stilljennifer's review against another edition
4.0
A solid 4.5 stars. I was immediately intrigued by the synopsis of this book - Silicon Valley biotech genius + feminist Tessa Calahan co-founds a company which aims to accelerate pregnancy from around 40 weeks to a mere 9, a scientific breakthrough inspired by a few dozen "natural" cases of this a few decades prior. The implications of this are pretty widespread and come as a shock to Tessa and others who've been affected by past cases of AG (accelerated gestation). I don't want to give too much away here, and I'm certainly leaving out a lot with my own synopsis above, but this book didn't disappoint.
I both loved and related to Tessa, so dedicated to her work but torn on how to balance her professional achievements with a struggling marriage. She was a fantastically complex protagonist and probably my favorite thing about the book. I also loved the other women in the book, from the Cohort to Viv and even Dr. Gupta, all of whom were less sketched out but still three dimensional. This is a story about science, about the conflicting nature of womanhood in particular and humanity in general, and just a really interesting read.
I both loved and related to Tessa, so dedicated to her work but torn on how to balance her professional achievements with a struggling marriage. She was a fantastically complex protagonist and probably my favorite thing about the book. I also loved the other women in the book, from the Cohort to Viv and even Dr. Gupta, all of whom were less sketched out but still three dimensional. This is a story about science, about the conflicting nature of womanhood in particular and humanity in general, and just a really interesting read.
bibliokyra's review against another edition
4.0
My rating: 4.5 stars
Mother of Invention is a fast-paced science fiction novel set in the conceivable near future. The main protagonist, Tessa, is a childless, forty-something, successful tech executive and feminist author of Pushing Through: A Handbook for Young Women in the New World. An heir with major daddy issues, Luke Zimmerman, wants to invent something groundbreaking in order to attain fame. Luke puts together a team of world-renowned doctors and staff and wants Tessa on board. He proposes his idea to Tessa, to accelerate pregnancy terms to nine weeks. Tessa is intrigued and they quickly become business partners, merging their companies and creating The Seahorse Solution. They begin their first human trial with three female volunteers. Complications arise and the plot thickens as Tessa learns there is pivotal information that Luke has been keeping from her.
The synopsis of this book immediately piqued my interest and I knew I had to read it. I devoured this thrilling page-turner in two sittings and was captivated the entire time. Tessa is a strong, complex character who is extremely career driven. She isn't very likeable and she's okay with that. Her husband, Peter, wants to have a child and offers to become a stay-at-home father so Tessa can continue her career with minimal interruptions. Tessa obliges but is unable to get pregnant and is secretly relieved. Luke is the heir and son to the founder of the popular social media company, LikeMe. After his estranged father's sudden death, Luke is convinced that he needs to do something 'radical and extraordinary'.
Tessa's main intentions for co-founding The Seahorse Solution were to empower women, grant them the joys of motherhood while also helping them quickly get back on track with their careers. Luke's only concern seemed to be self-glorification. His inspiration for The Seahorse Solution was a previous medical anomaly, The CleftKids, a group of children (now young adults) who were born as a result of accelerated gestation. Luke was infatuated with them but any remaining articles and links to their existence were quickly being erased.
One of the CleftKids, Viv, is a bright college student who is determined to figure out why she is showing premature signs of aging and why their story is being eradicated. We learn that in the aftermath of a terror attack, the US created the Internal Stability Agency, an egregious, top-secret government agency with its own agenda to prevent any type of hysteria or excessive questioning amongst citizens. Viv has become a nuisance for the ISA and they've sent one of their agents to bring her in for the foreseeable future unless she cooperates. To complicate things, the agent and Viv develop feelings for each other.
This story raised a plethora of questions about bioethics, feminism and motherhood. It was interesting to witness the power struggle between the men and women in this book. Most of the men seemed to be tainted in some way. I loved watching the friendship blossom between Tessa and the three volunteers. Tessa truthfully cared for them and opened up to them, which wasn't easy for her. Tessa appeared tough on the outside but seemed to struggle with her own internal demons. She was not happy with Peter and we watched her marriage crumble as she became more entangled with her career. It was difficult for her to admit that she did not want a child of her own and it made her feel flawed and weak. The clash between motherhood and our careers is disappointing but all too real.
The majority of the book was elaborate and eerily believable, however, the ending was too neat and tidy. It seemed rushed and left me with a lot of questions. I don't think that certain characters should have gotten off as easy as they did. If the book was a bit longer and consistent all the way through to the end, I'm sure I would have rated it 5 stars. Overall, I loved this story and thought it was extremely intriguing and thought-provoking. This book gives you a lot to ponder over and you'll be thinking about it long after you've finished reading. If you like thrilling books with a splash of science-fiction or were a fan of The Handmaid's Tale, this one is for you! Thanks so much to Amazon Publishing for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Mother of Invention is a fast-paced science fiction novel set in the conceivable near future. The main protagonist, Tessa, is a childless, forty-something, successful tech executive and feminist author of Pushing Through: A Handbook for Young Women in the New World. An heir with major daddy issues, Luke Zimmerman, wants to invent something groundbreaking in order to attain fame. Luke puts together a team of world-renowned doctors and staff and wants Tessa on board. He proposes his idea to Tessa, to accelerate pregnancy terms to nine weeks. Tessa is intrigued and they quickly become business partners, merging their companies and creating The Seahorse Solution. They begin their first human trial with three female volunteers. Complications arise and the plot thickens as Tessa learns there is pivotal information that Luke has been keeping from her.
The synopsis of this book immediately piqued my interest and I knew I had to read it. I devoured this thrilling page-turner in two sittings and was captivated the entire time. Tessa is a strong, complex character who is extremely career driven. She isn't very likeable and she's okay with that. Her husband, Peter, wants to have a child and offers to become a stay-at-home father so Tessa can continue her career with minimal interruptions. Tessa obliges but is unable to get pregnant and is secretly relieved. Luke is the heir and son to the founder of the popular social media company, LikeMe. After his estranged father's sudden death, Luke is convinced that he needs to do something 'radical and extraordinary'.
Tessa's main intentions for co-founding The Seahorse Solution were to empower women, grant them the joys of motherhood while also helping them quickly get back on track with their careers. Luke's only concern seemed to be self-glorification. His inspiration for The Seahorse Solution was a previous medical anomaly, The CleftKids, a group of children (now young adults) who were born as a result of accelerated gestation. Luke was infatuated with them but any remaining articles and links to their existence were quickly being erased.
One of the CleftKids, Viv, is a bright college student who is determined to figure out why she is showing premature signs of aging and why their story is being eradicated. We learn that in the aftermath of a terror attack, the US created the Internal Stability Agency, an egregious, top-secret government agency with its own agenda to prevent any type of hysteria or excessive questioning amongst citizens. Viv has become a nuisance for the ISA and they've sent one of their agents to bring her in for the foreseeable future unless she cooperates. To complicate things, the agent and Viv develop feelings for each other.
This story raised a plethora of questions about bioethics, feminism and motherhood. It was interesting to witness the power struggle between the men and women in this book. Most of the men seemed to be tainted in some way. I loved watching the friendship blossom between Tessa and the three volunteers. Tessa truthfully cared for them and opened up to them, which wasn't easy for her. Tessa appeared tough on the outside but seemed to struggle with her own internal demons. She was not happy with Peter and we watched her marriage crumble as she became more entangled with her career. It was difficult for her to admit that she did not want a child of her own and it made her feel flawed and weak. The clash between motherhood and our careers is disappointing but all too real.
The majority of the book was elaborate and eerily believable, however, the ending was too neat and tidy. It seemed rushed and left me with a lot of questions. I don't think that certain characters should have gotten off as easy as they did. If the book was a bit longer and consistent all the way through to the end, I'm sure I would have rated it 5 stars. Overall, I loved this story and thought it was extremely intriguing and thought-provoking. This book gives you a lot to ponder over and you'll be thinking about it long after you've finished reading. If you like thrilling books with a splash of science-fiction or were a fan of The Handmaid's Tale, this one is for you! Thanks so much to Amazon Publishing for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.
skimmersing's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Difficult to put down because the thriller aspect kept me hooked, but I had a hard time with the last quarter of the book. A lot of the (incredibly interesting and compelling!) opinions expressed early on by the main characters were reversed at the end and not, I think, for the better. The book could have, in all, done better with setting up certain premises (for instance, could have done with a lot more work; there was neither much build up nor much fallout from that) so the ending fell flat.
Interestingly, for a book that was supposed to center motherhood, the relationship between mother and child, and a high-powered woman with little time for family, most of the characters I was emotionally invested in were men and side characters:, Luke, Viv, and Irene. Perhaps that was because by the end of the book, Tessa—supposedly a woman with agency in spades—had very little to do with the advancement of the plot on her own, and took a backseat to Irene and Viv's story as well as Luke's misdeeds.
An interesting book, for certain. Not for me, though.
Spoiler
Luke illegally obtaining the samples from AG mothers and childrenInterestingly, for a book that was supposed to center motherhood, the relationship between mother and child, and a high-powered woman with little time for family, most of the characters I was emotionally invested in were men and side characters:
Spoiler
TracyAn interesting book, for certain. Not for me, though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Medical content, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Abandonment and Confinement
Minor: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, and Sexual content
overhillunderhill's review against another edition
2.0
At about the half way point I would have ranked this much higher. However, the ending was very disappointing to me. Short version, for a book that spends such a large amount of pages laying out the feminist ideologies of choice and not letting anyone else determine your life choices, the end did a complete 180.
When I read the description of this book my first thought was, "if the twist is zombies or some loose variation thereof, I'll be PISSED!" As such, when it was feminism fighting fascism and ground breaking science crashing into creepy government agencies and old school ideals of motherhood, I was really into it.
Spoilers start here:
When it the ended with Tessa getting preggers and left by her husband for another woman, I was so disappointed that I would have preferred zombies. After everything, they told us you can't have a man if you want to have success and your own life or he will leave you for a younger woman who makes him feel like a real man.
Then the epilogue was filled with "I didn't know what my life was missing" and "I was wrong, I don't resent my baby" and "natural maternal instincts and protective vibes."
Also, the bad president who started an agency that makes the Patriot Act seem unobtrusive and that creepy government agency never got any retribution! That was such a loose hanging thread in this plot.
The last 20% of this book dropped it from a 4 star book to a 2 star!
When I read the description of this book my first thought was, "if the twist is zombies or some loose variation thereof, I'll be PISSED!" As such, when it was feminism fighting fascism and ground breaking science crashing into creepy government agencies and old school ideals of motherhood, I was really into it.
Spoilers start here:
When it the ended with Tessa getting preggers and left by her husband for another woman, I was so disappointed that I would have preferred zombies. After everything, they told us you can't have a man if you want to have success and your own life or he will leave you for a younger woman who makes him feel like a real man.
Then the epilogue was filled with "I didn't know what my life was missing" and "I was wrong, I don't resent my baby" and "natural maternal instincts and protective vibes."
Also, the bad president who started an agency that makes the Patriot Act seem unobtrusive and that creepy government agency never got any retribution! That was such a loose hanging thread in this plot.
The last 20% of this book dropped it from a 4 star book to a 2 star!
christhedoll's review against another edition
4.0
The plot was a little all over the place, but I ended up really liking it.
victorianamkung's review
4.0
A fast-paced speculative literary thriller that has a lot to say about friendship, marriage, technology, and motherhood. I couldn’t put it down.
tdeshler's review
4.0
3.5 stars
Interesting premise, but it didn't seem fully realized, especially in the way the original AG group was only loosely linked to the present.
Interesting premise, but it didn't seem fully realized, especially in the way the original AG group was only loosely linked to the present.
writerrhiannon's review
5.0
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I received no additional compensation.
I love novels about (and IRL advances in) reproductive technology, so I was greatly anticipating MOTHER OF INVENTION by Caeli Wolfson Widger.
.
.
What if a human pregnancy lasted nine weeks instead of nine months? The inaugural human Seahorse Solution trial will test this concept on 3 women in a state-of-the-art, high-tech Silicon Valley facility. But what corners were cut to get to this point? What technological and medicinal information has been illegally and unethically obtained? This novel is extremely timely in regards to the current Facebook privacy concerns and Wolfson Widger was able to push the boundary of near future reproductive technology in ways that were mind-bendingly believable.
.
Definitely a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️recommended read!
I love novels about (and IRL advances in) reproductive technology, so I was greatly anticipating MOTHER OF INVENTION by Caeli Wolfson Widger.
.
.
What if a human pregnancy lasted nine weeks instead of nine months? The inaugural human Seahorse Solution trial will test this concept on 3 women in a state-of-the-art, high-tech Silicon Valley facility. But what corners were cut to get to this point? What technological and medicinal information has been illegally and unethically obtained? This novel is extremely timely in regards to the current Facebook privacy concerns and Wolfson Widger was able to push the boundary of near future reproductive technology in ways that were mind-bendingly believable.
.
Definitely a 5 star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️recommended read!
insidemylibrarymind's review
3.0
More reviews up on my blog Inside My Library Mind
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
The Premise Is Fantastic
I really loved the set up of the novel. The whole controversial accelerated pregnancy mixed in with these feminist undertones, and this other overarching story about a government cover up of natural accelerated pregnancies as medication side effects was really intriguing, and the book kept up with the intrigue. It’s a story that is exciting to read through out and there is a driving force to it, a thread that pulls it forward and makes you want to keep reading.
It Had a Lot of Potential
And I will say that this book had so much potential. It really did. With a premise like that, I think it could have made some really strong points and it could have argued some really valid stuff. But I don’t think it did. This story felt really superficial and hollow to me, like it never really got the point, like it never went beyond these feminist paroles and that it ultimately left them without meaning.
The Plot is Underdeveloped
I felt like this book was superficial in many ways, and one of those ways was the plot. The plot isn’t worked through well, and there’s a lot of stuff that’s unanswered and just left up in the air. I feel like there’s not enough grounding in the plot, it just did not feel substantial. I was hoping that the book would have a really strong conclusion, that would tie up many loose ends this book has, but that did not happen.
The Book Felt Preachy
You know when you’re reading a book, and you feel like the words that a character is saying are actually the author’s attitudes and viewpoints of life? This book does that a lot. I felt like the author was preaching about pregnancy and how reformative of an experience it is, how magical and life altering. And it left a bad aftertaste in my mouth.
Far be it from me to say that pregnancy isn’t that for some women. It is. And it can be. But I really don’t think that’s an experience of all women. And it felt incredibly preachy and judgmental towards women who don’t want children. I just could not get on with the fact that this book stands on a feminist premise, but boggles it completely.
The Last Ten Percent
Now I was gonna give this book, let’s say 3.5-4 stars, even with all of the stuff I mentioned above. I was enjoying it. And then. I will go into spoilers now, because I can’t explain why I was suddenly really disappointed in this book without spoilers.
I genuinely feel like this had so much potential and was interesting to read, but ultimately, it raised some really problematic points to me (or that’s how I perceived them), which really left a bad aftertaste in my mouth.
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
The Premise Is Fantastic
I really loved the set up of the novel. The whole controversial accelerated pregnancy mixed in with these feminist undertones, and this other overarching story about a government cover up of natural accelerated pregnancies as medication side effects was really intriguing, and the book kept up with the intrigue. It’s a story that is exciting to read through out and there is a driving force to it, a thread that pulls it forward and makes you want to keep reading.
It Had a Lot of Potential
And I will say that this book had so much potential. It really did. With a premise like that, I think it could have made some really strong points and it could have argued some really valid stuff. But I don’t think it did. This story felt really superficial and hollow to me, like it never really got the point, like it never went beyond these feminist paroles and that it ultimately left them without meaning.
The Plot is Underdeveloped
I felt like this book was superficial in many ways, and one of those ways was the plot. The plot isn’t worked through well, and there’s a lot of stuff that’s unanswered and just left up in the air. I feel like there’s not enough grounding in the plot, it just did not feel substantial. I was hoping that the book would have a really strong conclusion, that would tie up many loose ends this book has, but that did not happen.
The Book Felt Preachy
You know when you’re reading a book, and you feel like the words that a character is saying are actually the author’s attitudes and viewpoints of life? This book does that a lot. I felt like the author was preaching about pregnancy and how reformative of an experience it is, how magical and life altering. And it left a bad aftertaste in my mouth.
Far be it from me to say that pregnancy isn’t that for some women. It is. And it can be. But I really don’t think that’s an experience of all women. And it felt incredibly preachy and judgmental towards women who don’t want children. I just could not get on with the fact that this book stands on a feminist premise, but boggles it completely.
The Last Ten Percent
Now I was gonna give this book, let’s say 3.5-4 stars, even with all of the stuff I mentioned above. I was enjoying it. And then. I will go into spoilers now, because I can’t explain why I was suddenly really disappointed in this book without spoilers.
Spoiler
Tessa Callahan is an incredibly successful woman, who loves her career and finds so much fulfilment in it. She loves her job. And we know Tessa’s married and she couldn’t have kids, but we also know that she never wanted children, it was her husband who wanted them all along. And then the author flips this whole thing into the air. Tessa’s husband leaves her because she works too much. And this felt entirely like saying women who have careers can’t have partners. The conversation between her and her husband was bad. He said something like “I don’t want my job to be meaningful, I want my life to feel meaningful”, and let me tell you, it felt like the author was on his side. AND THEN. Tessa rushes to get pregnant. I kid you not. She gets pregnant and we jump 30 weeks into the future where she has a baby. And it was made like she finally understood what she needed and that was a child and she finally felt fulfiled, which for me was atrocious and I hated it.I genuinely feel like this had so much potential and was interesting to read, but ultimately, it raised some really problematic points to me (or that’s how I perceived them), which really left a bad aftertaste in my mouth.
xk8linx19's review
1.0
Thanks to Little A for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I really wanted to like this book, but I can't do it. The two main characters are just very obvious substitutes of Sheryl Sandberg and Mark Zuckerberg, which I found incredibly lazy - the characters having such obvious, famous analogues made any attempt at character depth feel moot. The actual plot of the novel, with the accelerated gestation and government cover-up, had the merits of being fast-moving and, at times, interesting. But even so, even with all the perfunctory techno-babble the author used to prove she's capable of writing a book about Silicon Valley, the novel never moves away from the tired women's fiction trope of women "wanting it all". I know this is billed as a literary sci-fi thriller, but at best it's a standard commercial thriller some sci-fi elements. Honestly, I haven't read a book I disliked this much in awhile. So, my opinion of course, but give this one a miss. There are better thrillers, better sci-fi thrillers, and even better sci-fi thrillers dealing with women's issues -save yourself some time and just read "The Power" by Naomi Alderman or something.
I really wanted to like this book, but I can't do it. The two main characters are just very obvious substitutes of Sheryl Sandberg and Mark Zuckerberg, which I found incredibly lazy - the characters having such obvious, famous analogues made any attempt at character depth feel moot. The actual plot of the novel, with the accelerated gestation and government cover-up, had the merits of being fast-moving and, at times, interesting. But even so, even with all the perfunctory techno-babble the author used to prove she's capable of writing a book about Silicon Valley, the novel never moves away from the tired women's fiction trope of women "wanting it all". I know this is billed as a literary sci-fi thriller, but at best it's a standard commercial thriller some sci-fi elements. Honestly, I haven't read a book I disliked this much in awhile. So, my opinion of course, but give this one a miss. There are better thrillers, better sci-fi thrillers, and even better sci-fi thrillers dealing with women's issues -save yourself some time and just read "The Power" by Naomi Alderman or something.
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