This book posits a future where boys can be tested for an M gene, which the majority believes predicts if a boy will be violent or not. M negative boys have privileges that M positive boys do not, and are viewed very differently.

Into this world, sisters Antonia and Bea give birth to boys. Antonia’s son tests negative, while Bea refuses to test her son. This means Antonia’s son lives a much more comfortable life than Bea’s. But there are far reaching consequences neither mother sees coming.

I have not stopped thinking about this book since I read it. There are so many issues raised: nature versus nurture, what needs to be done to protect women, divisions within society…This book is also so well written. I would definitely recommend this book.

One of the Boys by Jayne Cowie is a book that really gets you thinking. The twists and turns of this story and the society created in it makes you wonder what you would due in different situations. The story line was dark and twisted but I loved trying to figure out which way the author was going to take this story. I enjoyed it as this is not a typical type of book I would read!

One of the Boys by Jayne Cowie is an excellent read. I was instantly captivated by this world of boys who were being tested or not and the repercussions behind each parent’s decision. While there were parts that I figured out what was going to happen, it didn’t detract from the story at all. The dual timeline created tension and really made me see Bea’s point of view. Well-written and so many opportunities for a rich discussion during a book club, I highly recommend this.

If you could test your son for a gene that predicts violence, would you? In this society the boys who test negative for the gene are held on a pedestal and those who test positive are vilified. Antonia and Bea are sisters but nothing alike. Antonia has her son tested and he doesn’t have the violent gene. Bea refuses to test her son, and he’s treated like he positive despite no results. Both women go to lengths to protect their sons, but when it comes down to it, has either done the right thing?

This book made me think of the television show Dark Mirror. I don’t think there was an episode quite like this, but it had those vibes. I really enjoyed this book despite disliking most of the characters. Both sisters were horrible people for their own reason but it worked. I also really wanted to like their sons, but they kind of sucked as well. I did feel bad for the kids though and that and the premise is what kept me going. This book was so well written and really held my attention throughout. I loved how unique this book was and will pick more up from this author.

Thank you to the publisher Berkley Publishing, @berkleypub, and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First off, I had this mislabeled in my spreadsheet, so this review is a week late. Whoops. Sorry. So many ARCs, so little focus.

One of the Boys.

One of them.

Let’s talk about self-fulfilling prophecies. Let’s talk about socioeconomic and sociocultural influences on parenting and child behavior. Let’s talk about biological and environmental influences on physiological and psychological development. Let’s talk about a piece of scientific misinformation that stems from chromosomal research done in the 1960s that led to a certain percentage of the male population of the western world being labeled as “super predators”.

In 1960’s Scotland, chromosomal research was being carried out on males that were developmentally disabled and being kept at a state hospital. It’s a long story, but the males who tested as having a chromosomal karotype of XYY and were mischaracterized as being overly aggressive and violent. This was a heavily cherry-picked study with absurdly skewed results, and all studies on the subject that followed over the next decade were fruits of that same poisonous tree. Needless to say, these studies were then used as excuses for eugenics debates, racist debates, abortion debates, and even tied to serial killers like Richard Speck (who was never tested for it) before the scientific stigma started to fade away in the 1980s. Sadly, Hollywood was still having a bit of fun with the trope into the 1990s. It’s not a trope that’s trotted out anymore; I assume it’s because the karotypes are tied to developmental disabilities and we’d like to think ourselves a bit above writing books characterizing people with developmental disabilities as some sort of super predator simply based on their chromosomes.

One of the Boys, however, doesn’t use the XYY debate as its premise. I only bring it up because that’s usually where plot ideas like these come from. Instead, this plot seems based in the more dystopian, speculative fiction, Gattaca-esque quadrant of fiction, where science seems to have figured out a way to weed out the wheat from the chaff when it comes to boys. And one would think, given how much we debate the violence of men these days, that a book like this might give female readers some relief; but we all know that’s not how it works. That’s not how reality works. Because as much as we women frown when people say, “not all men,” in our hearts we know not all men are bad. It’s simply that enough of them are. In this book, the men are bad not because of a gene, but because there are so many other factors that need to be taken into account besides a gene. After all, there were bad men before there was a gene to detect. There’s always been bad men. A detectable gene only gives some of them an excuse for their bad behavior.

