Replica (Replica, #1) Review

**Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Australia for sending me a copy of the book in return for an honest review.

3 stars!!! So, this is a flip book. Essentially there are two books in one. I thought this was a unique concept. One side was Lyra's story while the other was Gemma's. I started off reading Lyra's part first and felt that Gemma's version filled in some of the blanks. However, I was expecting much more from this story but it kind of fell flat. Lyra is the girl from the Haven Institute. From her point of view, we get to see how the replicas live. They are looked after by the doctors and nurses. They follow a pretty strict regime and lead rather sheltered lives. From the descriptions and worldbuilding, we can somewhat guess that these clones are being used for some form of military experimentation purposes. But we don't if that is true as yet. The story then follows as to how Lyra escapes from the Institute after an attack. She then meets another replica, 72 and they are now on the run from government agents. Gemma, on the other hand, is a human girl who has been in and out of hospitals. She has never felt like she has belonged anywhere. She believes he father has something to do with the Haven Institute. On her way, to find answers, she meets Jake Witz. Together, they come across Lyra and 72. They then become embroiled in a conspiracy about the clones. There are various revelations that come to light and Gemma realises things are not what they seem. I actually liked Lyra's version more than Gemma's (although hers had more action). I liked seeing the inside of Haven and I actually felt sorry for her. I mean she lives in a world where one one loves or cares about her. She is basically disposable. I liked how she held on to the little things like her copy of the "Little Prince" and how she aspires to be more than what she is by learning how to read. She also wants to find out more about herself and what's going on in the institute. However, I wasn't a fan of her romance with 72. Her reasoning behind it was based more on lust then anything else. I felt it was just put there to pair off the characters. Gemma's version, I felt lacked something. There were times I could connect with her and other times not so much. I felt her part of the novel had a lot of info dumping. I think this book should have been written in the first person, that would have had a much bigger impact on this story. I really wanted to feel what the characters felt and not just read about it. Her part of the story tends to tie things up and gives a clearer picture of what is actually going on. But I felt the plot devices and twists were fairly predictable. I preferred Gemma and Perv's (Pete) relationship. It had a better foundation. I am glad that there was no love-geometry going on in the book. That would have been rather irritating. I did like reading about Gemma's family dynamics and her friendship with April. It lent authenticity to the story. I think a major flaw in this novel was the pacing. Because we got the story from two sets of views, there was a disconnect between the characters and the reader. I felt at times like I was reading the same thing all over again and felt like skipping those parts. Usually, I just breeze through a book. But sadly, this one took me forever to finish. I think the idea is great but the execution could have been done better. The writing was alright otherwise. Overall, I would say this was an enjoyable read. I wouldn't say it is the best out there. I look forward to reading the sequel !!!

#youngadult #LaurenOliver #scifi