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A review by sr_toliver
The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna
4.0
Eva is like Frankenstein's monster, stitched and created. She is an echo, a clone who is created at the request of a family (called familiars) who couldn't bear to lose any one of their children. In this society, Weavers create the Echoes and have them raised by Guardians in lands far away from the person they are supposed to copy. But, even though they are raised away from their human, they must still learn to act, think, speak, write, love, and present the way their human does. They read weekly journals; they are required to obtain any superficial marks (tattoos, but not painful accidents like dog bites); they are supposed to learn all that they can about the person they must be in the event that the human dies unexpectedly. They are supposed to assume the human's role so well that friends and family members would never know that the original had been replaced.
Eva is raised to mirror Amarra, but even though she knows what she is supposed to do, she constantly rebels against a system telling her who to be. In fact, she is supposed to share a name with her human, but instead she chose to be called Eva, clearly separating herself from the person she is supposed to be like. Throughout the novel, she defies laws that could get her 'unstitched' (since she was 'stitched' together, the Weavers can undo her existence fairly easily). She understands the consequences, but the search for her identity is much more important than their laws. But, what price will she pay to truly gain the freedom to define who she is and who she wants to be?
What I loved about the novel was the character development. There isn't a lot of action in the story to have anyone on the edge of their seats, but there is an element of thoughtfulness to the approach Mandanna took in ensuring that the reader sees nuances to character identity. For example, I never got a chance to 'meet' Amarra in the story, but through her actions, through the way other character's reacted to her passing, and through the way her family reacted to Eva told me a lot about her.
This book was clearly an #ownvoices text. Mandanna pulls from her life experiences to create the world seen in the novel. For instance, Mandanna currently lives in Norwich and was raised in Bangalore. She seemed to draw from these settings to create the backdrop for the story that was authentic and not superficial. In fact, the setting was a character in a way. The story was mostly set in London and Bangalore (officially known as Bengaluru), and these were not just minute details that were mentioned and then left alone to discuss the story. These two places were greatly important, providing a background that gave the story intense richness and cultural nuance.
Diversity Elements
Women are prominently featured in the text - the protagonist, her main Guardian, one of the Weavers, etc. - but they are all different, not always falling into typical gender norms
Eva, Mina Ma, Amarra and Amarra's family (Alisha, Neil, Nikhil, and Sasha) are of Indian decent
Eva is raised to mirror Amarra, but even though she knows what she is supposed to do, she constantly rebels against a system telling her who to be. In fact, she is supposed to share a name with her human, but instead she chose to be called Eva, clearly separating herself from the person she is supposed to be like. Throughout the novel, she defies laws that could get her 'unstitched' (since she was 'stitched' together, the Weavers can undo her existence fairly easily). She understands the consequences, but the search for her identity is much more important than their laws. But, what price will she pay to truly gain the freedom to define who she is and who she wants to be?
What I loved about the novel was the character development. There isn't a lot of action in the story to have anyone on the edge of their seats, but there is an element of thoughtfulness to the approach Mandanna took in ensuring that the reader sees nuances to character identity. For example, I never got a chance to 'meet' Amarra in the story, but through her actions, through the way other character's reacted to her passing, and through the way her family reacted to Eva told me a lot about her.
This book was clearly an #ownvoices text. Mandanna pulls from her life experiences to create the world seen in the novel. For instance, Mandanna currently lives in Norwich and was raised in Bangalore. She seemed to draw from these settings to create the backdrop for the story that was authentic and not superficial. In fact, the setting was a character in a way. The story was mostly set in London and Bangalore (officially known as Bengaluru), and these were not just minute details that were mentioned and then left alone to discuss the story. These two places were greatly important, providing a background that gave the story intense richness and cultural nuance.
Diversity Elements
Women are prominently featured in the text - the protagonist, her main Guardian, one of the Weavers, etc. - but they are all different, not always falling into typical gender norms
Eva, Mina Ma, Amarra and Amarra's family (Alisha, Neil, Nikhil, and Sasha) are of Indian decent