Wow. This is a big, ambitious speculative thriller that's simultaneously thought-provoking and easy to read. I'd really like to see this one adapted for the screen too

John Marrs is literally has become of my favorite thriller authors and I am so excited when I got a chance to review one of his latest novels, The Family Experiment.

If you have read John Marrs's bestselling book The One which was also adapted into Netflix series, then I would have to say, the Family Experiment has the same background and concept as The One. In this book, there are 11 contestants who are desperate to have a child and each of these contestants are allowed to create a virtual child through metaverse and VR set. To launch this, the company then creates a reality TV show where there are 11 contestants and all contestants are given a virtual child to look after from the ages of infant to eighteen years in a span of nine months. Which of these couples would win the contest? And these contestants would do anything to win the competition as it involves money.

I have to say John Marrs has really a unique plot ideas and this book is no exception. If you have read The One, then you would know what I am actually saying. I enjoyed The One so much that I couldn't put the book down. The Family Experiment is also a book where you wouldn't be able to put the book down. There are couples--Gabriel and Cadman, single father Hudson, Zoe and Dimitri, Woody and Tina...who are all contestants. I like the chat room scenes where people will discuss about each of the contestants and their babies. The book was quiet unputdownable and engaging as well. I couldn't wait for the ending, wondering what the ending was going to be like as the ending was quiet unpredictable (a thing I like in the thriller books) Along with the competition, there is also another backstory behind the competition about trafficking of young children where parents who are in debts and unable to pay sell their children and give them a drug to make the children forget about the parents. Already, I felt like I was watching a movie while reading this book. There is also a massive cliffhanger in each of the chapters and the chapters are told in each couple's POV.

I highly recommend the folks to read The One if you haven't read it as this book is set in the similar universe as the One. Overall, this is an unputdownable and page turning thriller that will keep you up all night--worth 4.5 stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion.

What a book!!! A speculative thriller set in the near future that is completely possible. It is scarily thought provoking. The cost of living is rising to the extent some families can no longer afford to have children in the real world. But all is not lost, families can now have their very own tamagotchi like virtual baby in the Metaverse, and there's a reality competition streamed lived 24/7 showing families. Told from each parent's point of view, we learn why these contestants/parents are where they are, and why they are seeking their perfect family in the Metaverse. Dark secrets and twisted moments come together to an unexpected finale that is both mind blowing and satisfying in equal measures. Thank you Mr Marrs for another belter! 5⭐

Wow! John Marrs is one of my favourite authors and I think he’s written another top class book. I loved how there were little links to the others he had written. His use of multiple POV means he can essentially write lots of little stories but the way he links them altogether is genius! Once again I was convinced I had worked it all out but once I got to the end I was wrong! This is a must read and my favourite of the series!

The Family Experiment by John Marrs ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
One of my favourite authors. What happens when you decide to take part in a reality show whereby you bring up a virtual child over a period of a year taking the virtual child from baby to adult … viewers voting, twisted back stories. I loved this book. With the rapid increase of AI you begin to wonder if this is the stuff of our future world. Scary. Highly recommend.

𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬: For a monthly subscription fee, clients can create a virtual child from scratch whom they can access via the metaverse and a VR headset. To launch this new initiative, the company behind Virtual Children has created a reality TV show. It will follow ten couples as they raise a Virtual Child from birth to the age of eighteen but 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… 

𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: I absolutely love speculative sci-fi fiction, so this concept is SO up my alley.

First of all, I really loved the mixed media elements like the advertisements and social media posts interspersed throughout the chapters; this was super immersive and made the world feel even more real. The pacing was also great, there are so many mysteries and secrets that slowly got unveiled about all of the contestants - I really couldn’t put it down!

At first, I found it a little difficult to sort out all of the characters in my head as you’re introduced to all of the couples pretty quickly, but I actually liked having so many different stories to follow and it definitely kept the story fresh and interesting until the very last page.

Everything started falling into place during the final third of the book and I was truly glued to my Kindle, it was all so exciting, I 100% recommend it!!

Thank you to @NetGalley and @panmacmillan for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I read an eARC of this book so thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley.

This is a good book for fans of Black Mirror and The Twilight Zone. John Marrs takes technology and issues that are known and relevant in today’s society and looks at what could go wrong? Dialling up the intensity and exploring the ways people react. This book references some things from the author’s previous books The Passengers (which I’ve read) and The Marriage Act (which I haven’t). You can read this book standalone without having read the previous books.

