Such a Bad Influence
Ratings12
Average rating3.4
WAIT WHAT THE FUCK
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I grabbed this audiobook from Hoopla on a whim because the book was on my TBR and I couldn't stop playing Balatro but still wanted to read. I was immediately impressed by the production here. This is one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to. Such a Bad Influence is in part an epistolary novel, with Reddit posts and podcasts and emails. These sections have a full voice cast, which I found incredibly immersive! I do think this is miscategorized as a thriller and that readers looking for a lot of action will be disappointed. The book is really more of a character study with a mystery at its center. I was still completely captivated with it and finished it in just two sittings. I've already recommended the audiobook to several people and will probably keep thinking about this book for a while!
This is the second novel I've read in the past week in which a young woman is concerned that her mother is exploiting and monetizing her younger sister's online presence. In [b:Allow Me to Introduce Myself 198385439 Allow Me to Introduce Myself Onyi Nwabineli https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1702307320l/198385439.SY75.jpg 201284710], the MC wants to intervene before her 7 year old sister is irreparably damaged from constant online exposure. In Olivia Muenter's debut Such a Bad Influence, Hazel Davis is desperately trying to find her 18 year old mega-influencer sister, who has disappeared off social media and IRL. Starting with a viral video of Evie, age 5, their mother has cleverly built herself and her daughter into a financially lucrative brand. When Hazel expresses her worries shortly before Evie vanishes, the teenager with millions of followers reassures her that she's never been more happy. So did Evie have a nervous breakdown? Is her disappearance a publicity stunt? What if something more sinister is going on? I won't reveal more of the plot except to say that it takes a completely unexpected, jaw-dropping turn, and the ending is rather disturbing. The key characterizations of Hazel, Evie, and their mother lack the nuance that makes Allow Me to Introduce Myself so compelling. Both books explore the impact of constantly being online, although Bad Influence digs more into the subculture of podcasts and reddit threads, where people feel free to analyze and judge every social media post. I suspect we'll see more stories like these as the first generation of Instagram kids become adults with strong feelings about the childhood images that they never consented to share, living forever online.