“The Lost Girl” by Sangu Mandanna

4 out of 5 stars.

Eva is illegal. She is an Echo of another’s loved one; she can be destroyed, unraveled just because of what her creation stands for: a replacement. Eva is an Echo, a being created out of the DNA of another human. Families that are afraid to lose loved ones, and are rich enough, have Echos created. DNA of that loved one is taken and an Echo of them woven, and if that human is ever to die before their time, the replica is put in their place. No longer does anyone have to endure the loss of a most beloved daughter, son, mother, father, or grandparent. Everything is great except for the fact that Echos are illegal, and severe punishment for the Echo as well as its owners are in place. But as long as no one finds out…

Eva knows what she is, that if anyone knew who or what she is that it could mean the end of her and her “family.” She has been raised by people assigned to watch over her, teach her how to be like her original. Despite what she is, Eva’s protectors love her and she loves them. Their job is to teach her all that her original  is learning; she is given her originals diaries to know what has happened in the girl’s life; she learns her mannerisms, her habits, Eva knows everything about the girl. But Eva wants to be more than just a replacement, she want to be more than an Echo: she wants to be Eva.

All her hopes and dreams, though, are shattered when her original dies in a tragic car accident in India. Before she knows it everything has changed, and now her life is in danger. As Eva assumes her original’s life, she finds many things out about herself, and about her existence. Will she ever have a chance to live her own life, love those she chooses to love, or will she be forever fated to live as an emulation of something real? Can this lost girl ever be found?

“The Lost Girl” by Sangu Mandanna was a new concept to me being a spin-off of “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley. I have not read “Frankenstein” so I don’t know whether “The Lost Girl” does it justice or not, but I really enjoyed this story.  I thought Eva was an interesting character, and I didn’t mind at all reading about her and being in her head unlike certain female characters (Triss and Katnis Everdeen). The whole concept of the book is interesting in itself. I mean who would you be, and what would you do if you were in Eva’s shoes? She cannot exert her own freewill, she could be killed at any moment not because of what she did but what she is, and even if she would allow herself to fall in love, she wouldn’t be allowed to stay with him. Overall, her life kind of stinks.

I also found Eva’s family and her relationship with them to be really cute and I liked the scenes they were in; Seth was an interesting person, too. I really enjoyed him as a character and hope that he is in the next book  if Sangu Mandanna writes a conclusion. Another thing I really enjoyed was Eva’s original’s family. They at first were hesitant to get super close to Eva, but after a while the little boy and girl and Eva all became very close, and that was just darling. Overall, I think that Sangu Mandanna created a very enjoyable book for science fiction lovers, as well as fantasy lovers. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Thomas ‘Thorny’ Thorngate

Here are all the details on the Bowling Benefit For Thorny:

Friday, February 1, 2013
$20 in Advance – $25 at the Door
Registration Begins at 7  /  Bowling Starts at 8
Includes: 3 Games of 9 pin no tap bowling, Cosmic Bowling,
shoe rental, 2 slices of pizza and a small pop.

Getty Images/Julian Finney

There will also be a 50/50 raffle and over 60 door prizes have been donated for this bolwing fundraiser for ‘Thorny’. So bring your family and friends for a good time for a great cause.

Bowlers can pre-register and pay at the door if they choose. They will only be charged the pre-registration fee if they choose to do that option.

36 years ago she married my father at Chapel of the Roses in Las Vegas, NV. Yep, my parents eloped to Vegas! My mother got married in white jean shorts and who knows what Dad had on. The rings were of the best quality, they disintegrated while swimming in the pool on their “honeymoon.” To know my very religious and seemingly conservative parents today, you would never believe it. They settled into married life in NJ, built a new house in the “country,” and started a family a few years later. One April night in 1980, my mom, 8 months pregnant with my brother and holding me, just a year-and-a-half old, got the phone call that would change the course of her life. My father had been in a tragic car accident and she needed to get to the hospital immediately. Mom will tell you that the next hours, weeks, months, and years were more trying than she would’ve ever imagined. The accident left my dad paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. Just 2 months after the incident, my brother was born. My dad had to spend many months living in Kessler Rehabilitation Institute learning to adapt to his new life, and my mother was home raising two babies under the age of 2.

