This tense and emotional novel follows the fallout after two women’s eggs are switched during IVF. ___________
TWO WOMEN. ONE BABY. A FIGHT LIKE NO OTHER.
Katherine has everything under control. After years of struggling to conceive with her partner, Patrick, she finally gives birth to Rose, her IVF miracle child. But she’s afraid that Rose may not be her daughter, her pale skin not matching Katherine’s own.
Tess never got her happy ending. Just like Katherine, she was also a hopeful IVF mother, but her daughter, Hanna, was stillborn. Now divorced, broke and stuck in a dead-end job, she’s beginning to lose all hope.
But when Rose is ten months old, both women get a call from the fertility clinic. There was a mistake: their eggs were switched.
It will take a custody battle like no other to decide who will get to be Rose’s mother – a battle that will push them both to the brink…
This is a story about what it means to be a mother, and the lengths we go to for the people we love. ___________
I found this book hard to put down and i can’t imagine being in this situation and how I would react.
This was a very well written, intense book.
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Jodi Picoult style of writing.
This is the first book by Charlene Carr that I have read. It will certainly not be the last. It is a page turner, exploring motherhood from both sides of controversies involving biology, motherhood and race. It was inspired by Charlene’s personal experiences when giving birth through in vitro fertilisation. It tells of an egg switch at a fertility clinic, the story of two mothers and one daughter, a heart-breaking page turner.
Katherine, the mother of Rose, her IVF miracle baby born after seven years of trying and failing to conceive, is obsessive about everything being clean and perfect all the time. Tess, divorced, broke and in a job well below her ability, has an attempt at IVF at the same time, but her daughter, Hanna, is stillborn. Ten months later, they are called to the fertility clinic and advised that their eggs had been switched. One of them was raising a daughter not biologically hers, and the other has been grieving the child she lost. How will this impossible situation be resolved? Who should be the mother to the child?
For 400 pages I was mesmerised as the two women attempt to resolve the dilemma in a situation where there is empathy for both sides, and Carr mixes aspects of race, culture, class and mental health to add tension to the complexities of motherhood. This page-turner will stay with you long after you have read it.
I found the book relatable on some levels as I too experienced the emotional rollercoaster of IVF.
Apart from a couple of surprises along the way, I found the story a tad predictable and unfortunately I didn’t build any real connection with any of the characters. I do think this may work well as a book club read as it could lead to lively discussions.
I’m often left underwhelmed by books that turn out to be hugely popular, I think this may be one of them. I won’t be surprised if it’s adapted for the screen.
Hold My Girl by Charlene Carr is one of those books you will be thinking about long after you’ve turned the final page. What would you do if you found out the baby you were raising was not actually yours? This book brings up this and other moral dilemmas that will have you second guessing your own values and beliefs.
There were many things to like in this story, but in particular I liked that the main characters were not perfect, they made some bad decisions, they did and said things they shouldn’t have, they reacted with their emotions, making them seem more human to me. Ultimately, everyone wanted what was best for the child, but of course being human also makes you want what is best for yourself. Reading this book will make you think, what would I do? And hoping you never need to find out.
Katherine and Tess are both nice women, they even like each other. They have a shared history having both struggled with infertility and experienced the ups and downs of IVF treatment to achieve their dream of motherhood. But there, the similarity ends, because while Katherine’s dream was realised in perfect little nearly one year old Rose, Tess suffered a still birth and emergency hysterectomy. Katherine’s life now appears picture perfect with a lovely home and friends and a perfect marriage to Patrick who is a doting father to Rose. Tess’s life is a stark contrast with family estrangement, an unfinished university degree, long hours of work to fund her life in a substandard apartment and occasional drunken evenings in bars followed by trysts with anonymous men.
And then, a news report changes everything. A nurse at the IVF clinic they both received treatment from confesses to switching eggs from two women. The clinic contacts Katherine and Tess. As Katherine’s worst fear, that she is unable to be a proper mother feels realised, Tess finally sees hope in he dark and gloomy life. As Katherine and Patrick’s perfect world unravels, Tess tries to conquer her demons and put her world to rights.