That’s how Jayne Cowie writes this book, and she writes it brilliantly. Two sisters, so different in constitution, disposition, and behavior. Two sons, one for each of them, one tested for the gene and one not tested because the mother doesn’t think a test can replace parenting and she doesn’t want her child labeled by society before he even has a chance to make his way to adulthood. They both live very different lives: one filled with privilege and everything she and her son could want, and the other moving from place to place living from hand to mouth trying to keep her and her son safe.

The two boys conspire to bring one to the other, because he’s 18 and wants to be tested because he feels he might be arrested for being in an illegal fight and wants to know his status once and for all. This sets off a rapid-fire chain of events that unravels the secrets between the two sisters, the two boys, and three families in total.

It’s not a perfect book, because you can see some of it coming a mile away, but it’s a thought-provoking, propulsive, page-turning one. I couldn’t put it down. It will get your mind turning and thinking about all those boys out there who’ve been cast aside by society for looking a certain way or dressing a certain way. It’ll remind you that science isn’t perfect and sometimes it’s not the right answer. And it’ll remind you that even if you think you have the answers, parenthood always surprises you.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: Crime Fiction/Domestic Thriller/Dystopian Fiction/Speculative Fiction/Suspense Thriller

One of the Boys
Genre: domestic suspense, with dystopian elements
Rating: 4⭐

Thanks @berkleypub for the digital copy - this one is out now!

This was such an interesting concept and also kind of my worst nightmare? In a nutshell: scientists have discovered a way to test boys to determine if they’re likely to be a criminal (the ‘m’ gene). From there, it was a contest of what lengths the mothers in the story will do to protect their boys. As a boy mom myself, I had to pause several times to reflect what I’d do if I was in the characters’s shoes. Reading a book that really makes me think is one of my favorite experiences as a reader.

Short chapters helped me fly through this, and had me wondering with each page what I would do in the mothers’s situations; as technology seems to advance by the day lately, it may not be that far fetched soon enough. This story was told in multiple POVs, Bea and her sister Antonia, as well as their sons, with jumps back and forth in time. While I had mostly guessed the direction the story was going to take, I was invested enough that I couldn’t turn pages fast enough, to see how it all played out for the characters.

One of the Boys will totally mess with your mind. I know it sure messed with mine. It's definitely a book that makes you think, and it's one that will stay with you long after the final page is read. I'll admit that I didn't find either of the sisters particularly likable, but that wasn't really a requirement with this one. As I mentioned, this is a book that makes you think, but it's really not about why each sister made the choice they did - at least, that's the way I felt about it. For me, it was more about what happens next, and I'm not going there. This is a thriller, after all, and we can't start throwing spoilers around. I will say that if you're worried about the science (I know I was), you don't need to be. Jayne Cowie keeps it simple, and I was pretty thankful for that. When it gets too technical, my eyes start to glaze over, and I don't get the full enjoyment of the story. That's not a problem at all with this book. The writing flows very well, and Cowie has a style that makes it easy to get lost in the story and forget everything else. She also gives us a fair number of twists, some I saw coming and some not at all, which makes for a totally hard-to-put-down thriller.

If you could test your son for a gene that predicts violence, would you? Antonia and Bea are sisters who have different thoughts on whether or not to have their sons tested. Antonia wants to make sure her son isn’t positive for the M gene, while Bea doesn’t want her son’s future predetermined by his result. One of them is negative while the other is positive, but which one is it, and how will it affect all of them?

Wow! This book was amazing! I didn’t know what to expect while reading it, and it had me engrossed from page one all the way to the shocking ending. Written in multiple timelines and perspectives, this book was a surprise hit for me.

