…because years ago I read Never Let Me Go like the day it came out. In addition, there’s even a line about “Never Let Me Go” in this novel. But this one came out first. Not that it matters because they are much different novels from one another.
In this book, Matteo is born a clone for a drug lord in a future narcostate that has been built between the US and Mexico. Matt’s life has been destined to be an organ farm for the kingpin, now 140 years old. He is not the first of his kind.
This is a good novel about identity and destiny and faith. But it’s also about the consuming nature of power, corruption of morality and government, and about the failure of a society to protect its very vulnerable.
It’s a pseudo sci fi novel, but most of the sci fi and dystopian aspects are scant. More like the logical extension of a world-view than a of a world-building exercise.
It doesn’t spend long bouts of time dealing with the nature and philosophy of clones, but it does deal in part with the souls of clones in a religious state.
This novel takes place in a would-be Mexican state.
But more than anything I want to celebrate the audiobook because it’s read by Raul Esparza, who is amazing. He even sings a little in the novel, but if you have the opportunity to listen to this as opposed to reading it, you will be treated to this.
Here’s a clip of him singing: