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themily394 's review for:
Follow Me Back
by A.V. Geiger
I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I have to admit, Follow Me Back has been the biggest surprise of the year. I was interested in the plot and expected to like, but how much I liked it was a pleasant surprise.
Follow Me Back is a page-turner and is written so well. It reads like a fan fiction which makes sense as this is how the story started, but also fits the atmosphere of the story. With the interview fragments and social media aspect, I'm not sure this would have read well any other way. And, of course, Geiger is a talented writer and knows how to appeal to to demographic would be reading this.
The story depends so much on you liking the characters, though, and in the beginning I was skeptical. Everything about Eric - especially in the very begging and at the end - felt like a caricature. The way he angered and spoke in the beginning felt unreal and everything about what he said in his last conversation with Tessa in the car felt cheesy and forced. The middle was fine and at about 35% I completely fell in love with Tessa and Eric, but it took me a bit to get there. Once I did, I couldn't stop. I needed to know what happened to these two.
Though the narrative itself wasn't heavy with suspense, the interview fragments definitely added that aspect. Without them, it would have been completely void of the "edge of my seat" feeling I expect from a story like this. Which is disappointing because I expected more of that, but got enough of it in those moments to satisfy me. I'll admit the twist and apex of of all the suspense wasn't a complete surprise, though I did like it.
My two complaints are this - in the beginning, I had a hard time deciding if Geiger was making commentary on celebrity/social media/fandom culture, making fun of it, or simply writing about what she knew. It took me away from the story momentarily until I could get past it.
Second, is the end. I loved it because I know there's going to be a second book and it's clear that there's more going on than what meets the eye. However, it was jarring. Perhaps that's what we're supposed to feel, this odd moment of "What the hell!?" after Tessa and Eric have a moment, but I wish we had been slightly more prepared for it simply because it almost doesn't fit the feel of the rest of the story.
If a reader is not interested in fandom culture, social media, or fan fiction this story won't be for them. But honestly, I plan on recommending this to many people because if a person does enjoy those things this story is easy to love. The characters are easy to love and the story left me desperate to get my hands on book 2.
I have to admit, Follow Me Back has been the biggest surprise of the year. I was interested in the plot and expected to like, but how much I liked it was a pleasant surprise.
Follow Me Back is a page-turner and is written so well. It reads like a fan fiction which makes sense as this is how the story started, but also fits the atmosphere of the story. With the interview fragments and social media aspect, I'm not sure this would have read well any other way. And, of course, Geiger is a talented writer and knows how to appeal to to demographic would be reading this.
The story depends so much on you liking the characters, though, and in the beginning I was skeptical. Everything about Eric - especially in the very begging and at the end - felt like a caricature. The way he angered and spoke in the beginning felt unreal and everything about what he said in his last conversation with Tessa in the car felt cheesy and forced. The middle was fine and at about 35% I completely fell in love with Tessa and Eric, but it took me a bit to get there. Once I did, I couldn't stop. I needed to know what happened to these two.
Though the narrative itself wasn't heavy with suspense, the interview fragments definitely added that aspect. Without them, it would have been completely void of the "edge of my seat" feeling I expect from a story like this. Which is disappointing because I expected more of that, but got enough of it in those moments to satisfy me. I'll admit the twist and apex of of all the suspense wasn't a complete surprise, though I did like it.
My two complaints are this - in the beginning, I had a hard time deciding if Geiger was making commentary on celebrity/social media/fandom culture, making fun of it, or simply writing about what she knew. It took me away from the story momentarily until I could get past it.
Second, is the end. I loved it because I know there's going to be a second book and it's clear that there's more going on than what meets the eye. However, it was jarring. Perhaps that's what we're supposed to feel, this odd moment of "What the hell!?" after Tessa and Eric have a moment, but I wish we had been slightly more prepared for it simply because it almost doesn't fit the feel of the rest of the story.
If a reader is not interested in fandom culture, social media, or fan fiction this story won't be for them. But honestly, I plan on recommending this to many people because if a person does enjoy those things this story is easy to love. The characters are easy to love and the story left me desperate to get my hands on book 2.