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Most Wanted
Fiction
St. Martin's Griffin
April 12, 2016
448
Christine Nilsson and her husband, Marcus, are desperate for a baby. Unable to conceive, they find themselves facing a difficult choice they had never anticipated. After many appointments with specialists, endless research, and countless conversations, they make the decision to use a donor. Two months pass, and Christine is happily pregnant. But one day, she is shocked to see a young blond man on the TV news being arrested for a series of brutal murders—and the blond man bears an undeniable and uncanny resemblance to her donor. Delving deeper to uncover the truth, Christine must confront a terrifying reality and face her worst fears. Riveting and fast-paced with the depth of emotionality that has garnered Lisa Scottoline legions of fans, Most Wanted poses and ethical and moral dilemma: What would you do if the biological father of your unborn child was a serial killer?
Who is donor 3319?
Christine and her husband Marcus utilize the sperm donation of a man known as donor 3319 after a long struggle with fertility. Christine was already worried about her husband moving past his insecurities surrounding his inability to produce sperm. She fully believes that Marcus will be a great father and is their baby’s true father. Imagine Christine’s emotions when she sees a serial killer’s arrest on TV who looks just like donor 3319. She becomes obsessed with identifying her anonymous donor 3319. Is he the serial killer on TV? Will her child have violent tendencies?
Naturally, this causes a rift between Christine and her husband. The baby is all they’ve wanted for so many years and now they disagree about what is important and how to proceed. This story brings up the nature vs. nurture debate. One side thinks that violence is learned in their environment while others believe in the “warrior gene” and that people can be predisposed to violence.
What can be done?
Is the sperm bank responsible for not screening a potential sociopath? Lisa Scottoline did some serious research regarding sperm banks for this book. I hope that the actual banks are more careful with screening their donors than the banks in this story. According to Most Wanted, egg donors are more carefully screened than the sperm donors. Imagine that.
It is tough to imagine being placed in this kind of position. I found myself angry at Marcus and thinking he was a total jerk, and then later I was mad at Christine and thought she was acting crazy. I couldn’t keep to one side of their marriage. That was part of what kept this story interesting. Of course I was interested in whether or not Zachary (arrested serial killer) was actually donor 3319 but I also was worried about whether their marriage would survive all of these hurdles. Then of course I was embarrassed for Christine as she became a self-made detective/paralegal. I was curious like she was but I couldn’t relate to her. I couldn’t picture myself behaving the same way in this situation.
All in all, there was just enough suspense to keep you entertained.
Kristin lives in the PNW with her husband, and three kids. She loves to read YA fiction, fantasy, and romance. She enjoys a few side-hustles, including creating bookreels/booktoks for authors. The only shows she watches are re-runs, and if she’s not reading a book, she’s listening to one.
