The Lost Girl by Sangu Mandanna

The Lost Girl, by Sangu Mandanna
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Dystopian
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Eva's life is not her own. She is a creation, an abomination—an echo. She was made by the Weavers as a copy of someone else, expected to replace a girl named Amarra, her "other," if she ever died. Eva spends every day studying that girl from far away, learning 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 sixteen years of studying never prepared her for this.
Now she must abandon everything and everyone 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.
From debut novelist Sangu Mandanna comes the dazzling story of a girl who was always told what she had to be—until she found the strength to decide for herself.

Review:

• For a real long time, I've been wanting to read a book like this! Clones and new bodies are the best concepts to read about, and when I first saw this book, I realized that I needed it ASAP.
• To tell you the truth, this book was seriously amazing. The plot was rebellious and so good. I was hardly ever bored, and the characters were so strong.
• I personally loved Eva as a character/protagonist. She was a wild child who had some humour and intelligence in her as well. Readers can easily relate to her through their own personal troubles, and we eventually realize how hard it must be to be in her own situation, where she is not described as a person. She was "just an echo" of Amarra.
• I was also very pleased with the passionate romance that Eva and Sean had. Sean was just someone any teenage girl would wish for! I loved him!
• Overall, I was very pleased with this novel. Many books don't take place in modern India, so this is a very new fresh setting. I am looking forward to more from Sangu Mandanna.