Matteo Alacran was not born; he was harvested from the DNA of one of the most powerful people on Earth. Matt’s DNA is from a man called El Patron, the lord of a country called Opium- a strip of poppy fields lying between The United States that was once called Mexico. Matt was a science experiment, grown in the womb of a cow until he was born. He is now a boy, but considered a monster by most people. That is, except for El Patron. El Patron loves Matt because Matt is himself.

Since Matt is one of the most hated and feared “people” in the whole country, he grew up in isolation with his caretaker, a women by the name of Celia. Celia did her best during Matt’s childhood to protect him from all of his enemies and to help him feel like a real kid. Most of Matt’s young life was spent shielded and was kept quiet. Everything seemed normal to Matt until one day the mighty El Patron comes to visit Matt’s shack. Celia learns that Matt is “needed” by El Patron. She discovers that El Patron needs Matt for only one reason; an organ transplant to save the drug lords’ life.

Tattooed on Matt’s foot is “Property of the Alctran State” symbolizing that Matt is part of, and owned, by El Patron. Matt gets moved to the “Big House”, El Patron’s private mansion, where he learns of his fate. The Alctran’s try to shower Matt with gifts and try to confuse him into thinking that El Patron needs him for more than his body parts to keep him alive. Because of Matt’s value to El Patron, he is assigned a bodyguard by the name of Tam Lin. Tam Lin soon becomes one of Matt’s closest friends and allies. One day Tam Lin takes Matt horseback riding to see the land of Opium, he is horrified with what he finds. Matt vows to change the future of Opium at any cost.

House of Scorpion is one of my all-time favorite books for so many reasons. Just the right amount of suspense keeps the reader turning the pages for hours on end. Anyone who enjoyed Harry Potter or Divergent would fall in love with this thriller by Nancy Farmer. House of Scorpion is the perfect blend of science fiction and action with just a hint of romance. I would rate this book extremely highly, a 9.5/10. This novel keeps the reader guessing and anticipating Matt’s fate until the very last page.