With my dad not able to work, there was not enough income to go around. Some months were salvaged with food stamps and others with the help of family and friends. It was not easy but my mom put one foot in front of the other each day and kept going. With their faith in God and love for each other, my parents pressed on. My mom spent the days home with us, and taught dance, gymnastics, and night school in the evenings. Eventually, life became more “normal” for all of us, it was just a new normal.

Life as a paraplegic has brought my father so many challenges. He meets them head on with such fierce determination and strength and love provided by my mom at his side. They moved our family down to Florida in 1988 and mom went back to work as a teacher full-time. 8 years later brought another tragedy … the unexpected death of my maternal grandparents who we lived just a few miles from and saw every weekend. Even in the midst of such pain, my mother, poised and strong, kept us all together.

In recent years, my father has been met with more severe health issues, including bleeding ulcers, a heart attack, and others related to his paralysis. Most recently, he had to undergo a complete reconstructive shoulder/rotator cuff operation and was ordered to a rehabilitation facility (aka nursing home) for 4-6 months to recover. Days after surgery, my dad was back in the hospital for indirectly related health problems. After being released again, he began bleeding profusely, lost almost 7 units of blood, and admitted again for more than a week, including time in ICU. During these possibly life threatening setbacks, my mom was by his side every day. She made sure he was cared for and comforted. She kept him positive and forward thinking. For the first time in 36 years, she was alone. When we start to worry about her, her strength reminds us that we don’t have to. My dad is now in a better rehab (actually rehab this time) facility for the next several months getting the physical therapy he needs to heal and get home. My mom’s days revolve around visiting him, keeping his spirits up, communicating with our family, taking care of all the bills that my dad has always done, and trying to find time to feed herself.

In the 33 years that I’ve been her daughter, my mother has never put herself first. She gives all that she has to her husband, her children, and her 2 grandsons. She never asks for anything in return. The love that she and my father share is truly the stuff they write about in fairy tales. She is so much more to me than a mother and a best friend and I can’t begin to put my love for her into words except to say that my mother is a miraculous woman. Truly miraculous.

In May, my husband and I returned from a brief trip to Swift Current to attend our granddaughter’s Confirmation.  As you can see by the picture, Grandpa is her proud sponsor. What an unbelievable honor she bestowed upon him.  I witnessed his pleasure first hand, when he received our granddaughter’s phone call.

We hadn’t visited with them since before Christmas and we saw a huge change.  The girls have grown and matured and as usual we enjoyed our short visit with them.

On the way home, we always listen to the local radio station to get a bit of news about the surrounding area. The talk show on this particular morning was about an unfortunate car accident that took place on March 29, 2009 in a small town just outside of Swift Current.

The topic immediately grabbed our attention because two of the mothers that had lost their daughters were being interviewed about the tragic event.  Three young girls, two sixteen years of age, as well as a fourteen year old were making a left turn when a car driven by a male who was seventeen years old, tried to pass them on the left.  He was driving 128k/hr and he hit them.  All three of the girls died in this horrible car accident.  The mothers, the families, and the friends of these girls have been beside themselves with the grief of their loss.

The young man happened to be sentenced the week before and the talk show revolved around the punishment received and whether it was adequate enough.  Although the judge gave him a sentence to suit his age when the accident occurred, even though he is now eighteen years old, some people who called in to express their opinion, did not think he received enough of a sentence.

My heart goes out to the mothers who lost their daughters in the prime of their lives and in such a tragic way.  They were both quite big minded despite their unbelievable loss.   However, comments were made by some callers that this young man had his whole life to live while the girls had so sadly lost theirs by his reckless actions.  Some felt that he did not show enough remorse.

