if you love Black Mirror this book is for you!!

The Family Experiment is another great, speculative fiction from John Marrs. Focused around a Metaverse reality tv show, The Family Experiment tells the story of a handful of couples that would do almost anything to start a family—including parenting a Metaverse Child.

Overall this book hits the nail on the ‘what would you do for your family??’ head and is another solid addition into the ever growing collection from John Marrs. As with some of his other novels, I struggled with the large cast of characters but by the end the novel’s focus is shifted to only a few of them. Like I said if you enjoy Black Mirror and speculative fiction, pick this book up. You will enjoy it!!

How would you like to have a virtual child? I loved the premise of this book and it was carried out expertly. It made me ponder about what could happen in the future, with virtual reality. There was so much action and the twists were delicious and shocking. This is speculative fiction at its finest. Thank you to NetGalley and Hanover Square Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book is a captivating blend of psychological thriller and family drama. Mars skillfully develops complex characters and navigates their evolving relationships under extreme stress, providing keen insights into human psychology.

Thematically, the book explores trust, control, and ethical boundaries, prompting readers to reflect on societal norms and personal values. While some plot twists are predictable, the story remains emotionally engaging and intellectually stimulating.

Overall, The Family Experiment is a thought-provoking and thrilling read, offering a balanced mix of suspense and emotional depth that will appeal to fans of both genres. Thank you John Marrs, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

thank you Netgalley for this ARC!! John Marrs does it yet again!!! this book is kinda similar to the one and the marriage act, which i also lovvvvveeedddd. such a cool concept.

multiple couples are followed who have a "meta baby" in a meta universe. these couples are able to put on suits and actually FEEL their metababy--engage, interact, cuddle, etc. The baby ages very quickly from birth to age 18 within a few months.
This whole experiment is filmed and the world watches the stories unfold. the viewers can "love" or "hate" certain things they witness by sending red or black hearts. viewers can also win lotteries and enter the meta universe at anytime, unbeknownst to the couples. at the end of the family experiment, the couples have to make the decision to pursue a baby in the real world or keep their metababy. i love these wild sci fi type stories that make your brain go crazy. with AI in our future, i wonder if this could really happen!?!?!!!!!

Another page turner from John Marrs!!! This book has short chapters rotating between the families participating in the virtual reality experiment. Every chapter ends with a cliff hanger but keeps you waiting as the next chapter starts with a different family. With tie ins from the past and present mixed in with viewer comments and game show host vibes this book is impossible to put down. If that doesn’t sound enticing enough, in true John Marrs style there are plenty of twists and surprises to keep you on your toes!

Pub Date USA: July 9, 2024

Thank you Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing an ARC of The Family Experiment by John Marrs for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

A number of families are struggling to start and afford families, a solution that arises is to create a virtual child in the MetaVerse. Connecting though a VR headset and a hepatic suit. To get the word out about this new product a reality TV show called The Family Experiment has also launched. 10 couples will compete to raise a child in the MetaVerse while the whole world can tune in 24/7 voting which families to be eliminated- eliminating their virtual child and their chance to create a family in the real world (via IVF or surrogacy).

Wow what a concept and I love Marrs‘s take on it! He did such a great job telling the story, putting the reader in this world, but also adding real issues from today and adapting to the world he created! I also loved that he continued the world he built from The One and The Marriage Act while keeping the books just separate enough. I would highly recommend this book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin and John Marrs for the advanced copy of The Family Experiment. This was my first time reading speculative fiction, and now I'm wondering what took me so long. This book is fan-freakin'-tastic! I can't wait to start this series from the beginning. Overall rating: 4.5 ⭐️

Book Title: The Family Experiment
Author: John Marr
Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing- Hanover Square Press
Genre: Sci Fi Fantasy, Thriller
Pub Date: July 9, 2024
My Rating: 3 Stars
Pages: 400

This story is set in the same universe as “The One”, “The Marriage Act”, and “The Passengers”.

For those DESPERATE to experience parenthood, there is an alternative- an interactive REALITY TV show which will stream 24/7 as it pits five couples and one single father against each other, as they raise a “Virtual Child “ programmed by AI.

