wow huang has done it again! i thoroughly enjoyed her debut natural beauty and was so excited to read this once i read the premise. it was very much a dystopian, sci fi, artistic (maybe a little more moral) yellowface by r.f. kuang + a mild y/n by esther yi.

this book tells explored the relationship/friendship between two artists, enka and mathilde (told from mathilde’s pov). i learned so much about the visual arts world, which has always fascinated me since i am very familiar with the music world as a former professional musician myself. it was very interesting for this novel to be about art since huang herself is also a professional musician- you could tell she did a lot of research in learning about the art. i especially loved the art installations and performance art that huang created - so creative!

from the beginning, i was immediately drawn in to the discussion of class/social status through the erection of buffers (being fringe class vs. enclave) and had me thinking about gentrification, the gatekeeping of art for the privileged (needing specialized training to go to art school - very similar to music) - it’s ironic that the study of art (and the resulting expression of it) is not democratic because of cooperations that capitalize on certain artists’ work (as seen with mathilde). there were many parallels to the music world and i felt similarly out of place like enka as i didn’t grow up in a family of musicians/artists or begin my studies when i was a toddler like many of my peers. enka's immediate reaction to art is also how i feel abt music - when huang described seeing her first oil painting (her then professor’s artwork) and crying when she got home was something i very much relate to after hearing a beautiful performer or hear my favorite piece.

i found enka and mathilde’s toxic friendship very interesting and well-written and thought huang did a superb job of detailing admiration and jealousy among artistic peers. their relationship is very much shaped by their respective successes and failures with manipulation that both brings them together and rips them apart simultaneously. it was very clear that huang has a deep understanding of this complex relationship having been in the music world herself. artistic competition and comparison are not often discussed and i am so glad that huang did not shy away from the ugliness of it.

lastly, i found the commentary on technology/AI in art absolutely fascinating and a discussion throughout the book on what truly makes an artist/what IS original art? i don’t want to spoil too much but the ideas that huang conjured for what roles technology could partake in enhancing/or even being art are things i will be pondering over for a long time. complex questions about whether something typically seen as destructive like trauma, can actually help create art and spur creativity rather than stifle it & if trauma is inexplicably part of an individual are discussed. other very interesting, thought-provoking, and potentially at times uncomfortable topics include digital identity, art ownership, bodily autonomy, inspiration vs ownership, technological ethics, etc

(side note: if you read yellowface by r.f.kuang, im curious to know if you found enka just as insufferable as june! i hate to admit it but found that i could actually relate to her in some ways but also found so many traits and decisions completely irredeemable).

thank you so much to netgalley and to the publisher for this arc! i am SO excited for the rest of the world to read another great work of art by ling ling huang!!

TW: this was a dark read - be aware of self-harm, death, depression, mental illness, mention of sexual assault

Absolutely loved this book! Had high expectations because I enjoyed Natural Beauty and this did not let down at all. Ling Ling Huang’s writing is very insightful and manages make the reader think and feel horrified at the same time. This book really made me self reflect on myself and the thoughts I have had in the past when it came to comparing myself to others. Ling Ling Huang is a one of a kind writer, and I can’t wait to see what else she’ll release in the future !

I have to be honest: I didn't really enjoy my time reading this one. The pacing is all over the place, with the first half feeling so incredibly slow and drawn out and the second one paced much more quickly. In the second half, I felt like I couldn't ever fully grasp what was happening because so much time was passing.

And that pacing greatly impacted the depth of the main character, Mathilde, and the other cast of characters. Even though we get so much time between Enka and Mathilde in the first half, I never really understood what drew them together or why they were such good friends -- and I especially did not understand that once we hit the second half. I can see how this might be a purposeful move, deliberately keeping the reader at a distance between this friendship. But, without understanding who our MC is, who Mathilde is, hell who Logan is, the impact of the ending doesn't hit quite as hard.

But Huang does have some interesting points made about art and technology and science. Some of it isn't as fully developed as I may have liked it, but the discussion around art and creativity and the intersection with technology, I found particularly interesting and impactful as we head into a more AI driven world.

The novel is well written (if a bit cold) and has things to say that I think are important given our current cultural environment, but I didn't personally enjoy being on this ride. I think some readers will find this impactful, and I can't wait to see what the conversation looks like when this releases.

