Gather the Daughters

A Novel

By: Jennie Melamed

Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard

Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Never Let Me Go meets The Giver in this haunting debut about a cult on an isolated island where nothing is as it seems.

Years ago, just before the country was incinerated to wasteland, 10 men and their families colonized an island off the coast. They built a radical society of ancestor worship, controlled breeding, and the strict rationing of knowledge and history. Only the Wanderers - chosen male descendants of the original 10 - are allowed to cross to the wastelands, where they scavenge for detritus among the still-smoldering fires.

The daughters of these men are wives-in-training. At the first sign of puberty, they face their Summer of Fruition, a ritualistic season that drags them from adolescence to matrimony. They have children, who have children, and when they are no longer useful, they take their final draught and die. But in the summer, the younger children reign supreme. With the adults indoors and the pubescent in Fruition, the children live wildly - they fight over food and shelter, free of their fathers' hands and their mothers' despair. And it is at the end of one summer that little Caitlin Jacob sees something so horrifying, so contradictory to the laws of the island, that she must share it with the others.

Born leader Janey Solomon steps up to seek the truth. At 17-years-old, Janey is so unwilling to become a woman, she is slowly starving herself to death. Trying urgently now to unravel the mysteries of the island and what lies beyond before her own demise, she attempts to lead an uprising of the girls that may be their undoing.

Gather the Daughters is a smoldering debut; dark and energetic, compulsively listenable, Melamed's novel announces her as an unforgettable new voice in fiction.

©2017 Jennie Melamed (P)2017 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Compulsive and suspenseful... This beautifully and carefully constructed work pulls no punches in its depiction of a bleak future; it will attract fans of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and readers who enjoy horror, suspense, and dystopian fiction." ( Library Journal )

"An intriguing, gorgeously realized and written novel which inexorably draws you into its dark heart." (Kate Hamer, author of The Girl in the Red Coat)

"Melamed is a masterful writer, and she establishes a hauntingly vivid atmosphere... This is a haunting work in the spirit of The Handmaid's Tale - but Melamed more than holds her own. Hopefully, her debut is a harbinger of more to come. Fearsome, vivid, and raw: Melamed's work describes a world of indoctrination and revolt." ( Kirkus )

A gripping but disturbing read

Any additional comments?

One important thing about this book that wasn't obvious from the summary: Although the main characters are young teenage or prepubescent girls, it's definitely not a story for children and should not be read by someone who's sensitive to the subject of child abuse or sexual abuse.

That said, while the subject matter of this story was deeply disturbing, I felt it was done tastefully (at least as much as is possible) and the author stayed away from any graphic descriptions. Most of the horror comes not from the acts themselves but from how they're seen by members of the island's society as completely normal and mundane. It was well-written with compelling, fleshed out characters. The suspense was very well done to the point that I listened to most of the book in one go. I'll definitely be on the lookout for future books from Jennie Melamed.

My only criticism on the performance is that the dialogue for most of the girls was read in a very whiny, shrill voice that distracted me from the story. Janey was the worst offender, which is unfortunate since she has quite a bit of dialogue. Thankfully the narrator's normal voice isn't like that so most of it was fine.

had no idea this was about pedophilia

Any additional comments?

The summary does not indicate the actual gist of the story. I should have read the reviews.
Shame on me. I would not have purchased. Even knowing the author has dealt with childhood trauma victims does not help that this is an odd story and disappointing at best.

Set Up for a Series

Any additional comments?

It's an interesting if uncomfortable concept, and definitely engaging. I got into it very quickly. However, the real conflict of the story is never resolved and the big questions are never answered. Most likely slated for a sequel, as a stand alone book, this left me disappointed.

end of book didn't justify upsetting premise

I really did like the author's style but I wish she would cut off the last few chapters and keep working on it. This book had a lot of potential.

The premise is extremely disturbing. For a world this terrible I feel we are owed more feminist empowerment and revenge than was delivered. That being the case I wish I hadn't read it.

Narrator was very good except she chose a whiny voice for one of the main characters that didn't reflect her strength. Her normal voice was great as were many of her other choices.

Disappointed!

It was hard for me to finish this book. Nothing like Handmaid's Tale . Relationship with fathers and daughters were disturbing.

good book

This book was a good read, very interesting but as I got deeper into the book the undertones were kind of disturbing. However, I did enjoy the story. The ending seemed somewhat abrupt and I felt like it needed to go on just a little longer.

Meh

Initially the story had a lot of promise, but it left too many things unanswered. Mostly the incest, there was no real explanation for why that had to be included and came off as just a tool for shock value and like the author wanted to write a story rooted in incest. Again, could have been super interesting but just wasn’t throughly fleshed out. Also the narrator was terrible. She was fine when narrating the story but the voices the chose for the characters were awful. She made all the girls whiney and screechy so to the point where it was annoying and did not at all reflect the emotion they were trying to convey.

Amalgam & THT!

The narrator mispronounced amalgam a couple of times, made me chuckle. If you like, The Handmaids Tale, you will find this compelling. There aspects of many religious practices shadowed in this story. The Amish rumpshringa, the old Mormon practice of reassigning wives/children. Various religious organizations power-struggles & caste system of hierarchy.

Overall.... just ok....

Once you figure out the overall plot, it really just seems like an absurd venture into exploiting sexual abuse.

A very brave book.

Fans of the Handmaids Tale will find this book to be a powerful and thought provoking read.