An AI, an investigator, and a geneticist walk into a library…
It’s the year 2101, and half of England is underwater, but the horrors of the Melt are becoming a distant memory thanks to ArkTech, the company that saved the world.
The ArkTech Territory is the only home Charlotte Vance has ever known, so when Ben, the company’s curious AI, starts asking awkward questions about human behaviour, she’s only too happy to help.
But as she investigates the mystery of why a geneticist is stealing pages from library books, Charlotte is forced to confront unsettling truths about her past, and about the company she’s always trusted.
The deeper she digs, the more she realises her discoveries could threaten everything she holds dear. Charlotte must make a choice – and the wrong decision could cost her everything.
A curious AI is no joke…
When ArkTech’s library books start getting vandalised, it’s up to Charlotte Vance to learn what’s really going on.
Join Charlotte in a race against time to solve a case that forces her to confront unsettling truths about her past and the company she’s always trusted.
What readers are saying…
“Funny. Suspenseful. Thought-provoking.”
“Had a feeling of being in a classic mystery with a PI. Although set in the future in an interesting landscape. Sort of feels like there is hope for the future if we can solve some AI and tech challenges.”
“A great sci-fi book with a flawed protagonist that you can really root for. It’s written in a pacy and breezy style that keeps you turning the page. It has a great sense of humour, without being ‘comic’. … It’s about a future where a lot has gone wrong, but where there is optimism about the future … At its heart it’s a story about the relationships between people and how their beliefs and their emotions can shape how they behave to others. It has a cracking mystery at its centre too.”
“A good, fun, easy read that gives you something to think about.”
“I was intrigued from the outset and felt compelled to read on and find out the answers.”
If you want to be the first to know when the paperback, hardback, and audiobook formats are available, join the Picklesverse. You’ll hear from Marianne once a month, on the Ides.
You’ll also get exclusive access to Beware the Ides of April, the prequel to Artificial Selection.
Coming soon…
Time Hack, the sequel to Artificial Selection won first prize in the Green Stories novel competition 2023. A new technology lets people borrow time from the future. It seems like the ultimate productivity hack. But when Charlotte gets caught up in a missing person case, she learns there’s more to the technology than meets the eye. Time Hack is a novel coming in 2025. Join the Picklesverse to stay in the loop.
BOOK THREE: Title to be announced. Ben’s questions don’t get more awkward than this. The third novel in the ArkTech Series is coming soon.