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 riseand 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 Mathildes fame reaches new heights, Enka becomes desperate to keep her best friend closeno matter the cost. Enka quickly falls in love with and marries a billionaire whose familys company is funding an unconventional technology purported to heighten empathy, which could allow someone else to inhabit Mathildes 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 friendshipachingly tender and twistedthat captures the tenuous line between love and possession that will haunt you long after you turn the final page.
