Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock is a fast-paced Sci-Fi thriller with a bleakly comic premise that really caught my attention; tired of the many clones she’s created of herself roaming around her neighbourhood and in nearby Bubble City, movie star Lulabelle Rock has created one final clone to locate them all and take them out. The narrative moves through the world at a breakneck pace going from clone to clone, and as we go we learn gradually more and more about our titular character; since many of the characters are technically the same person, we essentially get a full character study of all the aspects of Lulabelle’s personality by the end of the book! I loved the creative use of some of the clones for utterly lazy motives, as it really gave a good insight into Lulabelle’s character (e.g. “I can’t be bothered to meet my friends for brunch tomorrow, let’s create a new clone who’s entire purpose in life is to meet my friends tomorrow morning!”). The existential feelings exhibited by some of the clones was fascinating to me, particularly the 13th clone, whose entire goal in life is to kill other versions of herself.

The setting for the novel is a slightly futuristic version of our own world, where aside from the advance in cloning technology, we see other advances such as self-driving cars (and a weird throwaway bit of world-building about pastries now being forbidden – truly a dystopian world I would never live in). A gripe I have with the book is the fact that we move through this world so quickly, with never any time dedicated to flesh this world out a little more. While the action focus of the book delivered a good story overall, I really wanted to hear more about HOW the world became what it has become.

With a title like this, it’s clear that the book is partially geared towards a showdown ending in some manner, but without spoiling anything, I was impressed by the book’s ability to subvert my expectations at the end, while still landing on it’s feet. I’d definitely recommend Lulabelle Rock to SFF readers who like their novels to be fast-paced and action-packed, with a dash of moral dilemma and existential crisis to boot.

This started with a really interesting premise. I loved the idea of the clones or "portraits" being made to do specific tasks. It was intriguing and I was genuinely excited to see where it would go. The atmosphere was one of the main pluses. It had elements of a futuristic cyperpunk mixed with a gritty 1930's detective noir, expect out protagonist is causing the deaths, not solving them! I liked it a lot. To add to this, there did seem to be a ton of symbolism added in the background, for example, our protagonist was Lulabelle 13 (death), the various eye pictures and symbols dotted around, the series of pictures of Rocque du Sant etc. It added to the overall creepy atmosphere.

The Worldbuilding was OK but I thought that I could have been a bit better. Considering most of the plot happens in Bubble City, I didn't get a very clear picture of it. What I did get it an industrialised New York with the social make-up of L.A. Scenes happened in places but I couldn't really place them in the bigger picture. This also felt a bit similar to the characters. The character list is a bit odd considering 14 of them are Lulabelle Rock! Most of the other side characters are a little flat. Some only seemed to exist in order for something to happen to 13 or to give her something she needed (Simon/Marie). I suppose it's hard to compete against that many Lulabelles!

Overall, I loved the story of the Lulabelles. I found it fascinating meeting the different protraits and would try to figure out what they were "for" before the reveal. Some areas could have been stronger but it mainly worked. The twist was strong and worked well but I did find the relationship gave me the ick. A good strong cyperpunk/detective noir with a creepy atmosphere and intriguing plotline.

I am so grateful to the lovely people at Angry Robot for sending me this beautiful ARC of a unique sci-fi thriller that I couldn’t put down.

In the near future, the rich and famous have the money to create clones or Portraits of themselves and acting legend Lulabelle Rock has just created her 13th. The 13th Portrait of Lulabelle Rock has one purpose -to kill the other 12 Portraits. It seems simple but can the pitfalls of the human world such as love and morals?

Lulabelle has legitimate reasons for creating her Portraits and if I had the money and the means, I’m sure I’d do the same! Our protagonist provided a really unique perspective to read from and I adored watching her grow throughout the narrative.

Our heroine is only allowed to kill other Portraits, so this prevents her from having an evil or ruthless streak. She is programmed purely to kill specific people, which means that she is a killer who is easy to relate to and love. I thought it was interesting that despite the Portraits all leading very human-like lives, they’re clearly not considered to be humans by their creator. It really made me think about how the lines between what is a human and what is a machine are perhaps becoming more blurred every year.

