The Farm by Joanne Ramos is a smart, character-driven exploration of class and reproductive rights in contemporary America. The titular farm is a place where women (primarily poor immigrants) go to serve as surrogates for wealthy families while living in spa-like surroundings. The catch is that their every movement is controlled. This book was marketed as a Handmaid's Tale read-alike, but I think it is too realistic to qualify as dystopian fiction. A bit of a slow read, but it's definitely thought provoking.

Another book in the vein of "The Handmaid's Tale". This one centers on The Farm- a luxury retreat where women are given the best of everything, in exchange for space in their uterus. The uber-wealthy hire these women to carry a child for them, and the host mothers' every move is monitored. They can't leave the grounds or else they will lose their payment, or they might be faced with much, much worse. This book is TENSE. It gave me an uneasy feeling while reading through it, so much so I'd put this in the suspense/horror category. It's a look at class and motherhood, reproductive rights and identity that comes with having a child. I really liked the premise but I wanted a little more to happen for the characters. Ultimately a fine read, but not one that I'll be quick to recommend.

What a fascinating concept! I have to admit that I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading but I really enjoyed it.

In the end, this book was not for me. I do not feel it is a strong contribution to the genre. I liked the premise but ultimately it did not hold my attention, which is a shame because I was very excited about it. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the opportunity to read it in exchange for my honest opinion.

Such an interesting read! This book follows women who are at an institution being surrogates for very wealthy people. Everything they do and eat is monitored. They get a bonus upon a healthy delivery. I loved reading about the various friendships that were formed between the "hosts". I felt so terrible for Jane as more and more distance was created between her and her daughter. I kept picturing what "The Farm" would really be like. I really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it!

Completely readable and relatable for any woman who has had children semi recently...Jane has an infant daughter and is trying to find a solid money making opportunity in order to provide them both a better life..her cousin, Ate, suggests she look into Golden Oaks, a high end surrogacy provider, also called “the farm”..surrogates are utilized by wealthy people and expected to live, and have every move monitored, at the farm for the majority of their pregnancy...in return, they make generally decent money and live comfortably...Jane decides to leave her young daughter in Ate’s care and join the program...but running a profitable surrogacy camp has its secrets and dirty deeds...and being away from your infant daughter causes it’s own stress...all in all, I really liked it...I liked the chapters told from different perspectives, I liked the writing style, and I could easily imagine the movie version...the ending wasn’t as smooth or tidy as I would have liked but not enough to drag down the rest of the book...potentially a book discussion pick but prob better for book clubs or beach reads

Disconnected and awkward.
Some might call this work a dystopic journey through rights and privileges to bear children, and the measures some women will go to in order to survive in a capitalist society. I found it cold and a bit shallow in character depth and plot development.

Told through different perspectives, this book takes you to Golden Oaks, where women carry surrogate babies for wealthy clients. Every aspect of their lives are controlled to produce the most viable offspring. In desperation, one of the hosts, Jane, as volunteered as a surrogate in order to make the money she needs to give her daughter a better life.

I like how each chapter comes from a different woman's perspective. You get to hear their exact story and learn about their lives. There is still a disturbing edge to the very idea of the wealthy taking advantage of desperate poor women; particularly immigrants. Despite the inevitable dystopian leanings of such a practice, I did find myself immersed in these stories. Very well done. 4 out of 5.

What a strange, albeit interesting concept. "The Farm" is called Golden Oaks, and it's a luxurious, resort-like place where women come to spend their pregnancies and deliver babies - for other women. Women who are ultra-wealthy, and can afford to hire the surrogate of their choice to be implanted with fertilized eggs. Women who either can't carry their own children, or can't be bothered with the body-changing, lifestyle-interrupting challenges that being pregnant brings.

This book deals with many socioeconomic themes, as well as walking a fine line between what is ethical and what is absolutely wrong. I was interested in the characters and why they chose to do what they did, including the founder of Golden Oaks, Mae Yu, who had the best intentions led by ulterior motives.

I found the book thought-provoking and disturbing, and I was saddened by the ending, which basically brought one of the main characters, Jane, to a place that she didn't even realize was no better than where she began.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for a much delayed review of the ARC they shared with me.

I sadly couldn't get into this one. While the pacing of the story was great, it reminded me a bit of The Handmaid's Tale and I was looking for something along those lines, but with a different general storyline. The book itself is well-written and has an engaging narrative. The story ended a bit abruptly, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I recieved an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book and will recommend it often to lovers of mysteries, thrillers, and suspense novels!

Better than chick lit - also a little social commentary.

This book is essentially about a high end surrogacy clinic that almost imprisons the women while they are pregnant for very high end clients.

Difficult to read but thought provoking. Especially in today’s climate of access to reproductive health.

Ramos provides a glimpse into the lives of women serving the needs of others with their bodies at the expense of their freedom. The Farm promises those who can pay, the luxury of having a baby made in their image without the labor of labor. Moving and shocking, this one will start many conversations in book clubs.

Not what I was expecting, I was sure something nefarious was going on, not just that privileged women didn't want to carry their own child. Interesting characters, not so interesting story.

I abandoned this book. I tried to read it and it didn't keep my attention, I also tried to listen to it and I still couldn't keep my attention. The concept was so interesting but it just wasn't for me.

Wanted to love this book because it was a BelleTrist pick and the premise sounded timely, but I couldn’t get into the story. The marketing didn’t match the story

Fans of The Handmaid's Tale will love this dystopian debut by Joanne Ramos. The Farm really made me think!

3.5 stars Thank you NetGalley and Random House for allowing me to read and review this book. Published May 2019.

This is a debut book. I had started it months ago and was unable to finish it in the time frame I had, so restarted it again from the beginning and quickly got through it. It was an easy book to read and the story carried you along.

Some of the major themes were related to the 'haves and the have nots', 'unfortunate situations', and 'greed'. A large corporation feeding off the need and the inability to succeed of immigrant women. Not only using immigrant women, holding them hostage, but adding pregnancy to their corrupt scheme.

In a baby for sale to the highest bidder, this farm preyed off foreign women. Women agreeing to carry babies to term, regardless of all else. And our protagonist, Jane, learned just how cruel that agreement could be. Betrayed by her own family, preyed upon by the farm, and heartbroken to learn of the mistreatment of her your daughter, Jane decides to change everyone's plans.

I did like the way this story ended, however it was a long sad trip to finally end up there.

I think that Ramos did a very good job on her debut book and I will look for more from this author in the future.

I didn't care for the third-person/present-tense style of writing. I was assuming this would be more of a dystopian novel and it seems that was not the case. Mae was so fake and just not a winner for me. Premise was great, but it felt more world-building and less actual story happening. It just didn't work for me.