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ashleytreads 's review for:

The Family Experiment by John Marrs
5.0
challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

“The grass wasn’t greener on the other side… It was greener on the hills and lush vineyards that surrounded him every single day…” 

I absolutely loved this book, omg. 

Synopsis: Metaverse family. Can’t have kids? Don’t have the family you want? Join the metaverse, have a baby, watch it grow, live the family life you’ve always wanted within the confines of VR. 

Review: I overall really enjoy John Marrs novels. I have always felt like his dystopian novels were a little long & this one was perfect. It was an 11 hour audio book and was easy to BLOW through. Full speed ahead, no brakes. 

This concept is a dark one. AI is dangerous and sucking people in for families that they can’t have in real life seems like an easy way to get people into a video game who can never get out. Homelessness due to an inability to work due to a video game addiction (& the issue of the video game addiction itself) are two things that spring to my mind when I think about living in a VR world. I know it’s all created to help people cope and live the life they want, but I’m not here for it. Overall, I think it’s more harmful than good. 

Read this if you enjoy:
🏃‍♀️ Fast-paced thrillers 
😱 Shocking scenes 
🕵️‍♂️ Mysteries you don’t even know exist until they’re unraveled 
😳 Complex characters with developed back stories 

Audiobook length: 11 hours 
Narrator: Full Cast (like 9 narrators)

I also was provided the digital ARC of this one - I definitely read along as I listened as fast as I could. Thank you to NetGalley, John Marrs, & Hanover Square Press!