by Sara Flannery Murphy

Raven, out now

Parthenogenesis – scientific dream or nightmare? For those directly involved, it can be both…

Sara Flannery Murphy’s second novel is a terrific combination of Michael Crichton-esque medical thriller, noir road trip and revenge tale, wrapped up in a young woman’s journey of self-discovery. In the early 1970s, Dr Ballanger managed to achieve parthenogenesis in nine women, but after his death in a tragic fire, the mothers and daughters that survived went their own way. In 1994, Girl One, Josie, is following in his scientific footsteps, as her mother goes missing – and Josie discovers that her mother is seeking her own answers.

Murphy does an excellent job of parcelling out the information to the reader as needed – the 1970s are brought to life via pastiches of the sorts of article that appeared at the time, while Josie meets some of her “siblings” and “aunts” and learns that nothing she believed can be taken for granted.

By making “today” 1994, the story is set before the ease of information access granted by the internet and Murphy leans into this, making her characters need to find payphones and leave voicemails on answering machines. This grounding helps when the story moves into slightly wilder territory in the second half.

None of the characters are painted in black or white – each has shades of grey, and some of Josie’s actions at the end take her into darker territory than you might expect – but each is credible. The ending leaves plenty of scope for a sequel, and I hope Murphy returns to this world soon.

Verdict: An engaging and well-paced scientifically based thriller. 9/10

Paul Simpson

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