Immaculate Conception - by Ling Ling Huang (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Enka meets Mathilde in art school. Mathilde is a dizzyingly talented yet tortured artist whose star is on the rise--and Enka, struggling to make art that feels original, is immediately drawn to her. The two strike up a close friendship that soon turns codependent. But when Mathilde's fame reaches new heights, Enka becomes desperate to keep her best friend close--no matter the cost. [She] quickly falls in love with and marries a billionaire whose family's company is funding a cutting-edge technology purported to enhance empathy, and which could allow someone else to inhabit Mathilde's mind and absorb the trauma from her brain. Soon, the boundaries between Mathilde and Enka begin to blur even further, setting in motion a haunting series of events that forever [changes] their lives"--

Book Synopsis

What if you could enter the mind of the person you love the most?

Enka meets Mathilde in art school and is instantly drawn to her. Mathilde makes art that feels truly original, and Enka--trying hard to prove herself in this fiercely competitive world--pours everything into their friendship. But when Mathilde's fame and success cause her to begin drifting away, Enka becomes desperate to keep her close.

Enter SCAFFOLD. Purported to enhance empathy, this cutting-edge technology could allow Enka to inhabit Mathilde's mind and access her memories, artistic inspirations, and deep-seated trauma. Undergoing this procedure would link Enka and Mathilde forever. But at what cost?

Blisteringly smart, thought-provoking, and shocking, Immaculate Conception offers us a portrait of close friendship--achingly tender and twisted--that captures the tenuous line between love and possession that will haunt you long after you turn the final page.

Review Quotes

Good Housekeeping Book Club pick for May 2025

Named a Most Anticipated Title by Harper's Bazaar, Bustle, Reader's Digest, Book Riot, The Nerd Daily, Gold House, Read or Dead and Bookish

"Through these rich characters, Ling Ling Huang raises important questions about not only the boundaries between art and tech but also the blurred lines between originality, autonomy, and possession."
--Harper's Bazaar, "Best Books of Spring"

"This dizzying speculative novel tackles AI, art and toxic female friendship in a whirl of ambition and jealousy."
--Good Housekeeping

"A good friend is hard to find, but how close is too close? Ling Ling Huang's Immaculate Conception details the unsettling unraveling of a codependent friendship between two artists... This explosive new book release explores themes of jealousy, greed, classism and toxic female friendships in a modern dystopia."
--Reader's Digest, "Most-Anticipated New Book Releases of 2025"

"Any artists freaked out by generative AI, virtual reality, and the general future of creativity in a technocracy will have fun inside Ling Ling Huang's near-future version of the competitive art world... she grounds her imaginative narrative in the raw feeling of envying a friend who's more successful and wanting to do crazy things to absorb whatever special touch they have. As the dedication reads, this book is 'for the jealous.'"
--Bustle, "The Best New Books of Spring 2025"

"Brilliant and unsettling . . . Driven by Huang's compelling, flowing prose, the novel is an examination of a friendship that turns toxic in the most terrifying way. Huang is a master of mixing the speculative with the contemporary, harnessing near-future possibilities to show us just how far humanity will go to achieve the impossible while ignoring very real consequences."
--Booklist (starred review)

"A frightening, enlightening powerhouse of a book."
--BookPage (starred review)

"A dazzlingly ambitious feat of storytelling . . . Huang's style is as captivating and distinctive as the story itself, with incisive prose that is alternately evocative, funny, and caustic . . . Immaculate Conception is a virtuosic work beaming the spectrum of human emotions through a prism of indifferent technology."
--Shelf Awareness

"Huang writes evocatively of Enka's waxing and waning jealousy of Mathilde, which comes at the expense of developing her own artistic voice. This bracing novel gives readers plenty to chew on."
--Publishers Weekly

"Immaculate Conception is one of those twisty, nail-biting books you fall into and don't emerge from until you're done. I loved it."
--Kelly Link, author of The Book of Love

"In Huang's Immaculate Conception, the desire to be close to the flame of genius leads to catastrophic obsession. Huang, the real-life genius holding the palette, deftly weaves competition, longing, fantastical technology, and gobsmacking imagery into an unforgettable tale. I found this portrait of artist friends utterly gripping: an immersive, transformative read, just the way true art should be."
--Sierra Greer, author of Annie Bot

"In Ling Ling Huang's Immaculate Conception, all-too-plausible exploitative, extractive technologies force new questions about who is allowed to make great art and who gets denied the same shot--and about what price some might pay to reclaim what they've been denied. A gorgeous and frequently shocking novel, whose dark, envy-driven obsessions will quickly become your own."
--Matt Bell, author of Appleseed

"Huang's brilliant, imaginative, and ambitious novel about an obsessive friendship between two artists gripped me from beginning to end. Immaculate Conception is dark but, at the same time, filled with tenderness. I loved every moment of it."
--Monika Kim, author of The Eyes Are the Best Part

About the Author

Ling Ling Huang is a writer and violinist. She plays with several ensembles, including the Oregon Symphony, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, and the Experiential Orchestra, with whom she won a Grammy Award in 2021. Her debut novel, Natural Beauty, was a Good Morning America Buzz Pick, a New York Times Editors' Choice, and winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Fiction.