I didn't think this book delivered the page-turning suspense that it could have. I also think it lacks a grounding for the reader to understand the world in which it is set. It was short on character development, and I think there could have been more story overall in regards to the people in the book, clients, hosts, everyone. Not poorly written, but maybe too rushed or focused on the wrong things, leaving me uninvested in the outcomes.

This book just wasn’t my cup of tea. I was really hoping for a good dystopian storyline maybe even on the same level as The Handmaids Tale. But it really just didn’t come off in the manner I had hoped.

I put this book aside many times thinking maybe it just wasn’t the right time. But had the same feelings each time I came back.
I ended up skimming the final third hoping to find something redeeming that would make me slow down and capture my interest. For this reason I will not be submitting this review to social media - Goodreads.

I may not have been the right reader for this book as there are many positive reviews to be found.

This thought provoking novel took me a minute to get into but once I was in I was hooked. I was rooting for these mothers! The subjects touched on in this work of fiction seem less fictional and more real life than I care to admit. It’s unsettling to say the least. This book touches on subjects highlighted in our media today and encourages conversation while showing us one of the possible outcomes.

The novel is very much character driven which is sometimes difficult for me to appreciate fully, I love a good fast paced story, but the subject matter kept my rapt attention.

This book needs to be in the book clubs. It needs to be discussed and read though thoroughly. A must read.

Thank You to Random House Publishing Group for providing me with a copy of Joanne Ramos’ novel, The Farm, in exchange for an honest review.

Jane Reyes is in a desperate situation. She is a young Filipino immigrant who has recently left her cheating husband and is trying to raise her baby, Amalia. Jane’s older cousin, Evelyn, who is affectionately known as “Ate”, has made a lucrative living as a live-in nanny for wealthy American couples. Ate guides Jane in the ways of working with both babies and their high-maintenance parents, but financially Jane is still struggling. Ate tells her about an opportunity to work as a surrogate for “Golden Acres”.

Golden Acres is the premier surrogacy center, offering wealthy clients carefully selected surrogates, young women that are not only healthy, but who are also attractive, with many holding upper-education degrees. The financial rewards are irresistible and Jane will spend the pregnancy in luxury accommodations with top-of-the-line nutrition and care. The only hitch, is she will be separated from Amalia, who will live in Ate’s care. Jane decides that it is the right move for the future of her family, yet she quickly realizes that Golden Acres, isn’t what it seems.

The Farm is a solid drama, filled with themes of family ties and economic disparity. Jane is a woman who will do anything to secure the future for her daughter. She spends most of the story blinded by her own goals and angry at Ate, who is also struggling to secure a future for her children, including an adult disabled son who lives in the Philippines. Perhaps it’s a case of lashing out at those who you love the most, because Jane is pissed off at Ate, not understanding Ate’s motives until late in the story. However, Jane is not upset by Reagan, a fellow surrogate whom Jane befriends at Golden Oaks.

Reagan is the polar opposite of Jane. She is college educated and dreams of becoming a photographer. Reagan is motivated by both money and altruism. Jane needs the money for her family. yet Reagan needs the money to come out from under the control of her family, specifically so she won’t be beholden to her father as she pursues an MFA. Being a surrogate is not social acceptable in Reagan’s world, so she justifies the act, by focusing on the family that she is helping. At Golden Oaks, Reagan meets women, who like Jane, are from an economically disadvantaged background and its affects her profoundly. This is likely the first time in her life that Reagan has been truly been confronted by her privilege. Compared to Jane, Reagan’s reasons for wanting the surrogacy payout, seem frivolous, yet Jane doesn’t harbor resentment. Jane saves all of her resentment for Ate., a woman as desperate as she is.

This tension between the characters brought a complex dynamic to the story. I also liked how Ramos played with the morality issues of Golden Oaks, such as having certain surrogates (primarily caucasian/beautiful/educated) as premium choices and stickiness of acknowledging that these traits being more desirable is not social acceptable. Mae Yu, the intense founder of Golden Oaks, is constantly having to balance the business of surrogacy, with the human impact = surrogates, would-be-parents (clients) and the unborn babies. One situation has a surrogate who is Catholic, needing to be put under while a doctor aborts her baby. Golden Oaks knew that the surrogate would have a moral objection to the situation, yet with a genetic abnormality, the decision of the client is to abort and implant again. The surrogate’s feelings are eliminated from the equation.

The surrogates may be treated well, but this only extends to as long as they are compliant and do everything in their power to take care of the client’s baby, including following strict dietary and activities rules. The surrogates are often kept in the dark about their clients identity and the staff at Golden Oaks likes to manipulate the surrogates to keep them in line, including doling out rewards or punishments. Several times Jane is given the opportunity to have time with Amalia, promises that are taken away, when Jane acts against protocol. The stakes are raised, when the surrogates learn that one of them is carrying the baby of an extraordinarily wealthy family, a family that plans to pay out a big bonus after the birth. No one knows who is carrying this baby, but the rumor spreads like wildfire, causing a disruption amongst the surrogates.

