#ThisisnottheJessShow
#NetGalley
#Edelweiss
A light sci-fi book that is set in a small town with strange behaviors and has a cute, sweet plot line.

When a device falls out of one of her best friends backpack Jess has no idea what it is. What she does know is that her friends are keeping a secret from her. Jess has no clue what impact that secret will have on her life.



THIS IS NOT THE JESS SHOW was an interesting read for me. I liked the characters. I didn't find Jess overly whiny as so many teens tend to be in books. Also once Jess found out the big secret she didn't stick around and play the victim or allow people to manipulate her. She took charge of her life and did something to change it. I liked that about her character.



I haven't read a young adult book in awhile so I was a bit put out with the foul language in the book. At the risk of becoming too preachy I'll just say this, I don't think that it was necessary to the story line.



An entertaining story line, with likable characters.

This was so much fun! A soapy 90s teen drama mixed with light sci-fi and a touch of a cute romance meant I couldn't help but read almost this entire story in one sitting.

Jess as a main character was so sweet and endearing, but still smart enough to stand up for herself when she needed to. Her family was so frustrating in the choices they made, but her sister Sara was an adorable light in their messed up family. I do wish we had gotten more time with some of the side characters like Kristen, Amber, and Tyler. They all played interesting roles in the story, but we didn't get to know them that well (which I think was intentional), and I really would've liked to have known their secrets and intentions.

This book is really similar in its basic plot to a 1998 movie, but I can't say which one without spoiling the plot twist (<spoiler> it's The Truman Show </spoiler>), but I really liked the spin Carey put on it. The world in this book was touched on only a little, and while we got answers to the major questions, I still have so many! I'm definitely excited for the sequel.
This book also has so much nostalgia for people who grew up in the 90s. I was only 7 in 1998, but I still loved the beginning scenes of the book because they felt so genuinely 90s. I think Carey did a good job with including pop culture references from the 90s organically-they didn't feel forced or gimmicky to me. The mention of the trendy but super uncomfortable inflatable armchair was one of my favorites.

Overall I'd definitely recommend this one! It's a super fun ride that you can lose yourself in for a day.

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my copy of this book in exchange for my review!*

This Is Not The Jess Show is a different kind of story. At first Jess and her family appear to be a normal small town people. They live in a small town and everyone seems to know everyone, but do they really? As life continues on Jess begins to notice strange behavior within her family...even her dog is acting weird. Soon Jess begins to see how things really are, but is this real? Jess starts to investigate and what she finds sends her running for her life. Will she escape to safety? Read This Is The Jess Show and find out for yourself!

Jess doesn't know, but she's about to find out. It is 1998 and 17 year old Jess is thinking about college and getting out of her town, but she's also crushing on her best friend and hanging with her sister who is homebound from an illness. But things start to get a bit strange - are those voices Jess is hearing? What secrets are her best friends hiding? And is her sister really dying? Who can Jess trust as she starts to see through the facade and sets off on an adventure with a person she had been trying to avoid. 90's kids will love the nostalgia and everyone can appreciate the moment when things become clear and you understand a bit more about your world.

Let me begin by saying that the whole premise of this book is a massive irrational fear of mine: that my reality isn't real. I knew that going in and decided to read it anyway. And for me, it was a thriller novel because of that fear, but to others it'll probably just be an action novel.
I loved the story, and I really love the 90's (which was the decade I grew up in). That being said, there were parts of the book that felt shallow. Jess gets told the truth about her reality and immediately accepts it. In fact, she hardly seems bothered by what she's been told. Yes, she immediately tries to escape, but she doesn't really get hit with the gravity of what she's been put through, at her expense. There are a lot of descriptions of random things, and for a first-person perspective, I wished the novel would tell me what Jess is feeling, not so much what she is seeing. Without giving too much away, Jess is introduced to things that are brand new to her, life-changing, and all we get as a reader is her describing what it looks like, not what it feels like. Also, I thought the ending was a little dry and rushed, and ended really abruptly.
The majority of the novel, though, I adored, and I can't wait to put this on my shelves in August for my students!

WOW.

Wow wow wow wow wow.

I apparently missed that this is a duology, so it was a bit of a surprise when I got to the end and realized it wasn't over.

But like.... such a great story! I love Jess, and the world building is PHENOMENAL and I can't wait to read more!!!

Full review to come as we get closer to the publication date, since I read this super early (like, the second I got it early).

But jsyk, this isn't a "round it up" 5 stars or a "someone will love this book even if it isn't me" 5 stars- it's a "holy cow I can't believe that was such an AMAZING story!!!" 5 stars. And I'm already looking forward to rereading it before I read the sequel. And possibly before then.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinion was not affected by the free copy.

I requested this book because it sounded like a variation of The Truman Show, one of my favorite Jim Carrey movies. This, I think, did a little better with the idea since Jess's narrative allowed the reader to know exactly what she was thinking and feeling as the truth was revealed to her. I also admit I really liked all the 90's throwbacks going on; using that nostalgia was pretty genius on the author's part.

This would be a pretty good book for discussion because I can honestly see this sort of reality TV show popping up in the future. We've already had shows that follow people's lives. While I was reading, I kept waiting for certain things to be revealed as still being part of the show. I don't want to explain what I mean for spoiler reasons, but with all the manipulation Jess endured most of her life, I couldn't help but be suspicious of everything. I didn't particularly like one part of the setting. It felt a little inconsistent, and unbelievable when certain events happened. I was remembering when something similar happened in another book I read, and there was a much more widespread reaction and actions being taken. The Truman Show did better at that particular plot point as well, I think.

I won't complain too much about the editing since this is an ARC, but that editor needs to make sure things are spaced out properly in the final copy. I also hope that text is different fonts or something, because there were times when captions were being quoted and I couldn't always tell where that started and Jess's narrative took over. Also, this one's super nit-picky, but Jess was confused by the word "device". Like someone was talking about a device and she was all "What's that?" even though "device" is an extremely common word. I know that's a small thing, but it bugged me so much.

I'll only touch briefly on the romance. Because of course there still has to be a romance, for some reason. I honestly feel like it was unnecessary and the book would've been fine without it, but I guess it wasn't terrible. It was paced nicely enough-- no instalove or anything like that.

Overall, it was an enjoyable. It'll definitely be great for discussion, and maybe make us take a closer look at where reality TV shows are going.

This compelling book was impossible to put down and left me fascinated and drawn in until the very end. Jess is living an average life in the 1998 in her small suburban town. She is grappling with her sister being in hospice which makes her even more on edge. One day, one of her best friends drops something out of her bag: an iPhone. From there, her life begins to spiral out of a control as finds out nothing is as it seems.

I read this book in one setting. I was fascinated with all the hints that were dropped in the beginning. Once more of the plot was revealed, I kept wanting to see what would happen next. I got very invested in both the world and the characters. I highly recommend this book.

This went from weird to slightly frightening to downright disturbing in the best possible way. Try to avoid reviews though - finding out is half the fun.