I loved the writing style and how we get both of the mothers and sons’ perspectives throughout. It was tough reading at times because the topic was so dark and serious, but it made me think about if this could really happen and how it would affect our lives. The author did a great job of showing what a mother will do to protect her child.

I didn’t want to put this book down, and although I figured some things out early, it was a fantastic read. I look forward to reading more from Cowie.

Thank you Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for advanced copies in exchange for my honest review.

This was really good! I picked it up on a whim and I'm glad I did. I would classify this as a dystopian thriller. Just the thought of testing boys for the murder gene freaks me out, lol. The book reminded me of the book, Defending Jacob, where Jacob was tested for the "M" gene. It also reminded me of when the pandemic first started and how people were judged in social situations if you got the COVID vaccine or not. The book was fast-paced and suspenseful with a nice twist at the end. I recommend this one!

Thanks so much, NetGalley and Berkley Pub, for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you @berkleypub for the free book and @prhaudio for the audio version as well. #penguinrandomhousepartner
#berkleypartner #berkley #berkleybookstagram

I enjoyed this dystopian novel that explores what could happen in a world where we tested all male babies for a gene that predicts future violent behavior, a gene known as the M gene.

Bea and her sister Antonia both have baby boys. Antonia chooses to test Baby Jack to make sure he doesn’t have the gene. However, Bea refuses to have her baby tested. She believes Baby Simon should have a chance at life without a label.

The decisions both sisters make lead to jealousy, secrets, deception, and betrayal, with devastating consequences! How far will a mother go to protect her son?

The author does a great job exploring the ramifications of choosing/not choosing to have baby boys tested as the story unfolds through several perspectives (Bea, Antonia, Simon, and Jack) and dual timelines. The sisters, Bea and Antonia, are played against one another. Both are equally unlikeable!This well-written story and the stunning twist at the end will make you think!

Bea and Antonia are sisters, but they are living very different lives. They were both pregnant with their sons around the same time, but that’s where the resemblance stops.

Antonia was married to a doctor and lived in a big house. She had trouble getting pregnant, but once the IVF worked, she and her husband Owen gave their son Jack everything he could want. He was born early, but he was given the best medical care and the best education, and most importantly, he had an M negative test result, which literally opened doors that were closed to others.

Antonia had Jack tested when he was an infant, shortly after the testing was just starting. The M gene was the genetic component of violence in men, so boys who test negative are afforded a freedom in life, since the women around them could be certain he wouldn’t grow up to be a threat. It was the M positive boys who grew up to be rapists and wife beaters, addicts and killers.

Bea gave birth to her son Simon in the bathroom of the hospital. She had a partner, Alfie, but they didn’t live in a big house. They were barely scraping by, Bea having to go back to work while trying to find affordable daycare for Simon. She refused to have Simon tested, as a positive test would have doomed him to a life worse than poverty. Not knowing was difficult, but having a positive test would mean he wouldn’t be able to get into any daycare or school, wouldn’t be able to get a decent job, wouldn’t have any kind of future as well.

But things got more difficult for Simon as the years went on. Testing became more prevalent, as did the discriminations against boys testing positive, and against boys who are untested. So when Simon turned 18, he decided to get tested, and got his mother to take them to her sister’s house. It had been years since he had seen Jack, and the two of them had a plan to get Simon tested so he would have a negative result.

But in those years, Owen had opened a clinic for M positive boys, helping come up with treatment plans for families that involve specific parenting interventions and sometimes medication. He figured that if they could catch these boys early and shape their behavior as they grew up, they could still be productive members of society. But Owen has a secret that could have repercussions for the clinic and the marriage.

And as it turns out, the sisters both have secrets of their own too. One of those secrets could destroy a family. But the other one could destroy them all, including the boys. Especially the boys.

