What do readers think of A Nearly Perfect Copy by Allison Amend? Write your own review.

Overall I enjoyed this book, but I was disappointed with the last quarter of it. My attention was immediately captured and drawn into the stories of Elm and Gabriel and I enjoyed the "insider's" look at the world of fine art. However, I expected there to be a better intertwining of the two main characters' lives and actions and felt that the ending was very dissatisfying. The author's level of detail and the complexity of the characters' emotions and motivations noticeably dwindled as the story came to a close - it almost seemed that she ran out of ideas and was in a hurry to finish the book. The moral and ethical questions raised in the plot would make this a good book for a group to discuss.

Elm and Gabriel, the two main characters, are far from perfect, not even nearly perfect. They are both interested only in themselves and never consider who they will harm as they pursue their goals. Lives are destroyed because of their selfishness
My favorite aspects of the book are how much I learned about the art world and how auction houses work. This is the part I enjoyed. Although the characters are well developed, I was not fond of the theme of the book.

Though I really did not like either Elm, who works at Tinsley's auction house, or Gabriel, the long struggling artist, I did like how the book switched back and forth between their stories. I must say that I found Elm's story fairly unbelivable. I can imagine the unbearable pain and grief of losing a child, but cloning that child just feels too far out as an acceptable answer. Gabrial's story felt more "true" to me. I did like the insights into the art world. While overall I felt like this was a mixed bag, it did keep me reading.

The novel has two protagonists: a mother living on the Upper East Side of New York and a down-and-out artist living in Paris. The settings are rendered especially well. Where I had problems was with the protagonists. Although the author tries to make them sympathetic due to the circumstances of their lives—the mother has lost a child, the artist deals with poverty—I never found them sympathetic enough to root for them as they make significant life choices. The novel is well written but ultimately I disliked the characters too much to like the book.

Art world, cloning, perfect copies....of art works and humans???? I couldn't relate at all to the plot, nor the characters. The writing was less than enticing,"Gabriel had a quick flash of reverie being in Lise's all-white apartment, children hanging off him like rats in some horror movie." "we don't get to decide what children we have or what children get taken from us. I wanted a baby not a science experiment".... Definitely not for me.