Welcome to Litsy!

This book has a very interesting concept but goes a bit longer than necessary.

I loved this book! Such an easy and interesting read split between the present and 50 years from now where the government controls the internet and has families who are streaming their lives 24/7. The story follows one the of the people who have had their entire lives watched on this stream and what her parents lives were like before the new internet. 5/5

Who else on here is on BookTok? 🙋🏻‍♀️

I would love to follow some of my Litsy friends if you are!!

Based on the book's description, I was surprised to find out this reads more like speculative fiction than anything else, but it also has plenty of drama like any reality show/social media scandal. The women's fiction angle drew me in and got me invested in the characters, but the social and political commentary on privacy made this the unique, engrossing story it is. The story will definitely spark plenty of conversation at book club!

This reminded me a lot of The Circle by Dave Eggers, and I wasn‘t a huge fan of that book. This one was better, but I thought it was just okay.

For reasons unknown, I have been calling this book “The Passage” for weeks. 😄 #ooops

Completed this bookish puzzle while listening to the tagged book. Perfect snow day activity! ❄️

#audiopuzzling

November Monthly Wrap Up

Full Post: https://justreadingjess.wordpress.com/2020/11/28/november-monthly-wrap-up/

Followers by Megan Angelo is a very unique story that grabbed my attention from the first page.

Followers switches between Orla, Floss, and Marlow‘s stories. The stories work their ways towards each other from two different time periods. I enjoyed how the characters changed throughout the novel. Social media affected every aspect of these characters‘ lives.

Full review: https://justreadingjess.wordpress.com/2020/11/08/followers/

They might have had all the followers, but they were never finished chasing📱💬

Hey, everyone! My irl friend, Joy Pope, has joined Litsy!!! She‘s a prolific reader and the Executive Director of the Decatur Book Festival. Please consider giving her a follow/shout out!

Followers is a dual time line novel with a realistic current day and future dystopia, both skewering celebrity culture and social media. Most of the book is a page-turner that I loved, but by the end, it becomes a bit too over the top, slipping toward so-so territory. While I wish the author could have pulled back on the absurdity near the end, I enjoyed it overall.

I really really liked the setting of this book. I really liked the alternate universe of social media taking over our lives. But the plot fell for me so much. I thought it was draged out, long, and just uninspired. I felt myself not caring for the characters. I did like the ending a little, but other than that the book was just not exciting. I feel like it could have been such a good book too! As good idea that just fell flat unfortunately.

Trying to get back into the Instagram. If you‘re on IG, find me and I‘ll follow back. The name is the same! @Purrfectpages #instagram #ig #bookreviewer #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #readingfriends

The concept is the most interesting part - a futuristic setting where influencers all live in a city with their every move on camera (like Big Brother or The Truman Show), the government controls the internet, and privacy is a thing of the past. The flow was choppy at times and I wasn't a huge fan of where the plot ultimately ended up, but it held my attention and was certainly unique! (I actually went in thinking it was YA but it's def not).

This was pretty entertaining. The characters live their lives hoping to get followers. What will be the next step? It's a cross between the behind the scenes of a reality show and The Truman Show. Except they know they're being watched and they're doing it on purpose.

Absolutely loved this terrifying and honestly realistic take on social media influencers and the future.

Absolutely loved this terrifying and honestly realistic take on social media influencers and the future.

Between Pick & So-So. 1984 meets The Circle meets The Truman Show. Set in 2016 and 2051. I saw the twist coming way ahead. Pretty readable, overall. I found the ending really clipped and unsatisfying, given how long it took us to get there.

🔆 Followers is the only F book I can think of recently that marks amongst my favorites
🔆F. Scott Fitzgerald — the great gatsby is one of my faves!
🔆 Flubber - the one with robin williams. That was a fave of mine as a kid
🔆 Five Finger Death Punch
🔆 this one was hard to but Forever by Papa Roach for nostalgic reasons however I do have a free bird tattoo

#manicmonday #LetterF @JoScho

Wow I had so much fun reading this book. This felt like a black mirror episode. The characters were fleshed out very well and the plot itself engrossing. The ending tugged at my heartstrings a bit. The only thing I didn‘t like was that some parts of the story felt unnecessary and made the story drag. Overall though I could see myself reading this one again

#review #booked2020 #bookworm

Still crazy slow at work but I‘m thankful I still get to come here. This is the only time I leave the house anymore really. Excited to start this one, finally! Hope everyone is having a good Wednesday 🌻🌞

#currentlyreading #booked2020 #bookworm

I‘m listening to this as I work in the yard but I am just not feeling it. I‘m 5 hours in and bored. Is it worth it to finish??

my library holds came in today. All audio books. I have been dying for Say Nothing to be available.

