I didn’t hate it but it was a drag at some times. I felt bad for Tash bc her sister and her mother were bad but her best friend was worse. She was socially unaware at best, but she wasn’t fundamentally a bad person. Her friend made it seem like she was an idiot

Delightfully nasty and self destructive. An excellent entry into the canon of unstable unhappy female characters. It’s a pretty quick read too.

*Clickbait* had an intriguing premise that initially caught my attention, but ultimately, it didn’t deliver the way I had hoped. The story follows Natasha, a journalist who faces the fallout of a major professional blunder and finds herself stuck in a clickbait job, which sounded like it could lead to some compelling commentary on the media landscape and personal redemption.

While I appreciated the potential for humor and insight, I found that the narrative sometimes felt disjointed, leaving me wanting more depth in both the characters and the situations they faced. Natasha’s journey could have been an exploration of resilience and self-discovery, but I felt it often fell flat, missing opportunities to really dive into the emotional complexities of her experiences.

The interactions with her ex-boyfriend Zach hinted at an interesting dynamic, but they didn’t quite come together in a satisfying way. Overall, *Clickbait* had moments of promise, yet it ultimately left me feeling like something was lacking. I think there are readers who might find enjoyment in this story, but for me, it didn’t quite hit the mark.

Natasha is an unlikeable character; she's pretty awful and not in a fun-to-read-about way. She has some serious issues that were glossed over and not taken seriously enough. If a story doesn't have a strong plot, then I really need to see some great character development, and again, that aspect was lacking for me. I enjoyed the sarcastic humour and found her job as a journalist who writes riveting clickbait articles.

This was a fun time! For anybody who loves a messy depressy, slightly unhinged, and very obsessed millennial....give this one a go! You won't be disappointed.

*Clickbait* is a sharp and insightful exploration of the modern media landscape through the eyes of Natasha, a once-promising journalist whose career takes a nosedive after a major ethical breach. Now stuck in a clickbait job, Natasha grapples with the realities of her professional failure and personal disappointments, including a hasty move to a less-than-charming apartment in Rockaway Beach. The narrative takes a captivating turn when her old flame, Zach, reenters her life, sparking a mix of nostalgia and unfulfilled longing. Readers will appreciate the blend of humor and poignancy as Natasha navigates her obsession with Zach while grappling with the absurdities of "churnalism" and the pressures of a sensationalized media world. This novel will resonate with anyone who has faced setbacks and is searching for redemption, making it a relatable and engaging read about love, ambition, and the quest for integrity in a chaotic world.

I had a lot of trouble connecting with this story, but it was well written and I think the right reader would really enjoy it. Unfortunately, the characters didn't resonate with me. I can typically handle when the plot doesn't move forward much, and there aren't a lot of events, but this time it didn't work for me.

I wish I liked this book more than I did.... while the premise certainly is interesting enough and holds plenty of potential, I just felt like not much happened for all of the kerfuffle we had to go through?? Which... "Not Much Happens™" is normally something/a "trope" (so to speak) that I can readily accept/excuse/welcome in my reads, but this time it just felt flat and was ultimately a slog for me to get through. While this read unfortunately missed the mark for me, I do think the author has so much room to grow, so I will definitely still keep an eye out for any of her future works in order to give her a shot again!

1.5⭐️
natasha is a disgraced, newly divorced journalist who has been demoted to writing clickbait articles. natasha is also one of the worst, most unlikeable characters i’ve ever encountered. i don’t mind a flawed main character, but she has absolutely zero redeemable qualities. beyond that, this book has so many plot lines that just come and go with no resolution and so many moments that made me physically cringe. i was, unfortunately, extremely disappointed with this!

cw: substance abuse, sexual assault, suicide

thanks to harper perennial and netgalley for my copy of clickbait by holly baxter. all opinions are my own.

Such a great book and super funny. I could relate to the FMC in the best and the worst ways and was laughing quite a bit! Cant wait to read more from this author.

ClickBait by Holly Baxter

Is it possible to like a book if you dislike the main character? That is the struggle with this review. I feel like I must have liked the book because I finished it. It’s almost like that guilty pleasure that you don’t want to admit to. Like watching a train wreck or any of the Housewives of somewhere.

Natasha has blown up her life. She was a journalist, married and had just moved to London. Now she is back living in NYC, separated and demoted to creating headlines for clickbait stories for her newspaper. It is impossible to feel sorry for her as her downfall was of her own creation and completely inappropriate, although I don’t agree with the predatory commentary.

A narcissistic personality disorder is defined as a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, sense of superiority in fantasy or behaviour, need for admiration and lack of empathy. That is Natasha in a nutshell. The book evolves around her very active fantasy world in which she is the saviour, dying, or the object of love; regardless the theme is the same - she is admired and beloved by all, everyone admits how she has been wronged etc. etc. The other characters in the novel are simply created to show off her complete self absorption and lack of empathy or even interest in anyone else. There is no resolution and Natasha doesn’t gain insight.

If you have an interest in the inner thoughts of a narcissist or you love train wrecks then you may enjoy this book.

