Grade: A-Every year we come across several YA novels that have an artificial life-form storyline. While many are heavily Sci-Fi based, a few will attempt to explore the possible by-product of a soul. Sangu Mandanna's The Lost Girl successfully manages to do just that.
A group of three, known as The Weavers, create copies of existing people. The purpose of these "echoes" is to replace the original person, should they die before their time. Raised by guardians, the echo grows up knowing that they are not the original and must be trained to dress, act, and think like them. Echoes also know that they are illegal in many countries and hunted by vigilantes who think they are abominations.
Eva knows that her life is not her own and someday she may have to replace a living girl named Amarra who lives in India. Going thorough her lessons and hoping that she will never have to step in, she secretly harbors desires to study art and fall in love. Unfortunately, Amarra dies in an accident and Eva is sent to India where she must act as the dutiful daughter and loyal friend. But the trouble really begins when she meet Amarra's boyfriend, Ray. Having seen Amarra's body at the accident and knowing that she had a secret, he becomes suspicious of Eva. Soon, her true identity is revealed and her life is at stake.
As we were reading The Lost Girl, we saw vestiges of Blade Runner and The Adoration of Jenna Fox. Frankenstein is often referenced and actually a book that the echoes are forbidden to read. There are some good discussion questions in this one so it would be a great pick for a book club. We only wish that the book had ended as strongly as it began. We think the runaway love story got a bit in the way toward the end, but it's still worth the read.
Next Up: The Prey (book 2 of The Hunt)- Feb. 1st
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