A thrilling sci-fi story of the future and reproductively. Kenleigh is a part of a rare group of women. Some people scrutinize her and others want to test her. She is on the run and she is running from a man who has been stalking her. He wants something that she has and she doesn’t know who to trust. This is the first book in The Egg Hunters series and it’s a great start to a new series. A riveting thriller with excellent characters and a captivating plot.

Disclaimer: Thank you NetGalley and Roark Arnett for this review copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book falls into the dystopian society genre. Typically, I love dystopian societies, but this novel does nothing for me. An interesting take on an extremely touchy subject, this novel could be triggering for many. The way women are portrayed is one aspect that makes this novel hard to get through. It was slow and I found myself putting it down more times than not. Honestly, I would not recommend it to anyone.

I want to thank Netgalley and Roark Arnett for an ARC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out! Sci-fi fans, check it out.

Interesting concept with this one for sure (and apologies as I am a bit late with this review) but I was so drawn in by this concept that I couldn't help but wanting to read this one. Ultimately, this one didn't suck me in as much as I hoped and I found the story to be a bit slow. The pace definitely would not keep me from recommending this book to others, but it wasn't amazing to me.

Wow loved this! Kenleigh Maize and her deceased mother are identical twins. Mother-daughter identicals are the new norm in 2061, and they’re fueling an uncontrollable population boom.

A boom only the infertiles can stop.

Kenleigh is one of them. Part of an endangered group of scrutinized women who are immune to the mutation that is causing the egg to self-fertilize. Outcasts.

After a botched DNA test lands Kenleigh in the crosshairs of a geneticist who believes her barren eggs can reverse the crisis, she suspects the encounter is anything but coincidence. She sets out to uncover the truth, not realizing she’s being lured by a man who has been stalking her for decades.

A man who she shares an unthinkable relationship with.

A man who will stop at nothing to recover her eggs.

Book one in the Egg Hunters series, The Nursery is a propulsive science-fiction thriller that is wildly imaginative and unforgettable.

(Review appeared in Tea Time With a Good Book in print media for Northeastern Ohio (Cleveland and the surrounding areas) for the month of October.

Two books, both science fiction, won me over in an instant and this month, I have to mention both so hooked I was, unable to put my tablet down. The Nursery by Roark Arnett is a self published book that, when released, will be on every best seller list (or should be).

In this dystopian world many things are going on, the future, while brighter for energy, has turned into a society where women reproduce on their own. When their time comes to turn into a woman, they self fertilize creating a baby that is a carbon copy of themselves. And they continue to do this for their lifetime until menopause (thank God, right?)

Our heroine, one who cannot impregnate herself like all the others, is on a search to find out why. But, rather than feel grateful not to have four or five children in her early twenties, she envies these women. With other futuristic dilemmas in the novel this twist is only one. In the end, will she be what saves humanity from extinction (from lack of genetic diversity)? This is the first book in her Egg Hunter Series.

(the review continued with the next book, Chance, also read on Netgalley)

Firstly, I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review..

The concept of genetics being restructured and the world now live as the women looks the same from the mother to daughter, the exact replicas of each other like a clone. Women are fertile and get pregnant by themselves as if they are self fertilizing so newborns are increasing in higher rate. Those who dont get pregnant is infertile and will need to get examination to check their DNA. People installed display in their retinas, the neural energy were taken from countless children by using their brainwaves.

Our MC is considered infertile as she cannot get pregnant and she went on a discovery to find more things about her mother. Another character is a scientist who is trying to uncover the horrible industry of child factory as children were being exploited to provide energy by attaching eeg on their brains to supply electricity.

Personally, i like the scifi concept, it was very intriguing to read especially on the biology and neuroscience part albeit it can be hard to read for those who are not familiar bcus there are a lot of technical jargons. However, it was an interesting read. The chapters with our female protagonist was more compelling than Isaiah so im liking it. Though their dynamics with each other was less established and could be more

I'm not shocked this was written by a man. While an interesting world, for sure, there is so much that is not discussed. Why is the infertile population hated so much? Why is there no conversation about high risk pregnancies or postpartum issues? What of the women who DON'T want to be mothers? In this kind of world, you'd think there would be immense conversation about heightened mental health concerns. There's so much missing from this that it feels like a massive flop to me.

This book was a bit difficult to read, it gives us lots of science and sometimes all at the same time, it is truly written for the future, the main character Kenleigh she is the only daughter of her mother that during 40 years was an infertile like she currently is, I actually did like Ruth (kenleigh best friend) better than our main character, other character we get to know, is Isaiah, a doctor with the Who that is being thrown under the bus by his own boss, while he starts to investigate what really is happening without calling attention to him, but he disappointed me… he loses all focus when sex comes to mind…

Hmm the premise for the book sounds really good, but I think it lacks focus, many things are happening at the same time, and not all seems to deserve the same attention… so things get lost in the story. This is the first book of the series, and I don’t know if I am motivated enough to read what comes next.

I would put this book on the category of hard science fiction with a very strong dystopian world.

Thank you NetGalley for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

"The Nursery" is a new science-fiction thriller written by Roark Arnett. It is set in a future where women are either able to only reproduce asexually (creating younger identicals of themselves) or can't reproduce at all (dubbed "infertiles"). Our two main characters are named "Kenleigh" and "Isaiah." We follow Kenleigh as she tries to unravel the mystery surrounding her mother and Isaiah as he tries to take down a shadowy tech organization known as "Bio One." As the story progresses, the two characters come together as they find themselves involved in a conspiracy that has global implications.

