I love a book that is different. This was so interesting! The blurb doesn't do it much justice, there is SO MUCH happening in this book. Lots of twists and turns, and a good climatic ending. Go read it!

First, I like to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for an ARC for a honest review.

When I read the summary of Girl One, I was intrigued by the tagline "Orphan Black meets Margaret Atwood in this twisty supernatural thriller about female power and the bonds of sisterhood." I will have to say that it wasn't entirely too far off. There's similarities to Orphan Black, but mainly with the sisterly bonds between the different Girls in this book. I hate calling them "girls" because in the book majority of them are in their very early 20s or late teens, and it seems reductive to call them girls when they're not. The use of calling them girls throughout the novel wasn't lost on me. It was done purposefully to diminish them as young women, young women with agency and self-worth by the other, mostly men, characters. This story isn't just about girls born without the use of sperm, but how in a world that continues to view women as objects and lesser than men. This is how these "girls" took back the narrative of their own story and refused to allow another man tell it.

We see the story unfold through Josephine Morrow's point of view. She is Girl One. She is stuck in this nostalgic world view when she thinks back on her life at the Homestead with her mother and the other girls and their mothers. Her personal opinions of their "creator", Dr. Joseph Bellanger, were colored by how favored she felt by him. She hinged her worth on following the man she considered a father and his work. She wanted to make him proud. It was interesting to see Josie's thoughts and world view shift with each bit of knowledge she discovered throughout her journey to find her mother. I enjoyed how she literally came into her own, owning her worth and how she didn't need to have the opinion of someone who betrayed not just her, but her fellow Girls and their mothers.

It's about all the girls, the ones who are the primary focal point of the novel, come into their own and how through their bonds, they were able to become stronger. I wouldn't say that this novel is very anti-man, but it does demonstrate how when we women are bit characters in something only we can do, and that is give birth. When the idea of needing a man for reproduction becomes obsolete, we see in this novel how men bulk at the idea and fight to keep their dominance in order. We saw it with the group from Kithiria, and as the story progressed, with Dr. Bellanger. I enjoyed how very much "Men ruin everything" this book was, because it wasn't too far off. One of my favorite lines throughout the novel was, "From where I stand, a lot of good things in this world are destroyed by simple men." How very true this is.

I would have liked to have a more concrete ending. I'd have liked to see Josephine, Cate, Isabelle, and Fiona go and get Emily so she was with her own. I wanted to see where Josephine's journey took her now that she left her past in ashes (literally), but perhaps that wasn't the point of the story. I did enjoy, however, the beginning of the book starting with a letter to Josie from Dr. Bellanger and ending with a letter from her mother to her best friend, Patricia. How they were both convinced that Josie was going to change the world, yet I don't think neither of them knew the extent.

This was a fun book, and all the little twists and turns kept me engaged. If you like Sci-fi, and if like where women kick ass, I'd recommend this book.

Girl One was born in 1971, the first of 9 daughters, conceived without male DNA.

She was being raised in an experimental commune called “The Homestead” with her creator, Dr. Joseph Bellanger, and the other mothers and daughters, until a suspicious fire takes two lives, and those remaining scatter across the USA, choosing to distance themselves from the experiment and each other.

In 1994, Josephine (Girl One) is studying in Chicago with the hope of following in her “father’s” footsteps, until she learns of her mother Margaret’s disappearance on the news. She returns to her mother’s home and finds that again there has been a fire, and her mother’s car and purse are there even though she is not.

The only clue to her whereabouts-a phone # for a reporter from the Kansas City Telegraph-named Thomas Abbott. With little else to go on-the pair team up to try and trace her mother’s last footsteps, taking them on a cross country road trip which leads to the other mother /daughter duos, most of who would have preferred to stay hidden.

And, many new discoveries which will have them question if they are indeed, just ordinary or extraordinary young women.

Every so often I am intrigued by a plot which changes or challenges the status quo of society so this caught my attention.

I was surprised to discover that it was not Dystopian but rather, set in the past where this concept would have some in society observing this experiment and others wanting to record what happened, but most FEARING the ramifications of not needing men to conceive or fathers in their traditional family roles.

But despite my interest, I found the pace slow-bogged down by long chapters and most of the revelations being shared through conversations rather than any action especially in the first half!

The pace picked up some in the second half, but I never found myself fully invested in this one-I had not connected with the characters enough to care about the outcome.

Still, books resonate differently with each of us, and I encourage you to read several reviews to see if this might be a better fit for you. This was another buddy read with DeAnn, so be sure to watch for her perspective in her (always wonderful) review !

I would like to thank the publisher for providing a gifted copy through NetGalley!
It was my pleasure to provide a candid review!

Available June 1, 2021

I really liked this premise! This had very interesting ideas with parthenogenesis and developing mysterious powers. The general mysteries of where Josie's mother has gone and what actually happened at Homestead were enjoyable to follow. The writing was pretty easy to read. I did guess some things but not all!