Immaculate Conception is creative, incisive, and at times deeply uncomfortable to experience. In a strange dystopia(this isn’t the point) Enka finds herself an outsider to the world of art. She manages to follow her passion and earn a scholarship against her parents wishes, and at school she meets Mathilde, an extremely brilliant creator. Enka can’t help but compare her work to Mathilde’s as the two become such close friends as to be codependent. Being in Enka’s POV as she watches Mathilde reach ever higher creative fulfillment is difficult at times; it’s a total immersion in the self loathing of inadequacy. I read this book in one day. Even though I wanted more from it at times and didn’t always appreciate certain elements, I couldn’t put it down. Huang has made a number of impressions on me with this book and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.

To be honest, I am not entirely sure what I just read! While I did inhale the story it was not at all what I was expecting. The synopsis talks about two artists - Mathilde and Enka. I guess I didn't quite understand the sci-fi aspect where one woman would inhabit the other's brain - that's where the story kind of lost me, This book has amazing reviews - perhaps I am just not the right audience.

Two artists meet each other through an art school. Our main character is particularly envious of what she perceives as her best friends superior art skills.

I found the first third of the book The most enjoyable. Getting to know the two of them and even exploring the types of art that Matilda conceived of given technological setup of their existing world separating the haves and the have nots was interesting. The middle part though seems like it was out of character for our main character. The lengths that you would go to, The ways in which she wpuld sidestep All that is important to her seemed a bit too far-fetched Even for someone who is consumed by envy.

In comparison to natural beauty I don't think that this one achieved the same level of interest or astonishment. There are a lot of twist and turns but for the most part I think they are predictable.

What I found to be most interesting though was the ending and the story that would come after that is something that I would be interested to pick back up on. Skip the part that we spent the most time on.

wow....this book took me so many places I did not expect. A unique story and concept that brings some sci-fi to what I thought was just a literary fiction book.

You have the tortured artist, obsessive and unhealthy friendships, unlikeable main character that unravels a bit, clones, artificial intelligence. I think it's such a powerful story to read in the time we are at in our own current lives.

I didn't want to put the book down because I wanted to know where it was going and what was going to happen next.

I feel emotionally broken after finishing this.

In this current world where comparison and jealousy enter our minds everyday, the author explores what can happen when we take it too far. I’m a wreck! Loved it.

Ling Ling Huang is a genius. It is so clear that she has a deep understanding of the dark underbelly that connects the arts and tech worlds.

This book is about why anyone makes art, what makes art worthwhile, and what art can really be capable of (given who's funding it....)

It is incredibly prescient in its takes on artificial intelligence, social division, and the validity of catharsis as an artistic goal.

Now more than ever, this is an essential meditation on whether creating content for the sake of content compromises what really makes us human and will leave us unfulfilled.

After Natural Beauty, I knew Huang would be an instant-buy author for me and this book cemented it. Many thanks to Dutton / Penguin Group for the eARC.

3.5 stars.

I was very interested in reading Immaculate Conception because I enjoyed how smart Natural Beauty was. This novel stayed true in that concept - technology that involved the merging of two brains, human clones, agriculture tech.. you name it. There was also this existential crisis that seemed stereotypical of artists and such a complex female friendship that bordered on the side of obsession.

Huang took alot of my reading interests and merged them all into one book. I should be raving mad about it. But I'm not because of the pacing and the concepts that didn't quite feel clear enough. I will say that the second half of the book made up for the first half, and if you're even the slightest bit interested to see how things play out for primarily Enka (our FMC), it's worth finishing.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC! The author is clearly a strong writer but I ultimately DNF’d this book. I picked this up because I love competitive characters and sci-fi settings, however I was expecting a stronger plot to really hook me. I think other readers would love this pick if they’re looking for an immersive and atmospheric read, and are prepared to wait a while for the plot to unfold.

3.5 ⭐

I LOVED Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang so I was ecstatic to get my hands on Immaculate Conception. There are a lot of similarities between the two novels so if you liked one I think you're likely to enjoy the other. However, Immaculate Conception didn't hit quite as hard for me as Natural Beauty did.

Immaculate Conception is about Enka and Mathilde. Both women are students at a competitive art school, but Enka is there on scholarship. Enka is deeply insecure in her art and identity and looks up to Mathilde as an insanely talented artist that creates unique pieces Enka could never conjure up. Their friendship quickly turns very codependent.

This beginning portion of the story I really enjoyed. Enka and Mathilde are both interesting characters and I love a codependent/obsession storyline.

Enka eventually marries a billionaire whose family is involved in the medical tech space and gets wrapped up in a project meant to heighten empathy. This is where things started to go downhill for me. I theoretically love the concept of weaving together art and science, but there were too many different sci-fi elements that it just snowballed out of control for me.

The last 10-15% had me on the edge of my seat though!

*Thank you to Netgalley and Dutton for the free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review*

AHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHH
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

LING LING HUANG WHY DO YOU CONTINUE TO DESTROY ME


Many thanks for the publishers at Penguin Group Dutton for the eARC.

What starts as an interesting rumination about an outsider kid getting deeper and deeper into the wealthy world of art becomes a speculative fiction nightmare that I’m beginning to associate as a signature of Ling Ling Huang’s brand of incisive writing.

A book that merits multiple re-reads, Immaculate Conception is the story of two friends told from the perspective of outsider Enka. It is also a book deeply interested in the nature of trauma, its role in artists’ minds as they create great works, and what happens when humanity crafts the tools to ostensibly remedy trauma and a lack of empathy.

The story does take a little while to establish itself. But once it does, wow it takes off.

If you want a book with messy relationships between women; fascinating questions about bio ethics, mass production, and who gets to tell what stories; and the affirmation that artists have so much more to offer than just their trauma, run - don’t walk - to this book.

4.25 ✰

“when mathilde experienced great success, no one was prouder of her than you. but i always sensed that it cost you something to be that way. you had a way of smiling that looked like an open wound on your face.”

taking a look at the dystopian world huang has created, through the eyes of an artist, made for a really, really fascinating read. as we travel with enka from fringe life, to enclave, to being in one of the most powerful families, you’d think she’d be happy with the life she’s created for herself. and yet, through it all, she’s just reminded of how she didn’t achieve it on her own.

in parallel to that journey, we see enka and mathilde’s friendship develop and evolve over time. as the years grew, so did enka’s jealousy over mathilde’s talent. without revealing too much, it was heartbreaking to watch enka make the choices she did in relation to mathilde. it was even more devastating when we were finally able to see their relationship from mathilde’s pov.

thank you to ling ling huang, dutton and netgalley for this arc 🖤

This was a readable narrative with interesting thematic exploration, but I felt it was bogged down by uneven pacing and muddied technology.

The world building began grounded in contemporary life, but the technology and futurism that developed were incomplete, like a half finished sketch. There’s clones, brain merging, digital twins, immaculate conception, genome editing. Throw a dart at a speculative fiction dartboard, and Immaculate Conception will incorporate that trope into the narrative.

For a tale that involves art and artists, and stretches decades into humanity’s future, there is a noticeable absence of gender and sexual expression within the pages of Immaculate Conception.

Overall, I think many readers will enjoy Immaculate Conception, it simply fell a little flat for me.

Immaculate Conception

Ling Ling Huang’s sophomore novel was underwhelming as someone who absolutely loved Natural Beauty. Immaculate Conception felt like two different stories mashed together and while one was interesting, the other wasn’t quite as intriguing. I don’t necessarily blame her for the fact that I found it difficult to fully dive into this book because it was far too in the depths of science fiction rather than what I had hoped it would be.
However, I did enjoy how it ended. It was very emotional and impactful. It shows the importance and value of friendship and relationships; how our decisions can forever change the course of the lives around us. The last chapter is left open-ended and hopeful, which I liked.
So, although I favor her first novel more, I do think this was a good book. The ending will leave me reeling for days to come.

Ling Ling Huang has the intelligence and creativity to create some of the most thought provoking nightmare fuel I have ever read. The worlds she creates are so immersive, there’s a palpable tension that I can never really pinpoint. All of the characters in Immaculate Conception are flawed in vastly different ways while simultaneously having a captivation about them. There are many themes explored here without being too in your face. The most impactful for me personally was the glimpse into trauma and how trauma is often used as fuel for other aspects of life, such as creativity and (a potentially toxic level of) ambition. Full transparency, I was at about 66% in when I decided to start completely over. I felt like I was missing A LOT and going back really helped me absorb more of the intricacies.

Immaculate Conception tackles heady subjects like authorship, artistic inclinations, individuation and friendship in a near future world where tech is even more closely connected with humanity. I was intrigued by Enka as a protagonist, and all the ways I ended up sometimes rooting for her as sh allowed jealousy to overtake her goodness.

Fans of Black Mirror-esque stories about art, technology and complex relationships will devour this one!

3.5 ⭐️. I'm in such wonder of the world's that Huang creates. this was such an interesting story of empathy, friendship, competition and working through trauma.

thank you to Dutton & Penguin Group & NetGalley for an advance reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

I am not sure why but this book did not work for me. However, as I always say when I don't like a book, just because I did not like the book, it doesn't mean that someone else won't like it. It also doesn't necessarily mean that I may not like another book by the same author. Or even that I may not like the book if I try it again in the future...