Replica by Lauren Oliver
I LOVE Lauren Oliver’s Delirium series, so when i found out she has a new book coming out I was STOKED! Oliver’s new book is a dystopian about clones aka “Replica’s” where the two main characters. Lyra and Gemma, search for answers to the mysterious Haven. During their journey they uncover more than just the secrets they sought out; they discover their true self.
This book is unique in the way it was written. You can read it multiple ways – you can read Gemma’s story than Lyra’s, you can read Lyra’s story than Gemma’s, OR you can read it in alternating chapters. I chose the ladder – two bookmark style – which I feel the majority did as well. I chose this way as I didn’t want to know the whole story and then have to read it again, I felt like I would be demotivated to start over.. or worse spoil the book for myself. Looking back reading it this way I feel was a bad choice. I felt like I was re-reading every chapter twice towards the middle. And looking back at the little ‘spoiler alert’ content Lyra and Gemma’s stories provided each other, I wish I would have read then separately.
If you find yourself getting bored towards the middle, PLEASE keep going. There is a pretty BIG twist that I would be really surprised if anyone actually saw coming. This is what kept me sucked in and now, as i write this, find myself wishing I had the next book.
Synopsis
Two girls, two stories, one epic novel—now a New York Times bestseller!
From Lauren Oliver, New York Times bestselling author of Before I Fall and the Delirium trilogy, comes an epic, masterful novel that explores issues of individuality, identity, and humanity. Replica is a “flip book” that contains two narratives in one, and it is the first in a duology. Turn the book one way and read Lyra’s story; turn the book over and upside down and read Gemma’s story. The stories can be read separately, one after the other, or in alternating chapters. The two distinct parts of this astonishing novel combine to produce an unforgettable journey. Even the innovative book jacket mirrors and extends the reading experience.
Lyra’s story begins in the Haven Institute, a building tucked away on a private island off the coast of Florida that from a distance looks serene and even beautiful. But up close the locked doors, military guards, and biohazard suits tell a different story. In truth, Haven is a clandestine research facility where thousands of replicas, or human models, are born, raised, and observed. When a surprise attack is launched on Haven, two of its young experimental subjects—Lyra, or 24, and the boy known only as 72—manage to escape.
Gemma has been in and out of hospitals for as long as she can remember. A lonely teen, her life is circumscribed by home, school, and her best friend, April. But after she is nearly abducted by a stranger claiming to know her, Gemma starts to investigate her family’s past and discovers her father’s mysterious connection to the secretive Haven research facility. Hungry for answers, she travels to Florida, only to stumble upon two replicas and a completely new set of questions.
While the stories of Lyra and Gemma mirror each other, each contains breathtaking revelations critically important to the other story. Replica is an ambitious, thought-provoking masterwork.
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