Hold my Girl is a captivating read which explores some plausible what ifs in this modern age. The author cleverly links the new age aspects of the situation to the reality that ordinary people with ordinary hopes and dreams and loves and fears still walk through modern-day experiences. The characters are likeable and real, and it is hard to favour one mother over another when neither is willing to give up. While I hadn’t thought that I would enjoy a read about this topic, I found myself drawn in and included in the reality Charlene creates. The narrative is extremely readable, and I finished the book relatively quickly simply because I needed to know what would happen next.
Riveting twists and turns that will keep you hooked, Hold My Girl by Charlene Carr is
the tale of two women and their journeys to be mothers. I was so overcome with
emotion whilst reading this that I cried during parts of both Katherine and
Tess’s stories. This book will make you think and rethink what it means to be a
strong woman, a strong mother, what family means, and how the lines we mark
these by, can and maybe should, blur at times.
A delicate, on-edge contemporary novel about motherhood, IVF, family, and what a mother would do for their child.
A very real-life situation if IVF egg switching asks the reader what their definition of what makes a mother, and how our life choices impact our future and each other.
The divisiveness of the storyline is not only heart wrenching at the almost impossible situation, but confounding as to the behaviours of the characters and how they choose to act.
There are some very heavy topics covered including rape, adultery, alcohol, and pregnancy related themes. I experienced a range of emotions through this novel, from heart break and sympathy, to being angry and exasperated.
This isn’t an easy novel to read. It’s high emotion and tension all the way! And it’s often heart-wrenchingly sad, but we’re always mindful of the two major character’s generosity and compassion towards one another despite the turmoil and their struggles towards their respective best versions of motherhood. They discover that friendship, forgiveness and hope can flourish in unlikely places. I hadn’t read any previous books by Charlene Carr, but I intend to rectify that lack!
It’s about the two women Katherine & Tess whose eggs are switched during IVF. A year later they each learn of the mix-up. It wasn’t human error! The novel is organised by alternate chapters by/about each of the women and we the reader are exposed to their cascade of emotions leading to the outcome with each of the women claiming sole rights to the one surviving child Rose. Carr has coupled an innovative ‘crime’ story to thorny ethical and moral issues. Talk about compelling reading! Who are the good guys? Who are the bad guys? Who are the parents? I certainly recommend you read it for yourself and try to decide! You’ll find it well written and well worthwhile.
In Hold my girl, Charlene Carr has created a riveting yet heartbreaking story of motherhood, love, loss and how far we would go to protect our families.
This is the story of two women navigating the challenges of IVF to create the family they desire. But what if things didn’t go to plan, how far would you go to get what you want.
This story was reminiscent of a Jodi Picoult novel, in that Charlene has taken something so many women are struggling with, and added twists that challenge social norms. This book will have you questioning your own beliefs and how you would behave if it were you. Would you like the person that makes you?
This novel evoked so many emotions. I was uncomfortable, sad, hopeful, disappointed, angry. It made me laugh and cry.
I thoroughly enjoyed the alternating narrative from the two key characters, Katherine and Tess, which gave a balanced, evolving storyline. One that kept me twisting my allegiance several times.
Highly recommend this book. Five stars!
This book sparks so much debate both in the book and in the mind of the reader. I found that I was identifying with one character and on the next page, my loyalties had changed. It’s a many layered story which keeps getting more and more complex as the book goes on.
Katherine and Patrick are married with a daughter who is about to turn 1 when they discover that their IVF egg has been switched before implanting. Tess, a divorced and now single mother has given birth to a still born daughter from the egg of Katherine. She now finds out that the child of Katherine and Patrick is actually her daughter and she wants her back.
There are a multitude of moral and legal issues involved in this plot and it just seems to get more complex. I was fully involved in the story until the extra catastrophes were thrown in, and then I started to feel it was unnecessarily complicated in an effort to make it more nail-biting. The ending drew me back in, though.
It’s a definite debate starter and would make for a good reading group book.
