Girl One and its unique premise made me curious enough to read the book, though science fiction is not my usual fare. The story centers around a group of women who deliver babies via parthenogenesis, or virgin birth, and their relationships with their daughters, each other, and the male scientist who designs and facilitates the experiment. This book is a saga of adventure and discovery when Josephine, Girl One, sets out to find the others like her after years of separation. The book has supernatural elements that I enjoyed, and though it's marketed as Mystery and Thriller, I see this novel as more science fiction than thriller due to its subject matter and pacing.

Girl One raises interesting questions about Mother-Daughter relationships, Women's relationship to Men, and whether we'll see a future that includes re-creation without male DNA. Thank you to Faurrar, Strauss and Giroux and NetGalley for providing an ARC for an honest review.

Not the type f book I would normally read. I hope a movie is never made. They can’t do the book justice. Story was interesting. Took e a while to get into it because I wasn’t sure where it was going. At times it reminded me of the Wizard of Oz, which she did reference later on in the book. Characterization was good but I would get confused with the characters. Not sure if I would read anything by Ms Murphy again but I’m glad I gave this one a try.

Excellent book! Very well-paced, the plot was very interesting and it was told in easily digestible prose. I really got behind the heroine(s) of this novel and their fight to find their mother and the subsequent turmoil they went through.

Would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Sci-fi, thrillers, mystery and whodunnits.

Gripping and utterly captivating, this sci-fi-thriller blend is a powerful and lyrical acclamation of love, sisterhood, feminism and empowerment.

Girl One follows Josie Morrow, one of nine “Miracle Babies” conceived without male DNA (parthenogenesis). After a suspicious fire destroys the commune she was raised on, she and her mother, as well as the others who lived there, scatter and lose touch. But now Josie’s mother has disappeared. Josie sets off on a desperate mission to find her, tracking down her estranged sisters who seem to hold the keys to finding her mother.

Each of these sisters holds a unique ability, a superpower, sort of like a family of X-Men. Throughout this journey of self-discovery and meaning, they soon learn that they are more powerful together than apart.

While I don’t usually read sci-fi, the unique premise and the perfect blending of thriller with sci-fi, had me hooked from the start. A slow-burn, deep-dive into our protagonist’s character, we explore the themes of self-empowerment and the idea of parthenogenesis.

This fascinating sci-fi twist on the suspense genre is irresistible and intriguing.

I received a copy of Girl One from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

OH WOW! This is a must read!! This one grabs you from the first page and I devoured it in one sitting! The concept of conception and child birth without male involvement is fascinating and it although I have never been really big into sci-fi, this is a perfect mix of sci-fi and thriller (heavier on the thriller)

This novel had the feeling of a grand, sweeping epic. After following the protagonists on their journey of self discovery and meaning, I felt like I made friends and didn't want the story to end.
It wasn't a quick read, but the suspense was handled so well that it keeps the plot moving and interesting. There was depth to this story and it's one I'm likely to reread (which is something I don't do often). Highly recommend for anyone who enjoys their suspense with a healthy dose of science!
Thank you to Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, as well as NetGalley, for the digital copy to review.

Wow, that was a book! Such an unexpected yet thoroughly thought out and interesting topic. This is a solid read of sci-fi, which isn’t my typical genre, and it kept the pages turning. Josie is the first of nine babies conceived without a man’s biology. The girls’ and their mothers’ histories are all tied up with Dr. Bellanger and “the homestead”. The story she’s always known starts unraveling as Josie goes in search of her mother. You’ll curve and swerve with the twisty plot lines and come to intimately know the characters.
There’s room for a sequel, which I will gladly read. I’m interested in the rest of Tom’s story, among others. A strong 4.5 stars.

The description "Orphan Black meets Margaret Atwood" piqued my interest in Girl One, and it was an apt description of what to expect. Hard to put down!

I thought I was going to enjoy this book cause it was compared to Orphan Black. But it wasn't as interesting as that series was. I really wanted to enjoy this book, but it just didn't click for me.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was thrilling to read, with unexpected plot twists interwoven with a deeply meaningful emotional story about family ties and women’s relationships with one another. I don’t tend to read sci-fi, but the description intrigued me and I’m so glad I gave it a go, as it offers much more than just sci-fi. I also liked how the concept was rooted in scientific ideas which do actually exist (albeit, not in humans), making it easy to engage with and believe the story. There were moments which had my heart racing and others which were incredibly poignant, all in all making this a great read.

