Set My Heart To Five

‘You shall read this with unadulterated pleasure’ Scotland on Sunday

‘A beautiful, funny, heartfelt analysis of what it means to be human’ Simon Pegg

Set in a 2054 where humans have locked themselves out of the internet and Elon Musk has incinerated the moon, Set My Heart To Five is the hilarious yet profoundly moving story of one android’s emotional awakening.

Unhappy with his programmed job of dentistry and inspired by a love of classic movies, Jared sets out on a bold mission: to use the power of his burgeoning feelings to forever change the world for him and all his kind. Unfortunately, Jared intends to do this by writing his own movie, and things do not proceed according to plan…

Unlike anything you have ever read before, Set My Heart To Five is a book for anybody who has feelings, loves movies, and likes to laugh and cry and sometimes do both at the same time. It comes uniquely guaranteed to make its readers weep a minimum of 29mls of tears.*

*Book must be read in controlled laboratory conditions arranged at reader’s own expense. Other terms and conditions may apply to this offer.

Reviews

‘[A] laugh-out-loud funny debut novel … absurdist, outrageous, irreverent and satirical… by the end of Jared’s adventures, readers will find themselves left with … an appreciation for the mutuality of all sentient life, and for the universal desire to be acknowledged and appreciated, whether one is birthed from factory or hospital … In Stephenson, Vonnegut may have his first true protégé.’ Washington Post

‘I doubt I’ll encounter a more endearing, more joy-provoking character this year’ The Bookseller, Book of the Month

‘A truly hilarious, clever, and strangely affecting meditation on the absurdity of Homo sapiens….I cried 67ml of tears’ Saga Magazine

‘Funny, original and thought-provoking’ Daily Mail

‘It is the closest thing I’ve read in a long time to Terry Pratchett … You will read this with unadulterated pleasure’ Scotland On Sunday

‘This beguiling debut exposes our frailties with subversive humour’ Mail on Sunday

‘Genuinely funny … pacey and emotive’ Sunday Times

‘Only the truly heartless would deny the art at work here’ The Herald

‘This entertaining and surprisingly poignant story is a charmer’ Publisher’s Weekly

About the author

Simon Stephenson is an author and screenwriter based in Los Angeles. His previous book Let Not The Waves Of The Sea won Best First Book at the Scottish Book Awards.