The book explores a reality TV competition where couples are given an AI child to raise from newborn to age 18 over the space of nine months. In this world, having children naturally is often prohibitively expensive and a corporation is using this show to raise interest in buying AI children instead. The participants who win will have the choice to either keep their AI child alive at the end of the competition, or delete them and take the money to pay for IVF to try for a physical child.

This book explores so much, views on AI and if they’re real or not, sentience, family, wealth inequality, the treatment of refugees, social media, reality TV, use of the internet and metaverse. It’s very clever and thoughtful whilst managing to be tense and entertaining. It’s often quite shocking.

John Marrs is now an auto-buy author for me. That’s two fantastic reads from them so far!

Have been a fan of John Marrs books for some time now and the Family Experiment did not disappoint - such a good dystopian plot, with twists and turns you wouldn’t see coming even if you had the greatest imagination.

Thank you Netgalley & Pan MacMillan for the opportunity to read this title.

The Family Experiment by John Marrs is a sci-fi thriller with dystopian undertones, throughout the book we follow 11 contestants all participating in a reality game show that follows their journey as they partake on their roles as parents…. to ‘meta babies’ aka virtual babies that you can feel, feed, interact with just as much as a biological child.

‘Why leave it to chance or genetics when you can have the perfect baby you've always dreamed of?’

As the story unfolds we learn of each contestants personal choice on why they wanted to participate, some brilliant twists show us that not all as it seems. We also discover how the technology has been able to develop to such an advanced level.

John is an incredible author and this book doesn’t disappoint, I especially enjoyed his reference to his past novels within this one, as usual, this novel is written very well at a brilliant pace with plenty of intrigue to keep us on our toes throughout.

I highly recommend The Family Experiment (as-well as Johns other novels) especially if you’re a fan of eerie sci-fi like Black Mirror. -K.

I have been a John Marrs fan since the first book I picked up of his, and this read only further solidified him as one of my favourite authors of all time. It was impossible to put this book down, with all of the twists and drama, I constantly wanted to find out all of the secrets. I enjoyed the premise of MetaChildren and thought there was a really good diversity with the contestants, their backgrounds, and their storylines. The ending was extremely satisfying and I’m looking forward to rereading it in the future. I would recommend this book to everyone (but read his other speculative thrillers first)

John Marrs is one of my favourite authors - the ideas he comes up with are always so fascinating and frighteningly plausible for the future. This one focuses on AI and the meta verse and raising a virtual child. I find AI really interesting and also terrifying so the subject matter was right up my ally and definitely raises a few ethical issues that get you thinking. Like many of his books there are a few different POVs to keep track of and I would say compared to his other books I wasn’t as interested in the characters as much and so it was a little harder to be invested in the overall story. 3.5 for me.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

Just finished The Family Experiment by John Marrs, and it was quite the journey. The concept grabbed me right from the start, offering a mix of dystopian and reality TV elements that's both unique and bold. This book, the third in a series, ventures into new territory, and while it's a bit of a puzzle to keep all the pieces straight, it showcases Marrs's knack for ambitious storytelling. Though it didn’t quite capture my heart like the previous entries, its intricate plot and the moral dilemmas it presents were definitely thought-provoking. Gave it a solid three stars 🌟🌟🌟 - it’s a testament to Marrs's creativity, even if it didn't top my list of favorites.

Thank you to Pan Macmillan, NatGalley and of course John Marrs for allowing me to read and review this upcoming release of ‘The Family Experiment’

I would literally read anything that John Marrs’ writes, and I have read everything so far and his speculative fiction is definitely my favourite. He is one of my favourite authors of the moment and I hope we get many, many more books from him over the coming years. The Family Experiment is just that, speculative fiction that sometimes leaves us feeling creeped out because it’s so close to home. His books about DNA matches, self drive cars, Marriage Agreements, and of course the inevitable downfall of Great Britain are all bordering on fact rather than fiction these days. As a fan of Black Mirror and such I find John’s books absolutely enthralling and I barely sleep until I’ve finished reading. I love the way that the books are connected and it makes you feel comfortable with the characters and the world because it’s one you’ve already visited. This book explores the subject of AI, of Metaverse babies and the question that is often asked - Do they have souls? It’s a page turner and with a big unique set of characters you find yourself rooting for them or hoping for their failure. There is suspense to keep you on the edge of your seat, a bit of heartache to make you feel for them, as well as some gore to keep you grossed out. What more could you want? This was definitely one of my favourites I’ve read and I can’t wait to read more soon.

