Author: Amanda Ortlepp
ISBN: 9781925030600
RRP: $29.99
Claiming Noah is a confronting book that is going to be hard reading for some. I found it to be touching and terrifying, heartbreaking and compassionate. This is one that I feel will touch a nerve of every parent but I don’t think every parent would be able to read it.
Conception has become a very advanced science. It has been a long road to get to where we are today with IVF being a common tool to conception, if not a cheap one. We have come so far that infertile couples have another avenue open to them in that they can utilise embryo donation to become parents.
Ortlepp has taken this astounding science and applied it to a cast of characters that go from heartache to heartache in Claiming Noah, a gripping novel that will leave you with no choice but to question the what ifs and put yourself in their situation.
Catriona and James are desperate for children but the old fashioned method just wasn’t working for them so they embarked on the long and complicated process of IVF. With one embryo remaining they decide that regardless of the outcome of their third implantation they won’t be using it. After exploring their options, albeit briefly, they decide embryo donation is the only option for them; they understand the heartache of not being able to conceive naturally and want to try to ease that pain for another couple.
Diana and Liam are on the waiting list for an embryo after exploring their options and deciding they want the experience of pregnancy and childbirth. Quite quickly an embryo comes up and after expecting a lengthy wait they are thrilled. The fertility doctor likes to try and match embryos to prospective parents as closely as possible, he thinks it increases the chances of the embryo taking and it will certainly make life easier later in life for the child.
Catriona and James had a successful, though difficult, pregnancy and gave birth to Sebastian via emergency c-section after a labour that would be memorable for all the wrong reasons. Catriona suffered post natal depression that then escalated to psychosis and was hospitalised for the protection of both her and Sebastian.
Meanwhile Diana and Liam have also had a little baby boy, Noah, who is everything they could have imagined and he shares many physical traits with both Diana and Liam. At two months old Diana and Liam are faced with the unthinkable when Noah is kidnapped.
This book is definitely one that tugs the heart strings but there is also quite an element of mystery that helped keep me reading long after I should have been doing something else.
The characters are all well written and deeply flawed, not irredeemable by any means but very human and relatable. Claiming Noah is written from the perspective of both Diana and Catriona so we can really get inside their heads and understand what is driving them. The fathers in the story also play extremely important roles but because they aren’t telling the story we can’t completely understand their motivations.
I don’t want to go too deeply into the storyline because I don’t want to risk jading the experience for anyone who goes on to read this. I think it’s important to go into this one without too many preconceived ideas.
The story follows Catriona and Diana in alternating chapters, told in the third person and each chapter is dated so that we can follow the timeline of what’s going on with both families but there is a lot of overlap so quite often the beginning of a new chapter takes you back in time to look at the other woman’s life.
Beautifully written and beautifully paced Amanda Ortlepp has created a stunning debut that will leave you questioning your parenthood beliefs and deeply contemplating all the shades of grey. I love this book and think Ortlepp has done a fantastic job of coming up with a very unique storyline, it is certainly something I haven’t read before.
I would definitely recommend this book, to all parents present and future though perhaps not those looking into embryo donation in the near future. Ortlepp explored so many interesting aspects of people, relationships and perspectives. Situations aren’t always what they seem and some people are extremely good at showing themselves in the best light – which sometimes means they are far from who they claim to be.
A selection of our lucky readers will be reading Claiming Noah as part of the Beauty and Lace Book Club so I will be interested to see what they have to say about the book.
Please be advised that there may be spoilers contained in the comments below.
You can follow Amanda on Twitter.
Claiming Noah is Book #10 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2015.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
This is a powerfully emotional novel. I’m not sure that some of the things depicted in the novel around embryo donation could actually happen in Australia. However, the real crux of the novel is the relationship between parent and child, and that is realistically and powerfully drawn. Very few people will be unable to sympathise with Diana, and later Catriona, as their worlds come crashing down around them. Although the focus of the novel is largely Diana and Catriona, their husbands’ feelings are also touched on. They’re not as powerfully drawn, but are nevertheless important.
Many people who have been through IVF are faced with the question of embryo donation. It’s a difficult one; it’s effectively giving away one of your children, however altruistic your motives. Realistically too, there are questions about, for example, what happens if your child and your “child” meet unknowingly and form a relationship. “Claiming Noah” plays heavily on those troubling questions by throwing in a whole new set of nightmare questions. For that reason, a whole lot of readers are going to find it quite mesmerising.