Over the next nine months eleven childless British contestants will compete to raise the world’s first interactive children in the Metaverse.
Their baby will grow at an accelerated rate.
 They will receive a newborn baby
 When the baby reaches two months will be a child much older
 By the ninth month a fully grown adult.

Parents will wear virtual reality headsets and their experience can be viewed twenty-four hours a day.
Viewers will vote for a couple to face a Monthly Challenge.

Although I am not a fan of reality shows, I love this author. Additionally I did read “The Marriage” but this story one was a struggle and I tried and tried again. Have to admit did some skipping but hung in until the end.

I have read several John Marrs’ novels. My very favorite was " What Lies Between" a dark twisted psychological thriller ~ which is my kind of a read!
I do like John Marrs and am hopeful this is the last in this series and if it isn't I do hope he will also go back to writing about the psychos who roam our current world!

I was looking forward to reading the Author’s Notes and Acknowledgement as I knew both would be interesting as well as clarifying.
Marrs tells us his inspiration came from a newspaper article suggesting that a few years from now, it will be commonplace for people to start a family in the Metaverse.

Keeping with the story in his ‘Author Note there is a photo of him.
Which he stars off - You’ll know this already but it seems fitting to ask AI to come up with an image that can be used rather than the usual (admittedly old profile). The AI image is based on a selfie.

Want to thank NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing –Hanover Square Press for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 9, 2024.

John marrs is a master at writing speculative thrillers! This one is set in the same world as the one and the passengers. The storyline is so fascinating and I couldn’t stop reading. The ending was crazy! And no stone is left unturned, no questions left at the end. I hope to see more books set in this world!

Wow. This book blew my mind. This is a book that will be seen as classic like 451°, 1984 and The Brave New World. Incredibly relevant to our time with gender discussion, AI, social media and ethics. Along with this book being futuristic and apocalyptic it is a thriller mystery as well. There are no loose ends and you won’t be able to put this book down. Marrs mind is amazing.

You follow contestants through a game show they signed up for to care for meta-children and whoever wins in popularity wins keeping their meta-child “alive” or money to have their own bio-child. The world is corrupt and cost of living is incredibly high. During the books secrets are exposed, meta-kids killed, contestants murdered and massive surprises revealed. It’s a ride you’ll enjoy!

John Marrs never ceases to amaze me! This book is set in the same universe as The One, The Passengers and The Marriage Act.
Couples who have been wanting to have a child of their own have the opportunity to be on a 24/7 livestream show to raise a metababy in the metaverse. They raise them from newborn to 18 years old over a very fast-paced 9 months. Viewers then cast their votes of popularity and the winners get the ultimate prize of keeping their metachild or taking the money to have a real world child of their own. The creativity and imagination that is put into this book of futuristic AI situations is outstanding.
There are many twists throughout that keep you intrigued and wanting more. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a twisty sci-fi.
Thank you to NetGalley and John Marrs for allowing me the opportunity to read a copy prior to publication! I very much enjoyed this book.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, for letting me read this one before it’s US release! This is the latest speculative thriller in John Marrs’ not so distant future universe. Contestants are competing on a reality show in real time to raise a virtual child from birth to age 18 in a 9 month long condensed timeframe (think Tamagotchi on a grander scale). The stakes: a chance to keep their virtual child or for the chance of a real baby. But if you’re eliminated, your AI child disintegrates before your eyes. As the reality show progresses, dark secrets, troubling pasts, and terrible crimes are revealed. Who will win and at what cost?
I’m a huge John Marrs fan, and I’m always anticipating his next great novel. I found this one to be exciting from start to finish. Marrs is a master of character development and plot twists, and his newest book is no exception. I also love how Marrs really makes you think deeply about how our future world might look—will virtual children be a reality someday? Loved this book, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good thriller.

John Marrs has done it again! I’m obsessed with the bingeability of his books. Every chapter ends on a cliff making it unputdownable and he has a magical way of bringing together every detail in the end.

When I heard this book was about a reality show where people raise virtual kids, I was not expecting the amount of jaw dropping moments I encountered.

