DNFed at page 43.
First, let me talk about the writing style. Nobody is given a name right off. They are known by their occupations: biographer, mender, daughter, etc. And that is how they are constantly referred to. In its efforts to be edgy and unique, it is bizarre and hard to follow. The writing goes from straight forward to flowery and almost high. The chapters are interspersed with excerpts from a book the biographer was writing about a 160 year old female explorer, and they seemed to have nothing to do with the book itself. Unless they were so deep in meaning I couldn't grasp them.
The background history is that the U.S. got a whacko president that enacted the Personhood Amendment, which means a fetus (or even just the initial cluster of cells) has rights from conception. Invitro is outlawed because a fetus cannot concent to implantation. Abortionists can be charged with second degree murder, and anyone wanting one can be charged with conspiracy. There is also the "Every Child Needs Two" act, which means nobody can adopt unless they are in a marriage. Single parent adoption is illegal.
That sounds unique, right? (And a little scary, given the way some uber-Republicans are acting). But I take issue with the whole concept of the Personhood Amendment. If it's all about a fetus' rights, then it sort of defeats itself. A fetus cannot even concent to birth, so unless the clump of mindless cells stays just that way, it is a moot point. What if the baby didn't want to be born but was anyway? We could even go so far as to say the soul didn't want to be conceived. It's a slippery, ridiculous slope.
And the illegal adoption stuff is also stupid. We have far too many children in foster care for me to ever halfway believe this would come to fruition. This book seems to want me to believe every Democrat and Independent in the country suddenly disappeared and we also gave up our constitutional rights to autonomy.
This books wants so badly to be different and fancy, but it's putting lipstick on a pig. It's a hot mess. None of the characters were likeable. The writing was like a tangled Christmas light strand. It's some sort of feminist wannabe. I love feminism. I hate this book.
Shitty writing + very unbelievable plot = resale pile
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