Not a book I liked but one I could see some readers enjoying, particularly for the Twitter titillating "relationship" that develops between main characters Tess and teen heartthrob Eric. Superficial characters, implausible actions, and a traumatic event from Tess's past that''s a mystery until late in the story kept me from feeling engaged with this book. The ending, dropped like a bombshell, completely destroyed the assumed plot, and left me questioning the abrupt character shift and basically the whole story that preceded it. There are endings that are surprising and revealing. This was not one of them.

I initially requested this because there has been so much hype on Goodreads about it. I am definitely out of the target audience age range, but I read a lot of different things, so thought I'd give it a try.

This was a quick and interesting read. I liked the format, going between the interrogation, the story, and Tessa and Eric's DM's. But it felt far-fetched. Again, I probably would have totally fangirled over this book if I were in the demographic that it is written for, but for myself, I probably wouldn't reread. However, I will encourage other, younger readers to give this one a shot!

I hadn't heard of this book, but I came across it on Netgalley and was intrigued by the cover. I ended up jumping over to Goodreads to read a summary - the shoutout to Catfish was the final straw! I had to request a copy!
I watch the show quite often - and love seeing the different stories and outcomes. While some can be pretty scary, others end really well and I think it was a great idea to make a show like that - to show the world that it's very likely those you meet online are not as they seem.

This book lived up to my expectations 100%. It's a really unique and fresh idea for a book and I love how it's told in ways other than just through text. It makes the story all that more engaging.
I loved the characters, yes even Eric who was catfishing his trusting fan Tessa.
This book is full of suspense, plot twists and an ending that throws you for a loop. It's seriously a fantastic read and I highly recommend it. It's a story you could read several times over and not get bored with it!

We live in a social media world. For better or for worse.

There was a time, not so long ago, when sharing every aspect of your personal life would have been considered obnoxious and narcissistic. Who needs to know where I am or what I am eating every hour of the day? Those private details were shared in tabloid magazines about celebrities. Something we only wanted to know about celebrities.

I'm also sure, if you had asked most of the population back then, about whether people would one day all open themselves up to that level of public awareness, most would say no. Who could imagine a world like that?

Turns out, at least a few people did, and social media was born.

Take a society already obsessed with celebrity, and make everyone easily accessible. Or, at least give the impression of being easily accessible. How does that change us? What dangers does that bring? These are the questions raised in Follow Me Back.

"You wanted this, Eric. You worked your ass off to get discovered. Remember?" ∞ "I just didn't totally understand what I was signing up for."

When we dream of being famous, of living a life of luxury unimaginable to most, we tend to see the nice shiny pieces of that life. I've always been fascinated with how we idolize celebrities in our society. We mock them when they shut down a store to shop, yet if they try to walk down the street, we mob them. We ridicule their concerns for privacy yet pay for overpriced magazines to glimpse a picture of them on the beach, or in their backyards. We expect them to be available to us all the time. To be the people we believe they are. Nevermind who they actually are.

Before social media, celebrities had their stalkers. They've always had obsessed fans, willing to do anything to get a napkin dropped, a fork used, a shirt forgotten. But in a world where information about location was slower, where you relied on physical sightings or inside sources, those fans were easier to predict. Easier to contain.

Now, all it takes is a tweet. 140 characters. An Instagram photo. A Facebook update. And within seconds, everyone in the world can access that information. Anyone can access that information.

Eric Thorn is a singer. Locked in a contract he didn't understand, and is now beginning to hate. He has mobs of fans. Fans with Twitter handles like @MrsThorn or @TessaHeartsEric. Millions of girls dying to meet him, to profess their undying love for him. It's exhilarating. It's smothering. It's terrifying.

There's another side to social media. The side that allows us to experience life in a different way. To open ourselves up to new experiences and ideas. For some people, social media helps them feel not so alone. Helps them find people who they can connect with. Helps them enrich their lives in ways they would never dreamed.

