OFF TARGET, OUT 17 FEB 2022!
I am delighted to share the cover for my new speculative thriller, OFF TARGET, which will be published 17th February next year, and is available 17th December this year as an ebook.
An unthinkable decision
A deadly mistake
Set in all-too-possible near future, where genetic engineering has become the norm for humans, not just crops, parents are prepared to take incalculable risks to ensure that their babies are perfect, altering genes that may cause illness, and more…
Susan has been trying for a baby for years, and when an impulsive one-night stand makes her dream come true, she’ll do anything to keep her daughter and ensure her husband doesn’t find out … including the unthinkable. She believes her secret is safe. For now.
But as governments embark on a perilous genetic arms race and children around the globe start experiencing a host of distressing symptoms – even taking their own lives – something truly horrendous is unleashed. Because those children have only one thing in common, and people are starting to ask questions…
Bestselling author of The Waiting Rooms, Eve Smith returns with an authentic, startlingly thought-provoking, disturbing blockbuster of a thriller that provides a chilling glimpse of a future that’s just one modification away…
The idea for Off Target came when I learned how genetics will not only revolutionise medicine and agriculture, but also the way we have babies, and how soon this might happen.
Because the science is moving much faster than regulation or public debate.
In the world I describe, genetics influences practically every area of our lives: what we eat and drink, how we construct and furnish our homes, the pets we breed and, importantly, how we conceive. This world is not far off.
We are approaching a future where, as Jamie Metzl says in his excellent book, Hacking Darwin, we will take active control of our evolutionary process by genetically selecting and altering our offspring. But, when it comes to rewriting our own biological code, even the scientific community is divided.
Alongside genetic engineering’s wondrous opportunities are significant risks, because we do not yet fully understand how our bodies might respond to genetic edits. Particularly when those edits are made on embryos, in the womb.
History shows we are often ill-equipped to understand the longer term consequences of our scientific ambitions or prevent their malevolent exploitation.
It is these unintended impacts and ethical dilemmas that Off Target explores.
I have been fortunate to be able to draw on the expertise of local (and not so local) geneticists, who helped me grasp the intricacies of gene editing and tolerated my wild plot ideas whilst enabling me to stay true to the science. I owe them many thanks for their patience!