his life is changed forever.
A few days later he is on a train heading to Cambridge Univercity, where he has found out it is where his brother studied and died. There he meets his brother's best friend, Giles and his wife, Becky, who was once his brother (also called Domonic's) girlfriend. Unable to come to terms with himself, he meets his brothers Tutor, Professer Holt. She is the worlds greatest scientist, and so was his brother. Imogen (Professer Holt) lets him come back to her house with her and her husband and lets him selep there the night.
Later on, as Dominic gets up to get a glass of water, he overhears them talking. 'Why did your baby have to turn up now??' That solved it. Imogen was his real Mum. It did make sense... she had been on holiday with his parents just before Dominic was born.... With a desperate surge he called Giles and he met him at Cambridge Uni. But then, Imogen turns up and when Dom questions her about the baby, the real truth comes out....
His Mum and Dad could not come to terms with their perfect son's death. They had employed Imogen to clone the dead Dominic to make the Dominic that lives today. Basiccly, he is living inside his brothers dead body. He was only made to keep the memorys of the long dead Nick (his brothers nick-name) alive. Imogen knows that if this comes out in the press she will be executed. Felling lost and emotionless, Dom plans to go up to Scotland with Giles and Becky. Suddenly, out of the blue, his evil father turns up and tells him he's taking him to Australia. In one last frantic surge he runs away again up to Scotland to meet Giles and Becky, who only want whats best for him.
After a couple of weeks living with Baecky and Giles, Dom gets a mysterious call from Imogen, telling him that he is in danger and he needs to meet her urgently. As Dom heads out to find her, he is cornered by a journalist, who knew his brother Nick and has suspected something fishey. As Dom trys to hide on a cliff ledge, the reporter follows him and threatens to tell the newspaper about this. As Dom thinks he is defeated, Imogen turns up and snatches the journalist's phone away from her. They have a shouting row, and, at the end of it, as they are on the ledge of a mountain, they accidently thow themselves to their death. Dom feels so guilty that, he thinks he ought to let the police know the hole story. As the last lines of the book read: 'My experiences are all Unique and Unrepeatable, Like cloud-shadows on mountains or flames in a fire.
A few days later he is on a train heading to Cambridge Univercity, where he has found out it is where his brother studied and died. There he meets his brother's best friend, Giles and his wife, Becky, who was once his brother (also called Domonic's) girlfriend. Unable to come to terms with himself, he meets his brothers Tutor, Professer Holt. She is the worlds greatest scientist, and so was his brother. Imogen (Professer Holt) lets him come back to her house with her and her husband and lets him selep there the night.
Later on, as Dominic gets up to get a glass of water, he overhears them talking. 'Why did your baby have to turn up now??' That solved it. Imogen was his real Mum. It did make sense... she had been on holiday with his parents just before Dominic was born.... With a desperate surge he called Giles and he met him at Cambridge Uni. But then, Imogen turns up and when Dom questions her about the baby, the real truth comes out....
His Mum and Dad could not come to terms with their perfect son's death. They had employed Imogen to clone the dead Dominic to make the Dominic that lives today. Basiccly, he is living inside his brothers dead body. He was only made to keep the memorys of the long dead Nick (his brothers nick-name) alive. Imogen knows that if this comes out in the press she will be executed. Felling lost and emotionless, Dom plans to go up to Scotland with Giles and Becky. Suddenly, out of the blue, his evil father turns up and tells him he's taking him to Australia. In one last frantic surge he runs away again up to Scotland to meet Giles and Becky, who only want whats best for him.
After a couple of weeks living with Baecky and Giles, Dom gets a mysterious call from Imogen, telling him that he is in danger and he needs to meet her urgently. As Dom heads out to find her, he is cornered by a journalist, who knew his brother Nick and has suspected something fishey. As Dom trys to hide on a cliff ledge, the reporter follows him and threatens to tell the newspaper about this. As Dom thinks he is defeated, Imogen turns up and snatches the journalist's phone away from her. They have a shouting row, and, at the end of it, as they are on the ledge of a mountain, they accidently thow themselves to their death. Dom feels so guilty that, he thinks he ought to let the police know the hole story. As the last lines of the book read: 'My experiences are all Unique and Unrepeatable, Like cloud-shadows on mountains or flames in a fire.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 12, 2008
really really good. Its starts of with this boy called Dominic who has an alcoholic mum and a millionaire dad who expects to much of him. He then looks at his family photos at his grandads house and realises his mum and dad is holding another child that looks like him. He thinks its his brother but then he meets his 'brothers' university mates and knows there very edgy around him. He then meets his 'brothers' tutor, Professor Imogen Holt, and overhears a conversation between her and her husband that he's her child. He thinks she his is mother but then she tells him that when his brother died she cloned him and that clone is him. He then runs away from everything his parents, Imogen and the media and from cambridge with the possibly that somebody who knows his face. Except a journalist girlfriend of his brothers recoqnizes his face and hunts him down threatening to sell his story to newspapers across the world. It is a haunting but good story that was hard to put down. 5* for the book!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2013
Really amazing. I loved the point of view with which the author analyzed that complex subject, and even if I loved Imogen's character, I think it's the only way it could have ended, and it was perfectly fine by me. I loved the story, and every character as well. Well done Alison A.G. !
