Artificial Selection

By Marianne Pickles

Deal Ends: Mon 17th August

HIGH TECH, HIGH WATER, AND THE HEAD OF AWKWARD QUESTIONSA cozy sci-fi mystery from the winner of the Green Stories Prize!The year is 2101, and half of England is underwater.But society is recovering from the Melt, thanks to ArkTech, whose eco-friendly headquarters sit serenely above the newly formed Fenland Sea.As ArkTech's Head of Awkward Questions, Charlotte Vance is dedicated to helping Ben, the company's quirky AI. Ben has a fondness for dad jokes, a knack for spotting anomalies, and happens to be Charlotte’s best friend.Naturally, when Ben notices a geneticist vandalising pre-Melt books and a librarian looking the other way, he sends Charlotte to investigate.What starts as a curious case of stolen blank pages and clandestine book clubs soon leaves Charlotte caught between the black-market operation she thought she’d left behind and the company she's always trusted.Set in a near future that is neither utopia nor wasteland, Artificial Selection is ideal for readers who enjoy character-driven whydunnits, or charming sci-fi with humour and heart – perfect for fans of Terry Pratchett, Martha Wells, and Becky Chambers.“Honestly, I devoured it in one go, in just a single day – it was that good. It left me feeling hopeful, which is rare these days, isn’t it?” – Reader review