There is some subtle humour as our heroine begins to learn how to get by in the human world. It means that it starts off as a kind of journey of self-discovery and this gradually evolves as the book goes along. I would have liked to have seen more slip-ups from her as I think this would have made some funny scenes and perhaps made her even more endearing.

The protagonist falls in love with one of her targets and I really loved their scenes together. I wasn’t expecting it but it’s this aspect of the book that highlights how easy it is for machines to feel human emotions. It lends another dimension that really raised the stakes and kept the pages turning.

Thirteen Ways To Kill Lulabelle Rock is a fast-paced, refreshing read that makes you think. The ending was really satisfying too and there were points where I was worried it wouldn’t be. I would have liked a bit more world-building, which another 50-100 pages or so could have solved but it was still a very entertaining, clever book that I raced through.

This review was made possible via an ARC through NetGalley

Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock by Maud Woolf is a speculative thriller where the thirteenth clone, called a Portrait, of Lulabelle Rock is sent to by the original to kill the other clones. Lulabelle is a big star and has been using her Portraits to interact with fans and do as much as possible, from partying to having a family with a childhood sweetheart to exploring many different kinds of art.

The thirteenth Lulabelle wakes up to be told that her job is to kill her fellow clones by the Viking, a human who is in charge of making sure the clone does her job. In this alternative future, Portraits can kill each other if the original orders for their termination but they can’t kill humans.

The speculative elements are mostly focused on bubble cities and clones with not a lot of reference to other technologies or harder sci-fi elements. The Orphan Black comp feels quite app as each clone has their own personalities and the thirteenth, the POV character, slowly develops her own individual identity over the course of the story.

Tarot cards also feature heavily with the thirteenth Lulabelle identifying herself as associated with Death when she is introduced to tarot and associates other clones she meets with other cards.

I would recommend this to fans of speculative fiction who like longer chapters and fans of Orphan Black.

Thank you Netgalley and Angry Robot for the ARC of this book.

Let me start by saying Chapter Zero had me hooked.

Set in a world of the near future, elite celebrities have access to technology which allows them to make perfect copy’s of themselves, known as Portraits. These Portraits exist to fulfill various duties which come with the fame of the celebrities.
Our protagonist is the thirteenth copy of actress Lulabelle Rock. Her propose is the track down and “dispose of” her predecessors. She is sent to Bubble City to locate and kill each one of her targets, her tasks do not go as smooth as she hoped for and she starts to develop consciousness, causing her to question her very own existence.
The world building in this book is so good, capturing both the glamorous upper class lifestyles and the degenerate lower areas of society. Our protagonist, Lulabelle, becomes more emotionally invested with each Portrait she is ordered to remove, we see her start to sympathise and form attachments with one in particular.

We see Lulabelle 13, refer to herself as “death” like in Tarot Cards, I enjoyed reading and witnessing her journey of self-awareness through her subtle interactions with others. I found the ending to this story quite fitting and felt the outcome was needed. Without giving too much away, we see 13 gain a sense of humanity and human morals.

Once again, thank you to Netgalley and Angry Robot for this ARC.

The Prestige meets The Island meets Black Mirror in something that’s like a murder mystery; but also not like a murder mystery. Wrapped up in all of that is a commentary on life, death, and what it means to really be a person. An interesting read.

She was created to track down and eliminate the twelve that came before her, it should be simple.

Lulabelle Rock has twelve portraits, or clones, that were created to help take some of the responsibility from her. She has so much to do as a popular celebrity, there isn’t enough of her to go around. It’s going as planned until she wants them all gone.

