Replication: The Jason Experiment (2013) - Plot & Excerpts
This unique story about cloning had very compelling twists. The plot is fun and entertaining because of the humor. It is also provoking because it wrestles with weightier ideas like with finding meaning in your existence and human’s desire to control health and longevity. As soon as I picked it up I knew it was exactly the kind of book I wanted to enjoy my weekend. I read it quickly and was not disappointed. Ever since her first day of school after moving to Fishhook, Alaska, Abby has been fending off the advances of J.D. Kane. He may be the best looking guy in school…maybe even the smartest, but he’s far too aggressive for comfort. So when she finds a boy who looks just like J.D. –minus his hair – in her room, Abby is stunned, angry, and little afraid. But those emotions will only grow as she comes to realize that this boy, called Martyr, will complicate her life and expose secrets others are willing to kill to keep hidden.You expect there to be a lot of crazy things in science fiction. It’s a given of the genre. What shocked me about Replication was how easy it was to believe in the crazy. Between the cover and the first few pages of the book, it’s not really a spoiler to call this a book about cloning. The concept of cloning already has one foot in reality, so perhaps that is why the events of Replication felt so disturbingly real. I can completely buy into the idea of an underground cloning facility hidden in a rural Alaskan town. The lies fed to the boys to keep them under control and underground sound almost plausible, and, if it wasn’t for Martyr’s curiosity, there didn’t seem to be any reason for Jason Farms to fail.The characters are this story’s strongest point. For such a secret organization to exist, function, and remain hidden requires a certain kind of a person. Each scientist and his motivation was clearly and clever drawn. From ego to evil, each man fit together into the backbone of the lab. Martyr himself made for one of the most compelling characters I’ve met this year. Both innocent and intuitive, he is spectacular picture of humanity at its most basic level. My favorite scene in the book is when, following Abby’s earlier example, Martyr prays for the first time. His complete acceptance of God from the moment he heard about Him is beautiful. Abby is skillfully drawn as the teenage daughter of a brilliant scientist who inherited her fair share of brains. Unable to leave things alone and far less sneaky than she thinks she is, Abby brings a great deal of humor to what could have otherwise been a fairly dark book. Lately there have been more and more calls for strong female characters in science fiction and fantasy, and I think Abby more than fits the bill.While the story is told from the eyes of two teenagers, the content of this book is actually very mature. From the awkwardness that ensues from Martyr’s lack of socialization, to J.D.’s blatant attempts to seduce Abby, to conversations about a rape, I feel the content warning on this book is higher than most people might expect from young adult science fiction. All of the above are handled very tastefully and exist to serve the plot rather than for shock value, but this definitely isn’t a good candidate for anyone younger than late teens.Reblogged from my site: myrdan.comMy thanks to Zondervan for providing me a review copy of Replication, in return for my honest opinion of this book.
What do You think about Replication: The Jason Experiment (2013)?
I really liked it! It was very interesting, and everyday I would find time to read it.
—Nurse1983