I have to say I was pretty impressed with how the author made the characters mysterious until the end and everything came together. What happened in the past does affect the future. Our main character is Girl One, who is part of the homestead and is the one who was the first virgin birth (the one born without male DNA); she wants to bring back to the forefront the work of the scientist who created her and the other girls. Yet, this is when the mystery starts. Her mother is missing, and it is up to Josie to try and find her. What she uncovers is more than she thought could be possible. Supernatural powers, a cult, and so much more are uncovered. In the end, can Josie and her miracle sisters learn who they are and put an end to a mad cult leader? I liked how the author had Josie torn between learning information and what she was told, as it was not just straightforward. I feel like the author could make another story with how the homestead affected the women who lived there and what they went through, and their relationships.

I liked this book. It’s not a genre that I would usually choose, but it kept my interest. I liked the author’s writing style and the characters were interesting enough to care about finding out what happens.

This ended up being not for me, unfortunately, but it might be for someone else!

It takes 26 chapters for the plot to really get going, and her refusal to actually commit to the sci-fi nature of the plot ends up showing up here as well. There are nine girls in this book, we only really get to know four of them, and the other five blur together heavily in my mind. One of the characters comments at one point that she wishes that there was more literature out there that focused on their mothers instead of the man who supposedly helped bring these parthenogenesis girls into the world, in a very keen bit of unwitting meta commentary, and then the plot goes right back to focusing on the men, even though the book is ostensibly supposed to focus on the daughters.

This was frustrating enough, but when I realized that almost every catalyst moment for the girls’ powers increasing was bought about by imminent danger of rape, I pretty much checked out hard.

Secondary to this was the way that Ms. Flannery Murphy seems to regard lesbians as mildly exotic and a way to introduce sex into the plot, rather than an actual legitimate lens through which the parthenogenesis thread could have been an actual interest. We have two examples of lesbian couples - one serves as a mildly exotic oooo sexy times thread through the book, and the other is a broken up couple, one of whom is bitter, obsessive, and killed off screen, and the other for whom this is never really dug into because she’s the protagonist’s mother. Also, a very binary/pregnancy focused view of gender and sexuality that was a further turn off.

But hey, if you want a road trip book with vague lesbian tension, a plot that cares more about its men than it does about the women who front it, and a barely there sci fi element that culminates in a creepy cult standoff, this is definitely for you.

Her writing has definitely improved since her last novel, but this could have used further editing, I feel like. This just ended up overall being not for me.

Like most the synopsis was so eye catching! I had really high hopes for this story but it unfortunately fell flat to me. I felt the story really dragged through the halfway point and I wish there would have been more of a backstory in the beginning. I loved the premise of the story it just didn't have excitement to keep me engaged.

I really enjoyed this one. A page-turner that has enough character development to make you care. It was well- paced and well-written. I'm very impressed by Sara Flannery Murphy and will definitely be keeping an eye out for future books!

This book's description had me at "Orphan Black meets Margaret Atwood." It's an apt comparison and I absolutely loved the idea behind the story of nine women who were conceived via pathenogenesis meeting and working together to learn more about their shared history, specifically the scientist that brought them into being. Such a fascinating premise.

Unfortunately, I felt the execution could've been stronger. I kept mixing up Girls Four through Nine; I wish there had been more of an introduction to them early on as they did seem to have fleshed out personalities / dynamics with their mothers, but most were introduced only as they appeared. I also found the romantic subplot to be extraneous and unnecessary and wished some of the characters' "powers" had been better explained (especially since early parts of the book and the main character's perspective are so rooted in science). Some of the twists in the story had me gasping out loud though, and I was rooting for all the characters by the end of the novel.

