This is probably four stars from the perspective of the rest of Emma Donoghue's work, which means amazing by anyone else's standards. It is quite graphic on the subject of birth. Think Call the Midwife ++ (things that can go wrong will, also pandemic), so very satisfying and very focused on women, but also horrifying in spots, gynecologically and socioeconomically.

I wasn't 100% convinced by the central relationships--this feels a bit slight compared to her other books despite the grim subject matter--but the characters were enjoyable and interesting.