Received a digital ARC of this book via NetGalley.

Not sure why it took me so long to pick this one up. When I saw there was a sequel coming, I immediately dived in so I could read book 2 right after.

This is like the movie “The Truman Show” but book-form and for young adults. It gives you a visual for how it was like before and after had this happened to Truman during his youth and if he was a girl.

I loved the 90s vibe. Not gonna lie I probably would have watched “Stuck in the 90s” if this had been a real show.

Not what I was expecting, and unfortunately just wasn't for me. I don't see this being particularly successful in our collection, so will probably pass.

Spoilers Ahead!
This was an interesting premise and reminiscent of The Truman Show. The book is set in 1998 in a small town. It follows Jess Flynn who has lived her whole life in Swickley with her family. One day her friend drops a mysterious item out of her backpack. An item with an apple logo on it. When her friend acts weird about it and refuses to answer any questions, it causes Jess to start questioning more about her life. She starts noticing lots of weird things around her, such as someone replacing her dog with a look alike. When Jess gets her best friend and crush, Tyler to tell her what’s really going on it turns her whole world upside down.

This book had lots of plot twists. I liked the book, but overall I felt like I had more questions than answers. There is a sequel planned so hopefully that will answer some things as the ending of this book left me disappointed. In this book we didn’t get closure for Jess with her parents. It’s an interesting read but just felt like I needed more. I will say it was well written and the characters felt believable.

I was originally drawn to this book because of its quirky title and intriguing front cover. Reading the blurb also drew me in and I was really grateful to be approved for this title.

I definitely have mixed thoughts on this title. I loved the concept (no spoilers) and I did not see the twist coming. I also really liked Jess as a character but I think there was a lot left unanswered. I would have liked a little more depth in character development and maybe a slower pace. At points I struggled to keep up with the various events. Overall it wasn’t a bad read but I’m not sure I’ll stick around for the sequel.

I didn't know too much about this book going into it - I really just knew it was set in the 90s. The twist this took was so cool and I really enjoyed it. I think I've found a new favourite.. genre?

This had such an interested concept, but the execution was just not there. It needed to be fleshed out a little more.

When you’re a teenager, every decision, every argument, every challenge seems so important. It sometimes seems like the entire world revolves around the choices you’re struggling to make. And that’s certainly the case for the conflicted teen in author Anna Carey’s This Is Not the Jess Show...

Full review published on NightsAndWeekends.com and aired on Shelf Discovery

I went into this book expecting a YA version of 'The Truman Show', and I was not disappointed. I've been in a slump for a couple of months and this is the first time this year I've truly devoured a story, excited to see how it ends, sleep be damned. I will say, though, that the premise did most of the heavy lifting. The story needed at least a couple hundred more pages of action, tension and world-building to truly live up to its potential, at least in my opinion. I did really like both main characters, so I'll be looking out for the sequel, and I'm hoping it will have a bit more substance that this one.

I just finished this book right before writing this review. I requested this book because it was labeled as a thriller. I usually don’t enjoy reading 90’s books, I grew up in the 90’s and personally don’t see the appeal.but I figured hey it’s a thriller let’s try it. This. Is. Not. A. Thriller. My lord. Yes, it is very unsettling but honestly I feel like the story was more child abuse than anything. I felt so bad for Jess and I’m very glad things turned out the way they did for her.

found this a really fun and enjoyable story but with some much darker underline themes being explored. This book appealed to me immediately when I read it was set in the 90’s. I was born in the mid 80’s and grew up in the 90’s so I always feel a huge amount of nostalgia with anything involving this period. This book really touched my 90’s loving heart. It was steeped with pop culture references and it was so much fun being transported back to this time period, I couldn’t help but smile whilst reading.

Hilarious, brilliant, thrilling!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my feedback.

This was a really unique YA book! I don't want to write too much here, for fear of spoiling people, but I will write that it was well written, with a nice twist. Overall, if you think it sounds interesting, I would recommend trying it!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

Jess Flynn lives a relatively normal life: she's a junior in high school, has a mom with a thriving interior decorating business, she recently realized her best guy friend has actually turned in to her #1 crush, and her two best friends are always there for her. Until they really aren't. Jess keeps having a gnawing feeling that something is 'off' with her two best friends: she can never spend the night at their houses, sometimes she intercepts weird looks exchanged between the two of them before the subject is abruptly changed. Jess begins to notice other things that don't quite makes sense either: her father is sinking further and further into himself, he seldom talks or engages with her, her sister is getting sicker and sicker, in fact the entire town has mysteriously become ridden with the flu, and she keeps hearing weird chanting voices. Jess eventually finds out her entire world is a movie set and she is the only who doesn't know.

