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Identity
Three teenagers discover that they are part of a human clone experiment in this gripping mystery.
Cate, Jessica, and Louise are three very different girls who don't know each other and live hundreds of miles apart — yet their lives are linked in ways they can barely imagine. Could Louise's strange annual appointments with Dr. Jay have something to do with it? Is what Jessica once saw at the science museum the key? Or perhaps Cate’s own unusual family is the critical clue? As the secrets start to emerge and the puzzle unravels, the girls each have to face the devastating truth in their own unique ways.
Set in the near future, this intriguing book explores the all-too-human results of a scientific experiment that confronts the deepest and darkest taboos.
Cate, Jessica, and Louise are three very different girls who don't know each other and live hundreds of miles apart — yet their lives are linked in ways they can barely imagine. Could Louise's strange annual appointments with Dr. Jay have something to do with it? Is what Jessica once saw at the science museum the key? Or perhaps Cate’s own unusual family is the critical clue? As the secrets start to emerge and the puzzle unravels, the girls each have to face the devastating truth in their own unique ways.
Set in the near future, this intriguing book explores the all-too-human results of a scientific experiment that confronts the deepest and darkest taboos.
- GenresYoung Adult
233 pages, Paperback
First published March 4, 2010
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82 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 20, 2014
Firstly, I'd like to say that the book could have been a good book. The concept was interesting: Three girls from different families discover that they're linked to each other in a very special way. Louise, Jessica, Cate. I didn't get Cate or Louise, though I guess Jessica was a bit easier to understand. If I'd stuck with the book then I might have found myself enjoying it.
But the thing is, I didn't. And here's why.
When I abandon a book, I think carefully about that. It means that I'm never going back to that book, that I don't care about the ending, that I would rather not waste time on the book.
This book irritated me in more ways than one. First: The grammar. It was irritatingly annoying. I understand that British people use less commas in grammar, but that really put me off, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. I've always been one of those "Grammar Queens", and the grammar I was familiar with did not match up with the grammar displayed in this book. Completely based on opinion. Maybe you're a British reader and it's natural to you.
Second, the plot picked up extremely slowly. I started chapter 1, which I think was Louise, but it was boring. Yes, it was boring. It was something about a girl going to the doctor and doing some weird check-up. The back was interesting. I think the readers were expecting a little more than a description of a check-up. Which leads us into my next point.
I am the kind of reader who prefers the author to show what is happening. For the chapters I bothered to read, it was all tell. Well, for the most part. And the minimal show parts were unnecessary. The dialogue felt forced; it wasn't natural. The plotline felt forced. It was as if the author had some great idea and then couldn't find a way to start the story, so they added fillers. That was what the first few chapters felt like to me. Fillers. The information presented didn't make me feel intrigued. I wanted more. I expected more.
Everything that I stated was mostly based on my opinion. If you don't agree, then fine. And I think that it could have turned out to be a successful book. I just didn't connect with the book a lot, which was a shame.
But the thing is, I didn't. And here's why.
When I abandon a book, I think carefully about that. It means that I'm never going back to that book, that I don't care about the ending, that I would rather not waste time on the book.
This book irritated me in more ways than one. First: The grammar. It was irritatingly annoying. I understand that British people use less commas in grammar, but that really put me off, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. I've always been one of those "Grammar Queens", and the grammar I was familiar with did not match up with the grammar displayed in this book. Completely based on opinion. Maybe you're a British reader and it's natural to you.
Second, the plot picked up extremely slowly. I started chapter 1, which I think was Louise, but it was boring. Yes, it was boring. It was something about a girl going to the doctor and doing some weird check-up. The back was interesting. I think the readers were expecting a little more than a description of a check-up. Which leads us into my next point.
I am the kind of reader who prefers the author to show what is happening. For the chapters I bothered to read, it was all tell. Well, for the most part. And the minimal show parts were unnecessary. The dialogue felt forced; it wasn't natural. The plotline felt forced. It was as if the author had some great idea and then couldn't find a way to start the story, so they added fillers. That was what the first few chapters felt like to me. Fillers. The information presented didn't make me feel intrigued. I wanted more. I expected more.
Everything that I stated was mostly based on my opinion. If you don't agree, then fine. And I think that it could have turned out to be a successful book. I just didn't connect with the book a lot, which was a shame.
June 21, 2020
"Why did you do it? Because you could, because it was possible, because you couldn't bloody resist, because you didn't care what it would mean, how we'd feel?"