One of the Boys is a roiling domestic thriller filled that feels all too possible in the near future. Author Jayne Cowie has crafted this story of contrasts, rich and poor, good and bad, potential and actual, honest and deceitful, and used them to shine a light on basic human behavior in a compelling, chilling way. Seeing these families struggle with the positive diagnosis, with the decision to even get tested, with a society that wants to pigeonhole citizens into simple categories is powerful and really makes you question everything you think about the people you see around you every day.

I am a psychology nerd, so that premise of the M gene hooked me immediately. But as I got pulled into the lives of these characters, I saw just how complicated this situation could get. Cowie does a masterful job of showing all sides of this, the boys who are negative getting breaks they may not deserve, the boys who are positive getting stigmatized and shunned from proper society, the boys who are untested getting lost somewhere in between. One of the Boys is not just an unputdownable story, it’s also a foreshadowing of where we could al end up if we’re not careful.

But mostly, it’s just an amazing read!

Egalleys for One of the Boys were provided by Berkley through NetGalley, with many thanks.

If you could test your son for a gene that predicts violence, would you do it?

This was a fascinating novel that really made you think. In today’s day and age of fertility and gene testing, boys are being tested for the M gene. This shows a propensity for violence. Boys are discriminated against if you test positive. But a negative test result means that you can live a very easy life.

Two families have very different backgrounds despite that both mothers are sisters. Antonia married a doctor who specializes in treating M+ boys. Her son Jack is negative and does well in school. Her sister Bea lives very paycheck to paycheck and her son Simon was never tested. She has done this strategically because Simon is very rough and tough. A positive test would have horrible repercussions for their family.

Bea and Simon get have to hide out at Antonia’s house for a little bit to avoid some trouble Simon got into. But it brings up family secrets that were meant to be hidden.

I really enjoyed the what if scenarios and trying to put yourself in both mother’s shoes. I liked the futuristic feel to the book and having to show your M- proof felt like when we had to show our vaccines status.

Thank you to @berkleypub and @cowiejayne for my gifted copy. One of the Boys is out now! I need to read Jayne’s first novel Curfew.

One of the Boys was both delightfully messed up and incredibly thought-provoking, and I absolutely devoured it! In this story, we meet sisters Bea and Antonia. They live in a world in which new technology has emerged that allows doctors to test for a gene that makes males more susceptible to violent behavior. They each have a son as this test is becoming more prominent. Bea does not like the idea of the test and wants her son to be judged on his own actions, not his genetics. Antonia, however, is married to a man who has made his whole career into developing treatment for boys who test positive, so she is a proponent of the test and has her son tested.

Bea and Antonia’s lives could not be more different, but whether that is because of the test can (and will be!) debated. Bea is barely scraping by, constantly moving and trying to find jobs to support her and her son Simon. Her partner Alfie has long since taken off, and she is pretty much on her own, and as Simon grows, there is quite the stigma around untested males, which makes arranging schooling and childcare all the more difficult. Antonia, however, leads a pretty swanky life. She’s the wife of a doctor who eventually earns a role in the practice herself. Their son Jack is reaping the benefits of a negative male, which means all the best in schools and activities. They are very financially well-off, due to the clamoring for the treatment for kids who test positive. So to say they are living in two different worlds is not a stretch. And when Bea emerges back into Antonia’s life, things go off the rails in a hurry as all kinds of long-hidden secrets and mysteries come to light.

Now, while I loved the characters and the mysteriousness, my favorite aspect has to be the questions this book led me to ponder. First, it certainly brings up the concept of nature-versus-nurture. Are people hardwired from the womb to do terrible things? Is there nothing that can be done to change that trajectory? Bea, of course, thinks that there is more to a person than their genetics, and I certainly hope that is true! How depressing it is to think that we have no agency over our actions, and our paths are formed from the moment we are. It also raised a lot of relevant concerns about how society was treating male children who were either positive or untested. Was it a self-fulfilling prophecy? Did society, by marking these boys as “wrong” instead make them into monsters? These are questions that Bea and Antonia, as well as the reader, will certainly be forced to consider.

Bottom Line: So yes, this book will make you think. It will also entertain, and keep you guessing, which is a pretty tall order from a single novel, but it accomplishes it beautifully!

