Immaculate Conception
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From the author of Natural Beauty, set in the fiercely competitive art world, a novel about an obsessive friendship upended by a cutting-edge technology purported to enhance empathy and connection
Enka meets Mathilde in art school. Mathilde is a dizzyingly talented yet tortured artist whose star is on the rise—and Enka, struggling to make art that feels original, is immediately drawn to her. The two strike up an intense bond that soon turns codependent. But when Mathilde’s fame reaches new heights, Enka becomes desperate to keep her best friend close—no matter the cost.
Enka quickly falls in love with and marries a billionaire whose family’s company is funding an unconventional technology purported to heighten empathy, which could allow someone else to inhabit Mathilde’s mind and absorb the trauma from her brain. Soon, the boundaries between Mathilde and Enka begin to blur even further, setting in motion a disturbing series of events that forever changes their lives.
Blisteringly smart, thought-provoking, and shocking, Immaculate Conception deftly navigates big questions of art, technology, authorship, and what makes us human. Ling Ling Huang offers us a portrait of close friendship—achingly tender and twisted—that captures the tenuous line between love and possession that will haunt you long after you turn the final page.
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Dystopian horror mystery following Enka who meets a genius artist called Mathilde at art school, striking a friendship with her, but before she can make a career, marries into a family who develops various technologies including one where a brain can be downloaded and uploaded into another carrier.
Soo I liked it though a bit less than the authors first book. The writing style reminds gorgeous and lush with some great descriptions. There was a distance to it because of the narration style and the time compression that didn't make me more emotionally attached to the main character, Enka. She was compelling in that she was fully formed with positive and negative traits, to be honest she felt more like an anti-heroine to me. That being said this was written in first person, so it definitely enhanced the unlikeable/unreliable narrative. But because of that distance, the twists didn't really hit me as they should have especially regarding one of the characters, the reveal felt too quick and too abrupt. I really like the worldbuilding surrounding the technology aspect and the way the art world was portrayed (with that sense of pretentiousness that sometimes is present especially with rich people). The themes developed about technology and art, their interconnections, felt very à propos when you see what is happening in our world today. In terms of mood though, it felt less horror and more weird fiction than I thought it would be. Overall, despite my reservations about this book I'll look forward to read more of Ling Ling ‘s work.
