{"product_id":"the-family-experiment","title":"The Family Experiment","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'John Marrs is not to be missed' - Freida McFadden, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Housemaid\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'Few writers do domestic suspense meets dystopia better than John Marrs' - Lucy Foley, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Paris Apartment\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003e'The books of John Marrs have become a quiet phenomenon . . . Thoughtful, well written . . . and alarming' - \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eSome families are \u003ci\u003evirtually\u003c\/i\u003e perfect . . .\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e The world's population is soaring, creating overcrowded cities and an economic crisis. A growing number of people can no longer afford to start families, let alone raise them.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e But for those desperate to experience parenthood, there is an alternative. For a monthly fee, clients can create a virtual child from scratch, accessing them via the Metaverse and a VR headset. To launch this new initiative, the company behind MetaChildren has created a reality TV show. It will follow its contestants as they raise a MetaChild from birth to the age of eighteen, in a condensed nine-month time period. The prize: the right to keep their virtual child - or risk it all for the chance of a real baby . . .\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eThe Goodreads Choice Award 2024 runner up, \u003ci\u003eThe Family Experiment\u003c\/i\u003e is set in the same universe as John Marrs's bestselling novel \u003ci\u003eThe One\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Marriage Act\u003c\/i\u003e. A dark and twisted thriller about the ultimate 'tamagotchi' - a virtual baby.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'Speculative fiction at its best - original, dark and wickedly clever' - C. L. Taylor, author of \u003ci\u003eEvery Move You Make\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'His best yet. Frighteningly plausible, gripping, dark, and so clever' - Claire Douglas, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Woman Who Lied\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'Hurtles towards a chilling denouement - a truly thought-provoking, single-sitting thriller' - Ellery Lloyd, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Club\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e 'Chilling, inventive, horribly plausible and brilliantly addictive' - C. J. Tudor, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Gathering\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Pan Macmillan","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54862248378711,"sku":"9781529071238","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0799\/4569\/5575\/files\/11134103482732.jpg?v=1788380780","url":"https:\/\/somiibooks.com\/products\/the-family-experiment","provider":"Somiibooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}