The Farm is told through several points of view and I’m still not sure if this was effective. Jane’s POV is shown the most and she is our protagonist. It works well to have Mae’s POV, as it provides a glimpse into how Golden Oaks works and the issues involved. It distracted me and brought down the pacing, to have Reagan and Ate’s, POV. I think it would have been a stronger narrative to flip-flop between Jane and Mae, giving Mae a bigger voice in the story. I didn’t have enough of Mae’s story, to connect with her and it left me feeling conflicted. Not only was I conflicted, but I was mildly dissatisfied with the ending.

Overall, The Farm is an intriguing story and great morality tale for modern times. It tackles heavy social issues and would be a great pick for a book club.

I’ve seen The Farm billed as a dystopian novel, but everything about it seemed entirely plausible. The women at Golden Oaks are treated to the best of everything–comfort, relaxation, health care–and they are also monitored carefully, and not allowed to leave for the duration of their pregnancies. The richest of the rich have paid for them to be surrogates, and those clients now control them.

Jane decided to be a surrogate to give her young daughter a chance at a better life. She is one of many immigrant women at The Farm, and she soon finds that the administrators use access to her daughter as a means to control her. She grows increasingly desperate to regain control and ownership over her own life and body.

The premise of this book was intriguing, and I found the story and characters engaging. Something, however, seemed to be missing that might have tipped this from “good” to “great.” The stakes often didn’t feel quite high enough for this to be as scary-speculative as it was intended. Nonetheless, while this lacked the unputdownable factor I’d hoped for, the unique setting managed to encapsulate timely issues including immigration, women’s agency over their own bodies, and the power of the uber-rich.

I found the concept very intriguing and something that I am not familiar with at all (whether that be pregnancy or surrogacy.) I am, however, familiar with NYC so that made some parts of the book feel close to home. I felt like many of the characters were complex and we were able to explore their motives and inner workings. I found myself rooting for everyone and no one at the same time. Everyone was beautiful, unique, and flawed. That always makes for a good read for me. Where this book fell short was in some themes throughout that took away from the story. As many other reviewers mentioned, the way these adult women behaved sometimes felt more like high schoolers. However, at the same time, I see how that could be part of the story and lend more to the environment of what was going on. Secondly, the underlying tones of judgement and racism irked me. I think there are ways for this to be done but the way it was written made me confused as to whether or not it was condoned or not. Again, to play devils advocate for myself, I see how this inclusion also lead to further insight into the type of trickery that was going into the business and awareness of the intricacies of the situation. It seemed like it ended kind of fast but maybe that was because I didn't want it to end!

Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. I was not connected with any of the characters, and I found the plot to be slow moving.

Interesting kind of dystopian-type story about a "farm" where women can go and be paid and pampered while pregnant, to give birth to a child that they then give to wealthy parents. They are surrogates, basically said. However, there are tight restrictions that clearly outweigh the benefits of the money and the great treatment....I found this book really interesting. It has gotten much publicity since its release and it is somewhat akin to The Handmaid's Tale obviously but under much more pleasant circumstances, I think the idea behind the book is really good but the actual story, characters and plot were a little lacking. Definitely worth reading though!

Ramos is a gifted writer who takes time to develop each character. She peeks into the world of technology and reproductive rights while exploring themes of race, class, immigration and above all motherhood!
I really enjoyed this book and have purchased for our library.

The topic of surrogates is extremely timely, but nestled in the story are age-old questions about privilege, hard choices, free will, and femininity.. The characters, to me, needed a little more character development. However, I was able to identify with many of them, even when I would have preferred not to have done so. The novel is well-paced and engaging and I had a hard time putting it down. The Farm is a truly captivating debut that examines poverty & extreme wealth, immigration, class divisions, and the various dynamics of child care.

This novel had So Much Promise! And it might still please a reader who has more time on their hands than I do. I tend to be forgiving of a book that starts slowly, but I had no patience at all for tis pacing. Stunted, shuttering, and almost unreadable for me. It read like a roll call of characters I couldn’t imagine feeling invested in. Another in a long line of books that have such promising plots with lackluster delivery.

The book was a little boring at times, although it really picked up at the end. Overall, a very interesting idea. The ending was too fairy tale for my liking.

In this debut from Joanne Ramos, class and motherhood collide for a thought-provoking wallop that will leave you wanting to discuss the book with every woman you know. Ramos asks the reader to consider how much it is worth to become a mother and how much a woman is willing to give up to order to provide that perfect experience for another. The novel focuses on Jane, a Phillipino immigrant, that agrees to become a surrogate at a luxury facility while someone else cares for her own infant daughter in order to establish financial security for them both. Jane struggles with the demands of carrying someone else's child while doubting the care and safety being provided to her own daughter. What happens when two very different worlds collide and money and morality do not align?

3.5 stars

A strong debut novel about a facility for surrogate mothers who are having babies for very wealthy families. The novel follows a cast of characters within the facility, dubbed "the Farm" by one of the surrogate mothers, Lisa, as well as individuals outside of the Farm who have an impact on what happens to the surrogates.