All in all, a twisty and unique sci-fi thriller! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Nine women, nine virgin births. All baby girls. The exact replica of their mothers. Science has come this far that a woman can conceive and have a child without a man. Excellent! Some animals have been doing this for years and years. Now the man responsible is dead. The house burned down all the information lost. Girl one is determined to try and discover his research. She has set out to find her sisters and her mother who has disappeared.
This journey will be the road to discovery. Especially about herself.
I was given this book to read and review by the publisher.
I enjoyed this book immensely. I will be going on my collection shelf.
This is a great story. A story of hope, redemption, love, betrayal and hope.
Phenomenal read!

Thank you netgalley for sharing with me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Let me just start with - I loved it!

"All the stories about vampires. Witches. Werewolves, monsters. They had to come from somewhere."

This was an excellently written and plotted book. Although there's really only one major similarity to Orphan Black, it's hard not to feel like that both properties share the same "feel." I felt immediately drawn to Josephine's story as she sets off on an unexpected journey with Tom, a journalist, trying to find her missing mother. Josephine is Girl One, the first girl born from parthenogenesis - meaning, no father. She is literally a clone of her mother. And there are 8 other girls after her, all born together on the Homestead. Their creator, their father in a way, was Joseph Ballenger, who died many years ago in a fire.

But all is not as it seems. Very slowly, little by little we get to unravel what we thought was just one mystery - where is Josephine's mother - that becomes something very different. I appreciated how each reveal was handled. There was nothing added just to be flashy or exciting. Each plot point felt natural, even though very little in this book is in any way natural. There is a great sci-fi element to this that I don't want to spoil, but suffice it to say it was very exciting.

The reason I'm docking a star is I feel like the weakest part of the book was the last 2-3 chapters. It was 5 stars until that point.

Thank you, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux , and NetGalley for providing the arc of Girl One by Sara Flannery Murphy in exchange for my honest review.

Girl One follows Josephine “Josie” Morrow, a miracle baby conceived without male DNA, as she races to find her missing mother. We learn that Josie and 8 other girls were born to 8 different women and raised on a commune that was called the Homestead. All 8 women gave birth to baby girls and none of them had any male DNA. When Josie is a child there is a fire at the Homestead that kills two people, the mother and daughter teams scatter to various parts of the country to start over. Years go by and Josie is now at the University of Chicago trying to recreate the science that created her when she finds out that her mother, Margaret, has gone missing and there was a fire. Josie returns home and discovers a secret. That secret leads Josie on a hunt for her mom, for the truth of what really happened that night on the Homestead and about her past.

I had a really hard time getting into this story. I thought the premise was fascinating. I was super excited to get a chance to read it, but I’ll admit, I almost quit at about 20% of the way in.
For me, I found Murphy’s writing to be wordy. I could skip entire paragraphs and still know what was going on. That made it difficult for me to stay engaged. That said, I’m so glad I pushed through because I reached a point, maybe 45-50% of the way through and I couldn’t put the book down. I was hooked. I needed to see things through.

Josie is a full-blown character with a strong voice that you can’t mistake with anyone else. I found her incredibly frustrating at times, but looking back I think it was the way she was so sure she knew everything when it was obvious, she had a lot to figure out. I thought the romance was handled wonderfully. I really enjoyed the tension and development of it. I would say once you reach the halfway point things start to unravel a little faster and that’s when all the things you’ve been thinking start to come together.

I don’t want to give anything away, so I’m not going to go deeper, but I will say, I found all the girls very intriguing and enjoyed the growth of their sisterhood. It touches on everything from feminism, science versus religion, gender roles, sexuality, conception, and the power of a strong female bond. If you enjoy science fiction, a lot of plot, and wordy descriptions, this book is for you. Overall I would recommend Girl One to anyone who enjoyed Orphan Black or enjoys science fiction mysteries. but I think it ended how it needed to.

This sci-fi thriller immediately caught my attention, and I ended up reading it in one setting. It has a lot of charm - the way the plot unfolded was good, there's lot of action, and the characters were interesting.

The Power by Naomi Alderman is mentioned as a similar book, and unfortunately my criticism of that book also applies to this book. When a book deals with sex and/or gender in this type of sci-fi way, my mind always goes to - how does the book address trans and nonbinary people? The Power kind of fumbled this issue, and ultimately made me like it a great deal less than I originally had. In this case, these issues weren't mentioned at all, which I think was to it's detriment, because it left me with questions.

Beyond that, I did enjoy this novel.