4-2-20: My 28th finished book of 2020! I read this one as slowly as I could because I didn‘t want it to end!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟1/2! Really enjoyable. 👍🏼📖#️⃣2️⃣8️⃣ #followers #meganangelo

Wasn‘t sure when I started it, but I am hooked now. I keep alternating between reading and listening. Marvel is thrilled that I am home even more than usual, which face it was already a lot of the time. I am a preschool teacher at a daycare center that has remained open so far. Although the amount of children is low so the staff has taken turns leaving throughout the week. So good to escape into books. Stay safe everyone.

I have to admit...I wasn‘t paying 100% attention while I read this “Black Mirror” meets “The Truman Show” read-alike. I kept setting it down for long-ish periods of time & then forgetting the thread of the plot. Still, I saw the “twist” coming. Despite being fairly predictable, I enjoyed the themes of privacy & surveillance, image & authenticity. And I found Angelo‘s sharp, “biting” humor to be pretty cackle-worthy.

I hate these people, and the plot is weird, but I can‘t bring myself to stop reading it. 🙄🙄🙄 #followers #meganangelo #wtf

“Vowels stood in for each other at random. “Hay gurl hay,” she would whine. “Faaaack. I‘m hungover as fuuuuuck.”

Dying. 😅 This *is* how people talk.

...what the hell am I even reading right now? I get that it‘s supposed to be part ~warning~ about the influence technology and social media have over us, but it‘s kind of ridiculous and feels like it‘s trying too hard? I don‘t know. I‘m giving it a few more chapters before I DNF it, though. #followers #meganangelo #wtf

Megan Angelo's Followers scared me. Told in alternating time periods and focusing primarily on two characters--Orla in 2016 and Marlow in 2051--the novel takes on the implications of fame, reality tv, social media, the influencer culture, technology, and the diminishing line between our private and public lives.⠀⬇️

Finished 2/3/20. This book was just okay. I would have enjoyed a more nuanced take on the danger of social media and reality television. This might have worked better for me had the story explored the motivations behind the catastrophic “hack”. 2.5 ⭐️

This is a better audiobook than book. Great narration, mediocre writing.

The book tries to show the downside of “reality” shows and Instagram fame...and also poor passwords and internet bots. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

Like this review 😂, the book just felt disjointed. There was no flow. The characters, except maybe Marlow, were weak and one-dimensional. Maybe that‘s the author‘s commentary on reality stars, idk. 2⭐️

I really loved the narrator, though.

Currently listening

This book questions what our social media habits could lead us to. Especially combined with the plethora of information about all of us that's stored on multiple networks and clouds. It drew me in and kept me interested to see how the two timelines would come together.

I have to get this back to the library soon. 😬 Perhaps I'll get a chance to dip into during work today. 🤞#upnext

I'm looking for people who are into Fantasy/Sci-fi and comics to follow.

Please hit me with you suggestions. 🐉🦄

Picture is curtesy of my 15 year old daughter. She drew this about a year ago and I took a photo as I like it.

#fantasy #scifi #comics

Another #BookHaul ! Just can‘t help myself lately. 😄📚📚

This was such an interesting take on social media and the things that are shared and how we are perceived.
It takes a hard look at privacy, relationships, and our increasing dependence on devices.
I definitely would recommend this book.

All about social media and its kinda weird...in a good way.

This book was a really cynical commentary on the social media/attention-seeking culture. Two friends seek to exploit that culture for money and fame until a tragedy occurs. Then a cyber attack teaches that too much sharing can also be a bad thing. There are two timelines here-2016 and 2051. The story switches between the two to reveal what happened between the two friends and society. The writing was ok, but I liked the story. 3.5⭐️ #hoopla

In sort of it‘s own category of technological dystopian story, ‘Followers‘ shifts back and forth in time following the lives of three women and how their worlds intertwine through technology and the internet as we know it, and very much as we do NOT know it.. yet.

I won‘t lie, this made me want to log off of everything and go dark on digital for a while.

Epigraph

Truly truly incredible... an amazing work!! I‘m blown away..

Yay!!!! February 1 means I‘m entitled to 5 new Hoopla borrows🙌🏻💕🎧 Up first for #pop20 #ABookAboutSocialMedia

I‘m a bit behind (okay, I haven‘t even started yet), but here is my #OneWordTitle book for #ReadWithMrBook. I‘ve still got a few days before the end of the month, and I know I can make it if I dig in hard for the rest of the week, though!

went out to get a donut & some coffee this morning - I'm in the middle of reading a few books right now & my goal is to finish at least one this weekend, but I'm almost done of this one so I think its going to happen 😀📖📚

Picked this one up at the library... pardon the language, but I‘ve never laughed so loud and so hard at a line in a book... I‘m just picturing like Billy Eichner screaming on the street 🤪😂🤭

I think I'm in the minority on this one, but this book never quite worked for me the way I wanted it to. Interesting premise (dual timelines in 2016 & 2051, commentary on tech addiction & celebrity culture), but two main characters that both lacked personality & agency brought the story down somewhat. I received an ARC from BookExpo.

got up early this morning to get some more reading in. I started this one yesterday & so far am really enjoying it