I have some really mixed feelings about this book. I remember seeing it somewhere a while back and not being drawn to the cover and title, but when I read a review from someone I follow here on Goodreads, I had to pick it up right away. The story follows two women, Tess and Katherine, who have their eggs switched at an IVF clinic. A child is born, and the two of them (along with their families) must work through the emotional and legal consequences of the switch.

What a hell of a premise! Completely fresh and original, and I love coming across a story I've never seen before.

I immediately loved Charlene Carr's writing -- there's something about her style that draws you in and connects you to the characters. I was really impressed with the balance of plot and character development, which is tough to do well.

It would make an excellent read for a book club (although major trigger warnings for infertility -- I'm not normally big on these, but this book really dives deep). And honestly, I'm surprised more people aren't talking about it!! Even though I have mixed emotions, I hope to see this book blow up this year. It's completely original, Carr's writing is stellar, and it provides so much food for thought.

Tess and Katherine's lives are very different. Katherine is married to Patrick, lives in a comfortable home in a nice part of town, and previously had a successful interior decorating business. Tess works a pay-the-bills job, is recently divorced, and getting by from day to day.

I connected with Tess, who's had her fair share of setbacks, and has also made some poor choices as a result of those setbacks. I think most of us will be able to see ourselves in her story. Katherine felt less relatable to me, but I empathized with her perfectionist tendencies to compensate for the lack of control she had over her infertility. My favorite character of the story was Tess' brother Mikolai, who is a gem of a human being and the supportive brother we would all want.

At the start, I thought this would be a favorite of the year, and that was the case most of the way through. In the last quarter or so of the book, things take a turn that I felt was untrue to the characters' development, and it left a bad taste for me. I won't say anything here, but will leave my thoughts in a spoiler below.

I'm grateful this story was put on my radar and look forward to reading more from the author! I enjoyed reading a book set in Canada (surprisingly don't come across this often) and the handling of representation felt very authentic.

4.5 stars

The story took a turn when Tess became absent-minded at work, leading to a suspension, shared her side of the story on a podcast, and went on a bender, sleeping with strangers to fill the loneliness and hopelessness she felt.

Prior to this, Tess had made some real improvements to her life -- she worked hard to get a better apartment, planned to enroll in college courses, and reconnected with her family. She was on an upward trajectory for the sake of her daughter, Rose.

Personally, it left a bad taste in my mouth that she did a 180 and backslid big-time, but I also didn't like Katherine's entitlement throughout the story, and it bothered me that she ended up getting primary custody in the end. I also didn't think it was evident earlier on that Tess had a drinking problem.

If I re-wrote the ending, I'd have had Katherine leave Patrick. He absolutely had the right to be frustrated with Katherine during their infertility struggles, but he had some other red flags, like his unwillingness to stand up for Katherine and do the right thing for Rose by sharing custody with Tess.

I also would've loved a different resolution between Tess and her mother. They were clearly two people who needed more love in their lives, and I think having an honest conversation about what happened in the past and seeing Jasia soften toward Tess would've felt closer to the truth.

To me, a surprising and inevitable ending to the story would have been for Katherine to leave Patrick and become a third party in the court case, as opposed to just her and Patrick vs. Tess. I would've loved to see more of a catharsis from Katherine, who even by the end of the book, can only offer Tess kindness because Rose loves her. I think Katherine is better than that, someone who can forgive and move past the hurt, especially after everything she's been through with infertility.