Killing yourself should be easy, they’re just clones. It’s not murder, not really. But love has a way to complicate things…

I loved watching black mirror and I love reading books that are similar, so the premise of this one was very enticing for me. This book did not disappoint! It was so much fun and I really enjoyed it. I loved the idea of this book, creating clones in order to get more accomplished. I enjoyed getting to know the thirteenth rendition of Lulabelle Rock and her journey to discovering herself. She was created solely for the purpose of killing the portraits, or clones, which came before her, but somewhere along the way she’s not sure this is what she wants to be doing. I particularly enjoyed how each chapter started out with a little description of what was to come, it was fun. The writing was well done. The main character was fully developed and the side characters added to the story in a meaningful way. The pacing on this one was well done, it was a quick read and the perfect book for an afternoon sitting.

Thank you to Angry Robot Books @angryrobotbooks for sending me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock" by Maud Woolf is a riveting sci-fi thriller that effortlessly blends the futuristic allure of "Blade Runner Barbie" with the mind-bending complexity of a Black Mirror episode. From the moment I delved into the glitz and glamour of Bubble City with the washed-up film star, Lulabelle Rock, I was hooked.

The narrative takes an exhilarating turn as Lulabelle's twelve clones, each with a distinct purpose, face the inevitable end of their existence. Enter the thirteenth clone—an assassin with the chilling task of eliminating her predecessors. What seems like a straightforward mission evolves into a journey of self-discovery, morality, and the blurred lines between mechanical replicas and genuine emotions.

One of the book's strengths lies in the protagonist's evolution, starting as a mere clone and blossoming into an individual with a moral compass and complex feelings about her assigned mission. The distinct personalities of each clone, despite sharing the same memories, add layers to the story, crafting a world that feels both familiar and eerily futuristic.

What truly sets this book apart is its pacing. Despite its brevity, the narrative unfolds at a perfect speed, keeping readers glued to the story without feeling rushed. I found myself reading it in one sitting, and then enjoyed it so much I had to immediately start it again the next day.

The masterstroke, however, is the brilliant twist at the end. A revelation that left me eager to dive back in, savoring the intricacies and subtle details woven throughout the story that led to that climactic moment. It's a testament to Woolf's storytelling prowess—like Black Mirror, but with its own unique flair.

In essence, "Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock" is a thrilling, thought-provoking, and emotionally resonant sci-fi gem. If you're a fan of Black Mirror or crave a narrative that challenges the boundaries of identity and morality, this book is an absolute must-read. Highly recommended!

An unexpectedly fun, reflective, and generally excellent book. Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock would be a great next read for anyone who enjoyed The Murders of Molly Southbourne, Defekt, and All Systems Red. If you're interested in speculative fiction and tarot, this is the book for you.

Lulabelle Rock is not just an icon; she's a legend, a model, a socialite gossiping in the penthouses of Bubble City and strutting down the streets of the fashion district in designer wear. But here's the twist: Lulabelle has 12 clones, each with a distinct purpose. Enter the 13th clone, our main character, tasked with eliminating the others. Woolf's book takes us on a mind-bending journey that, while light on sci-fi elements, is rich in literary character exploration.

The narrative unfolds with a diverse cast of characters, each representing different facets of life and the human psyche. Woolf's approach to cloning is refreshing, and the setting exudes old Hollywood vibes, from Lulabelle to the industry insiders.

However, the true strength of this book lies in its writing. Woolf employs vivid prose with a simplicity that gives the main character a compelling voice. The story is effortlessly readable, and I found myself repeatedly highlighting numerous passages. This unique take on cloning, combined with Woolf's exceptional writing, creates a captivating and enjoyable reading experience.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Maud Woolf has created a stellar read. Sci fi is a genre I’ve read frequently so the idea of clones is familiar to me. What Woolf does differently is how she creates the characters, and for a short (<200 pg read), she does a great job of establishing each character i their own way and style. The end did fly a bit by but overall it ws a great read!

