Bumped

Bumped Megan McCafferty

Ok, so in the future, there's a virus that ruins fertility after age 20. It affects large portions of the population. Because of this, teen pregnancy is OK. Some teens have sex with their boyfriends and then give up the children to nonprofit adoption agencies. Some go pro. They have agents and couples offer them large sums of money and other items (Car, college tuition, etc) and then pick a partner for the surrogate to procreate with. Melody has the perfect file and was the first in her school to go pro. The only problem is that she signed a contract years ago and her sponsors STILL haven't found her a guy. She should be on her second or third pregnancy at this point, but she hasn't even tried for her first. To make it worse, she's discovered that her adoptive parents, in addition to having groomed her her entire life to be the perfect pro candidate (which she knew) have borrowed against her equity and are financing their lavish lifestyle on the fertility she's not providing (which she didn't know.)

Her twin sister, Harmony, has just left the fundamentalist compound where she lives to meet Melody for the first time. Harmony's overwhelmed with her awe at the strange world outside of Goodside and her need to save her sister.

So, when Harmony gets a message meant for Melody about how they've finally found a guy (and not just any guy, but a super-celebrity! HOTTTT!) A comedy of mistaken identity ensues.

So, this is obviously the first in a series as there are lots of unresolved issues at the end of the book. Just FYI. Normally that's a deal breaker for me, but I'll give this one a pass because I love the world McCafferty has built. I like how she doesn't spend a lot of time explaining her technological advances, the virus, the slang, or the anything like that. Harmony is used to explain some of it but not an overly large amount. She does have a small role tour guide as we discover this world together, but mostly she's there to sort out her own feelings about her upbringing and her sister's upbringing.

It's told in alternating chapters and it touches on issues of fame, sex, religion, child birth, and a very, very, very believable future.

I am curious as to why people had to have sex to have babies. There's mention of how "petri-babies" are no longer scientifically possible (Because of the virus?) but it doesn't touch why a turkey baster won't work. And while adults can see some of the dark side to this world, it takes Melody a little while longer. The risks of pregnancy and childbirth are always downplayed like they'll never happen. Except, they do. (Which is interesting because so many of the pregnancy books currently on the market tend to overplay all the risks)

It's very different that the Jessica Darling books. But, Zen is much hotter than Marcus any day and this world is pretty horrifying and amazing all at once. I really want to read the next one.

I also like the double meaning of "bumped" You are bumped when you're sporting a bump, but you also bumped in order to get that way.


Book Provided by... my local library

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