Thursday, August 18, 2016

The Originals

The Originals

The Originals by Cat Patrick is about 3 girls who are identical triplets... or at least they were. Lizzie, Ella and Betsey take turns going to school, and everyone else thinks they are the same person- Elizabeth Best. In actuality, the girls are clones- raised by their mother and hidden, so that the outside world thinks there is just a single mother and her daughter. The story is told from the perspective of Lizzie, and everything is going normally for the girls until Lizzie starts to fall for Sean Kelly, the guy in her Creative Writing class.

Things get complicated when Sean asks Lizzie to lunch. The girls aren't allowed to date but with Lizzie and Ella both having guys they're interested in they begin to push back. Lizzie finds her budding relationship with Sean in jeopardy and decides to take matters into her own hands. On top of that, she begins to suspect their mother is not what she seems- or has secrets to hide. When clues begin to emerge that there is more to their mother than meets the eye, they resolve to find out the truth and take their life back.

I liked this story a lot, it was compulsively readable. The plot seemed pretty farfetched- I mean, how would this ever work?- but I was pleasantly surprised. How would something like this work? What happens when one girl falls for a guy, and the other two see him? And what exactly is the deal with their mother that she would put them through this? I wanted to know the answer to that. While I suspect most seventeen year old girls in this situation would have rebelled or pushed back long ago, or at least been less tolerant of their mother, the story seemed pretty realistic, and I enjoyed reading about the high school situations they found themselves in. The girls each have distinct personalities, and Sean adds a nice touch to the story.

I liked the three sisters and their dynamic- they can feel each others' distress, there is almost a telepathic connection between them- but the science fiction elements are pretty much limited to that. The story is mainly a coming of age story with a twist. The premise may seen a little silly but it's played straight and the writing makes it fun and compelling. I really liked how events come together and it gets a little tense at the end- but the ending is well done and touching. 

19 comments:

  1. I remember hearing about this author but I haven't tried any of her books, this one looks interesting!

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    1. It is a pretty interesting read! Thanks for stopping by.

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  2. Oh wow, this sounds amazing and so original! I am interested in the way you described the writing -- in how it made a very out-of-left-field premise work.

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    1. Yes this could have been very silly- but she played the idea straight and I thought it worked. :) Thanks for the comment! I enjoyed this one.

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  3. I didn't know this, but it sounds really intriguing! I'll definitely add it to my TBR, so thanks for the review!

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  4. A great review. I've seen this book at the library, and I plan to pick it up the next time I am see it!

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  5. The blurb didn't grab me at all because I don't love the whole clone concept or that the main characters are high school age BUT your review definitely changed my mind. This sounds really intriguing and I like the compulsively readable description. I'll have to look for this one. Thanks for changing my mind!

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    1. I think it's a good read and the mystery behind what their mother was up to had me really curious. I hope you like it if you give it a shot.

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  6. Seriously, you had me at identical triplets/clones.

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    1. I know, right? This one had me too after I read the blurb.

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  7. Whoa, that's a really strange, unique premise! I was thinking though that despite the clone thing, it didn't sound very science fiction-y, and then you mentioned that lol. It does sound like it would be a fun read though, and something I haven't seen before. Glad you enjoyed it!

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    1. I know! It could have been a train wreck but it was actually quite good. And very little scifi other than the obvious cloning and the telepathy thing.

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  8. What an interesting plot! I'm glad to hear that the author pulled it off well, and that the book was such a page-turner!

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  9. I have this on my TBR and you definitely make me want to read it even more! Glad the premise was done relatively believably!

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  10. My mom is an identical twin. In high school they were always passing for each other. Because of that the description sounds pretty entertaining to me. Great review and thanks for bring The Originals to my attention.

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  11. This does sound quite fascinating, but I always wondered if it was *too* out there, which I suppose it isn't, from your review! I mean, just the whole psychology of keeping the girls hidden makes me want to read it- as does the idea of clones, because the concept of cloning is creepy, but also very intriguing! Great review, I think I will need to give this a try at some point!

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  12. I remember seeing this book around but I never knew what the plot was about! This sounds really excellent and I know what you mean: it could have gone wrong in terms of plausibility but in the hands of a capable author it could be awesome - just like it sounds like it was here! Great review :)

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