That's where Tessa Hart finds herself after a traumatic experience leaves her unable to leave her house. She finds her release in writing fanfic about her favorite pop star Eric Thorn. Following him and his fan accounts is a release for her. Her way of finding social interaction in her isolated world. When one of her stories goes viral, her follower count rockets up. The hashtag #ericthornobsessed trending to #1.

Tessa believes she sees something in Eric Thorn that others don't. A fear that she relates to. Her therapist thinks she's projecting. Is it possible to see something in a photo? In an online video? Is it possible to see something no one else sees? Or do we just see what we want?

A twist of fate intertwines Eric and Tessa. I could tell you more, but where would the fun in that be? Needless to say, you will not see the plot twists and turns until they happen.

This is a book where everything you think you know is wrong.

It isn't just the plot twists that makes this novel compelling and insightful. It's more an analysis about the role social media plays in our lives.

We follow people without thought. Sure, there are reasons. We like their books, their music, their art. Sometimes we even know them. But I'm also sure there are people we follow, people we are friends with, that we don't really know.

Social media is a strange intimacy. People who are active on their accounts give us glimpses into their lives. It can feel like we know them. We see them in bed, walking down the street, at their tables. We see what they watch, what they read, what they listen to, what they eat, what they wear. It can feel like we know them as well as we know our closest friends.

To us, they are someone we know. Someone we feel genuine affection for. But to them, we are a fan. One follower in a sea of thousands. Perhaps even millions.

If they comment, or retweet, or like what we post, it's a thrill! We feel a connection, a touch of intimacy that validates how we feel about them. And if they actually follow you back? Confirmation that somehow we made it on a radar of impossibility.

These strange intimacies are the world we live in. These private worlds that feel just as big and just as real as the one we breathe in.

Follow Me Back was a seamless glimpse at how social media and celebrity worship can create an alternate reality. We see how social media can be useful, even helpful but also harmful. There is a deep look at privacy and intimacy. This commentary is subtle and done skillfully. It takes a plot twist to bring this examination to light.

This book will make you take a step back and look at your own habits. Are you part of a fandom? Could there be a dark undertone lurking beneath the love and adoration? What about social media friendships? Can you ever really know who you are talking to?

As more apps are developed and more accounts are created, this is a conversation we all need to be having. What is the line between fandom and obsession? How much of our lives should be available and accessible? How do you stay social while still protecting yourself?

It will make you think of social media and the role it can play with mental health. For some people, finding a group to talk to can be life-saving. Life-changing. But it can also be a Pandora's box. An opening into a world of obsession and temptation that can easily spiral out of control.

Follow Me Back is a brilliant blend of Young Adult fiction wrapped in a psychological thriller. The plot is fast paced, each page demanding to be turned. I devoured this in a day. Yet you are still lulled into a state of complacency. Of believing you know what the end will be, in scope if not detail. Yet, the reality is so different, so unexpected.

If there's one thing social media has taught us, sometimes what you see is not what you get. Sometimes a perfect and beautiful feed can hide something darker. Often, who we are is much different than who we want the world to see.



I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Wow!! Talk about a page turner. A suspenseful page turner that will leave you gasping for air! Its a must read!!

This book was different. I liked the book, and both Tessa and Eric up until the ending. It was described as a love story turned murderous, but the murder twist happened way too late in the book for my liking. Eric's disappearance happens very randomly with no explanation given. I was also expecting one of them to die because of the book jacket but that twist happens on the last page.

Wow. Just wow. I finished this book yesterday, and my mind has been reeling ever since then. Between the super intense police transcripts, and the twists and turns interspersed throughout the story, it didn't take me long to become completely immersed in what what was happening. The fact that the beginning did admittedly lag for a little bit was quickly overshadowed by the suspenseful build up of events.

This story is told from the perspectives of two characters, Eric Thorn and Tessa Hart. Both of these characters are living two very different lives yet they are also very similar in a sense, and their similiarties bring them together in a very compelling way. Tessa is a teen suffering from agoraphobia, made worse after suffering a traumatic event in her life, while Eric is a pop star who, on the surface, seems to have it all but is suffering from demons of his own. As someone who is an introvert battling severe anxiety and depression, I found myself sympathetic towards these characters, particularly Tessa, due to the extreme anxiety she suffers stemming from her agoraphobia.

Both of these characters use twitter as an outlet for the stress in their lives, which eventually leads to their paths intertwining. The story of two these characters is a great testament to the fact that you never know what is going on beneath the surface of a person, and the twitter perspective just goes to to show that you never know who you may be talking to on the other side of a computer screen.

I found Eric's story to be particularly enthralling, as it gives a glimpse into the dark side of fame. Although he is a famous pop star that is adored by millions and living the kind of life that most people can only dream of, it's clear that he is uncomfortable with his lavish lifestyle. Not only does he feel trapped by the image that his label has created for him, as he is unhappy with the fact that his fame seems to center more on his looks than his actual music, he is also haunted by the recent murder of a fellow musician at the hands of an unhinged fan, which causes him a great deal of paranoia and stress. It is all too easy to look at glamorous photos of celebrities on the glossy pages of magazines and forget that they too, have their own insecurities and may be secretly battling demons of their own.

One aspect of this story that I did find to be problematic was the portrayal of fandoms. Pretty much every fangirl within the story was painted in a pretty unflattering light, and depicted as being extremely shallow.

I don't want to say much more about the story, and how it unwinds, but I will say that I was completely sitting on the edge of my seat the closer I got to the ending. THAT ENDING. I was completely blown away by the cliff-hanger to end all cliff-hangers, and I am now left very much anticipating the next book.

About: Follow Me Back is a young adult mystery written by A.V. Geiger. It will be published on 6/6/17 by Sourcebooks Fire, imprint of Sourcebooks, 368 pages. The genres are young adult, contemporary, and mystery. This is the author’s debut novel. Sourcebooks was founded in 1987 by Dominique Raccah and their mission is “to reach as many people as possible with books that will enlighten their lives” and is one of the largest independent publishers in North America. Please see below for more information about the author.

My Experience: I started reading Follow Me Back on 5/17/17 and finished it on 5/19/17. This book is suspenseful! Normally a book with too long of a suspense will lose my interest, but this book has other things going on that kept me turning the pages. The plot & characters are interesting to read. I haven’t read a book involving social media, music, and fangirling in awhile and this book offers a fresh and enjoyable read.

In this book, readers will follow Tessa Hart, an eighteen year old who stays all day and night in her room with the windows closed because she has severe anxiety called agoraphobia. This past summer, she attended a summer writing program in New Orleans but abruptly came back and couldn’t tell anyone what happened, even with her therapist Dr. Regan. Her only activity in her room is fangirling over Eric Thorne, a famous singer same age as her over Twitter. Her account @TessaHeartsEric has 30.1k follower is where she fangirl over the singer. Eric Thorne, on the other hand, is having issues of his own. He’s shaken up by the recent tragedy with another famous singer and an obsessed fangirl. He’s unhappy with where is career is going because the fans seems to love him with his shirt off instead. He feels suffocated by the fangirls. Eric couldn’t lash out at them with his twitter handle because it would ruin his career, so he created a fake account to vent. I love the ending. It sums up the two main character’s problem nicely.

This book starts out with investigation interviews, which reminds me of Illuminae. I enjoy reading how people met on Twitter and through this book, I finally know the meaning of DM! It’s interesting to follow Eric Thorne’s mind set about being a famous singer and how he deals with his fans. I like the concept of stalking, it’s uncomfortable to the extreme, yet, being a follower to a twitter, blogger, and instagramer is funnily enough that we are stalking someone’s interests for books. It’s also interesting to follow Tessa’s train of thoughts and learn how a fangirl truly is. I haven’t been a fan of anyone that obsessively yet. I really like Tessa in the end. She handles the situation really well. I recommend everyone to read this book if you are looking for an interesting mystery to read!

