Wildly enjoyable and weirdly touching. Perfectly paced — I couldn’t put it down. While I sort of suspected the ending where it all came together, it was done so well that it still felt meaningful and surprising.

Baby X is a dystopian story set in the near future where babies can be created as long as you have any bit of a person's DNA. There is the dark underground where DNA is sold on the black market-called the Vault. Ember is hired to protect a famous singer's biological material. When she is approached by a woman named Quinn who says that the baby she is carrying has the DNA of the famous singer, the story really gets going. This book shares brings to light how technology evolves and the negative potential of that. It was also a thriller and I wasn't sure what was going to happen next. It kept me entertained but probably will not be one of my top books of the year.

I received an advance copy of this ebook from the publisher for a honest review. This book is well written and the characters are described well. This book has multiple points of views. It is set in the future. It is a very interesting book. I enjoyed Ember’s character. This book is in stores for $30.99 (USD).

I was really looking forward to this read once requested. It is something out of my wheel house but I took a chance and ended up throughly enjoying this futuristic style thriller! It was near enough in the future that it wasn’t too out there and unbelievable for me to grasp and still a little frightening that it actually could happen. I flew through the pages and couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen. Lots of twists that I didn’t expect made it a top read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the advanced copy.

This was a very unexpected fast read. I got into it fairly quickly. It was nothing like anything I read before, very dystopian and interesting overall.

Baby X is a futuristic thriller/mystery in the style of Black Mirror and a consuming and exiting read.

The speculative developments in this future society are well detailed, playing on ethical concerns in their early emergence today. I loved the creativity in the exploration of the regulations and flow on effects of the new approaches to conception.

The writing was clever, articulate and enthralling. I couldn’t put it down and found the ending so gratifying. The societal dynamics were so well established in this the book that I think there is great potential to explore other stories in this world.

I enjoyed this so much both in audiobook and ebook form. The narration was well dramatised, and contributed to the enthralling nature of the story. I did find it hard at first to tell the voices of the three female leads apart, but as the story progressed the context made this much easier.

I would highly recommend to lovers of Black Mirror, Blake Crouch, or anyone looking for twisty and engaging speculative fiction.

Thank you Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for this audiobook. Opinions expressed are my own.

3 stars for content - somewhat heavy on science, some profanity and sexual content, unnecessary forshadowing
4 stars for the flow and thrill!
It's the near-future in the United States and conceiving children is a precise scientific endeavor. Famous singer Trace Thorne hires bio-security guard Ember Ryan to protect him from The Vault, a black market site devoted to stealing DNA. But when the couple is confronted by a pregnant woman Quinn who claims to be carrying Thorne's baby, everyone faces upheaval that could cost them their lives. Throw in a desperate want-to-be father and a curious journalist, and readers are left wondering if any of the characters are who they claim to be.
I did skim some of the scientific explanations and pandemic-related content. But the story was definitely exciting. And the end blew me away. Although I guessed at some of the conclusions, I would read more books by this author.

3.5/5

I was drawn to this book from the Blake Crouch comparisons, as he’s one of my favorite authors! Yes, the content is very similar to that of Blake Crouch’s Upgrade, but the writing style could not be compared. While I was hoping for Crouch’s fast paced, action driven, mind bending writing, what I got was more John Marrs writing style of short chapters and multiple points of view, which isn’t as much my preference. Content also similar to John Marrs. So yes, I see the comparison to both authors but it wasn’t exactly what I hoped for going in. But that’s okay!

It was still a twisty and entertaining read. While the twists were clever, they weren’t overly shocking. Enjoyable and bingable but won’t be memorable.

Thank you to Kira Peikoff, Crooked Lane Books, and NetGalley for the gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane books for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

In the world of "Baby X," advances in medicine allow anyone to have a child with anyone as long as they have access to that person's DNA. This has resulted in a huge black market for celebrity DNA, which is why famous singer Thorne hires protagonist Ember as a "bio-security" guard. Then a woman shows up, claiming to be pregnant with Thorne's child, and everything quickly gets out of control.

This book had interesting themes of nature vs nurture, bioethics and eugenics, female autonomy, etc. The world building relied a little too much on telling, but it was nonetheless an interesting dystopia, almost eerily plausible. One of the major twists was on the predictable side, but there were enough other twists and turns to keep me engaged throughout. I agree with other reviewers who compared it to Black Mirror, and would add Orphan Black to that list of dystopias that deal with similar themes (though this one was lighter on the sci-fi, heavier on the thriller elements.) A decent read overall!

BABY X was a joy to read! Which is something coming from me, since I'm not usually a sci-fi reader. What intrigued me was the dystopian aspect of this book, and how sort-of realistic the whole situation seemed to be, in my opinion.
I can easily see all the 'futuristic' aspects of this novel coming true in our real world, in a not-so-distant future.
I personally liked how the author envisions technology (the extinction of cell phones was very amusing, for example) and how terrifying the scientific advances have become within this dystopian story.
I also enjoyed the characters and the plot twists. There are multiple POVs and they are all connected together. Actually, there is a dual timeline, too. But that's a surprise.
I do recommend this book to anyone who likes sci-fi/dystopian mystery stories.

I enjoyed this audiobook.
It was an interesting take of a speculative thriller. There are several threads and characters to keep track of, which was confusing for me at times.
There was a part towards the end that was just a long list of stats, and after a few I had to skip past them, I felt like they added nothing to the story.