Later on in the talk show, I briefly heard the comment that the young man was struggling with his life.  My heart goes out to him and his mother as well.  Unless this man has no conscience at all, I cannot fathom that he has been unaffected by having had a hand in the death of these three young women.

I would have to think that he will somehow or other be scarred for life.  He lives in a small town where he would have little or no anonymity.  He will live with the reality of his careless actions for the rest of his life.  He will probably marry one day and have children of his own.  He may very well learn to pray and appreciate the quality of life when he faces his actions as a more mature individual.

Yes, those young girls, their families and their friends got robbed, but I personally do not envy the life that this young man now has to live.  Anyone who thinks it is going to be easy is only fooling him/herself.  I also feel for this young man, his family and his friends.  I’m sure his mother’s heart is aching too because there is much more to face in her son’s life and he will need the support of them all.

They have all lost so much and their lives are forever changed. Three mothers lost their daughters on March 29, 2009 and one mother lost the innocence that her young son can no longer enjoy.   All four of the mothers lost children that fateful day.  Only now, one has to live with his actions for the rest of his life.  Not a fun way to grow up.

Previously posted by TWG in May, 2010

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QUOTES AND ANECDOTES

“There are many truths of which the full meaning cannot be realized until personal experience has brought it home.” (John Stuart Mill)

What I know About Now!

I know how I got here, and I am sure glad I ended up here. During difficult times in the past I thought for sure that my life would never work out. Boy I could not have been more wrong, I have a wonderful boyfriend who I love more than almost anything and our son is my entire world! I am lucky enough to be able to be a stay at home mom to Hunter, and miss nothing.  There is nothing more exciting than when he realizes he can do something new that look on his face warm my entire heart. My boyfriend has stuck by my side through a devastating diagnosis and an unplanned pregnancy without one bit of grief.

If I could only thank one person for getting me here, it would have to be my sister.  She is most defiantly my hero; she put up with tons of crap and practically raised me!  She has been by my side through thick and thin, not a single question asked, asking for nothing in return. I wish I know of some way to repay her, and show her how much she truly means to me.

Needless to say many of the choices I made where not the best possible choices.  I dated guys where were scum and treated me terribly. During high school I lost a very close friend in a tragic car accident and it has affected me every day since. The summer before I went to college my mother’s now ex-husband tried to rape me. I have started school three or four different times and dropped out each time for various lame reasons. I was unexpectedly diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in April 2006, which was a surprise but a blessing.

Even though all of these things are difficult and terrible I would not change a single thing, because these events have made me who I am today.  I am a wonderful mother to an amazing little boy who makes every single day worth living no matter the difficulties I am going through.  A caring, compassionate, loyal to the end girlfriend to a man who puts a smile on my face so large nothing is wiping it off by just walking through the door.

My eyes followed the natural direction to where the car was pointing and there was a woman lying crumpled half on the sidewalk, half on the street. My eyes shifted back to my lane and I saw a pair of shoes lying in the middle of the street. My brain made the connection and I started to freak out. There was a man trying to direct traffic. Another man brought a blanket out and covered her entire body. Her shoes were still in the middle of the road and she was barefoot. She could be someone’s mother, someone’s sister, someone’s wife, someone’s best friend, someone’s employee. There was a woman on the street on the other side in hysterics on her cellphone. She knows that her life is about to change in the most dramatic of ways. All because of one split second where everything could have gone a completely different way.

I was late leaving my apartment this morning. I keep wondering if I had been on time if I would have been that car who would have hit her but been able to swerve in time and change the course of everything. Life on a grand scale is bigger than our imagination. We are all merely pawns being played in this great big game called life.

I started crying for the woman on the ground. I cried for the woman who hit her. I cried for the people who stopped their day to help out a situation they unexpectedly found themselves in. I cried because life is unpredictable and can change in a millisecond of a moment. I cried because the problems I had when I woke up this morning pares in comparison. I pray for her life. I pray for the driver’s sanity. I pray for everyone.