Thank you to @berkleypub @prhaudio @netgalley @letstalkbookspromo for the #gifted copy of the book! I enjoyed this #buddyread

One of the Boys by Jayne Crowie

Genre: Thriller/Dystopia
Publisher: @berkleypub
Pub Date: July 11, 2023

If you are looking for your next book club pick, choose this one. Guaranteed to have a great discussion. Two sisters have boys. Imagine having to decide if your child should be tested for the M gene or not. This is what happens to Bea and her sister, Antonia. One chooses to do it and one chooses not to do it. Their whole lives center around this test. How for would you go to protect your child?

Wow. I needed to read this book. I feel like I’ve been in a thriller rut and this was just what I needed! I loved how thought provoking it was, as a mother of two boys. It made me pause and think and I love when I book does that.

In this dystopian thriller, two sisters who lead very different lives, have two baby boys close in age. During this time, it is encouraged to have your son tested for the M gene to see if they will be a violent male. Bea leads a rough life, with not much money but loves her son fiercely. She refuses to test him for the M gene because she doesn’t believe it should dictate how they live. Antonia is married to a doctor and after finally getting the son she desperately wanted, she tests him immediately and believes in the testing completely.

This book kept me on my toes! I was truly shocked by the twists! A common theme throughout is that people are definitely not who they seem. It seemed crazy and outlandish to think testing all male children will give you a clear picture of how their lives will turn out! I felt so badly for these boys and how they’re treated based on a test result. Although I didn’t love the mothers, I could still relate with how far they would go to protect their sons. They were both trying to make decisions they thought would help their children best, but as a parent we don’t always know what long term effects these decisions may have! This is a dark, thought provoking, unique read that I highly recommend!

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for my e-ARC of One of the Boys!

𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔
🌪️ enjoy a lot of twists
👀 love unreliable POVs
💀 want to read something dystopian
📖 like short chapters

• 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐓’𝐒 𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓

If you could test your son for a gene that predicts violence, would you do it? From the author of Curfew comes a suspenseful, heart-wrenching novel about the consequences of your answer.

Antonia and Bea are sisters, and doting mothers to their sons. But that is where their similarities end.

Antonia had her son tested to make sure he didn’t possess the "violent" M gene.

Bea refuses to let her son take the test. She believes his life should not be determined by a positive or negative result.

These women will go to any length to protect their sons.

But one of them is hiding a monster.

And there will be fatal consequences for everybody....

• 𝐌𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒

I really enjoyed this right from the start, especially as a mother of two sons. I found the M gene to be both intriguing and frightening at the same time. Did knowing they were positive make these boys more or less violent? It felt like a test of nature vs nurture, especially when it came to Bea’s approach to the test. While I did guess a majority of the twists, I enjoyed what the author did to bring us to the final conclusion of the story. Overall, I enjoyed the ride and look forward to reading more by this author!

Read if you like:
🧬 Dystopian Plots
🤷🏻‍♂️ Discussion of Male Violence
👨‍👩‍👦 Domestic Thrillers
👩‍👦Mother/Son Relationships

This book was sadly very predictable for me and I felt like I knew the answer from very early on and was sad to see just how right I was in the end because I don’t like the feeling of knowing the ending for my thrillers so early on.

I did love the way the sisters were essentially putting themselves against each other and making polar opposite decisions regarding their sons and the unveiling of their reasons for how they parented their sons.

The look of how the sisters also had very different socioeconomic status also played a lot into their parenting and decisions that they made with the rich sister testing her child and the poor one not and refusing to and how society links socioeconomic status to making the right decisions whether with this, COVID, or other areas that are political.

If you want to read a book about nature versus nurture I strongly recommend this one but just know it may be a bit predictable for you too! Thanks so much to Berkley for my ARC if this one!

What's it about (in a nutshell):
One of the Boys by Jayne Cowie is a thought-provoking thriller about the fundamental debate of nature versus nurture, specifically regarding violent behavior.

