Customer Reviews

The Secret

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Set in the near future of the 2020's, "The Secret" probes the endless question of whether nature or nurture is the driving force behind personhood. Iris Surrey is a clone, but growing up in the isolated world her mother has created for her in a midwest town, it is not until she is in her teens that she discovers the truth about that vague feeling she calls the "weirdness." Iris has a profound bond with her beautiful mother, but as a child has no way of knowing that this is unusual or odd. But as her questions about her father become insistent in her own mind, and the tiny world of their home is disturbed by her mother's lover Stephen, Iris rifles through files and records to find the mystery of her birth.

The informations sends her reeling in a storm of self-doubt, hatred of her mother, and agony over whether she is a real person or just a copy. Iris seeks out her mother's family, and painfully realizes that they're unable to see her as anything other than stark evidence of Elizabeth's shocking act. Only by separating from Elizabeth does she come to know that her unique history and experiences shape her as much as her genes do.

I found the premise of the book fascinating, but sympathize with readers who say it goes on and on--it does. We "know" the secret in the first chapter--it's completely obvious--but Hoffman spends more time than necessary detailing Iris' search for it herself. And it wasn't credible that Iris would not have developed and noticed some traits different from her mother's even given how sheltered she was. Scientific theory swings back and forth on the issue of whether nature or nurture is more important--at the moment the genes seem to be winning. But no matter what side of the issue you're on, no one thinks clones could ever be exact replicas.

In any event, Iris finally comes into her own when she meets a man who knows only her, not her mother, and it's easy to see how for him she is no more unusual than any other woman. And as Iris completes her education in a field completely different from her mother's, her separate self becomes dominant. In the meantime, Elizabeth pays the price for a life of domineering and headstrong behavior, at least as her family saw her, and loses the daughter she tried to hold closer than any child can be.

It is a bit annoying that Iris only finds a unique self when she meets a guy, and as I said earlier, Hoffman does go on and on about Iris' philosophical dilemma. But there's more here than a short story, and I liked "The Secret" a lot.

I was so disapointed in this book. I bought it because the blurb sounded good. I also figured out the plot from about page two on. I also scanned the second half of the book just to finish it. I felt like the author truly believed I was entranced with this novel enough to not know "The Secret" until she reveals it.

The major element wrong here is this is a 10 page short story with a great idea that was stretched out over 200 pages plus with way too much filler. The Sci-fi aspect is well written, however, it it is obvious the writer leaps around in her "future" adaptation without clear, concise direction. I am also distracted by the use of the term "Mummy" for a mother figure when this book is set in the USA.

The format in which this book was written and worded reminds me of a kid writing a 500 word essay using the word "very" 400 times. How many ways can you say Iris Surrey's Secret was a problem? The author knows her way around a Thesaurus. I won't buy anything else by her, or see "Lost in Translation".

i will be honest and tell you i couldn't finish the book. and it's not long - it just was not worth it. the "secret" is obvious from the first page and it is pure drivel as you plod through the first half of the book with the heroine as she tries to figure it out.

so maybe there is another gem of a secret in the second half of the book that i don't find out because i never finished it. but given the first half of the book, i can't imagine there is enough to create a multi-layered secret.

the philosophic premise of the book is so flawed from the outset (that clones are EXACT replicas - physically, emotionally, intelligently, etc. to the point that they essentially repeat "history") that it makes the rest of the book predictable and boring. it is too bad because the premise and the original question have great potential to be fascinating.

The Secret is about ..... well, it's not really a secret, is it? You would have to be an idiot not to learn what the secret is in the first chapter or two. Mostly because the protagonist mentions it as something really horrible! (Anyone living through the current backlash against genetic science will end up guessing it right quick).

But does knowing the secret take the wind out of your sails? No, it's not a detective novel. Those who find it boring find it so because they can't relate to the main character, a young woman. Those that can relate do enjoy the book. I was interested in how she unravels the knowledge herself, and what she does with that knowledge.

The book is philosophical, though not pedantic. If you like reading introspective stories, and literature that makes you use your head (and exercise your emotions), you'll enjoy "The Secret".

A good read!

This book was bought on a whim - picked it up and the blurb sounded interesting. I am a SciFi reader, but this type of story would be enjoyed by any reader of more serious fiction. Unlike the other reviewer, I loved the writing style - written as a flow of conciousness - passionate and moving - yet coherent. The scientific concepts (and issues) are not new, but the investigation of identity, oedipal issues, social discourses and moral questioning seem fresh and personal. It reminds me of Philip K Dick's work, but a bit happier!

The subject of Eva Hoffman's book, The Secret, is certainly thought provoking. The question of how an individual can cope with the fact of being a clon can be fascinating. The situation of mother and daughter so much alike raises interesting psychological situations.
Ms. Hoffman in her book touches all the right problems, but somehow she leaves it all on the surface, never daring to explore the emotions of the characters in deep.
The book feels more like an account of events in the life of the heroine and it never reaches the level of a great novel.

This is a dreadful book: A girl, Iris the clone, whining through 263 pages how bad it is to be a clone. Eventually I just skipped huge parts of the book because it was just more of the same. To top it all off: Finally she finds some individuality by meeting Mr. Right. The least I had hoped for was the resolution, that it is not ALL in the genes, but no, not in this book.

I liked her first books

autobiographical 'lost in translation' for being so honest
so sincere,
her factographical 'exit to history' for being well researched,
well documented and having rare indights.

But this new book, 'Secret' I love. This is her first real
novel, science fiction, and I would compare her to Bradbury.

It is about people, not technology, but near future technology
is well extrapolated and credible. I think the reviwer who found her 'too wordy' missed a subtle humor and magic of the
mastery of language and description.

Not what you expect - I found myself skipping through long drawn out paragraphs and still following along. This is a book that could have been condensed into a short story.

Is it Enviroment or Genetics that designs our personality? If you believe in Enviroment than you will be dissapointed in this book.

Elizabeth Surrey told her daughter Iris that she once was a big shot Manhattan investment consultant, but burned out over the lies required to climb the ladder and over a city that was turning uglier by the nanosecond. Thus she quit and fled to this small college town near Chicago looking to start over. What she didn't tell Elizabeth was much about her daddy and that the child is a clone of the mother.

The twosome is best buddies, but relationships change in 2017 when Steven enters their lives. Elizabeth and Steven fall in love, but he cannot deal with what he feels is the abnormal relationship between his beloved and her twelve year old daughter. A confused Iris begins to learn more about her birthing and decides to leave home to investigate whether she has a soul of her own or just an extension of Elizabeth as she now knows she is her mother's clone.

THE SECRET will not be kept a secret for long as readers will receive a terrific philosophical science fiction tale that keeps the audience pondering questions of ethics and morality in modern science. The novel is no sound byte pandering by the political leaders, but instead is a deep first person account of a young individual wondering whether she has a soul, did her mother steal her soul, or did her mother give her part or all of her soul. Can she go to heaven? Fans will debate these issues and more while thinking of Phillip K. Dick (though Eva Hoffman's book contains no violence) especially DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP as one wonders whether Iris is Memorex or real.

Harriet Klausner