This is a highly readable and engaging novel, and I suspect most readers will find it hard to put down. I don’t think many people will really be all that surprised to find out what happened to Noah – there are plenty of clues – but the detail is intriguing and the emotional journey of the characters carries you with them. Strong characterisation is a big strength of this book.
There’s no doubt that IVF is a wonderful thing for many people, and equally there’s no doubt that there are some serious issues around it. In that sense, this is a very topical novel, although as I said, I doubt a donation scenario would play out in exactly this way in Australia. The novel doesn’t really explore the issues around IVF and donation in a great deal of detail.
Overall, I’d say this is a novel well worth reading. It’s very well written, and will keep you on the edge of your seat for considerable periods of time. It is also likely to get you thinking about some of the broader issues around parenthood, family arrangements, and IVF. This would be a novel that would be great for a book club, as I bet it would promote some very lively debate.
Thanks for the opportunity to review this great book 🙂 Claiming Noah was very well written, making it easy to read and hard to put down. I enjoyed the story being told from the perspective of Diana, followed by the perspective of Catriona, alternating back and forth throughout the book. I think this touches on some very important issues, including postnatal depression, IVF, embryo donation, and how all of these things can affect a family. I felt like I couldn’t put the book down because it is such a compelling story. I suspected the book would end in the way it did, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to continue reading. I think the character development is fantastic and I enjoyed getting glimpses of the fathers and their actions / feelings. It’s a book that makes you think about what you would do in that situation, so it is quite thought provoking. I’ve already recommended the book a number of times. Great job to Amanda on her first book and I look forward to when her next book comes out!
I have just finished reading Claiming Noah by Amanda Ortlepp, and I think that this was a pretty good novel. It is not a book that will feel you leaving all warm and fuzzy, however, it will certainly get you thinking!
I initially didn’t like the way that Catriona’s character was portrayed; it felt like she was forcing herself to have kids, and I don’t think this worked well in her favour. By the end of the novel, the author had redeemed Catriona’s character to a more likeable personality (in my opinion.)
I did sympathise more with Diana, particularly as she was treated for the most part like dirt by her husband.
I found some parts of the novel difficult to believe, the erasing of certain medical files and hacking etc was a bit far-fetched for my liking.
But having said that, the book is a page turner and I would recommend it to those who like family/drama genre’s.
I loved the epilogue; it was my favourite part of the book.
I would’ve liked to read more about Noah. Even though he was the main point of focus in the book for both sets of couples, I felt that he wasn’t involved or included in the story as much as I would’ve liked.
The ending was a little predictable, as others have mentioned but it was a good ending nonetheless.
Oh, and I loved the characters Tom and partner Jerry. I thought they were a welcome breath of fresh air!
Overall, I would give this book about a 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Thanks for the opportunity to review this book.
WOW! What a book! I started reading it after dinner one night and didn’t put it down until midnight – that’s when my husband reminded me that I had to go to work the next day – stupid work! When I got home the next day, I finished what was left in about an hour.
I thought the story was amazing. I didn’t go down the road of IVF, but it was the next step for me if I didn’t get pregnant when I did. I can fully sympathise with what it’s like to wait month after month hoping that you’ll be pregnant and finding out that you aren’t. I also think that I had post natal depression, but it wasn’t diagnosed, although that wasn’t because I didn’t accept it, it just wasn’t recognised.
This book kept me going because although I though I could work out the story, I wasn’t sure how it was going to happen. I did start to get frustrated towards the end when I was thinking that it wouldn’t explain how James got the information, but my patience was rewarded.
I thought it was interesting the way that Catriona forgave James -she was very brave and in the same situation I don’t know that I could have been as forgiving, but I guess that’s what love does to you! I also loved the way that Catriona could still be a part of Noah’s life and the way Noah found out about his situation.
Overall, I loved this book and would thoroughly recommend it to anyone. Thank you for allowing me to review this book >:o)
I have just finished reading this book within 2 days of starting and could not put it down as it was such a compelling read. From the first chapter I was filled with trepidation at how this story was going to pan out. Reading further into the novel I found we were following the lives of two main characters named Catriona and Diana and their families. It was a territory of dealing with IVF’s and embryo donations and post natal depression and of course romance and lies within each family.
I found this book to be endearing, suspenseful, emotionally draining for the feelings of the two mothers in question, captivating and inspiring. Amanda Ortlepp has written the storyline beautifully and the picture on the cover is exceptional for the title.
Once halfway into the storyline, I could sympathise for both Catriona and Diana with what they had to endure to prove that both of them were the mother of Noah.
