Followers - Megan Angelo

Fiction (Dystopian)

Rating: 7/10

An offering of speculative fiction that poses the question; how far will our addiction to our screens and preoccupation with social media go?

This story unfolds as two “friends”, you will have to read the book to figure out why I chose to use the quotation marks, find themselves caught up in the price one may be forced to pay in this kind of fame-driven, tech-obsessed society.

The alternating narratives shift from our current times to about forty years in the future.  A brilliant move on the authors part to ensure we could envision for ourselves and our children that this could be a reality.  Starting with the hunger to be Instagram influencers all the way to live streaming your entire life, 24 hours a day.

The author is shrewd in her depictions of complex relationships and characters; the obsessions, the flaws, the morals, the sweetness and the weariness. She also snuck in references to dilemmas we are facing today without preaching about it.

I saw the twist coming a mile away, but as this was never touted as a mystery or a thriller, I hold no grudge.

Footnote: Think The Truman Show meets Black Mirror.  Go ahead, I dare you…