He knows this because of Timmy®, the mysterious app that can tell you with infallible accuracy how old you will be when you die. Smith still has 64 years to go. But lately he’s been in a rut, and his long lifespan is starting to feel like a sentence.

Possible salvation arrives in the form of Mavis Pead, a co-worker at Smith's demoralizing job. Smith is infatuated, despite the age difference: Mavis has just entered the last of her 43 years. She’s a “zero” – the most shunned demographic in society. When a careless act leads to their boss’s apparent death before his time, Smith and Mavis are thrown together in an intrigue that could call Timmy®’s infallibility into question. Mavis might not be so old after all – nor Smith so young.

A laugh-out-loud sendup of a technologically dependent culture, Zero is also a tender love story and a big-hearted reflection on the true meaning of age. A story that asks the question, What do we do with the time we’re given, whether we know how long we have...or we don’t?

“Loved it! Smart, funny, and literate, Zero will make you laugh while giving you something to ponder.” — Reedsy Discovery

”O’Leary’s book is a clever send-up of technology and consumerism… Boasting an original concept, strong writing, and an intriguing May-December love story at its center, the novel is also surprisingly poignant … the ride remains consistently entertaining. It’s time well spent, thanks to this unique premise and biting social commentary.” — Kirkus Reviews

“If The Office and Black Mirror had a bleakly funny child, it might look like Zero. It’s part dystopian satire, part existential meltdown, and perfect for readers who love dark humor, speculative fiction, and character-driven narratives about bureaucracy, mortality, and meaning… What really works here is O’Leary’s tone — dry, darkly funny, and relentlessly sharp.” — Alex Norton, Likely Story