I enjoyed this book; as someone who lived through 90s pop culture, I could relate to a lot of the cultural references of that time period. It was horrifying to see the future portrayed in a way that the masses of people thought that exploiting a life for entertainment and show was okay, and it was great fun that the star of the show was unaware her everyday life was viewed by the entire world. The digital age we live in has diminished personal privacy and social media has allowed everyone to live life on a stage, but I would hope that the morals of the world would not sink so low as to make the plot of this book "cool" or acceptable. Good "food for thought" book.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy of this book. I was super excited for this book because of the cover and description, I was a little let down by the execution. I would recommend it tho

I liked the '90s "setting' but didn't find that it reflected my own '90s childhood so maybe I shouldn't have been surprised to find it was all literally a show? Its just about the same plot as the Truman Show except they plan to tell her what is actually going on. Quirky premise but it works, probably better if you don't remember the 1990s or the Truman Show however.

If this is really how the world functions in 2037, we are all in a LOT of trouble.

Reality TV based books aren’t my favorite, but I hoped for more from this one because the premise is somewhat different from most. It delivered in some ways and fell short in others.

The basic plot feels a little gross for a “light” read (how is this not child abuse? How?) and there are a lot of pieces to the story that don’t really add up all that well.

But some of it is really clever, and Jess is certainly likable enough to keep you rooting for her. All the 90s pop culture nostalgia is fun and mostly correct (though I’m not sure anyone was still wearing a flannel tied around their waist in the late 90s).

There are some good twists involving an iPhone and some fun manipulation of time, or at least what Jess and we, the reader think the timing is at first.

I enjoyed it enough to read the follow-up when it comes, though the early portion of the book (when we’re as much in the dark as Jess is) is more fun than the latter half after the jig is up.

What a BOOK!

I found it started off a little slow for me, and was hard to get into but once I kept going I really started to enjoy this rollercoaster of a book!

Being a child of the 90's this book brings back so many memories, dragging the reader back to that decade. It was such a fun, original novel. It had me guessing right up the very end! I did not know what was happening. and when I got to the final pages I just wanted more! I'm excited to see it seems to be getting a sequal!

I was initially excited to read this book for the "Truman Show" like plot and, while it did deliver in that aspect, I found some parts of the plot fell a little short for me. In this novel, we follow Jess, a typical teen in the 1990s, living an average life. She has a good group of friends, a normal family and a crush on her childhood best friend. Things start to turn upside when a strange object falls out of her friend's backpack one day and no one can explain what it was. The people around all start acting weird and Jess gets the feeling that her small town may not be exactly as it seems.

This book falls in the same vein as "The Truman Show" and I really enjoyed that aspect of it. Seeing Jess slowly figure out was happening and seeing her world expand was really interesting to read about. I also, as a 90s kid myself, enjoyed all the 90s references (although it hurt me a little to hear it referred to as retro). But I wish we had stayed in that part of the book a little longer. I was really into the pacing and story progression at the beginning, but I think the second half lost me. Some of the plot points were a little too convenient and things just seemed to be happening without much explanation. I also wish there was maybe one more chapter to help wrap the story up better.

Characterwise, I didn't really connect with any of the characters. I felt that we got to know Jess, but most of the other characters we only learned about at a surface level. To some extent, that was the point of some of these characters, but the more major ones (like Kips or Sarah), I felt we could have learned more about who they were both in and out of the set. I also didn't love the romance in this book, as it did develop super quickly.

Overall, this was an easy and entertaining read full of 90s nostalgia.

Honestly surprised I'm not seeing more negative feedback on this book. This review will have spoilers on the "twist" but not the later action or ending.
Concept - basically Truman Show for teens plus 90s nostalgia - very very cool. The actual book though makes little to no sense and has awful pacing. Basically a slow YA contemporary set in the 90s for the first quarter of the book. Then like one chapter where the main character suddenly figures out what's happening and then the rest of the book is a chase scene mixed with info dumps. Lots of things that were either never explained or actively make no sense. I hear there will be a sequel and I am furious.

Jess Flynn had a normal life in a small town. But as her 18th birthday is nearing, she may find out truths about her life that many would rather leave hidden. This is Not the Jess Sow is the modern day Truman Show but takes the story a little further than the movie did. Jess is a relatable character and goes through several transformations throughout the book. But her reaction to finding out her life is all staged is a little underwhelming and takes it in a far to understanding stride. Even with the " death" not death of her sister, Through some of the biggest climaxes Jess does not seem to display the emotions that would follow. She has to come to terms with a life that was not her own and not really of her making either. As she struggles to understand her parents and friends, she grows a relationship with Kipps; the shows romantic lead. Kipps really did save the plot and gave Jess a focal point to focus on. He really does bring the reality and humor to the book. While the premise is interesting and did push the story forward, the lack of backstory to the secondary characters really did make Jess and the plot superficial.