BOOK REVIEW: Followers by Megan Angelo @meganangelo @kcc_pr @harlequinbooks @harpercollins #FOLLOWERS #bookreview

In the age of social media, how do we define our worth? I’ll admit as a book blogger and bookstagrammer, I’ve had my fair share of moments where I compare my following, popularity, likes, shares, and other metrics to others. This is the time that we live in, where many of us feel that some of our value is related to how others see us. On my best days, I feel happy with what I contribute. Reading, reviewing, and blogging isn’t my full-time job. It’s not even my part-time job, it’s my hobby. And I love to read and share books with others. But that isn’t all of the days. There are just as many where I wonder if I should just go back to reading and loving books in private. Would I be happier? Would the pressure go away?

This moment of deep introspection is brought to you by what I would consider to be a must-read debut novel by Megan Angelo, Followers. I read an advanced copy of Followers back in mid-fall of 2019, and it was without question the best book I read in 2019. Followers holds a special place in my heart because it pulled me out of the worst reading slump I’ve been in since blogging. I was still consuming books, but oddly enough as a print-reader, I could only do audiobooks. I couldn’t focus at all on a book.

I shared this once a long time back on my blog, but one reason I read so much is because it is one of the only activities that truly helps me to relax. I’m a bit neurotic about work and graduate school. If I watch TV or try other activities, I have a hard time quieting my mind from fixating on things I need to do or things I’m worried about. Reading engages my mind fully, and it gives my mind a much-needed break from my life to dive into someone else’s. The problem with audiobooks is they offer incredible books but they don’t give me the same escape that I get when I read a print or ebook. My mind can still wander, and I often have to backtrack because I realize I got lost in my thoughts and missed something.

You can imagine, then, why Followers might hold an extra special spot for me. It broke a spiral I felt trapped inside of, and reminded me why I love reading so much!

About the Book

An electrifying story of two ambitious friends, the dark choices they make and the profound moment that changes the meaning of privacy forever.

Orla Cadden dreams of literary success, but she’s stuck writing about movie-star hookups and influencer yoga moves. Orla has no idea how to change her life until her new roommate, Floss―a striving, wannabe A-lister―comes up with a plan for launching them both into the high-profile lives they so desperately crave. But it’s only when Orla and Floss abandon all pretense of ethics that social media responds with the most terrifying feedback of all: overwhelming success.

Thirty-five years later, in a closed California village where government-appointed celebrities live every moment of the day on camera, a woman named Marlow discovers a shattering secret about her past. Despite her massive popularity―twelve million loyal followers―Marlow dreams of fleeing the corporate sponsors who would do anything, even horrible things, to keep her on-screen. When she learns that her whole family history is a lie, Marlow finally summons the courage to run in search of the truth, no matter the risks.

Followers traces the paths of Orla, Floss and Marlow as they wind through time toward each other, and toward a cataclysmic event that sends America into lasting upheaval. At turns wry and tender, bleak and hopeful, this darkly funny story reminds us that even if we obsess over famous people we’ll never meet, what we really crave is genuine human connection.

My Review

Alternating between 2015 and 2051, Followers tells a story about the culture of celebrity and influence and the way even small mistakes can be misinterpreted and have long-term impact on their lives. It’s also about how our relationship with others through social media can derail our understanding of who we are at our core, and what makes us happy.

In 2015, an aspiring writer and current blogger for a celebrity gossip site Orla Cadden is living with aspiring singer Floss. Despite talent, both Floss and Orla struggle to make progress towards their dreams. And so one day Floss asks Orla to help her in a different way—make her a celebrity. The idea seems outrageous at first, but between Orla’s role blogging about celebrities and Floss’s grit and determination, the two succeed. Floss becomes a Kardashian-like superstar.

But what people in 2015 don’t know is that they are headed towards an event that will fundamentally change society forever. The Spill.

In 2051, Marlow lives in Constellation, California—a closed town that houses government-selected “celebrities” whose lives are broadcast 24/7 to their followers. The residents of Constellation can view comments from the followers, but their job is to act like they don’t know they are being broadcast. Marlow barely remembers life before Constellation, her mother and father moved her there as a child. In fact, though Marlow isn’t happy, she isn’t used to making decisions about her own life. Until she learns something shocking about her past that will shatter everything she knew.

As Orla and Floss head unknowingly towards the Spill, Marlow seeks to understand life outside of the small bubble she lives in.

All of the characters in this book were fascinating. In their own ways, each character was deeply flawed and also redeemable. Orla and Floss, for instance, had such a unique relationship. Because we hear the story from the perspective of Orla and Marlowe, Floss is a character that can seem ridiculous or overly ambitious through most of the book. But then Orla has these moments of clarity and reflection about Floss, and suddenly you’ll see her in an entirely different light.

Orla is a bit of an underdog, which in and of itself makes her rootable. But Orla also lacks a bit of conviction for some of the novel. She knows what she wants but seems incapable of taking action to make it happen. Marlow, on the other hand, doesn’t know what she wants. Everything in Marlow’s life has always been decided for her, so she never learned to introspect on what she wants. I loved seeing them grow and take form in the book.

Then there is the Spill. I was SO curious exactly what that was and why it changed technology and society so fundamentally. The concept is fascinating. In fact, I’m rooting for a sequel that focuses on different characters, but during that point in time. I was hooked! And the whole message of the book really makes you think. The message about how we evaluate our own self-worth in an age where social media rules so much of society. The messages about friendship, ambition, and what we lose when we are so connected to the anonymous external world that we lose sight of what is directly happening to us.

I loved this book so much. I have already read it twice, and I know I’ll read it so many times that the book will become worn and the pages will become soft with use. All I can say is—read this book. I hope you love it as much as I did!

Thank you to Kathleen Carter for my copy. Opinions are my own.

About the Author

Megan has written about television, film, women and pop culture, and motherhood for publications including The New York Times (where she helped launch city comedy coverage), Glamour (where she was a contributing editor and wrote a column on women and television), Elle, The Wall Street Journal, Marie Claire, and Slate. She is a native of Quakertown, Pennsylvania and a graduate of Villanova University. She currently lives in Pennsylvania with her family. FOLLOWERS is her first novel.