The Klone and I [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Danielle Steel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 16, 1998

After thirteen years of marriage and two kids. Stephanie was devastated when her husband left her for a younger woman. Suddenly she was alone. Then a spur-of-the-moment trip to Paris changed everything.

Peter Baker was a handsome high-tech entrepreneur also visiting the city. Stephanie was certain it couldn't possibly work. But much to her amazement, he contacted her when they returned to New York. And Stephanie embarked on a bizarre and hilarious adventure beyond her wildest dreams.

Shy, serious Peter, chairman of a bionic enterprise, was supposed to be away on business. Instead, he's standing at her door, wearing satin and rhinestones. Naturally, Stephanie thinks it's a joke -- until the truth suddenly dawns: this isn't Peter playing a role. This is his double! Calling himself Paul Klone, this wild, uninhibited creature isn't even remotely like Peter except for his identically sexy good looks. This uproarious novel explores the outrageous love triangle that develops between Stephanie, Peter...and The Klone.

In a wickedly funny, right-on-target look at finding the per-feet mate in an imperfect world, bestselling novelist Danielle Steel reveals insights into the human heart that have made her novels #1 bestsellers around the world.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Evidently, Danielle Steel has been kidnapped by a mad scientist who clamped her into some gizmo that fused her brain with that of Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. While Steel's umpteenth novel, The Klone and I: A High-Tech Love Story, boasts her typical trappings--a divorced heroine, a cruel man, a sexy man with big money, and lots of shopping with brand-name tags conspicuously attached--the book is also the wackiest bit of self-indulgent sci-fi since Douglas Adams's Starship Titanic.

The Klone and I starts out normally enough: after a 13-year marriage, Stephanie, 41, gets dumped for a busty young bimbo. "She was gorgeous. And I felt nauseous," Stephanie reflects--though she admits that things hadn't been going well, what with hubby living off her trust fund and their having sex every six months or so. Realistically, their farewell hug goes like this: "My nose ran on his tie, while ever so cautiously he held me, kind of like a bank robber with sticks of dynamite taped all over his body."

Then, one day, on an impulsive trip to the Left Bank of Paris, Steph steps into one of those cool old French elevators with Peter, a hunk in a button-down Oxford shirt and tasteful khakis. Romance! Ritzy places! In fact, he takes her to the Ritz! Alas, Peter must Louvre her and leave her for a business trip out West.

So Peter sends Paul to keep her company. Paul is a dead ringer for Peter, because he's a kind of clone created by Peter and his clever biotech company. He's called a "klone" to distinguish him from a conventional clone, which is a mere replica of its original--this "klone" may be a physical copy of Peter, but inside he's had a major id upgrade. As always with Steel, the clue is in the character's clothes: from his high-heel gator boots to his zippered zebra jumpsuit, the decidedly non-buttoned-down Paul dresses like a psychedelic kaleidoscope. But when Paul drops that leopard-satin G-string, watch out! It's quadruple flips in flagrante delicto, with our heroine (and, the next morning, her chiropractor) coming out on top. Though Paul deplorably guzzles Chateau d'Yquem by the case and crashes Peter's Jaguar into snow banks, he's actually even more brilliantly empathic with Stephanie's kids than stuffy Peter is.

What's a mother to do? Is Steph robbing Peter to play with Paul? How will the ménage à trois affect marriage plans? Does Steel know that her comic tone (though not her subject) actually slightly echoes that of Betty MacDonald's classic comedy memoir The Egg and I, whose title she alludes to? Is the author a convert from fiction to sci-fi, like Doris Lessing? Will the real Ms. Steel ever reappear, or has her mind been psychedelicized? --Tim Appelo --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

The subtitle, "A High Tech Love Story," need not frighten Steel's loyal fans. More fanciful than technologically snappy, this novel (her 42nd, after The Long Road Home) grafts one scientific wrinkle onto the usual romance. Stunned when her feckless husband declares that their companionable but passionless marriage is over (then sues her for alimony and child support), 41-year-old Stephanie spends the next year improving both her body and her self-respect. During a trip to Paris, she attracts a suitor; Peter Baker is a fellow New Yorker?and everything Stephanie's been hoping for. After a chaste but exhilarating evening together, Stephanie is sure that she'll never see him again, but he tracks her down in the Hamptons and they fall in love. An executive at a company specializing in bionics, Peter has been working on a secret invention. When he travels to California on business, his creation, Paul Klone, turns up at Stephanie's door. Paul is a physical replica of Peter, but the resemblance ends there. Whereas Peter favors Oxford shirts and khakis, Paul is a fan of Versace's most outlandish creations. Although she has been pleased with Peter's lovemaking, Paul's triple back flips during sex leave Stephanie singing the body electric. When Peter becomes jealous of Paul, things get sticky. Although the SF element is minimal (approximately one part Ray Bradbury to 35 parts Steel), Steel's speculative whimsy spices her romantic concoction to produce a light but charming read.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Press (June 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385332955
• ISBN-13: 978-0385332958
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 1.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (297 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,270,243 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Danielle Steel has been hailed as one of the world's most popular authors, with over 590 million copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include 44 Charles Street, Legacy, Family Ties, Big Girl, Southern Lights, Matters of the Heart, One Day at a Time, and other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina's life and death.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVED IT!, October 9, 2004

By 

Autumn Vaughn "AV" (London, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Klone and I (Hardcover)

I read this book years ago when I randomly picked it up in a library and have never forgotten it. It was completely brilliant, totally off the wall. There was just something about it that I loved. I have never read any other Steel books, and from what i understand this was not her usual line of story. But it was such a great read. It must have been to have stuck out in my mind for about 5 years. I reacommend it to anyone who it open to an author not going by their steroetype!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Danielle Steel didn't write this, Her insane Klone did..., September 22, 2006

By 

Jennifer Polizos (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Klone and I (Hardcover)

Has Danieele Steel been abducted by aliens or has she been "Kloned" and this insane Klone wrote this book. I actually thought about not finishing this book but I thought there might be a logical ending...Beyond disappointing. Her characters have no substance, I don't want to meet the person who could relate to these whimpy weirdos. This might be the worst book I've ever read.
I just read this book, quite quickly in one afternoon. I think I've pretty much purchased and read every Danielle Steel book she's ever written as they used to be entertaining quick reads. I understand she has become an empire but must she also be a book writing factory. There is never much suprise as to how a DS book will end, the pleasure in reading them comes from the twist and turns, historical and geographical research she puts into her books. This book reads more like a short story as many of her other recent books. Definately not worth the hardcover price, the paperback price or even the used price. Time to slow down and put out some quality work instead of quantity.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Is she kidding?, August 16, 2006

By 

Sue "Newark Reader" (Newark, US, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Klone and I (Mass Market Paperback)

I've read nearly every one of Danielle Steel's vast collection of novels...and this is "hands down" the VERY WORSE piece of garbage she's ever written. What a joke! It was as if one of Ms Steel's enemies broke into her house and forced her to write this mess!

Don't bother!