This was an entertaining, light read, but possibly for the younger end of the market. Our protagonist is the thirteenth clone of an actress, tasked with killing her other alter egos. As she has only just come out of a vat, she wrestles with existential angst while carrying out her hits. The concept is not a new one, and other writers have, quite frankly, dealt with it better. I suppose if one has never read Never let me go or Do androids dream of electric sheep, this might open a conversation about what makes us individual people, or gives us our purpose in life, but it is far simpler and rather too basic for my cynical tastes.
My thanks to Angry Robot and Netgalley for the ARC of this book.

Lulabelle Rock is an icon. A legend. A model.

She is gossiping with all the top socialites and partying in sky rise penthouses of Bubble City and parading designer wear down the streets of the fashion district.. all at the same time.

Lulabelle Rock has 12 clones to do her bidding for her at the same time, each with a specific purpose. The main character is the 13th, and her purpose is to eliminate all the others.

Woolf’s book is a mind bending journey which is less heavy on the sci-fi, but more so literary in its terms of character exportation.

We go through a cast of colourful characters, each representing a different aspect to life and the human psyche in a fresh and interesting ways.

I absolutely loved this take on cloning. The setting gave me very old Hollywood vibes, from Lulabelle herself to some of the people within the industry.

However, the strongest point of this book was definitely the writing. Woolf has incredibly vivid prose, but a simplicity to it that also gives the main character tons of voice. This book was so easy to read, and I found myself highlighting so many things countlesss times.

Even now, I want to re-read it to go over anything i may have missed but I guess I’ll wait for the official release, when I can get my very own physical book.

Thank you to Angry Robot for providing me with an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was an interesting premise for sure! Having a copy of you to go to wdo stuff for you is a good concept. Though I enjoyed the first few chapters, the story quickly became repetitive in the way things were happening. There were a few twists here and there, but I lost interest half way through the book. The ending was expected in a way. I guess I was expecting something more fascinating with more emphasis on the psychological changes each Portrait went through and their development, which I didn't get.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

“Black Mirror meets Orphan Black” is correct!! I’m a HUGE fan of both shows and this did not disappoint. This is so layered and well plotted.

The concept behind this novel was clever and appealed to me, which was the main reason that I requested it on NetGalley UK. in this alternative world science has advanced to the stage where by people can grow clones with themselves in vats . These clones have their original persons memories up until the time of their ”birth” .The original person in the story is a busy famous actress who develops a number of clones, all of whom she has specific plans for .
I liked the inventiveness all of these alternative clones existence, one was developed to actor’s a standby to avoid crowds of paparazzi, one to support her agent as a secretary, .my favourite one was developed primarily to look for hidden talents within her character. she was instructed to make and create things and set up in a flat especially designed for this.The clones were largely seen by the originator as a way of doing all the things there were not enough hours in the day to do .who wouldn’t want their own personal mini me
At the start of the story, a newly developed clone learns that she has been made to act as an assassin and decommission all previous clones. This clone is then the main character of the novel and we follow her as she meets her fellow clones and she gradually becomes aware of the differences between all these clones. As increasing difference is noted. She becomes more of an individual person with her own wants and desires, and this is interesting to watch.
There’s a clever plot twist towards the end which I suppose I should’ve worked out beforehand but didn’t.
Each chapter starts with a little description of a scene they read like descriptions of a painting and I really struggled to link them to the story. I couldn’t see what they added to the story at all because of this perhaps the link was too subtle for me
This book reads like an episode of Black Mirror I suspect it would make a great TV series because of this the clever twist at the end again is similar to the black mirror stories.
The author has a clear easily read prose style and the novel was a light fun and enjoyable read. The sci-fi elements are inventive but not too complicated they were easy to follow.
I enjoyed reading about how the character of the clone developed along with the story because the clone was essentially meeting herself over and over again any character changes were quite subtle and the way that the characters interact with each other was limited by this fact. There were few other characters in the story that were able to influence character development.
I loved the choice of name for the main character Lullabella Rock as effectively the assassin was reading them each a lullaby as she rocked them to death
I’d recommended this novel to anyone who enjoys modern sci-fi the most similar novel. I suppose I’ve read this year would be the Cassandra complex by Holly Smaile
I read an early copy of the novel on NetGalley UK. The book is published in the UK on the 9th of January 2024 by Angry Robot
In addition to my review appearing on NetGalley UK, I have been asked by the publishers to take part in a book blog tour in January around the time of publication.

