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Lakewood  By  cover art

Lakewood

By: Megan Giddings
Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
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Publisher's summary

A startling debut about class and race, Lakewood evokes a terrifying world of medical experimentation - part The Handmaid’s Tale, part The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.

One of The Millions’ Most Anticipated Reads (The Great First Half 2020 Books)

When Lena Johnson’s beloved grandmother dies, and the full extent of the family debt is revealed, the Black millennial drops out of college to support her family and takes a job in the mysterious and remote town of Lakewood, Michigan.

On paper, her new job is too good to be true. High-paying. No out-of-pocket medical expenses. A free place to live. All Lena has to do is participate in a secret program - and lie to her friends and family about the research being done in Lakewood. An eye drop that makes brown eyes blue, a medication that could be a cure for dementia, golden pills promised to make all bad thoughts go away.

The discoveries made in Lakewood, Lena is told, will change the world - but the consequences for the subjects involved could be devastating. As the truths of the program reveal themselves, Lena learns how much she’s willing to sacrifice for the sake of her family.

Provocative and thrilling, Lakewood is a breathtaking novel that takes an unflinching look at the moral dilemmas many working-class families face, and the horror that has been forced on Black bodies in the name of science.

©2020 Megan Giddings (P)2020 HarperAudio

Editor's Pick

What if there was a reason to fear doctors?
"Megan Giddings’s debuts into the audiobook world with a terrifying debut, Lakewood. As a person, I have always been a tad unsettled by doctors. Learning the history of medical experimentation and watching pharmaceutical commercials can usually trigger that response. From the Tuskegee syphilis experiment to death as a medicinal side effect, it can get pretty eerie. However, since I love to scare myself, the plot intrigued me immediately. Megan Giddings writes the thrilling tale of Lena Johnson, who overcome by the responsibility of familial debt, takes a job doing medical trials in Lakewood, Michigan. With great benefits, no expenses, and nice pay, it all seems like a dream come true. The one catch is she must lie about the job…so what’s the true cost? Performed by the powerful voice of Adenrele Ojo, who also brought to life the Audible Original The Queen, prepare yourself to have your morals twisted as the story unfolds."—Nicole R., Audible Editor

What listeners say about Lakewood

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Whoa..LOVED this twisted nuanced read!

Love how the author walks the line between horror and suspense versus gore and torture porn. If you’re looking for a well thought out dread, pit in the stomach, horror experience this book is for you. If you’re looking for the guts and gore horror experience this book is not for you.

As a Black female reader, I thought it was a really good dog whistle approach to Black identity, cultural responsibility, classist intersections, How science uses Blackness and Poverty for the “greater good” without really looking at the toll on humanity. I also enjoyed the unreliable narrator aspect of the novel and how it mimics sooooo much of the gaslighting BIPOC identities endure daily in this nation.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fact or Fiction

This book is one where you have to really listen in order to hear the whole story. The book causes you to think about research in the African American community.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

You had to WANT to know

The book started off very slow. In the end it started to catch my attention but it ended and I didn’t even realize so now I have to go back and listen again to figure out what I missed

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Horror wrapped in Black History

A mirror held up to reflect how Black Americans were treated and taken advantage of. A government then and now that protects its own while using others all for the sake of money. Desperate times call for desperate measures, a part of the generational deceit and lack of education.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • el
  • 05-11-21

Excellent!!

This book is amazing! Informative, tons of imagery and symbolism, and nothing is over explained! I like being able to figure things out and guess in a book. This is perfect!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Ok..

This book was alright. I enjoyed the story line up until the end. It felt so disjointed. I had a hard time following after Chapter 28.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The overacting

The voice actor was overly dramatic where there didn’t need to be. It took me out of the story frequently. It just doesn’t make sense to me the inflection in words…. Bizarre.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Thought provoking, unique and beautiful story

I gave this story 5 stars because it presented a topic that is taboo and scary and very much real for many in the Black community in the U.S. Secret medical experiments on Black bodies is a haunting fact that dates back to when our Ancestors were in bondage. This story however makes it ALMOST, and I use that word loosely, almost palatable. Love it!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Anti Climatic

The narrators voice...meh. Story was interesting but just dragged for soo ho hummm conclusion. I kept waiting for the Story to pick up but it was just more of the same

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Almost good...

This novel started off really good. But then it kinda dragged on and ending was just blah. The story wasn't bad it just didn't tie up very well.

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1 person found this helpful