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 15, 2017
This book suffers from progeria, which is bad for high-school/young adult literature, but fatal when the underlying story is weak to begin.
This book was assigned to my high school class and fits all the young-adult stereotypes. The characters are rather bland, predictable and one-dimensional. The setting is a distopia future (2017!) where cloning is banned with the penalty of death in the EU for those violators of the universal prohibition.
The themes of cloning, medical ethics and teenagers searching for their own unique personalities reads as if the author only has a very passing knowledge of medicine and ethics, and a complete lack of knowledge of law and politics. The idea of the EU executing anyone for cloning is laughable in a world where convicted terrorists are given reparation money for being detained by other governments.
The one thing that the author did convey well was teenage angst and though the parents were flat characters, the emotional tension did reflect some genuine feeling. This can only be explained either as an accident, or perhaps the author herself has some underlying issues with her parents left unresolved from her adolescence.
This book was assigned to my high school class and fits all the young-adult stereotypes. The characters are rather bland, predictable and one-dimensional. The setting is a distopia future (2017!) where cloning is banned with the penalty of death in the EU for those violators of the universal prohibition.
The themes of cloning, medical ethics and teenagers searching for their own unique personalities reads as if the author only has a very passing knowledge of medicine and ethics, and a complete lack of knowledge of law and politics. The idea of the EU executing anyone for cloning is laughable in a world where convicted terrorists are given reparation money for being detained by other governments.
The one thing that the author did convey well was teenage angst and though the parents were flat characters, the emotional tension did reflect some genuine feeling. This can only be explained either as an accident, or perhaps the author herself has some underlying issues with her parents left unresolved from her adolescence.
October 21, 2025
I remember reading this book when I was in junior high school. It was set as a class read, where we would read the book aloud bit by bit and dissect the text for meaning - probably meant to make sure we understood the context of what was happening in the book and find a deeper meaning. All that usual stuff. Well, I couldn't just leave it at that. I begged the teacher to let me take the book home, devoured the rest of it in one night, went in the next day and was able to give the teacher an essay on the book by the end of that week. It's been probably about 16/17 years since then and I still think about this book. I actually bought a copy of it for my own home library years later. I think this book is why I'm obsessed with the tv show Orphan Black, and why I can't be satisfied by any other book of a similar plot - they just don't compare! (feel free to give recommendations if you have any!)
December 2, 2017
It's really not one of the boring books despite the drab looking cover. As always, I read the title and that's all before I just read the whole book. Didn't even read that blurb on the cover page. I think the suspense build up is very good, I never thought Dom is anywhere within the unnatural twin-kids industry until after that 3am outburst at Imogean's house. Dominic seems very cool for his age but definitely still a young adult, curious and stubborn. I thought the incident which brings the end of the chase is too convenient. Did Dom's dad really give up? That simple? Anyway, overall a good read for me.
October 18, 2019
*Read for Spookathon 2019*
Wow. I really liked this book.
I loved the characterisation in this book. I felt that it was really strong and the author was able to create an entirely different cast of characters which each had unique flaws and ambitions.
I also loved the overall themes and the social commentary that the author has used throughout this book. It comments on things such as what makes us human and the ethical nature of some events that happen.
Dominic was a character that was easy to root for. You wanted to help him find out the truth.
Unique really was a... unique story and I am so glad that I have read it.
Wow. I really liked this book.
I loved the characterisation in this book. I felt that it was really strong and the author was able to create an entirely different cast of characters which each had unique flaws and ambitions.
I also loved the overall themes and the social commentary that the author has used throughout this book. It comments on things such as what makes us human and the ethical nature of some events that happen.
Dominic was a character that was easy to root for. You wanted to help him find out the truth.
Unique really was a... unique story and I am so glad that I have read it.
May 21, 2021
So happy I read this novel in my literature class with my seventh graders this spring!
.
This thought-provoking narrative was full of plot twists and it made me learn a lot about my students’ thoughts in such an interesting way!
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The story is about a young boy, Dominic, who discovers that he has an older brother he doesn’t know about. On his journey to discover who his brother is, he learns much more about himself!
.
I can’t wait to complete the last few chapters with my students and see if they like the ending as much as I do!
.
Perfect for teens to discuss politics, science, family, and justice. 💕
.
This thought-provoking narrative was full of plot twists and it made me learn a lot about my students’ thoughts in such an interesting way!
.
The story is about a young boy, Dominic, who discovers that he has an older brother he doesn’t know about. On his journey to discover who his brother is, he learns much more about himself!
.
I can’t wait to complete the last few chapters with my students and see if they like the ending as much as I do!
.
