I read a sci-fi that was compared to stuff by Blake Crouch! It was called The Mirror Man by Jane Gilmartin.
Synopsis: The offer is too tempting: be part of a scientific breakthrough, step out of his life for a year, and be paid hugely for it. When ViGen Pharmaceuticals asks Jeremiah to be part of an illegal cloning experiment, he sees it as a break from an existence he feels disconnected from. No one will know he’s been replaced—not the son who ignores him, not his increasingly distant wife—since a revolutionary drug called Meld can transfer his consciousness and memories to his copy.
From a luxurious apartment, he watches the clone navigate his day-to-day life. But soon Jeremiah discovers that examining himself from an outsider’s perspective isn’t what he thought it would be, and he watches in horror as “his” life spirals out of control. ViGen needs the experiment to succeed—they won’t call it off, and are prepared to remove any obstacle. With his family in danger, Jeremiah needs to finally find the courage to face himself head-on.
I enjoyed this book for the most part. Would I compare it to Blake Crouch? Not exactly, but I can see where those vibes came from. I think the fact that I have read Blake Crouch books before this one made it very predictable and I was calling all the things that happened before they did. That is why is brought down the rating for me.
I believe that someone coming into this with no prior knowledge of Crouch’s books would love it and find themselves completely captured in the story. It is also similar to a book called Foe by Iain Reid which is another great one.
The concept is really cool and it would be so intense if clones were a reality. I like the little touches thrown in there to prove that the clone can’t always be “exactly” the same. I found that the characters could use a little bit more development because when big things happened, I didn’t feel that attached. That being said, when his mother was discussed and grown as a character, I related and felt she was very similar to my grandmother which brought the attachment and had me reminiscing on times with her.
Overall, the book is a good one for any SciFi fan that wants to see a new story told with cloning and consequences!
Book Rating: 3/5
You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.
Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by Harper Collins in ebook format to read and give an honest review.
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It’s that time of year again where we take our final exams for the Magical Readathon and this will be the last one because G from Book Roast will be switching it up which is sad but understandable. So these are all the books I will be reading for my NEWT exams. Check out the video below:
Thanks so much for your review of my novel, The Mirror Man. You are the first one that’s mentioned the main character’s mother and I was so happy to see that… as she developed, she became one of my favorite parts of the book so I was happy you connected with her! I appreciate your reading, and really appreciate the time you took to write about it. Thanks so much, and take care!
Thanks for writing the book 🙂. I’m happy I got to read it and experience this fun twist on a scifi clone story.