Another brilliant near-future thriller from John Marrs. Great characters and incredible world-building. Has prompted lots of philosophical discussions in my household - while at the same time being a great read. Definitely does not disappoint!

Oh my GOD this book was incredible. I am just obsessed by anything John Marrs writes I think now. I have found a new favourite author. I was so hooked on this and finished this so quickly, so a big thank you to Net Galley for my copy of this. 
 
The book introduces the reader to a selection of contestants (couples and one single parent) who are competing to win a 9-month competition called The Family Experiment, in which they have to raise a virtual child from birth to a young adult in this timeframe accessed in the Metaverse via a VR headset. Not only is this a competition, it's also live streamed as a reality TV show for the world to watch! If they win, they can either choose to keep their virtual child or win some money to conceive their own child in real life. 
 
The plot behind this book is honestly incredible yet slightly terrifying when you think about the concept, and as I was reading it I was just thinking this is such a clever book and I never want it to be over! I felt so invested in some of the couples' storylines, and considering there are a lot of characters to remember, each one is developed perfectly and as the reader you really get to know them all equally.  
 
If you want something with dystopian feels that is super twisty and fast-paced, then this is the book for you. It made me think oh my god this is literally what the future could look like! It gave me Black Mirror, Big Brother and Hunger Games vibes and was a very thought-provoking read. I think speculative fiction is a new genre for me, that I am definitely going to read more of!

Wow. I really don’t know what to say in this review. This book was something else.

The concept of the story was different, strange and left me feeling uncomfortable yet I don’t doubt that this is a possibility in the future with the way AI is going and technology. We are in for some big changes.

The characters (there were a lot) but it wasn’t off putting. They each had a story and an ulterior motive - each hiding something sinister.

Each of the characters have their own voices throughout and believe me, we heard them loud and clear. I had myself rooting for couples that I then couldn’t believe I fell for their act. My head was absolutely fried with the twists, turns and more. It was a roller coaster of a ride.

I did find it disturbing to think that this premise could be in our future, a subscription free and you can get a virtual child…? It’s not out of the realms of possibility for modern day humanity. AI will take over eventually.

But, I digress, the story was immaculate, twisted, dark and so very sinister. It was unputdownable from start to finish and that twist at the end, terrifying. You’ve some mind, John Marrs! Well done.

Thank you to Netgalley, Marrs and Pan Macmillan for allowing me this ARC.

Another great book by John Marrs whom is fast becoming my go to author each time a new book comes out.
Written in the style of each chapter following the various ‘families’ competing in the family experiment it was easy to follow.
There is some reference to The One and The Marriage Act in the book but there is no need to have read these before but for me it enhanced the book that I had read those books.
This book is easily a read in one sitting book if time allows.
Can’t wait for the next book written by John Marrs.

I would like to start me review by saying that futuristic and sci fi are not my usual gendre ,or i should say weren't.

i loved this book, and was fortunate to have received it as an ARC. for which I am giving my unbiased review.

This is a book set in the future and is about the lives of approximately ten people. You get to follow their lives set in the future and then learn their back stories. This really is fast paced and twistey and turney as prromised all the characters seemed very real, like people you know. I thought it was well written and easy to read. I will most definitely recommend it.

I really didn't enjoy this overall. The concept drew me to the book, but I thought the characterisation was poor and the tying up of the story at the end was too neat and unbelievable.

John Marrs is one of my go-to authors and having just inhaled the audiobook of The Stranger in Her House, I was keen to dive into The Family Experiment.
This is the latest in Marrs’ speculative thrillers, set in a future not so very far away. I have read all of them bar The Passengers and was glad I had, as I was already familiar with the futuristic world he has so masterfully created.
The Family Experiment takes reality TV shows to a whole new level, with couples competing to raise a virtual child to the age of eighteen, their every decision, every action, pored over by millions of viewers.
As with Marrs’ other speculative novels, the chapters jump from couple to couple so it takes a while to get to know everyone’s personalities and, more importantly, their motivations.
Because, as you would expect, not everything is as it seems, and everyone has their own agendas for wanting to win.
But once you’ve got to grips with the characters you’re taken on a thrilling, fast-paced ride that is scarily close to our AI-obsessed world. In fact, in the acknowledgements, Marrs says his inspiration for the book came from a newspaper article suggesting that in a few years’ time it’ll be commonplace for people to start families in the Metaverse.
Until then, you can live a meta life vicariously in this excellent, page-turner of a novel.
Oh, and I loved the webuyanyavatar advert. Inspired! (IYKYK).