We mostly follow Jane, a young mother who immigrated from the Philippines for a better life in America as she makes the heartbreaking decision to leave her daughter with her cousin so that she can make some money as a surrogate.

The main issue that I had with the book, though, was that the plot relied too much on Jane making bad and/or misinformed decisions that put her financial future at jeopardy. The author was consistent in that Jane made poor decisions when she was emotional but I waited for some character growth and that did not happen. She acted rashly time and time again, which moved the plot forward but it resulted in stunting the character. By the end of the novel, I felt like Jane learned absolutely nothing but at least she made some friends.

Other than that, I thought that the novel was well written and hard to put down. Despite the silly mistakes made by Jane, I always wanted to know what happened next. I also thought that the subject matter was interesting and enjoyed the speculative tone of the novel.

I received a copy of the book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Located in the beautiful rollings hills of Hudson Valley, Golden Oaks is the luxurious retreat where the world's wealthiest wannabe parents can pay a premium to have a Host (surrogate) carry their baby. The healthiest food, personal training, massages, the finest medical care... it all sounds close to perfect. A Host gets paid big bucks, a life-changing "delivery fee" when the baby is born, but along the way her every move is monitored and she must leave her former life behind for nine months to dedicate herself fully to her role. Jane, a single mother from the Philippines, is encouraged to become a host by her Aunt in order to improve her life in America. So she leaves her baby daughter in her Aunt's care and heads to The Farm, as it is called by the residents, full of hope that this decision will change her future for the better. But Jane soon finds that her chosen path towards the American Dream might require sacrifices that she is not prepared to make.

Perhaps the most unsettling aspect to Joanne Ramos's debut is how easy it is to imagine the scenario unfolding right now in North American society. In this respect, it didn't exactly feel dystopian because the world of the story is more or less entirely recognizable. This novel encourages conversation on many particularly timely issues: reproductive rights, the increasingly dramatic state of inequality at the heart of American society, the meaning of modern motherhood, justice for immigrants... There is a lot to talk about and I'd say this is an ideal pick for a book club. I found the main characters to be well drawn, complex and very human and believable. I did however keep waiting for something more dramatic to happen. In fact I felt like we were led to expect a more extreme climax, and a darker ending for sure. This book is quite character driven and in the end, a less intense read than I expected. Worthy of discussion, it would make an interesting pairing with The Handmaid's Tale or Red Clocks.

This book was fine. It was a bit short on plot that kept my interest and too many questions were left unanswered but... everybody got their happily ever afters so that was fine.

A unique story with good character development. Would be an excellent choice for a book discussion group. Lots of talking points. Recommended.

When Jane loses her job, she's desperate for a way to support herself and her infant daughter. But then she's presented with an opportunity that could change her life. Big money, a beautiful place to stay in upstate New York, and everything she needs covered for nine months. The catch? She'll be a surrogate for the uber-wealthy, and she must follow their very strict rules to make sure the baby she delivers is in perfect health.

Joanne Ramos winds a believable and unsettling tale that puts the reader on edge throughout. I had to put the book down multiple times because I was so stressed! The characters and multiple perspectives in The Farm are so strong, and the way information is meted out is extremely effective. This is a great read for fans of The Handmaid's Tale or Future Home of the Living God - creepy, feminist speculative fiction. A great concept, and really well done.

Grabbed my attention initially, but I started to lose interest as it progressed. Still, not a bad story.

I received a free e-galley from netgalley.com.

{My Thoughts}
I found the premise of The Farm extremely appealing, perhaps because it isn’t all that hard to imagine a real such place. The fictional “Golden Oaks,” is a high-end, all-inclusive, luxury retreat for women carrying the babies of the very rich and often famous. These surrogates are paid well and closely monitored, from the food they eat to the exercise they get. The only catch? They can’t leave until after they’ve delivered.

The Farm centered on Jane, one of the many poorer, immigrant surrogates who made up a large portion of the women carrying babies for Golden Oaks’ wealthy clients. Jane was different than many of the others in that she’d left her own baby in the care of her cousin with the hopes of being able to provide so much more in the future.

“Jane looks at her, the eyes black as night that take up half her face, and is overcome with a tenderness so vast it is almost suffocating.”

Jane’s time at Golden Oaks became increasingly difficult as she missed her daughter more and more, while at the same time being more closely monitored and controlled by management.

While the premise did not disappoint and the conflict grew nicely, some of the puzzle pieces in The Farm didn’t always fit together for me. I’d also have liked to see the characters painted in more delicate strokes. Some felt a bit clichéd. In addition, certain elements in the last couple chapters and the epilogue just didn’t quite add up. Still, The Farm leaves you with a lot of moral and ethical questions to consider and I truly appreciated that aspect. The premise itself is a terrifying one when you truly think about it. For those reasons, combined with really strong writing, I think The Farm would make for excellent discussions among book clubs. Grade: B-

Note: I received a copy of this book from Random House (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest review.