My Reading Experience:
I was absolutely riveted during the whole read. I surprisingly finished this book in one day – granted, it was a weekend day – but still, I couldn't pull myself away from the story until I found out how it all played out.

The story follows Jack and Simon from birth until the main event in the story (at which time Simon was 18 and Jack was 17). Soon before they were born, scientists discovered a violent gene that only affected males, and boys could be tested for it at birth. Bea refuses to have Simon tested, but her sister Antonia immediately has Jack tested. As the story progresses, identifying that gene and the social consequences of knowing if someone is positive for it takes on a whole scary life of its own that feels very authentic.

I love how thought-provoking this story is and can easily see it as a sci-fi thriller choice for book clubs and buddy reads. There's much to talk about, especially considering today's struggle to keep kids in schools safe and prevent other massive displays of violence that are very concerning.

I also loved getting both sides of the nature versus nurture argument through the two related families. It shows the fallacies and the benefits of both ways of thinking, which is paramount for any well-thought-out discussion. The genetic aspect is a fascinating topic and incredibly relevant today with the growth of the field and genetics testing that has become routine.

Characters, Narration & Pacing:
I'm combining these three sections for this review because of their interconnectedness. It's only possible to discuss one by bringing up the other aspects.

The story is told in first person through 4 different characters. Bea is the primary narrator, and her sister, nephew, and son also have occasional chapters.

Bea doesn't believe in the testing and feels if she raises her son as she should, it doesn't matter if he has the gene or not, so she is an interesting character to spend most of your time with. I also loved getting both boys' viewpoints, if even briefly.

Antonia, Bea's sister, is also an engaging narrator. She embraces everything that's going on – so an opposite view to her sister Bea. All of the narration is varying degrees of unreliable, which I also loved.

The pacing is swift from start to finish, and it's a tightly constructed thriller, which helps to keep that pace fast. The pacing and construction of the story get all the points from me.

Setting:
The story is set in the UK, but it could be anywhere, and that was a purposeful choice. The story is much more impactful if you can see it happening in your community no matter where in this big world you live.
So, even though I often ding a book when the setting isn't utilized, it was an excellent choice to leave it open enough that readers can put it anywhere.

Read if you're in the mood for:
A dark, reflective, and tense sci-fi thriller
A thought-provoking story that will create conversation
A riveting thriller

A Genetic Test for Male Aggressive Behavior

After scientists discovered that in a prison population most of the males had the M+ gene, they decided that the boys with that gene will be trouble makers. Boys with M- gene will not have this characteristic. After they develop a test for the gene, the next step is to test all boy babies to determine which type of the M gene they possess. This leads to differences in treatment for they boys depending on which variant they have. The M- boys receive all the perks including getting into good schools. The M+ boys are giving menial jobs and treated as outcasts. In this two tier society, parents want to assure that their sons are M-.

Two sisters, Antonia and Bea, have sons born at about the same time. Antonia is married to a wealthy doctor; Bea is an unwed mother who lives with her partner. Antonia has her son tested and exalts in his M- status. Bea refuses to test her son not wanting his life to be determined by a single test. The boys are treated differently. Antonia is a protective mother. Bea wants her son to face the trials of life. As the boys grow up their paths diverge in a way that brings heartache to both families.

This story has a shocking premise: a world where genetics is destiny. By separating boys into good and bad groups at a very early age they are almost begging for bad things to happen. The tension in the book is very strong. It pulls you into this world. The conclusion is hard to see coming and for me reinforced all the bad things about treating children this way.

I received this review copy from Net Galley and the publisher.

4.5 stars

What a unique premise! I've never read anything like this book, and I hated to put it aside! Themes of morality and sacrifice are key, as well as the question of to what length a parent will go to in order to protect their child, particularly if it requires putting a label on their child. Part of the appeal of the story is the scary reality to the concept. The active pace and numerous twists keeps readers engaged. Overall, this is a great mix of family drama, thriller, and dystopian.