Half Life

An overachiever enrolls in an experimental clone study to prove that two (of her own) heads are better than one in this fast-paced, near-future adventure that’s Black Mirror meets Becky Albertalli.

There aren’t enough hours in the day for Lucille—perfectionist, overachiever—to do everything she has to do, and there certainly aren’t enough hours to hang out with friends, fall in love, get in trouble—all the teenage things she knows she should want to be doing instead of preparing for a flawless future. So when she sees an ad for Life2: Do more. Be more, she’s intrigued.

The company is looking for beta testers to enroll in an experimental clone program, and in the aftermath of a series of disappointments, Lucille is feeling reckless enough to jump in. At first, it’s perfect: her clone, Lucy, is exactly what she needed to make her life manageable and have time for a social life. But it doesn’t take long for Lucy to become more Lucy and less Lucille, and Lucille is forced to stop looking at Lucy as a reflection and start seeing her as a window—a glimpse at someone else living her own life, but better. Lucy does what she really wants to, not what she thinks she should want to, and Lucille is left wondering how much she was even a part of the perfect life she’d constructed for herself. Lucille wanted Lucy to help her relationships with everyone else, but how can she do that without first rectifying her relationship with herself?

“Like a PG-13 mash-up of Booksmart and Black Mirror, Clark’s sophomore novel delivers both twisty sci-fi suspense and a highly relatable account of the search for self-determination and self-worth.”—Booklist
Contributor Bio(s)
Lillian Clark is also the author of Immoral Code. A graduate of the University of Wyoming, she grew up riding horses, climbing trees, hiking, and going on grand imaginary adventures in the small-town West. She’s worked as a lifeguard, a camp counselor, and a Zamboni driver, but found her eternal love working as a bookseller at an independent bookstore in what was once a brothel in historic downtown Laramie, Wyoming. Now living with her husband, son, and two giant dogs in the Teton Valley of Idaho, she spends her snowy winters and sunny summers reading almost anything and writing books for teens. Learn more about Lillian online at LillianJClark.com and on Twitter at @LillianJClark.

Author Residence: Teton Valley, Idaho
Links
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Key Selling Points
For readers of We Are the Ants, Kids of Appetite, and Leah on the Offbeat.

Perfect for fans of Black Mirror, a creepy but impossible-to-look-away-from tale about the near-future opportunities and dangers of new technology that will appeal to both speculative and realistic readers.

Great for book clubs and classrooms: this book packs big moral questions into a fun package with ample room for discussion.

Banter-filled and hilarious in the Lillian Clarke’s signature style.

A thoughtful and subtle meditationon feminism and the way our society commodifies, uses, and so often, discards women.

Simultaneous publication with the paperback edition of Lillian’s first book, Immoral Code.

Quotes/Reviews
Praise for Immoral Code:

“This well-paced debut follows exceptionally smart, thoughtful, and loyal friends navigating the morally ambiguous areas of life.”—Kirkus

“A smart and fast-paced debut that will intrigue heist aficionados and modern-minded Robin Hoods.”—Booklist

“Filled with characters so real I’m pretty sure they stole my wallet. They definitely stole my heart. Lillian Clark’s debut is a masterpiece.”—Shaun David Hutchinson, author of We Are the Ants