Pro: suspense, mystery, social media, fangirl, anxiety, page turner, fast paced, some humor, some romance

Con: none

I rate it 5 stars!

***Disclaimer: Many thanks to the author A.V. Geiger, publisher Sourcebooks, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review. Please assured that my opinions are honest.

xoxo,
Jasmine at www.howusefulitis.wordpress.com for a detailed review.

Something happened to Tessa that made her an agoraphobic; she hasn't left her house, more specifically her room, since she returned from New Orleans in June. She has limited access to the outside word and relies on her phone, Twitter, and Wattpad. Tessa feels safe in the anonymous worlds she writes with fanfiction about Eric Thorn.

Eric Thorn was thrown into the spotlight when he rocketed to the top of the music charts, gaining instant fame - and a lot of fans. Eric feels trapped by his recording contract and his fame. Since a fellow singer was murdered by a crazed fan, Eric has become fearful of his fans and bitter about the life he is forced to live.

Among his tons of fans, Eric connects with Tessa on Twitter. They both feel a connection with each other and look forward to their daily DM conversations. Meeting in real life is a risk for both of them, but is it one they should take?

Set in the present and the past, readers are given bits of the story as told by Tessa and Eric, their tweets and direct messages, and their police interviews. This fast-paced drama will attract those of the tech generation. While the terminology may become outdated as technology changes, this book will fly off of the shelves.

Follow Me Back was an enjoyable YA mystery with a jaw dropping cliffhanger ending.

While I went into this thinking it was told only through tweets, direct messages, and police transcripts it's not. It's mixed format. It ended up working really well. Of course, I'm a fan of epistolary novels and may be a tiny bit biased.

The best part of Follow Me Back was definitely, without a doubt, the ending. It totally threw me for a loop. I had to read it a second time myself just to make sure I wasn't imagining things. If you hate cliffhangers, you'll want to avoid this one until the next book is out as it's a big one.

Though Follow Me Back was a good book, it isn't without its flaws.

Because of time jumps, we don't see the relationship between Tessa and Eric develop. This, in my opinion, really hurts the book. In the beginning, there seems to be a lack of action. Seeing the buildup of their relationship would have greatly improved the book for me.

Secondly, it takes a very long time to find out what happened with Tessa that lead to her agoraphobia. Like, an almost ridiculous amount of time. It was disappointing and kind of frustrating that we had to wait so long to know what happened with Tessa. I feel like if we found out earlier, it would have built a better connection for readers to her as a character.

Follow Me Back was a page turner! If you're looking for a mildly thrilling YA mystery, this is the book for you.

I think one of the strengths of this book is the unique format. I liked the combination of narrative and tweets (and police interviews), and it kept the tension high. The pacing was pretty good, though I had a hard time connecting with Tessa. For me (personally), it took too long to reveal the reason why she was suffering from agoraphobia. I found Eric much more appealing and understandable. The ending is definitely a huge cliff-hanger, so those who don't like that might want to wait until the next book comes out. ;) All in all, it was a compelling read.

Well I'm not entirely sure how to feel about this book, to be honest. I liked parts of it a lot... But then there are other parts that I really didn't like that really kept me from enjoying this book more than I wanted to. With that also comes that I completely did not relate to the characters at all. Which is tragic, let's be honest.

To start off, I'd like to mention that I was not aware this was going to be a series when I started reading this book. So when I finished, that cliffhanger caught me completely off guard. It's also very unfair because what the hell? How can you end a book like that? WHAT IS EVEN GOING ON? But then... that was probably the point. If so, good job to the author. Your mission is accomplished. Now give me the sequel. Please and thank you.

So obviously the book succeeded in getting me hooked. Keeping me guessing. I LOVED the mystery aspect to the story and how it played out. And I loved the epistolary parts of the book. The police transcripts and tweets and DM's. I use Twitter daily so that was also VERY relatable to me. But with this also comes that someone that doesn't use twitter and reads this book, MIGHT be a tad lost? But I loved how the story was told and how the mystery aspect played out. I read this book in one sitting just because I needed to know what was going on. But then that last chapter happened and WHAT EVEN DUDE. WHY?