I don’t want to give too much away with the storyline but I do want to say, I fell in love with Sebastian and what a hard life he had to endure in his first few months.
I was besotted with all the other characters in the book and how the story all unfolded in the end. I knew there had to be a happy ending but with which character, that I had to keep reading and see for myself.
I found this book to be so heart warming and definitely a 5 star read. I am sure this book would also benefit others that do want to go down the track of IVF or even embryo donations. It would certainly open your eyes.
Thank you to Beauty & Lace and also Simon & Schuster for giving me this book to read. I loved it and am still thinking of both Catriona & Diana as if they are real people that I have met.
What a thought provoking book Claiming Noah by Amanda Ortlepp is. I found I read it really quickly as the words just flowed and the storyline kept me intrigued. All the characters were wonderfully written, complex and slightly flawed.
The only thing that I didn’t love in the book was Catriona forgiving James. I guess love knows no boundaries sometimes but it would be a lot for me to forgive.
All in all a book that touches on IVF, embryo donation, postnatal depression, fidelity and the complexities of family and relationships.
Would definitely recommend for anyone to read 🙂
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.
I found Claiming Noah a book that was enthralling, and it kept me reading when I should have been doing other things!
At the start, I found it difficult to adjust to which couple was which, but once into the story that settled down. It is very emotional, following the two women who both get pregnant with medical aid – one by IVF and the other with Embryo transplant. I found it interesting to read that with embryo transplant, the couple adopts the foetus legally.
The book also touches on the religious beliefs of these methods of conception and peoples differing views on it.
When baby Noah is kidnapped, the story portrays very well the anguish the whole family experiences, and how this has a long term effect. I found this believable, and well written. (and heart wrenching)
I correctly guessed the direction the plot was heading, and the ending was as I expected, but I felt it finished things up well, by showing that sometimes people forgive, share, love, and hate depending on their character, and everyone thinks and feels and behaves differently.
What could have been an extremely heavy subject matter has been handled well in an easy to read and mostly believable way, with enough medical information to not bog the reader down, and learn a few things along the way.
Well written. Interesting subject. Food for thought.
Thank you for allowing me to take part in this book review
I was thrilled to recieve Claiming Noah to review for the book club. It is certainly a novel that tackles many emotional and complex issues, all the while exploring relationships between parents and child, and couples too. I found it tackled difficult and somewhat taboo issues such as mental health with respect, honesty and empathy. It also springs multiple plot twists on the reader. Just when you think you know how things will go, there’s another surprise to keep you guessing. And I love that in a book!
It is certainly not a feel good read, but it throws up many confronting and thought provoking questions. Fertility issues, mental health, family court battles, all are very much part of our modern life, and possibly only more so in the future. Having kids of my own, my heart ached for both Diana, and then Catriona in turn. What unimaginable suffering they went through, things that no one should have to bear.
Overall, a fantastic if emotionally exhausting novel that I will be recommending to my friends and family. Thanks so much Beauty and Lace for allowing me to be part of the book club. I’ll look forward to more of Amanda Ortlepp’s work!
Wow what a book, I just couldn’t put it down. Having suffered fertility issues myself, I found that I could easily relate to the main characters, although I think anyone could have easily put themselves in their shoes as the characters were so well written.
This book was quite emotional especially when the mothers fight through the legal system over Noah/Sebstian as nothing is held back. This book has a great story line with many twists and plots, but ending with a good outcome for everyone involved.
I would have loved just a little more information about the birth of Catrionas second baby – Leo, such as whether she suffered PND in any form,how did she prepare for the birth and her thoughts on protecting him from her in case her psychosis re-occurs, SIDS or even James with him being in jail.
I can honestly say this book took me on an emotional journey with some highs and definitely some low lows, and even after I had finished reading it, it has stayed in my mind since. Its the sort of book that makes you sit back and ponder the darker side of fertility issues, IVF and PND.
I think Amanda Ortlepp s a talented author, and look forward to reading more of her writing.
Thankyou for the opportunity to reveiw this book. Firstly, I found this book confronting, in a good way. I was on the verge of panic for a good portion of the book. A mothers love is so strong that I can only imagine how crazy I would get if I lost my child. Amanda wrote this book so well, the feelings were expressed superbly. I was angry, then sad, then angry, sad then happy. It was an absolute roller coaster ride for the emotions. Being an Aussie author is a great plus too. Love seeing Aussies doing well in their fields and Amanda has done a great job.