Two women. Two children. But whose is whose?
When two strangers, Tess and Annie, undergo IVF at an American clinic, their embryos are mixed up and each woman gives birth to the wrong child.
The women only discover the devastating error three years later. Tess wants to swap the children back; Annie doesn’t. As the pair wrangle, neither of them expect what unfolds.
About the Author:
Fiona Mitchell writes book-group fiction – novels that centre on gritty dilemmas, with lots of points for sparky discussion.
Her first novel, The Maid’s Room, published by Hodder & Stoughton, focuses on modern-day servitude in Singapore. It has won many plaudits from newspapers and magazines including Heat who called it ‘genuinely excellent.’
Her second book, The Swap, looks at what happens when two women who undergo IVF are implanted with the wrong embryos, but only find out three years later. It will be published initially in hardback by Hodder & Stoughton in April 2019.
A former journalist, Fiona also writes short stories for which she has won various awards.
My Review: The Swap is possibly every parents worst nightmare – finding out your baby isn’t actually your child – raising and loving a child for 3 years and due to a freak accident finding out the child you’ve loved, nurtured and brought up within your family unit was accidentally swapped during an IVF treatment.
This is the nightmare that Tess and Annie find themselves embroiled in when Tess who is raising 3 year old Freddie in England with her husband and 2 older sons discovers the mix-up. Meanwhile Annie and her husband Carl are living with their beloved and cherished only child Willow in America when their lives are turned upside down.
As a mother I was totally gripped by the story line and was able to feel the emotions, confusion and despair of both mothers throughout the book. Personally, I found the story was plausible and dealt with in a sensitive manner. I would totally recommend this book.