Ahem. So yes, that part I enjoyed tremendously. But... sadly I didn't really like the pacing a whole lot? Like... the interview transcripts were cool and I liked them... but they were often used to fast forward through time and move the story and the relationship between the MC's along. Which sucked because I didn't connect to the romance at all because of it. Though it didn't help that I generally didn't really connect to the MC's at all.

I get fandoms and being a fangirl, but I've never understood how some people can go so far in that. I'm not THAT much of a fangirl for anyone. So that didn't help me connect either. I did feel bad for Tessa and wanted to know what happened that she can't leave her room anymore. But in the end I felt like that part of her story was a bit... Well, near the end it felt like it got fixed sort of to get everything set up for that cliffhanger? Could be just me though. I also didn't really connect to Eric. I don't know why, but Tessa and Eric just didn't feel developed enough. Also, Tessa's mom is a classic absent parent. I don't even know what happened with her dad or where he is. He's never mentioned. But her mom makes an appearance once or twice and she wasn't very understanding so. Eric's parents are never even mentioned.

WHY can't I have more parents in YA? Seriously.

Overall I loved some parts of this book, but mostly I was a bit disappointed. I also went into this book assuming it would be a standalone so the cliffhanger threw me. But obviously I need the sequel now. I mean... I need to know what happens, okay?

Thank you to the author, A.V. Geiger, the publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, and Netgalley for the ARC of Follow Me Back.

After a traumatic event, Tessa finds herself unable to leave the confines of her home and room. Her phone is the only connection she has to the outside world, and soon she finds herself obsessed with the music of a YouTube artist turned mega-pop star, Eric Thorn. She follows his Twitter account, and becomes one of the more influential twitter fans who are monitored by other Eric Thorn-obsessed fans. She listens to her music to calm her nerves and help her heal from her trauma.

Eric Thorn despises his mega fans. Spooked by the murder of a recent pop star by a fan, Thorn wants nothing to do with his Twitter. His hand is forced by his record company and publicist to tweet every now and then, but her remains frightened of his fans. Angry and scared, he starts a Twitter account under the alias of "Taylor" in an attempt to talk his followers out of following him. He ends up starting with Tessa, and through private Twitter conversations he realizes she also struggles with different sorts of fears. He starts to see her as a person and not as a crazed super fan, and slowly falls in love with her as "Taylor."

Tessa, too, starts to have feelings for "Taylor," and he becomes a central part of her therapy, and an inspiration to get out of her home. But there is danger lurking outside it, which will keep readers on the edges of their seats.

The ending is really surprising, and I will probably pick up the next book in this series!

I don't think this book is for my demographic (a 37 year old mom!), but I enjoyed it. It was fluffy and fun, and I could see a young adult really enjoying this book, too.

This is one of those reads, which shoots off like a roller coaster ride and just when it seems to reach the last hill, places an explosion at the end.

After a horrid experience, Tessa is stuck in her room thanks to a severe case of agoraphobia. Her only escape is the world of social media where she fangirls the pop singer, Eric Thorn. With encouragement from her therapist, Tessa engages with other fans and winds up in contact with Taylor, a person who claims to despise the pop star. As time goes on, the two find their differences are actually similarities and grow closer to each other. But neither knows that the fears they have in common are about to be their demise.

Mix social media with fandom and marketing, and out comes a dangerous mix. At least, that's the path this tale twists around.

Both of the main characters are sympathetic and easy to get lost in. Despite her issues, Tessa has a pretty level head and a warm heart, making her a person to cheer for. Her agoraphobia does hit the extreme, and knowing a person or two with similar issues, I found her situation and how it was handled by the therapist a little off. Eric Thorn also comes across fairly level-headed, although he's presented as a pop-star who is stuck in a world he doesn't really want to be in. He fits the image of a 'please love me because I'm misunderstood' star and offers all which is needed for the perfect teen heartthrob. The normal teen drama of 'girl meets famous guy' is the stage, and it holds everything this type of story should, especially for the lower end of the YA group. But this isn't a sweet romance. It's dark. And tense. And it's exactly these unexpected chills and twists which bring this story to life.