I really enjoyed the plot of this novel. I'm relatively new to speculative fiction, so I didn't really know what I was getting into at first. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I found this story to be original, unique, and exciting. The prospect of an asexual birthing crisis was what initially drew me in to wanting to read this novel. As I got more into it, though, I enjoyed reading about Bio One and its shady dealings with C4s. The twists and turns within the story were all well done, and they made the narrative even more exciting. While there were times when the pacing would lull a bit, certain developments would ramp the plot back up to a nice pace.

I also really enjoyed the characters in "The Nursery." I especially liked Kenleigh. She's what I look for in a strong female character. She was competent, driven, intelligent, and fierce. I enjoyed all of her chapters, and I loved getting to know her. It took me a while to start to like Isaiah. He came off as a jerk at first, and I really didn't like him for his first few chapters. However, as he got wrapped up further in the conspiracy he found himself in, I found myself empathizing with and understanding him more. I started liking him a lot more as the story went on. I really enjoyed Ruth as a character, as well. She was the perfect mix of comic relief and awesome sidekick. The antagonists were also well-written and interesting to read about.

I only had a couple real gripes with the novel. At times, the prose felt too wordy and too complicated, especially when the narrative shifted to more scientific talk. I found myself getting confused and having to reread the same paragraph a few times in order to understand. There were also times where the pacing felt like it lagged a bit too much. There were a couple of times where I would get a bit bored and would read a different book for a few hours. The story would always pick back up after a brief lull, though, so I always found myself coming back and enjoying.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The plot was original and exciting, and the characters were fun and interesting to read about. The stakes were high, and I appreciate that in a science-fiction thriller. While I had some complaints with this book, the good greatly outweighed the bad. Electrifying and white-hot, "The Nursery" is an exciting, promising debut from author Roark Arnett. Filled with mystery and intrigue, it is the perfect book for people who are looking for new speculative fiction. I had a great time reading this book, and I'm looking forward to reading the sequel when it comes out!

A unique and original concept that kept me interested with every new twist - Sci-fi at its best!
At times I found the detail a bit overwhelming (e.g. three different pieces of technology being introduced in one sentence) but overall I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next.

The summary sounds absolutely fascinating and I was hoping for What Happened to Monday and Orphan Black vibes, but this was a bit all over the place. This needs a serious round of edits to tighten up the storyline and deliver the hard science in a clearer manner. I am unable to find any release dates in upcoming publishing databases for this so I am hoping it has been pulled for those edits to occur.

CW: Infertility, medical sexual assault.
The Nursery follows the dual storylines of Kenliegh, an infertile woman in a world facing a hyperfertility crisis, and Isahia, a WHO agent fighting against collective consciousness enslavement. When Isahia finds Kenliegh's medical file at a collective consciousness research facility, the two of them realize that these public health crises may be more intertwined than anyone believed.
I picked up this book because the blurb describing the virgin clone births was so intriguing, but I actually found the research about the collective consciousness concentration camps (C4s) to be much more intriguing at first. With the population boom, researchers figured out how to use brain chips to create a neural network strong enough to use as an electricity source, but it renders the people involved braindead.
To be honest, I was a little wary of a story about pregnancy written by a man, but the hyperfertility wasn't the main focus. This fight between the government and BioOne, the producer of the brain chips, is so well done. The pacing is great and kept my attention from the beginning. As the characters unraveled the connection between hyperfertility and the C4s, I was on the edge of my seat!
With any sci-fi story, the science can get wishy-washy, and this novel had a few moments, but not so much that it distracts from the narrative. I feel like the medical assault could have been handled better, but my biggest complaint would be that the gender implications of the virgin births seem underthought. I was surprised that abortion wasn't a consideration, and I feel like there would be a lot more unrest if women were spontaneously getting pregnant. The only mention is of women seeking to have their tubes tied, which they're allowed to do after having 12 twin births! I realize that this is the first book in a series, so I hope that this is explored further in the future.
This was so enjoyable, especially for a debut novel, and I really look forward to reading the next book in this series.

The cover made me select this book, me love a nice cover, and the plot seemed interesting. The story grabbed me and I finished quite fast.

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

This was an interesting book for me. The premise was so far from reality (thank goodness) but it was made believable by excellent writing and world building. I enjoyed it far more than I could have expected and it's one of those books that will linger in the back of my mind for a long time to come.

Identical sets of mother-daughter twins are the norm in 2061. Kenleigh Maize and her mother are just that, however, Kenleigh is infertile, making her part of a shunned group in society. Kenleigh is anything but normal and her mutation might be the cure to stop the uncontrollable population rise. Some people will stop at nothing in order to recover her eggs and fix the population.

I was drawn to this book because of its unique plot, as I've never read anything quite like this. Overall, I enjoyed this book and the writing, as it was very entertaining. I liked how the chapters focused on different characters until they all came together to work as one. The buildup and development was definitely a highlight of this book. I hope this series continues, as there is so much that can be done in this fictional world.

Thank you NetGalley and Roark Arnett for this free arc in exchange for my honest review.

"Mother-daughter identicals are the new norm in 2061" was the line that got me invested in reading this book. It was such a interesting concept and I'm glad that it held my expectations. It was such a great science-fiction thriller and a great start of a series. The plot was really well done and I was engaged in what was going on through the characters. The characters felt like real people and I really enjoyed getting to know them. I can't wait to read more in the Egg Hunters series.

"A warm wave of sorrow welled from within. His eyes glazed over. Paulina’s message reminded him of the real reason he was here. The purpose for all this. Mar’s life had been ripped away from her family. All because of a technological revolution fueled by Bio One."