Couldn't Put it Down

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The Echo Wife pulled me in from the beginning. Readers are quickly introduced to Evelyn, an award winning scientist whose husband left her for her clone, Martine. Martine is both similar and the antithesis of Evelyn, thanks to Nathan's "improvements."

In tone, The Echo Wife reminded me of The Thirteenth Tale, The Twilight Zone, or Invasion of the Body Snatchers: it is set in the present day or near future with just enough of our familiar world to make the science fiction element feel eerie. I'd say the sci-fi here reminds me more of "magical realism" than "high fantasy" if I were to compare it to the fantasy genre, which is exactly the kind of science fiction I enjoy.

In addition to some plot twists I was NOT expecting, the story does a great job at exploring the idea of self; what characteristics are nature or nurture, how we wrestle with our strengths and our flaws, and how we love or hate ourselves. Evelyn is a bit of an antihero (which would normally bother me) but it works BEAUTIFULLY here with the existence of Martine. I did find the ending rather abrupt and felt there were some plot holes that could have been closed up, but even then I truly enjoyed getting lost in this novel.