Through the use of twitter DMs, the situation hits home and allows a shadow of uncertainty to hang like a ominous fog until the danger begins to emerge. The author does a good job of layering the secrets in the background, until they muddle enough to make it unclear where the danger is really coming from. Even at the end, when it is clear that things aren't right, every revelation comes with an unexpected twist.

And the end. . .well, that hits like a nuclear slam leaving tons of theories and possibilities of what happened or will happen next.

I received a complimentary copy through Netgalley and found the story packed with so many unexpected twists that I wanted to share my honest thoughts.

This book completely sucked me in and I read it in one sitting. This story is definitely a train ride to crazy town but in the best possible way. It's an eye-opening account of obsessive fans, social media trends, and how easy it is for the lines of reality to blur for some people. Tessa was absolutely crazy and towards the end I questioned her reliability as a narrator so I was completely thrown by the ending. WHAT??!!!! Did she kill him? Did he fake his death to escape the trappings of fame? I need Book 2 today please so that I can know what happens next. Excellent debut!!!

Follow Me Back is definitely a page turning romance-thriller for the modern age. Featuring a swoon worth pop-star and a relatable agoraphobic girl as protagonists, this novel grabs you from the very beginning and keeps you hooked. It's definitely not what I expected, but it kept me turning pages. I was imagining some sort of wattpad-esque fanfic story aimed at teenagers, but this novel can appeal to teens and above (more-so the "above category. I'm 19, and I loved this book.) The protagonist herself is an older teen, who should be starting college, so this book could arguably be categorized as New Adult. It didn't give into the cliches and tropes that can be found so often in YA rock star romance stories. Instead, it became its own refined and polished piece of work that kept me up literally all night (I'm writing this review at 4 AM, just moments after finishing) guessing about things that I don't want to spoil for you. Be warned though, that this book ends on a very unexpected (and potentially unnecessary) cliffhanger. I personally don't like it, but it sets up whatever might happen in the next book pretty well. I'll definitely be picking that one up whenever it comes out in the future.

All-in-all, I really enjoyed this book. It's a romantic thriller that I'm sure many people will enjoy. Fans of YA thrillers and wattpad-esque romance stories will love this. Give it a chance and buy it when it comes out!

*I received this book from the publisher via Netgalley. Thank you!*

I am disappointed to say I couldn't finish it.

I got to 30% which is further then I normal give a book, but I just couldn't!

The characters were just not that great, I couldn't connect with them. Maybe because my very best friend has Agoraphobia and this was not doing it justice.

I thank the publisher for approving me to read, but sadly I was hoping for more.

I'm not usually a fan of YA but I'm a sucker for a story told in transcripts, letters, diary entries, or in this case tweets and police interrogation reports.

I was hooked at the start and breezed through but the middle dragged and the ending was holy unsatisfying. Unfortunately I think the aspect that attracted me at first ultimately hurt the story in the end. There was no time to actually flesh out the characters. Tessa is a one dimensional teen fangirl and Eric is a one dimensional star heartthrob and they are both vapid and generally unlikable.

As for the ending... There is just so much unrealistic shit going down here. Seriously. Without spoilers there isn't much detail I can give but I will say her therapist is the WORST.

I did not go to Wattpad to read additional chapters not included in the book as this review is based on the galley I was provided.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I requested this book because it sounded fun and current, like a story ripped from the headlines. I read it in one day. Tessa and Eric, the main characters, were believable and pulled me in. Unexpected plot twists and quick pacing kept my attention. And while I picked this as a light read, it had depth. Both main characters are grappling with issues that make this more than a light-hearted read.

Follow Me Back, is entertaining. Pack it in your bag for vacation. And maybe pack a second book, because you'll fly through this one quicker than you expect.