In the near-future in the U.S., anyone can have a child together – all that’s needed is a bit of biological material from two people. This has led to the creation of The Vault, a black market for biomaterial that targets celebrities. Thorne, a famous singer who is tired of being scared of The Vault, hires Ember, a bio-security guard who will do anything to protect her clients. But she has secrets in her past, secrets that may come to light when a pregnant woman shows up claiming to be pregnant with Thorne’s baby.

This is an interesting sci-fi that started quite strong. I liked the exploration of the selection process for embryos, the idea of being a Selected child versus one conceived in the natural way, and the question if knowing your traits may or may not define your personality/life. It’s told from multiple POVs – a bio-security guard, a pregnant woman, and a student. All POVs were strong and offered unique insights into the world.

I’m not entirely sure why, but the fact that it’s set in the very near future lowered my enjoyment some. I prefer my sci-fi to be set further out to make it more believable, whereas this was set in about 25 years when I’ll still be alive (universe willing), which made it hard to immerse myself in the plot. Another part of what brought my rating lower was the reveal at the end. The author used a technique that I personally dislike, so I was a bit disappointed – this certainly won’t be the case for everyone, though.

I did like this book and found it to be entertaining overall. If you’re looking for a light sci-fi read, it’s certainly worth checking out. My thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

A speculative novel set in the near future where babies are conceived in labs and natural conception rare. I enjoyed the twists and turns though some of the science went over my head. The twist toward the end was satisfying and I liked the characters. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

This book had my head spinning and I haven't stopped thinking about it since I finished. It definitely gave me John Marrs vibes.

Written in the future, when babies are chosen in a lab based on qualities parents desire, you can imagine all of the chaos this may cause.

Stolen cells, unplanned births, scandals and all....it'll leave you wanting more!

I loved the way the future was portrayed in this one. I definitely recommend giving it a shot. You won't regret it!

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane books for an advanced copy of this fantastic book!

Pub eARC
Baby X was propulsive, engaging, and so well plotted. I was hooked in this thriller from beginning to end. Right away, I liked the three narrators for the main characters because it kept it easy to keep the characters and their story arcs straight. The author knew how to perfectly end a chapter to keep me wanting to listen to this story without stopping. I was surprised by plot elements here and liked how it wrapped up in the end. Well done and I’ll definitely read this author again.

Oh, I was really excited when I found out about this book. Gattaca? Love it. As a thriller, this seemed like something I would really love, but I could not get into it. The world building felt very 'telling' and dumped on me in a way that left me emotionally disengaged. Alas, not the book for me after all, but this is almost certainly a 'me' problem and I'm sure many people would find the book's straightforward explanations of what got us to the the place in time where the plot was happening very much to their taste.

Now this was a good book. I love when authors write smart characters especially women. And both Ember and Quinn were smart and hardcore.

There are three POVs in the book and it was rather evident how two POVs were related but not third. Maybe I have a lot of books from the thriller , mystery and suspense genre as I had figured out who Lily is too early in the book. Even then it didn't make the book boring and kept me interested.

The twist at about halfway through the book was a total twister , I didn't see that one coming. That twist made the book a hot 4 star read for me directly. Later part although well written and quite intriguing, once I read the twist, it was easy to figure out what was gonna happen.

Being a doc, personally I felt few things were far fetched but that did not bother me. And I was totally invested in the story till the end.

I will definitely recommend this for all thriller lovers.

Thank you Netgalley and crooked lane books for the wonderful ARC in exchange of an honest review.

This book is such a wild ride! Set in the future where children are conceived in labs using DNA from “The Vault”, superstar Thorn will do anything to keep his DNA from being stolen and used to create a child. He hires Ember to make sure his DNA is always safe, and naturally, they fall for one another. Then we have Quinn, a surrogate hired by a man whom lost his husband in a tragic accident and just wants to be a father. Lastly we have Lily, who is an only child created “the normal way” who finds out her retirement aged parents are pregnant. This sci-fi thriller comes to a head when all 3 women’s lives crash into each other in an ending I didn’t See coming. I feel Like fans of John Marrs will love this one. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Quick Brown Fox & CO / Crooked Lane Books for providing this book, with my honest review below.

I was eager to read Baby X as it has a fascinating plot, focused both on the ability to select a baby’s traits (an extreme exploring of today’s ability to ‘choose’ a child based on chromosomal anomalies which has been a godsend to many I know having suffered through child death with a baby cursed with genetic issues that pained them in their short lives) and the idea of creating a child based on flimsy genetic material of an unknowing partner. Indeed in addition to those storylines I got an additional one focused on Lily, a young journalist who at first didn’t seem to be connected to the main events.

This book was fascinating and a great sci fi thriller with plot twists as well as a strong mystery at play. Without a doubt Thorne, the celebrity trying to protect himself from becoming an involuntary genetic donor, was the most inherently good character but the others wowed me for different reasons.

If you enjoy futuristic (but eerily recognizable) thrillers then this is a unique addition you can’t pass up!

Kira Peikoff's "Baby X" is a thrilling speculative fiction novel set in a near-future United States where advanced technology allows for the creation of eggs and sperm from any biological matter. Celebrities, like the famous singer Trace Thorne, find themselves targeted by the Vault, a black market site that steals and sells DNA. Thorne hires bio-security guard Ember Ryan to protect his genetic material, but their lives spiral out of control when they encounter Quinn, a pregnant woman claiming Thorne as the father.

Peikoff weaves a gripping narrative with a blend of Gattaca and Black Mirror vibes, exploring themes of privacy, bioethics, and the ramifications of genetic manipulation. The alternating perspectives of Ember, Quinn, and journalist Lily provide depth and keep the reader engaged. While the scientific jargon can be dense at times, the plot's twists and the characters' dilemmas make for an intriguing and thought-provoking read.

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.