Perfect for teens to discuss politics, science, family, and justice. 💕
February 17, 2026
Un thriller jeunesse, qui ouvre la réflexion sur l’identité de chacun, la loyauté familiale, et la personnalité de chacun.
Je recommanderai ce livre à l’avenir pour chaque ado qui souhaite découvrir le genre. Nous avons une course poursuite haletante, des tentatives de fuite, et un personnage attachant dignes de séries Netflix.
L’atmosphère universitaire planant au dessus de cet adolescent est brillante, et Cambridge devient un personnage. Passé et présent s’entremêlent entre deux personnages, entraînant dans ce chaos leurs proches.
J’ai beaucoup aimé ce livre que j’avais depuis longtemps dans ma PAL, je suis heureuse de l’avoir sorti !
Je recommanderai ce livre à l’avenir pour chaque ado qui souhaite découvrir le genre. Nous avons une course poursuite haletante, des tentatives de fuite, et un personnage attachant dignes de séries Netflix.
L’atmosphère universitaire planant au dessus de cet adolescent est brillante, et Cambridge devient un personnage. Passé et présent s’entremêlent entre deux personnages, entraînant dans ce chaos leurs proches.
J’ai beaucoup aimé ce livre que j’avais depuis longtemps dans ma PAL, je suis heureuse de l’avoir sorti !
October 23, 2016
I mean I enjoyed it at first but it became a real struggle to read by the end. I think i just kind of fell out of love with it and then didn't care for it at all. It's not really my normal genre so I'm not completely surprised that I wasn't interested in it really.
I don't think it's a bad book but just wasn't for me and I wouldn't really recommend it to my friends.
The only reason I really pushed through was because i was quite close to the end and I needed another book to complete my goal.
I don't think it's a bad book but just wasn't for me and I wouldn't really recommend it to my friends.
The only reason I really pushed through was because i was quite close to the end and I needed another book to complete my goal.
January 29, 2020
Meiner Meinung nach ein sehr spannende Buch. Der Plot schien teilweise etwas zu wenig ausgearbeitet und zu voraussehbar, aber alles in allem habe ich die Lektüre sehr genossen und konnte das Buch kaum weglegen, sodass es schnell gelesen war.
May 31, 2021
This one was mildly interesting. The premise was okay but the book was full of YA tropes and I hated how the main character barely had to work for the answers he seeked, everybody just gave them to him without asking. It was just ... boring and bland which is a shame because the premise has a lot of potential to be interesting. And the awkward translation didn't help either.
March 24, 2023
Reading this in class with my middle schoolers. The idea of cloning was intriguing but they felt it was uneventful half way through; they believe alot could have been worked on to make it more intriguing.
January 4, 2025
la idea de que ell sigui un clon i tot aixo mha agradat
pero es nota que es un llibre per gent mes jove i no mha agradat gens que pintin a un noi de 15 anys com que pot fer el que vulgui i que es el mes guai de tots
no te sentit
pero me lhe llegit en angles pq era lectura obligatoria i prou be
pero es nota que es un llibre per gent mes jove i no mha agradat gens que pintin a un noi de 15 anys com que pot fer el que vulgui i que es el mes guai de tots
no te sentit
pero me lhe llegit en angles pq era lectura obligatoria i prou be
May 17, 2025
This was very fun and very interesting from a psychological and bioethical pov. I also really appreciated that it had the exact right number of pages, I feel like many authors would have extended it completely unnecessarily. It was just right.
May 28, 2026
Like many things in secondary school, receiving this book as my Year 7 literature assignment made me realise that nothing I loved was free from being reduced to joyless, artless drivel. Perhaps the only thing that stuck with me is that it's the first book I disliked, or even loathed.
October 18, 2026
I actually quite like it, i think that it is a good read to do if you are struggling a bit with taking up reading again and want something light, fast and intense.
The ending was a bit meh for me but I enjoyed reading it.
The ending was a bit meh for me but I enjoyed reading it.
July 21, 2017
All of us are unique and irrepetible
October 19, 2017
The plot was quite interesting though the personality of Dominic made me cringe every single time he talked because he sounded a lot like a arrogant and selfish 12 year old then a 15 year old.
November 18, 2018
Une lecture divertissante.
September 3, 2019
It is very good
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 13, 2023
An interesting and thought provoking despite major flaws.
January 23, 2025
This book was alright, definitely aimed at the younger generation. There were elements that were beautifully written, the author knows how to get inside a characters head and emotions.
April 9, 2026
Sooo good and I somehow didn't realise he was a clone. I immediately tried forcing my friend to read it the morning after I finished.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 14, 2026
I though this was dated and that I would hate it. Now, while it was in fact dated, it was actually quite the enjoyable read. I'm confident at least SOME of my students will like it.
October 15, 2026
The psychological and political depth in "Unique" shows "Alison Allen-Gray" put real craft into this. Nothing felt superficial or recycled; "Alison Allen-Gray" offers genuine fresh angles on system dynamics.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews