Review: The Lost Girl

Title: The Lost Girl

Author: Sangu Mandanna
Release Date: August 28th 2012
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pages: 432
Source: Purchased 

Summary:

"Eva’s life is not her own. She is a creation, an abomination—an echo. Made by the Weavers as a copy of someone else, she is expected to replace a girl named Amarra, her “other”, if she ever died. Eva studies what Amarra does, what she eats, what it’s like to kiss her boyfriend, Ray. So when Amarra is killed in a car crash, Eva should be ready.

But fifteen years of studying never prepared her for this.

Now she must abandon everything she’s ever known—the guardians who raised her, the boy she’s forbidden to love—to move to India and convince the world that Amarra is still alive.

What Eva finds is a grief-stricken family; parents unsure how to handle this echo they thought they wanted; and Ray, who knew every detail, every contour of Amarra. And when Eva is unexpectedly dealt a fatal blow that will change her existence forever, she is forced to choose: Stay and live out her years as a copy or leave and risk it all for the freedom to be an original. To be Eva."

My Thoughts: 

When I first heard the premise of what Lost Girl was going to be about I was very intrigued. Never had I heard of a story plot such as Lost Girl's before. To be honest, I was a bit skeptical on how Sangu could pull it off, but she did. My goodness this book was amazeballs!

The story begins with Eva, who is an echo. An echo is basically a spare person created by Weavers for a family in case tragedy strikes. Eva lives in London where she is learning and practicing on how to become Amarra, the girl she was created to replace.

This book was absolutely incredible! I loved it so much that I highly doubt my words can even begin to give it enough praise.

First of all, Sangu's writing Is beautifully done. The story flows perfectly and best of the writing was able to leave me with so many emotions. I love when books hit me so powerfully that they actually make me think about things in a new way. Sangu's writing did that for me. So many questions are asked in this book. Love, humanity and loss are just a few. This story was so emotional and beautiful and gah I just can't gush about it enough.

Even the characters in this story were amazing. Eva was a strong independent, she took on her fate, yet was still her own person. It was so nice to see a main character in a YA novel not play the victim. That's exactly how Eva was, a fighter. Regardless of her circumstances, Eva never gave up. She always had that passionate spirit in her and I loved it. She was such a remarkable character and she really was an amazing protagonist. Even the minor characters were believable and served a purpose rather than fill up pages. I really liked Mina Ma (Eva's guardian) and her teachers. They added to the story rather than clutter it.

The plot was intense and interesting. I loved seeing Eva change over time and grow up. The choices she made and the obstacles she went through really made the story that much better. I mean, I couldn't step into someone's life and take their place. It's just so odd to think about. I loved her time in India being Amarra. It was so fascinating and heartbreaking.

With love being such a strong theme, I knew romance would blossom in the story. It did, but it was real love. It wasn't the pretty YA version with happy endings – no, it was true love. The love that is devastating as it is beautiful. Sangu intertwined love with loss so greatly in this story and I appreciated that. Not only was it just romance, but a family's love too. It was just all so complicated and it broke my heart often. Books rarely make me cry but this one did. It really makes you think about life and decisions.

So If you haven't figured out yet, I LOVED this book. Do yourself a favor and read this book so you too can experience this amazing story. I can't wait to read the sequel. 

Rating: 5/5!