Love is selfish, love is bold. A story so achingly imbued with motherly love, Hold My Girl explores the complexities of parenthood in all its shapes and forms.
While feeling padded and repetitive at times, missing the opportunity to truly plumb the unfrequented depths of the moral and ethical dilemmas presented, the vulnerability of Tess and Katherine’s perspectives prove an adequate compensation. No one is without hope or sincerity, but also no one is without blame. Carr strikes the balance skilfully, providing raw and empathetic viewpoints on all sides, and ultimately demonstrating a sense of humanity which drives this compassionate narrative.
What unfolds is a riveting emotional rollercoaster of a story which interrogates the reader over and over again with an increasingly soul-crushing question: What does it mean to be a mother?
“There was a switch.” Tracey put her hand on Katherine’s shoulder. “At the clinic. With the eggs. There was a switch.”
If you have anything pressing to achieve over the next couple of days, don’t pick up this book! You will be consumed by it.
What makes a mother? Nurture or nature, biology, or circumstances? Hold My Girl looks at this from every angle and examines every emotion. I was able to relate to both Katherine and Tess and their reactions, concerns and desires when they discover that their embryos were switched at the fertility clinic 18 months ago. With each chapter my loyalties changed, and I questioned my own reactions and preconception of motherhood.
I would have like a little more insight into Patrick’s character as the father, but this didn’t effect my enjoyment of the book.
Charlene Carr has created two powerful characters drawing on her own experience of infertility. There is no right or wrong, or black and white in this story that exists in the quagmire of the law, motherhood and what is ultimately the best for a child and who has the right to decide that.
Fabulous, compelling read.
A story of two Women who have gone through the struggles of falling pregnant naturally and having to go through IVF to finally have a chance at having their longed for babies.
As if that is not enough stress to endure they’re put in the most awful position when they find out their eggs were switched.
Katherine has her beautiful 10 month old daughter Rose but Tess’s daughter Hanna was stillborn.
Obviously both Mothers believe they should have custody of Rose but will they be able to come to an arrangement or will it come down to the decision of a Judge who’s main objective is the best outcome for Rose.
A very emotional read that I really enjoyed and look forward to reading more by this author.
Hold My Girl revolves around little Rose, who is the subject of a deliberate switching of eggs in an IVF clinic. Once the switch has been discovered, the fight for who should have custody of her begins. It is a compelling, profound and somewhat disturbing book, excellently researched and written.
I was constantly asking myself what I would do in this situation.
There were a few occasions where I found the characters to be shallow, jumping around in their summation of their ‘ownership’ of Rose, and so my allegiance to the main characters was constantly changing as the story progressed.
Some of the scenarios were also far-fetched, such as when the solicitor gives Tess the name of the parents of ‘her’ child, along with Irene’s reason for making the switch. These really disappointed me as I felt the author used these far too conveniently to develop her story.
This genre is not my cup of tea, but will appeal to readers who love a moral/ethical dilemma.
A birth mother, a biological mother and one perfect baby girl – the result of an accidental switch at the IVF clinic – or is it?
Mystery and innuendo abound in this hard-to-put-down story that swings through every emotion possible and more!
Katherine and Tess seem so opposite – one confident, successful in her career, safe in her marriage with a perfect life planned ahead for Rose.
The other a drop out, divorced, living week to week, and estranged from her family.
A custody battle ensues and their love for Rose takes them to a desperate place that uncovers secrets and betrayal.
This was a sensitively written story about the heartbreaking situation Katherine and Tess, find themselves in after discovering their eggs have been switched during the IVF process. Baby Rose is the only surviving child and lives with Katherine and her husband Patrick. We follow the impact the custody battle has on their lives as decisions are being made around them and both women have to prove they deserve to be Rose’s mother.
It’s an interesting book that makes you really think about what you would do if you were in that situation. It’s easy to be sympathetic to the challenges of all the characters as their secrets are gradually revealed, making the decision even harder. I felt it was handled in a realistic way. I really enjoyed this book.