I did like how this has a found family of sorts with the Girls! It's great to see them discover strength in each other. There are some lesbian characters, so it was nice to see that representation. Josie is a pretty solid main character. I liked how dedicated she is to finding her mother. Along the way, she definitely has to deal with situations being different from what she thinks, so this was very satisfying to see how she comes to terms with this. The side characters were decent, but I do think that several of the Girls and their Mothers blend together.

Unfortunately, I did find myself getting bored at times. There's a lot of repetitive traveling around to see different Mother/Girl pairs, and I did start to lose interest as the book progressed. It also took longer than I expected for the supernatural parts to come in. I was a little disappointed with this because I thought that this would be more prevalent throughout the book. I also didn't love that the powers the Girls develop come about after being threatened by men.

While this wasn't a perfect book for me, I still had a good time with it overall.

I received a copy of this for review from the publisher via NetGalley - thank you! All opinions are my own.

My video review can be seen on my channel (around minutes 3:36-6:32 of this video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuF4y7WfGZY

So, the whole "Orphan Black meets Handmaid's Tale" is not where I would have gone. I would've said "Orphan Black as written by Gillian Flynn, with a dash of Umbrella Academy (the show, not the comic)." I like books where there are obvious twists that are meant to make you the reader think you're smart and then, twist, oh, did you think you were smart? Whereas everything that surprises the main character makes perfect sense for that character. Anyway, stayed up all night with it and now I must sleep. Great job.

This was a wild, weird, Orphan Black-feeling book that I really enjoyed. Murphy did a fantastic job creating a rabbit hole of a world that grabbed me early on and left me chasing around for answers as frantically as her characters... The pacing occasionally slowed more than I wanted, with description outweighing action, but there were secrets and lies and science and red herrings everywhere and I really enjoyed watching it all unfold!

I loved this book! So unique and interesting. It was a great adventure. I really hope there will be a sequel!

Girl One by Sara Flannery Murphy

9780374601744

368 Pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux / MCD
Release Date: June 1, 2021

Fiction, Mystery & Thrillers, Family Dynamics, Reproduction, Parthenogenic

Josephine “Josie” Morrow is at a university in Chicago researching reproduction systems. She wants to follow in the footsteps of her mentor, Dr Joseph Bellanger. He successfully helped nine women give birth to daughters using their own DNA without any male DNA. Josie sees a news report that her mother’s house had a devastating fire and her mother is missing. She takes a leave from the university and goes home looking for her mother. She finds a few unexplained notes hidden behind a wall clock which begins a search that will change her life.

At first when I started this book, I thought of Orphan Black but in that scenario all the sisters were clones. In this case, the daughters were exact replicas of their mothers. The story is fast paced and written in the third person point of view. The characters are somewhat developed. If you enjoy stories that have unexpected twists, you will like this one. It has everything you could ask for—murder, kidnapping, science fiction, and traveling the country.

Josie Morrow is “Girl One”, the first of nine miracle children conceived by “parthenogenesis” meaning without male DNA. The girls are raised together by their mothers and a scientist on a hidden commune in the countryside. The woman and their children ultimately leave the commune scattering all over the country when a fire ravages the place and kills the scientist who leads the commune. They hide because of the strong opposition to parthenogenesis and lose touch with one another.

Josie and her mother become estranged as Josie pursues a career in medicine, hoping to recreate the parthenogenesis success of the scientist she considers her father. When Josie’s mother goes missing after a second fire, she tracks down her estranged sisters and their mothers trying to piece together obscure comments she found in her mother’s hidden notebook and ultimately unlocking mysteries from their shared past.

Without giving away any more of the twists and turns of this book, rest assured there are many surprises and some take you into the world of science fiction. While I typically don’t read this type of book, I was drawn to it by the description likening it to Margret Atwood’s books. It’s definitely a thriller and I was very absorbed while reading it. I liked the character development and the writing although the story itself became more science fiction as it went on. If you are looking for a good escape book with a dose of feminism, mother-daughter family relations and science fiction, this will likely fit the bill and keep you engaged.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book and for asking for my honest review.

"Girl One" tells the story of Josephine, one of nine babies conceived without male DNA. These "miracle babies" were conceived with the help of Dr. Joseph Bellanger, a man both revered and reviled by the medical community and the world. When tragedy strikes The Homestead, where the children live with their mothers, the women scatter and Dr. Bellanger is killed.

Twenty years later, Josie, also known as "Girl One" because she was the first child to be born at The Homestead, is a young woman striving to follow in Bellanger's footsteps and recreate his ground-breaking work. When Bellanger died, the secret to parthenogenesis died with him, and Josie is determined to discover the key to unlocking the mystery of virgin birth. When her mother goes missing under mysterious circumstances, she begins a quest which will take her across the country to reconnect with her scattered "sisters".

While the mystery was slow to build at the beginning, the pace soon picked up and I couldn't put the book down. It is an intriguing mystery and well-plotted thriller, but the heart of the book, it is about women and reclaiming the power that is too often taken from them. It is about sisterhood and how women are often stronger when they come together.

I read Girl One by Sara Flannery Murphy because it was supposed to be like Margaret Atwood's work. That comparison is the only thing that kept me reading.

The story line moves extremely slowly and the first 45% of the book was a slog. After that point, it became less of a chore, but it was never any more enjoyable. I still am not certain what the author was trying to say. The plot seemed to be trying to say something, but it was so convoluted, I'm not sure even the author is clear on what she wanted to convey.

I have read worse books, but that's certainly not a ringing endorsement. I wish I had passed this book up. I wanted to like it, but I just couldn't.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This books was awesome! I loved the story and the characters, I loved how everything evolved and eventually, devolved. It was puzzling, thrilling, wild, and blew my mind. The plot development was masterfully done, the author (very obviously!) mapped it out well! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my free arc in exchange for my honest opinion! I loved this book!

I seem to be in the minority here, but I really did not enjoy this book. It felt like every chapter was just a long exposition about how something was completely not what it seemed-- gasp!-- and look at this character acting suspicious, now it's time for Josie to reflect on her entire life for a couple pages again. Then repeat. Despite being completely invested in the concept, by the halfway point, I really didn't care enough to continue wading through the story.

Josie, Girl One, was the first of nine babies conceived through a virgin birth. When she was 6, the Homestead burned, the experiment ended, and the mothers and children scattered. As an adult, Josie is away at medical school when her mother disappears. Determined to find her, Josie begins tracking down the other babies and mothers.

This was a quick read that kept me turning pages long into the night. However, I wanted to know more about the homestead and the virgin birth process. I wish the girls had been pre-teens or teenagers when the fire happened and everyone scattered. Josie, and the other characters seemed a bit flat. They were not very dynamic or well developed. Overall, 3 out of 5 stars.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3858769749
What if you really were turning into your mother? In Girl One, Josephine Morrow is a college student who strives to be like her idol, the scientist who helped her come into existence via parthenogenic reproduction, as she dismisses her mother’s quiet small town life. As the title implies, Josephine was only one of several girls produced via this method at a commune-like center. At one point early on, a tragic fire caused the mothers and girls to scatter. When Josephine’s mother disappears following a house fire, Josephine immediately feels that the fire was intentional and that her mother is in danger. Her quest to find her mother reunites her with the other girls involved in the experiment, and together the girls discover their power, fight to save one another, and rebuild their family.

There are some definite similarities between this book and Orphan Black. The strength of this book builds as more characters are introduced and the tension increases. It does take a while to build, and it’s a longer ride, but I found the ending well worth the

Innovative and thrilling. I've not read anything quite like Girl One. The novel is centered around "miracle babies" born with only maternal DNA. An edge of your seat dark fantasy that was a pleasure to read.

Girl One by Sarah Flannery Murphy is based on a blockbuster of an idea. Kudos to the author for creating a book that is part Medical Thriller, and part Fantasy, with one big dollop of creativity. This book explores what happens when women can reproduce asexually, which is known as parthenogenesis. When a woman reproduces without a man, the baby inherits the full set of genes of their single parent. (“They look alike, they talk alike, at times they even walk alike…”)

The book begins with Girl One, the first girl to be born with her mother’s DNA only. Her birth, and the subsequent birth of eight more babies, each born to a different woman, created a news furor. The doctor whose research enabled this process was either hailed or scorned. Was this good for society or a terrible mistake? It all ended when the “Homestead” where the 9 mothers and their babies lived burned down, killing the doctor and Baby 9. The remaining mothers and daughters scattered to live private lives.

Years later, Girl One, Jose Morrow, plans to be a fertility specialist and continue this research. But when alarming things occur, she must finally reach out to the other girls, and confront her past. Part science, and part thrilling adventure, this book will entertain you while it makes you think about men, women, and society.

Thanks to NetGalley For an advance review copy. This is my honest review.

Blending elements of myth, fantasy, emergent powers and femininity, this novel centers on nine “Miracle babies” who are clones of their moms, born to women in a rural Vermont compound without any male DNA. The breakthrough accomplishment of a misfit, genius doctor, or something else? When Josie’s mother vanishes after a partial house fire, Josie (Girl One of the nine girls) takes a leave from medical school in Chicago to try to figure out what’s going on. Drawn into an increasingly complex thriller, Josie goes on a heart-pounding trek to find the other surviving Moms and daughters, as well as the elusive father figure of the doctor, who has died as the compound was burned to the ground 17 years earlier, before sharing how the girl’s virgin births occurred. As the daughters join forces to both find Josie’s Mom and learn the truth of their births, discover emergent supernatural powers they never realized they had, and get chased by men out to kill them, a cross-country chase unfolds into a crescendo of fiery revelations. Beneath the fast-moving plot, Murphy leads us through complex reflections about historical power balances between men and women, hostility to change, conception, religion, gender roles, sexuality, and the complexities of family dynamics. You thus have both the topical fast-moving plot sitting on top of a deeper philosophical meditation about myriad social norms we take for granted.

I really enjoyed "Girl One." It had the right mix of action, drama, and the supernatural. The ending felt a little rushed/sudden, but overall I would like to delve more into this world if Sara Flannery Murphy decides to keep writing about it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this twisty, turny mystery. Some of the reveals weren’t that surprising but overall, it kept me guessing. I also enjoyed the characters and they’re development as they progressed through the story.