Description
In becoming a scientist, Claire Cyrus hopes to escape the fate of her dead father, a brilliant but critically unsuccessful poet whose poverty and bitterness derailed her own strong talent for verse. Soon after moving from England to take up her first job in a start-up biotech company in the Netherlands, she finds herself an outcast in her strange new environment, shunned by her jealous colleagues and moving only on the fringes of the expatriate community. But when she makes an accidental discovery in the lab, her life will never be the same again.
The Honest Look is a tale of passion, betrayal and a devastating secret that threatens to bring down careers, a company and a widely accepted scientific theory. Unfolding in the modern corporate laboratory, where the idealism of advancing knowledge and the uncompromising reality of profit margins exist in uneasy truce, this is a story of how people with various stakes in a common endeavour react when its integrity is called into question, and how these reactions can be shaped—and warped—by denial, greed, hatred and love.
Reviews
“Set in the high-stakes world of biomedical research, this fast-paced novel is populated by strong characters facing difficult choices, driven by twisty plotting and compelling writing... After you've finished, you’ll snap the book closed in satisfaction, realizing that scientists are human, just like everyone else. Whether you are a scientist, a mystery buff or you simply enjoy immersing yourself into a tightly-written story, you will enjoy this thought-provoking thriller.”
—Nature.com blogs
“Cell biologist and novelist Jennifer L. Rohn has written another taut, suspenseful story about a young scientist's journey to find oneself. ... whether literary or scientific, the reader can enjoy this book for many reasons: the scientific and ethical dilemmas, the conflicted romances and resulting complications, the Dutch landscape and lively portrait of Amsterdam, and the presence of poetry intertwined with proteomics and corporate intrigue.
The story is witty, zingy, and fast paced. It is credible and compelling. I cannot say anything more than “read this book” and “enjoy the suspenseful thrills.” You will be gratified that you did.”
—Cell Press
“It is refreshing to read a book set in a realistic scientific background...Of particular relevance to a lay readership should be the excitement of a serendipitous finding — an occurrence by which many scientific breakthroughs are made and the major scientific event that defines the plot of the story...The Honest Look is a good read, with a plot this is challenging, realistic but not difficult to follow.”
—Proteomics
