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Fallow: A Novel
Not yet published
Expected 15 Sep 26Slyly funny and disarmingly tender, Fallow is the story of a young woman who signs up to be the world’s first in-house corporate surrogate, then finds herself caught up in a social experiment of another kind.
Natalie knows one There is no such thing as a good job.
As the clock ticks away at the workplace harassment call center, she tries to ignore the increasing pain in her jaw. She has no dental insurance. She has no skills or ambitions. She has student loans. And, minute by minute, she hears the many ways workers are not just not getting by, but actually getting hustled.
Then, at the blood bank where she sells her plasma, a mysterious flyer leads her to The Company. Natalie turns out to be the perfect candidate for their pilot in-house surrogate. The Company pitches it as an opportunity to help women access greater gender equity, motherhood without maternity leave. Finally, she will be adequately—generously—compensated.
For years, her every need is stacks of healthy meals in the refrigerator of a luxury condo, fitness coaches and nutritionists, around-the-clock healthcare. Between deliveries, she takes time off—no obligations or expectations. For the first time in her life, she is good at her job; for the first time, she feels free.
But just as she’s about to fulfill the terms of her contract, a staffing decision upends everything and drags her deep into another social experiment. There she meets new questions about her future, her freedom, her purpose, and what she can expect from the world.
Woundingly funny and deeply moving, Sarah Anderson’s Fallow is a tender, hilarious, alarmingly real vision of a woman balancing on the knife-edge of capitalism as she comes to realize who she wants to be.
Natalie knows one There is no such thing as a good job.
As the clock ticks away at the workplace harassment call center, she tries to ignore the increasing pain in her jaw. She has no dental insurance. She has no skills or ambitions. She has student loans. And, minute by minute, she hears the many ways workers are not just not getting by, but actually getting hustled.
Then, at the blood bank where she sells her plasma, a mysterious flyer leads her to The Company. Natalie turns out to be the perfect candidate for their pilot in-house surrogate. The Company pitches it as an opportunity to help women access greater gender equity, motherhood without maternity leave. Finally, she will be adequately—generously—compensated.
For years, her every need is stacks of healthy meals in the refrigerator of a luxury condo, fitness coaches and nutritionists, around-the-clock healthcare. Between deliveries, she takes time off—no obligations or expectations. For the first time in her life, she is good at her job; for the first time, she feels free.
But just as she’s about to fulfill the terms of her contract, a staffing decision upends everything and drags her deep into another social experiment. There she meets new questions about her future, her freedom, her purpose, and what she can expect from the world.
Woundingly funny and deeply moving, Sarah Anderson’s Fallow is a tender, hilarious, alarmingly real vision of a woman balancing on the knife-edge of capitalism as she comes to realize who she wants to be.
Kindle Edition
Expected publication September 15, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
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February 6, 2026Loved her short stories, Take Me to Kirkland (Joyland) and Left (Epiphany SS20), so I am super excited to read her novel!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
(free review copy) I fully admit that the title and that beautiful cow are what made me read this book way before the hundreds of other books I have on hand, despite the far-future release date. Also, it seemed like it would have great "capitalism sucks" and "big corporate is evil" and "pregnancy is complicated" and "pretty weird" vibes, which I am ALWAYS down for.
And readers, it DID! And it was original and funny and complex and its main character was the very elusive combination of unlikeable but vulnerable and I felt like maybe I want to be her mom? This book is fully in the NOT FOR EVERYONE category, but I think if you liked Moderation and strangely enough, Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism, you would love this? It was refreshingly biting and I adored how Anderson wove in the story of Natalie's own family dynamics and her mother's numerous pregnancies to help readers understand why Natalie may act and feel the way she does.
The latter half of the book was a sharp shift from the first, but I loved it for so many reasons that you shouldn't know before reading the book. Just know that things shift, and there is a narrative and character development arc that I honestly NEVER saw coming.
Loved it, can't wait to see what Anderson writes next! Please include another animal with big eyes on the cover please, whatever it is
Source: free digital review copy via Edelweiss
And readers, it DID! And it was original and funny and complex and its main character was the very elusive combination of unlikeable but vulnerable and I felt like maybe I want to be her mom? This book is fully in the NOT FOR EVERYONE category, but I think if you liked Moderation and strangely enough, Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism, you would love this? It was refreshingly biting and I adored how Anderson wove in the story of Natalie's own family dynamics and her mother's numerous pregnancies to help readers understand why Natalie may act and feel the way she does.
The latter half of the book was a sharp shift from the first, but I loved it for so many reasons that you shouldn't know before reading the book. Just know that things shift, and there is a narrative and character development arc that I honestly NEVER saw coming.
Loved it, can't wait to see what Anderson writes next! Please include another animal with big eyes on the cover please, whatever it is
Source: free digital review copy via Edelweiss
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks to Netgalley and FSG for the ebook. Natalie hates her job at a call center for people who specifically complain about their employers, for both petty offenses and horrific deeds. Natalie, with student loans, poor salary and no dental insurance for her four impacted wisdom teeth is giving plasma as often as she can when she hears about an experimental program that might pay her even more money. It turns out that there’s a huge corporation that is tired of dealing with their female employees and the issues around maternity leave. Why not just hire a woman to have babies for them. Finally being offered real money, she jumps at the chance. She signs up for birthing seven children over a ten year period for a large yearly salary, housing and bonus for completion. Finally Natalie has gotten her dream: To not have to work at all. Between pregnancies she eats unhealthy foods until she’s ill and drinks and takes drugs until she blacks out. With one more baby to deliver her life takes a dramatic change that will finally make her question what she’s done and try and figure out what she wants from this life.
Review of advance copy received from Author
My brilliant friend Sarah wrote this and it was genuinely my favorite thing I read last year. Fallow is sharp, irreverent and totally original. Read for all the hits: modern work culture, capitalism, bodily autonomy and motherhood, and of course, a sprinkling of cultishness.All of this and more is balanced deftly with a propulsive energy that makes Fallow impossible to put down, led by an aimless main character who you ultimately can’t help but root for— that’s Sarah’s magic.
It’s out in September but you can pre-order it now— future you will thank you!
https://bookshop.org/p/books/fallow-a...
It’s out in September but you can pre-order it now— future you will thank you!
https://bookshop.org/p/books/fallow-a...
Review of advance copy
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews