Happy Sunday and welcome to my review of This is Not the Jess Show by Anna Carey! I LOVED this book so much, and I’m ridiculously happy to share my review with all of you today! Read on to find my review and favorite quotes, plus more information about the book and author! And now without any further ado, let’s get to the review!
I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This Is Not the Jess Show by Anna CareySeries: This is Not the Jess Show #1
Published on February 2, 2021 by Quirk Books
Genres: YA, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Dystopian
Pages: 288
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram
A timely YA thriller about a teenage girl whose reality may not be what it seems, blending 90s nostalgia with a speculative hook that dissects our modern reality TV and influencer-obsessed culture.
Like many teens, sometimes it feels as though everything in Jess Flynn's life has been engineered for maximum drama--from her performance at the school talent show, to the reappearance of her childhood best friend and perennial crush Jeremy, to her friends trying to set her up with one of the hottest guys in school. It's almost as if everything might finally be going her way...until one day a tiny black phone with an apple logo on its screen falls out of her best friend's backpack and lands at Jess's feet.
The problem is, it's 1998, and the first iPhone isn't due out for another nine years.
Jess's friends refuse to acknowledge the strange device. Her sister Sara, on hospice care with a terminal blood disease, for once can't tell Jess what she should do. It's almost as if everyone is hiding something from her. Even her beloved dog Fuller seems different...like, literally different, because he definitely didn't have that same pattern of spots on his stomach last week...
Nothing in Jess Flynn's world is as it seems, and as the cracks begin to show, Jess will discover her entire life is nothing more than someone else's entertainment. Except in this reality, the outside world is no place anyone would want to escape to.
Sometimes I don’t have a whole lot to say about books, so I’ve created Rapid Fire Reviews as a quick and fun way to get my opinion out without repeating myself and boring you! Here we go!
did i like it?
did I LIKE it? I FREAKING LOVED IT!!!!
favorite character?
Jess!
will i re-read it?
ONE THOUSAND PERCENT YES!
three words to describe the book
nostalgia, angst, whatthefuck
quick thoughts
the world building in this is PHENOMENAL! at both the beginning and end, I really felt like I was THERE, even though the two settings were uh…. not really the same at all. ALSO- I CANNOT wait for the sequel to this!!! since it was originally going to be published last year, I read it the second I got it… back in March. I think this was actually my last book before Covid, so that’s forever ago! and now I have to wait SO LONG to find out what happens next!!!
Do I love this cover? Yes, yes I do. Did I love the temporary/arc cover even more? Yes, yes I did. Still, I love the tv set layout, the PURPLE, and all the neon, so…
11/10 stars!!!
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Anna Carey is the author of This is not The Jess Show, out February 2, 2021. She’s also the author of The Eve Trilogy (Eve, Once, Rise) and the Blackbird series (Blackbird, Deadfall). Her books have been translated into twelve languages. She went to NYU and has an MFA from Brooklyn College, where she was the recipient of the Himan Brown award. She likes miniatures, subway generated wind, flea markets, chalkboard silhouettes, dance-offs, arnold palmers, and top-of-your-lungs car singing. She dislikes pennies, paper receipts, and tunafish. For delayed response times, please contact her through this site. For instant gratification, please find her on Instagram: @annacareybooks.
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Have you read this AMAZING book yet? Do you love it as much as I do? Let me know in the comments and have a splendiferous day!
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