Being a mom myself, some things that happened were a little hard to read. But overall I very much enjoyed my time reading this and would recommend it to thriller lovers interested in future tech and virtual reality!

There’s a new reality show which has the world glued to their TV. Several families have been chosen to participate in a MetaVerse with AI kids. Parents don their VR headsets and wear their haptic suits to enter a virtual world with their virtual children.

In a short period of time, the virtual babies go thru the stages from newborn to teen…and the world watches how the parents do. Audiences can interact and vote for which family is faced with hardships and trials…and they judge how well the parents are parenting.

In the end, only one couple can win. And they either continue to keep their virtual child…or they can get funding to start their own real life family. The stakes are high.

I enjoyed this one and I love how John Marrs can take such a futuristic idea and make you realize it isn’t that far off…. Crazy!

The last time I read a John Marrs book, I said it was the last time. I actually said it the time before that too. But here I am anyway! The good news is - THIS is what he does best. Near-future speculative sci-fi that gives me all the realistic creeps. “No thank you” to these futures he creates, but also, I think we’re already on this train.

This story happens in the same world as The Passengers, The One and The Marriage Act, but it’s not totally necessary to have read those in order to enjoy this one. A reality show has been created that gives 11 people the chance to raise a child in the Metaverse to compete to win prize money to start a real family, or to keep their AI child in their virtual world. Very interesting, very fleshed-out, very entertaining.

The one thing I have a problem with in a John Marrs thriller/mystery is his tendency to cross the line from a great story into taking it too far, typically by involving children in a deadly/violent/shocking way. The good news, I suppose, is that most of the children in this story are AI…so…honestly that was worth an entire star to me.

What a fun and twisted trip this story took us on...and I was here for it!
AI has let us be virtual parents in a very realistic way and, of course, made a show of it people could stream, comment, choose parenting challenges (such as a colicky baby), and vote for the best parents!
Some of these families take surprising and dark turns! My jaw dropped several times...and my heart broke a couple times, too!
I was very invested in the well thought out futuristic plot and the amazingly developed characters (love them or hate them!)
Highly recommend!

The king of thrillers did it again.. omg this story had me thinking thru the entire story. I finished it in two days, however it wasn’t my favorite book of his but it I would definitely recommend it was a really good story.

Yet another incredible story by #JohnMarrs. The premise is people who can't be parents in reality are competing as parents in a virtual reality, the winners will either get prize money or to keep their virtual child... the concept and world are well developed. I enjoy the multiple view points and love the twisted ending!

Side note: Formatting was weird on Kindle and at times it made it hard to read.

Besides that I really enjoyed reading this and I don’t say that lightly. I found this to be original and fascinating but also thought provoking. The writing was well done and I loved all the mini twists along the way.

After finishing this, all I could think was that AI is a scary and slippery slope. Does AI have the capability to have a “soul”? Are MetaChildren just as real as human children? As you follow each family’s progress throughout the game, you become attached to their fictitious children and questioning how real these avatars are.

I think the author did a nice job of tying up loose ends and setting the Metaverse world up for readers. My one complaint is that I felt like there was too much going on at times with all the different families involved. It makes me wonder how much of it is necessary.

All in all, it was a well done sci-fi think piece! Definitely recommend.

Where do I begin with this book! I love books with multiple POVs and mixed media content, so this one was definitely the one for me. "The Family Experiment" by John Marrs follows five families through their journey in a metaverse parental gameshow-like simulation for a winner-takes-all prize of parenthood. Each chapter is deliciously packed with action and ends on a mini cliffhanger that keeps you turning pages to find out what happens next.

I loved how each character's backstory came to life, allowing you to understand how they became who they are in the present time. The narratives of each family are interwoven with elements like viewer chat room transcripts, news cycle updates, and audience commentary, enhancing the immersive experience and adding layers of realism to the futuristic setting. This book twists and turns, leaving you guessing until the very end.

Marrs masterfully balances suspense and emotional depth, making each character's journey compelling and relatable despite the high-stakes environment. This was my first John Marrs book, but it left me wanting to go back and read all of his others, so they are officially added to my TBR list. You truly won’t want to miss this one; it's a thrilling exploration of parenthood, technology, and human resilience.