Wow. Wow. WOW!

This was a 4.5 star read for me and I'm debating if I should round it up or down (so don't be alarmed if the rating changes), because it feels like one that needs sitting on. Fear not, I'm not going to sit on my e-reader. I am, however, still thinking about the book and implications. (Okay so I only finished it four days ago, but I have a shockingly bad book memory and sometimes books begin to fade after mere hours.)

This story has a phenomenal premise, but an unusual enough one that I wondered if it was spoiler-y or if that really was just the start of the story. (What's described in the marketing blurb for this book is the END / climax of most mystery books?) Well, turns out it really is just the start of the story, which makes this one extra fascinating, because so often we get the lead up to murder but not the aftermath!

And when it comes to interesting things about this story, that's only the beginning. There's cloning ethics, some pretty hard hitting emotional questions (how would you feel if your partner left you for a so-called "better", tweaked clone version of you?), and a flipping FASCINATING but also wonderfully monstrous MC.

Evelyn is definite unlikeable female protag goals, which sounds weird because why is that a goals? What I mean is, it's rare to find female MCs that are written so intentionally to be unlikable, because female MCs get sooooooo much scrutiny in that regard. So... she's certainly unlikable and does NOT lean into her emotional side (she has twinges of conscience, but they're really that -- twinges). She's also really, really smart and interesting. I loved reading her story. (They're not really the same, but in these particular regards I'd liken Evelyn a bit to Cas Russell, whom I love wholeheartedly.)

The Echo Wife is full of interesting twists. The whole story was suspenseful and riveting and the ending was just... so right. So well done. And there were numerous ethical and theoretical questions throughout that made my head spin. That's why I'm still thinking about the story. And, actually, writing this review convinced me that this is, indeed, a five star read. I initially thought 4, maybe 4.5, but it's one of those that grows on you. Because it is so thought-provoking. Because it pushes your mind to keep working after reading the last page. Because part of the story exists in the after, in the way it makes you reflect. I don't think I felt its full impact until really giving myself this time and space to consider it all. And now I want to reread the book.

Five stars it is! This is (non-space opera) sci-fi at its best. Highly, highly recommended!

Thank you Tor.com Publishing for providing a free e-galley via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A throughly creepy thrill ride. What would happen if your husband decided to make a clone just like you but with all your faults eliminated.? Then what would happen if that clone killed your husband? What is your responsibility to that clone? She’s just like you but a little different. That’s what I mean about creepy but in a good way. Lies, murder, betrayal, a book you can’t put down.

Evelyn Caldwell is a workaholic. While her clone research is making breakthroughs, her marriage is falling apart. Then she discovers her husband Nathan is having an affair with Martine who isn't just any woman, she's Evelyn's clone. In a world where clones are made to be disposable, Evelyn finds herself in unknown waters that go deeper than she realizes. As Evelyn's world continues to fall apart, she finds herself questioning not only her failed marriage, but her own work and how far she is willing to go to save it.

Wow. The book's blurb mentions Westworld, but in a way it felt like a Westworld, Stepford Wives, Frankenstein mashup. This is a hard book to discuss without giving spoilers away, but I liked the way the morality and ethics of clones are explored without being too heavy handed about it. Something that I personally appreciated was Evelyn being childfree, that is to say one who isn't planning on having kids. I enjoyed the way it plays into her failing marriage in a way that reflects the modern era well and the family versus career choices women are making. All the twists and turns of the plot kept me glued to the pages.

This book releases February 16, 2021 and is one worth adding to reading lists.

Disclaimer: I received a free digital ARC in return for an honest review.

This one was waaaaay out there, but in a great way. I don’t want to describe the setting for fear of spoilers, but the character depth is on point. You won’t be disappointed if you give it a try.

Sarah Gailey writes the most amazing books and The Echo Wife does not disappoint.!

Evelyn is an award-winning scientist at the pinnacle of her career whose work involves clones. She's also divorced. Her once-loving husband wanted a family, a softer, more agreeable wife. He had an affair and left Evelyn but not just for any woman. He created a clone of Evelyn - a softer, more agreeable Evelyn - ready to be the perfect mother and homemaker, just as he desired and created.

The tension goes through the roof when the clone calls Evelyn begging for her help. And they both embark on a course of action that binds them together and irreparably change their lives

A biting look at the choices women face trying to balance societal demands and expectations with their own desires and needs. With a side trip examining the ethics of clones and how they might be used.

Sharp, twisty, and brilliant. A total page-turner!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the DRC.

The story was complex, which was a good thing. It was like a wreck that I couldn't look away from, and it was hard to put the book down. Everything made sense, I didn't feel like there were loose ends, and the writing itself was great. Highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the opportunity to read this.

How hurt would you feel if your husband was having an affair and it turned out he was having an affair with you, a new improved you, a clone of you? This is the premise of The Echo Wife. Nathan has always thought Evelyn to be a hornet, always stinging him, and she refused to give him a child. Simple solution...copy Evelyn and make a woman who would be everything he wanted and needed. Only it turns out it’s not that simple.

When Evelyn discovers that her husband has stolen her research and used it to create a clone of herself (With all of her "less desirable" traits removed. Gross.), she starts a chain of events that quickly begin to spiral out of control. Sarah Gailey's The Echo Wife is the story of betrayal, revenge and the question of who can (and can't) really be considered "human".

Lest you are tempted to write this book off as only futuristic sci-fi, The Echo Wife, is really more of a "will-they-get-away-with-it" thriller that also happens to have some clones.

