Martyr stared at the equation on the whiteboard and set his pencil down. He didn’t feel like practicing math today. What did math matter when his expiration date was so near?

His wrist still throbbed from Fido’s teeth. Martyr touched the strip of fabric he’d ripped from his bedsheet and tied around his wrist to stop the bleeding. He hoped the wound would heal before a doctor noticed it. A trip upstairs to mend it would be unpleasant, as the doctor would likely use the opportunity to perform tests. Martyr shuddered.

So begins Jill Williamson’s Replication, a novel that explores the ethics of human cloning and God’s purpose for our lives. Couched in the pages of a suspenseful story, Replication follows the struggles of J:3:3, a human clone nicknamed Martyr because of his dedication to protecting the deformed Brokens from cruel clones who also live at the secret underground Jason Farms facility. Innocent, intelligent and curious, Martyr’s greatest desire is to see the sky before he expires on his eighteenth birthday.

Next we meet Abby Goyer, who comes home from school to find her apartment empty, all furniture, pictures and even her cat gone, the apartment stripped down to carpet and bare walls. She calls her dad, who tells her that they are leaving Washington DC and moving to Alaska — the plane leaves in three hours. Already rocked by her mother’s death from cancer, Abby reaches her new home and tries to navigate her way through the uncertainties of a small-town high school. The first person she meets, an arrogant jock named JD Kane, seems to show up everywhere she goes, much to her chagrin. Despite his good looks, his obnoxious and sometimes scary behavior causes Abby to avoid him at all costs.

The story takes a turn when Abby meets Martyr, a boy who eerily looks just like JD. Then things get really strange when Martyr tells her there are fifty-five boys living at Jason Farms and that he has less than one month to live before he expires. Abby tells him about the Creator of the Universe and how he has a plan for Martyr. But she falls into danger when she tries to uncover the truth; Martyr is torn between finding his intended purpose, caring for the Brokens, and wanting to be with Abby, the one he is convinced he was meant to have.

Replication, an inspirational YA novel, is set to reach stores in January 2012. The book is Jill’s fourth published book, following on the heels of her award-winning Blood of Kings fantasy trilogy. You can find her online at: http://jillwilliamson.com/

For more information regarding Replication, here are my affiliate links for Barnes & Noble and Amazon. In addition, you can watch two trailers for the book here, one from Abby’s point of view and one from Jason’s.

Disclosure of Material Connection: At times, some of the links in my posts are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”