CLICKBAIT by Holly Baxter is a sharp and comical debut about a woman trying to get her life back on track after a huge workplace scandal, which makes her husband file for divorce. I’m going to straight up tell you that I was NOT a big fan of the female protagonist, Natasha one bit. Okay, fine…I’ll be completely honest—I hated her! She’s not very likable or relatable, is super annoying, totally cringy, and incredibly immature for her 35 years. She’s a bit of a trainwreck, really. I can’t even tell you how many times I screamed, “OMG, NO! Just stop! Don’t do it!” I was constantly shaking my head and pulling my hair out. This just proves to me that Baxter is a great writer. If the author gives me an obnoxious main character, and I can still vibe with the story, then they’re definitely doing something right.

READ THIS IF YOU ENJOY:

- Media and tabloids
- Dark and witty humor
- Flawed/unlikable characters
- Queens, NY setting
- Starting over stories
- Marriage and divorce
- Sisterhood and sibling rivalry
- Complex mother-daughter relationships
- Character-driven novels
- Slow-paced plots

I especially enjoyed the insight on the dark side of the media that this novel provides. I found it quite fascinating and truly shocking. I couldn’t believe the lines that people would cross and overlook just to get a few clicks.

If you enjoyed novels like GHOSTS by Dolly Alderton, WORRY by Alexandra Tanner, or REALLY GOOD, ACTUALLY by Monica Heisey, then I think you’ll dig this one as well.

CLICKBAIT is available now, and it gets 4/5 stars from me!

I’m so conflicted because the plot and premise is so good but Nat the main character is SO unlikable that you like her but don’t? I love an unreliable MC but geeeeeeeze I’ve never wanted to reach throw my kindle and slap one. That being said I enjoyed it

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗱:
- Writing style. Holly Baxter has a very easy to read, light style of writing.
- Depth of character. I’m separating this into two because there’s portions of the character I don’t like. But Baxter gives you a deep look into Natasha, her main character.
- Unlikeable/unreliable narrator. It’s first person from Natasha’s point of view, but she is not a good apple. She’s a predator and she keeps trying to prey on the vulnerable.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
- Natasha. I don’t think we are supposed to like Natasha. And I didn’t. She is very Moshfegh-esque. At the same time, she doesn’t grow. At all.
- Very online references. You can tell this book will be dated in a very short period of time. There is a Pete Davidson reference and a lot of the arguments are extremely “online.” This book doesn’t feel like it will have a lot of staying power.
- Plot. Not really positive anything happened in this book. I really didn’t care about the big climax at all.

𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁:
𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘣𝘢𝘪𝘵 is okay. It was paced well enough that I couldn’t put it down. At the same time, nothing really happens. It doesn’t seem like it has staying power. Not sure I would recommend. Again. It’s just okay.

I’m torn with this one. Natasha is pretty much a miserable person. She would have lost her job in real life and would have deserved it. What she has done is so stupid and so obviously wrong I can’t feel badly for her. She was terrible to her London friend. She’s not great to her New York friend. She is clueless as to Zach. And so her family isn’t perfect? Get in line, sister! Plus, it sounds like her rich mother paid for her college, so she doesn’t have student debt to worry about on top of everything else. My God, she is a whiny bitch.

Honestly hated the main character but it made me love the book. I also think I have one specific friend that she reminded me of which I know sounds bad but it is what it is.

3.75 stars

I really don't know how to rate this because I had a great time reading it and loved Natasha's voice, but I'm not altogether sure what the point of the story was. That may have been intentional since the FMC is kind of having a quarter-life crisis, but I digress. Natasha is 35 and just moved back to New York after being demoted from her reporting job in London and separating from her husband. She was at the center of a highly public scandal, and is now stuck writing clickbait tabloid articles and living alone in a drafty apartment in the Rockaways. Her only friend after the scandal just had a baby, and Natasha feels like her life is a joke she can't figure out the punchline to. When her ex needs a place to stay, Natasha jumps to volunteer her spare room. To him, it's a platonic roommate situation, but she grows more and more obsessed with the idea of him and a future together.

Natasha is totally delusional and unhinged, and kind of the worst, but she really cracked me up---it's been a while since I've read an inner monologue like hers that wasn't in a horror book, and while I can see it being divisive, I had a great time. I can appreciate a character who defined themselves by their career struggling in the aftermath of losing it. This was a very character-driven book, though, not much happened plot-wise, so if you don't like unlikeable narrators then this probably won't be for you. I'll definitely check out the author's future work, though, because I really enjoyed the writing. Thanks to NetGalley, Harper Perennial, and the author for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I have not disliked a main character in so long. So selfish and delusional. I kept hoping there would be more of a character arc for her as she redeems herself after this fall but alas.

I was so excited to read this one based on the plot description and comparisons to Dolly Alderton, but unfortunately, it didn't totally work for me. I thought the writing was great, but couldn't connect to the main character, and struggled to get into the story at times. However, I'm giving it 3 stars here because I do think it will really resonate with a specific audience! And I'd still be interested to see what the author writes next. Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for the ARC.

I was so excited about this book - I am so interested in stories that include social media and internet culture and explore them. And I absolutely believe that Baxter is a strong writer, but I just did not enjoy this book. I could not find an ounce of empathy for the main character, so I found her humor to be grating and her choices to be frustrating throughout the story.

However, I don't think this is an issue of the book being bad, I think the book and I are just not a match. Because of this, I'm going to leave a3 star review here, but I don't plan to post about this book elsewhere because I don't want to dissuade people who might be the right reader for it.