Review: The Originals by Cat Patrick

Book: The Originals
By: Cat Patrick
Published: May 7, 2013
Published By: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Description: A riveting new story from Cat Patrick, author of Forgotten and Revived.

17-year-olds Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey Best grew up as identical triplets... until they discovered a shocking family secret. They're actually closer than sisters, they're clones. Hiding from a government agency that would expose them, the Best family appears to consist of a single mother with one daughter named Elizabeth. Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey take turns going to school, attending social engagements, and a group mindset has always been a de facto part of life...

Then Lizzie meets Sean Kelly, a guy who seems to see into her very soul. As their relationship develops, Lizzie realizes that she's not a carbon copy of her sisters; she's an individual with unique dreams and desires, and digging deeper into her background, Lizzie begins to dismantle the delicate balance of an unusual family that only science could have created

My Thoughts: The Originals is a story that shows what could happen should scientists have their way, and the possible implications it could have on the lives of the innocents in the equation.

The story is told in Lizzie's POV. She and her "sisters" share pieces of each day and pretend to be Elizabeth Best in order to hide from the government. One takes care of morning classes, the other takes afternoon classes, and the third takes the afternoon activities and after school programs. Their guardian notices that each of the girls are learning differently and attempting to fix that, decides to swap their times. Unfortunately, doing so causes the life of the person tho they're attempting to be (I hope that makes sense) to change drastically, so the mother switches so that each girl takes care of the part of the day that they do best. It is now that Lizzie meets Sean Kelly, and one of the other sisters meet someone they like. Only one girl can't date multiple guys in multiple parts of her day, so their mother decides to choose who they will date, which means one of the girls gets extremely broken hearted really fast. Soon, the girls really learn what it means to be parts of a whole, and learn that they don't like it. They learn that just because they're clones doesn't mean they shouldn't be allowed everything "real people have, and they realize just how hard they're willing to fight for it.

This book was interesting, and definitely shows the importance of personality and freedom, and made me think harder about how scientists treat those they study, and the rights those subjects have. It was a good book, but unfortunately, it just wasn't for me. The girls, though in high school and 17 years old, remind me more of 14/15 year olds in the way they act. They're so sheltered it seems, that they can't even act their age, and that inhibits my ability to relate. Furthermore, theres insta-love, a quick wrapped up ending that didnt make much sense to me, and multiple things that occurred that was just "too easy" Everything that happened was just as naive as these two girls were. I didn't like that at all.

The main thing I liked about the book was the premise. I felt like it could have been done better somehow. For that reason, I give it 2.5 stars.