What I appreciate most about Gailey's work, is that even when the circumstances are fantastic, all of their characters are still so grounded in emotional truth. Nobody makes any weird choices to move the plot along. Everything. Makes. Sense. It's really delightful.

I would recommend The Echo Wife to fans of Gailey's previous work and folks who like a little genre-bending. Also, anyone going though a tough break-up will likely also enjoy this book for the schadenfreude alone.

Thank you Netgallery and publisher for the free digital ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.
First of all the cover is striking and says read me I love it! The book was really good I can't think of anything negative to say. I highly recommend reading this book.

I can’t even. How does Sarah Gailey constantly put out such amazing books? They are a machine. A beautiful, strange, brilliant machine.

Evelyn is a brilliant scientist in the area of human cloning, her husband is less successful, except in creating a more malleable and compliant version of his wife. When Nathan ends up dead everything unravels and Evelyn is left to clean up yet another mess. An interesting look at genetics and nature vs nurture, the morality behind cloning and the ethics of science wrapped in a nonstop thriller. A great read!

Other readers may compare this book to thrillers or sci-fi novels, but for me this was pure Black Mirror. Like one of the better episodes of that show it cuts right through the element of advanced technology in the story and plumbs satisfyingly deep into the all too human ramifications of that technology's use. There is so much explored here, so many intense themes - the impossibility of being truly known, the price of ambition, the deep scars parents leave on their children, the way love can die a death of a thousand cuts - and in such a relatively small amount of space! This is managed, in the main, by Gailey's tight grip on Evelyn as a narrator: she is so perfectly realized, her worldview so clear and sharp. The insights into her past in-between major scenes of action were masterfully done; every little bit of her was revealed at exactly the right moment. It was because of her, even more than the thrill of what would happen next, that I couldn't look away. I imagine other readers might take issue with the way she is - unlikable female narrator and all that - but I loved her. She was so raw, so real, and I enjoyed her sting.

If I have any complaints they're concentrated at the beginning of the book, and mainly boil down to the fact that there is a very important conversation - the conversation that precipitates all the action that follows - that is given to the reader in exposition, rather than shown in a scene. It felt like a wrong note struck in a book that otherwise deliberately, well, unearths so much for the reader.

But otherwise? An incredible book. I can see this one bringing thriller readers into sci-fi for the first time - and vice versa. I'll definitely be recommending this one to a lot of people.

Westworld (more understandable version) meets Stepford Wives and Orphan Black kind of story is freshly baked from the oven. I see five sizzling, well-deserved, shiny stars dancing above my head! This is more entertaining, mind bending, grey cells frying, soul shaking, heart throbbing adventure than I expected.

This is absolutely, deliciously my kind of extremely crazy story: imagine your husband replace you with another version of you. What would you do? Scream, cry, call a contract killer, suffer from depression, commit to kill the other version of you or accept the defeat and work on cloned replicas of Tom Hardy at your lab (last option is the best choice but unfortunately the heroine of this book didn’t make wise choices like me!)

Okay, let me rephrase it: our brilliant scientist Evelyn’s husband Nathan is not happy that she is a workaholic, heartless, cutthroat bitch who prefers to live in her lab and work 24/7 for your scientific experiments. ( it’s true! I think JJ Abrams inspired by her when he named his production company “Bad Robot” because most of the parts: she acted like really mean robot, hardly process human feelings.) And of course she doesn’t want to have a baby. It’s unnecessary responsibility, right? She’s working way too much important things. She’s the brilliant Evelyn Caldwell, a rising star of scientific innovations with brightest future ahead of her.

But her dearest husband cheats on her with a woman looking exactly like her. Actually he’s dating with cloned replica of hers (Whattttt???) And now he wants to divorce! And this is not only mouth dropping part of her unbelievably unique story: the cloned replica is pregnant right now! (WTF! Did I read right? How could be scientifically possible? But Evelyn’s dear clone Martine is expecting. And she meets her with the shop to show her growing baby bump and Evelyn tells her the ugly truth about the reason she’s been created.

From now on, if the story is not crazy enough for you: Just wait for Martine’s urgent call on the phone. She panicked, barely breathing and she seems like losing it. As Evelyn goes to the house Martine shares with her ex-husband: she finds out, her ex lying on the floor in blood bath. Martine says: “it was self –defense” and Evelyn replies: “Let’s bury him!”

Still not crazy enough for you? Wait for it. Evelyn and Martine realize a search party can begin sooner they will be prime suspects of Nathan’s mysterious disappearance. Or at least Evelyn is gonna lose everything: her researches, reputation and freedom because nobody knows Evelyn is existence. She is illegal. So they decide to work on a new clone replica. They’ll recreate Nathan to solve the problem! Yesss, I know you’re hooked and

I stop right now! I already gave so many juicy details. But I assure, the story’s conclusion is more twisty and shocking. Yes, there are more revelations and surprises to come.

Overall: It was one of the best, amazing, shocking, dazzling, phenomenal sci-fi reads of this year. I highly recommend it to genre lovers. I couldn’t put it down! It’s smart, its dark humor captivates you and you don’t want to let it go.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan/ Tor Books for sharing this remarkable ARC with me in exchange my honest review. I truly loved it so much.

What’s worse than finding out your husband is having an affair? Discovering he’s having an affair with your double, not your twin – your clone. The clone your research created. It can’t get much worse than that can it? It turns out it can