The review will also appear on Goodreads and my book blog by bionicSarahsbooks.wordpress. com, and after publication on Amazon uk

Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock is about a movie star named Lulabelle Rock who made twelve clones herself to make certain chores for her and finally, she made the thirteen clones to kill other clones. I really enjoyed it. This book is really fast paced with an interesting premise. Despite being a short book, the author did an excellent job of writing a complex story in under 200 pages. It has black mirroresque vibe which I love. Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good sci-fi read. Thanks to Angry Robot and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy.

Angry Robot Books provided an early galley for review.

I do enjoy an interesting premise for a sci-fi novel, and this one certainly has that. The concept is an interesting one to be sure. Having a copy of you to go to work or to do the stuff around the house or run your tedious errands is an appealing idea indeed. I also instantly jumped on to the references to the major arcana of tarot right on page one and was curious how they would play out within the story itself.

Naturally, "Thirteen" learns a lot about the woman upon whom she is based as she goes through her mission. From each of the other Portraits (clones), we, along with her, discover the different aspects of Lulabelle's life that they for which have been made responsible. The story gets much more complex as the days pass and "Thirteen" realizes that everything is not as straightforward as it would first appear. The reader might be able to piece together the ending before she does, but there are a few twists that will keep folks guessing.

Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock is a solid sci-fi. It's short but it certainly packs a thematic punch across its length. The story plays out like a Black Mirror fable, but instead of the dark, depressing tone of something akin to Playtest, this one is much more hopeful amidst a sea of darkness.

The premise itself is sold as a mash-up of Killing Eve and Orphan Black, and writer Maud Woolf has absolutely nailed the feel of Bubble City and its inhabitants in that respect. There's a nice hierarchy to the way this city is set-up, although the world plays second fiddle to the characters, who are the real stars of the show.

At the center of this tale is Lulabelle Rock, who's a crazy successful rock-star who decides to clone herself 12 times to make her own life easier. Unfortunately, things are becoming rather tiresome for her, so Lulabelle decides to create a new clone with a simple mission - destroy all the other clones of herself.

The premise starts strongly and there's undoubtedly a niggling feel that this story will end up feeling rather perfunctory and obvious by the halfway mark. Thankfully, there's a lovely little twist involving one such clone, and the tale for the second half becomes one very much centered around our protagonist's journey of self-discovery, hope and life's purpose.

This is where Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock excels, and the way our protagonist starts to explore her life, questioning everything around her and trying to make sense of her life's purpose is really profound. You definitely get the sense that she's trying to understand why she's been tasked to kill the other "Portraits" and that translates beautifully into the book.

The story itself flows nicely, and the touch of adding 13 chapters is certainly not lost on this reviewer. If that wasn't enough, we also get a lot of symbolism around the number 13, along with a deep exploration of those aforementioned themes, played out in the way each of these Portraits are unique in their own wonderful (or sinister) ways.

An ending can always make or break a story like this and thankfully, Lulabelle Rock "kills it". There's a really nice ending to this story and given the premise and the way this is set up, you're unlikely to guess where this is going, lending itself back to the Black Mirror feel of everything.

Overall, Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock is a great book and a solid way to start the year off. There's a delicious blend of action, thrills and sci-fi to get the taste-buds sizzling, along with a surprising amount of depth with the different characters. If you're even a little curious, you should check this one out!

8/10

Very fun sci-fi ride that dips its toes into the surreal and symbolic. I didn't get much out of the themes with tarot decks and magic, but I liked it a lot when played straight and also when subverted. If you like tightly woven stories without a single wasted character or thought, this is for you. It is very iterative upon itself. Overall a fun read and I like how the themes are explored, I won't lie awake thinking any revelatory thoughts, but I didn't expect to.