In the late twentyteens Orla, a blogger at a Buzzfeed like website, hitches her star to Floss, an up and coming influencer. Together they ride the dizzying heights of American stardom, unaware of the imminent disaster called the Spill.
In the early twentyfifties, Marlow is a cast member on a sort of Truman Show, her life broadcast to the world 23/7. An imminent birth 'storyline' cooked up by the network sends her running in pursuit of the real life that's been hidden from her.
It's happened a couple of times this year that I've read 'adult' and 'children's' versions of almost the same idea. It happens often in publishing, of course, giving rise to the mini trends we see two or three times a year. As I was reading Followers, it reminded me of Heartstream. Anyone who's read that book won't be surprised by the twist here.
Followers is very much its own book, though. Although I'm not always a fan of split time line stories, it worked really well here; we were able to see the effects of the Spill and the Fog long before we saw the actual events, and I realised very late in the story that there was a whole extra layer to the Spill that I hadn't noticed before. The Truman Show seemed almost laughable when it came out, but it's so plausible nowadays, just a step on from where we are anyway, and Megan does a fantastic job writing it.
This is a great read, and I loved the not really epilogue at the end. I'll be watching out for more from Megan.
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.
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.
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