e-Audio, 09:39:46
Narrated by: Yu-Li Alice Shen
Release Date: April 29, 2025
Published by: Simon & Schuster Audio
Read from: April 23-24, 2025
Stand-Alone
Source: Libro FM and the Publisher (I received a free e-ALC from Libro FM and the publisher. This did nothing to influence my review.)
Content Warning: Murder, Animal Death, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Death of a Parent, Toxic Friendship, Eating Disorder, Alcohol, Car Accident, Fire
For Readers Interested In: Thrillers, Contemporary, Racial/Ethnic Diversity (Asian-Chinese), Family Diversity (Twins)In this razor-sharp, diabolical debut thriller, a young woman steps into her deceased twin’s influencer life, only to discover dark secrets hidden behind her social media façade.
Julie Chan has nothing. Her twin sister has everything. Except a pulse.
Julie Chan, a supermarket cashier with nothing to lose, finds herself thrust into the glamorous yet perilous world of her late twin sister, Chloe VanHuusen, a popular influencer. Separated at a young age, the identical twins were polar opposites and rarely spoke, except for one viral video that Chloe initiated (Finding My Long-Lost Twin And Buying Her A House #EMOTIONAL). When Julie discovers Chloe’s lifeless body under mysterious circumstances, she seizes the chance to live the life she’s always envied.
Transforming into Chloe is easier than expected. Julie effortlessly adopts Chloe’s luxurious influencer life, complete with designer clothes, a meticulous skincare routine, and millions of adoring followers. However, Julie soon realizes that Chloe’s seemingly picture-perfect life was anything but.
Haunted by Chloe’s untimely death and struggling to fit into the privileged influencer circle, Julie faces mounting challenges during a weeklong island retreat with Chloe’s exclusive group of influencer friends. As events spiral out of control, Julie uncovers the sinister forces that may have led to her sister’s demise and realizes she might be the next target.
*MY THOUGHTS*
Listen when I tell y’all I was not ready for this book lol I really had no idea what I was expecting when I requested it. I saw it was a thriller and I saw people were talking about it, so I got a mean case of FOMO. And let me just say I probably should have left this book there lol That one scene gave me the heebie-jeebies lol
Y’all, this was UNHINGED. She took the life of her deceased twin. I thought it was weird, but she seemed to justify it because they didn’t really know each other and they grew up separately. They both were jealous of the other, but they didn’t have to be. Both of them had it bad. But jealousy moves you to do some crazy things. However, Julie doesn’t find out how crazy they are until she’s already living as Julie.
I thought this put an interesting light on Influencers. This is definitely the scary side of it. I DO wish it went a bit more in-depth on some of the things like the algorithms and the way some people get so offended when people of color point it out. But I get it. She was made to seem brain washed. But I just wish it was discussed more. That always deserves a bigger conversation.
The only thing I didn’t care for was the pacing. It started with a BANG and then it was so slow. If I hadn’t been listening I think I would have skimmed it. But because I had it on audio I just sped it up a bit. And I’m so glad I did. Because when I made it to the end I sat there stunned like WTF. I still don’t know how we went from 0 to 60 so damn fast lol It was a lot in a short amount of time. I just wish it was spread more evenly throughout the book.
And let me just say, the ending is what made this book. If I had missed this because I skimmed or DNFed I would have been pissed. I almost woke my kid up when that ONE SCENE happened and I kept repeating OMG OMG OMG as soon as they got on that plane. Idk, this whole thing was a mess and I really enjoyed this mess lol
This was a crazy ass story that left me with my mouth open in shock. The first thing I said after I was finished was, “WTF.” This was a good time and I hope there’s more from Zhang to come. I can’t wait to see what her twisted mind comes up with lol
Overall, I give this