I loved this book when I was younger and am glad I decided to reread it. I loved the characters of Cate and Louise, and thought they were very well-written. Jessica I really didn't like, mostly because of her attitude towards animals and animal rights, and I also didn't think her reactions towards the end when everything started to be revealed were believable. This meant I didn't feel for her the way I did for Cate and Louise, but they were still all interesting characters and it worked well that they were all so different.
This time around I was more aware that the writing wasn't that great - the overuse of exclamation marks grated on me in particular - and I also didn't like the way that, even though it wasn't a huge aspect of the book, mental illness was talked about and essentially trivialised. These two points are what stopped me from giving five stars. I still, though, really enjoyed the story. It was a fascinating exploration of science, ethics, family and identity, and one that has always stuck with me. I also didn't pick up when I first read it on the hints that it might be set in the future, which added a really interesting dimension, though I do wish this had been clarified and expanded upon!
I loved this book when I was younger and am glad I decided to reread it. I loved the characters of Cate and Louise, and thought they were very well-written. Jessica I really didn't like, mostly because of her attitude towards animals and animal rights, and I also didn't think her reactions towards the end when everything started to be revealed were believable. This meant I didn't feel for her the way I did for Cate and Louise, but they were still all interesting characters and it worked well that they were all so different.
This time around I was more aware that the writing wasn't that great - the overuse of exclamation marks grated on me in particular - and I also didn't like the way that, even though it wasn't a huge aspect of the book, mental illness was talked about and essentially trivialised. These two points are what stopped me from giving five stars. I still, though, really enjoyed the story. It was a fascinating exploration of science, ethics, family and identity, and one that has always stuck with me. I also didn't pick up when I first read it on the hints that it might be set in the future, which added a really interesting dimension, though I do wish this had been clarified and expanded upon!
February 13, 2015
Whilst reading Fallout by Sandra Glover, and being impressed with the story etc, I discovered she had also written a story for YA’s that involved the subject of human cloning! Wow, I thought, and grabbed it from the library. But my enthusiasm only dropped when I began to read it.
It started out ok, involving a girl who was being taken to a special clinic for an annual check-up. There, she met her doctor and the reader was subjected to a rather dull question and answer session. From then on the story appeared to go nowhere and I couldn’t help wonder if this was the author’s old high school attempt at telling a story. This book had lots of dialogue, too much in fact. It was also set in an unclear future where oil is scarce, and as far as I could see there was no real plot other than the girl (or girls) eventually finding out they are clones.
Pity.
It started out ok, involving a girl who was being taken to a special clinic for an annual check-up. There, she met her doctor and the reader was subjected to a rather dull question and answer session. From then on the story appeared to go nowhere and I couldn’t help wonder if this was the author’s old high school attempt at telling a story. This book had lots of dialogue, too much in fact. It was also set in an unclear future where oil is scarce, and as far as I could see there was no real plot other than the girl (or girls) eventually finding out they are clones.
Pity.
April 30, 2013
I would like to think this book was targeted towards a younger audience because it's the type of book I would have enjoyed when I was twelve.
This book was very predictable and the writing poor. The characters were badly written and I found them vapid. I did not care about anything that happened to them at all. There was a lot of pointless details that were added into the story and I found myself skimming the pages just so I can confirm what I already knew was going to happen.
This book was very predictable and the writing poor. The characters were badly written and I found them vapid. I did not care about anything that happened to them at all. There was a lot of pointless details that were added into the story and I found myself skimming the pages just so I can confirm what I already knew was going to happen.
September 16, 2010
The detail in this book was brilliant, along with a plot I havn't come across before.
I liked Jessica the most and would've loved it more if it had more about her and more of Kal in it, as it seemed in the end he was pointless, but I think she could have gone futher with him!
I definatly recommend this to all! :)
I liked Jessica the most and would've loved it more if it had more about her and more of Kal in it, as it seemed in the end he was pointless, but I think she could have gone futher with him!
I definatly recommend this to all! :)
June 21, 2011
Normally, I would have put this down early on, but it was fairly mindless and that's what I needed at the time. This is definitely reluctant reader material, but I felt it lacked in plot and character development. I found myself skimming in parts just to move the story along.
I feel mean.
I feel mean.
June 25, 2011
I have read books I liked more, but I did enjoy it. I did guess what the secret was way before the main characters did, but that's probably more to do with the title then the book giving away too much.
December 31, 2011
I found this book rather confusing at first but soon got the story line. It was a very interesting story with lots of twist, taking the readers in many different directions throughout the book. I would definitely recommened this book to anyone between the age of 13 - 15
September 18, 2010
It was very easy to predict and the ending was sort of rushed.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews