Vantage Point is a tech thriller that explores the theme of deepfake technology (which is so terrifying tbh)

The plot follows Clara Wieland, a woman who’s part of one of the United States’ wealthiest and most powerful families. Oh, and her family is kinda cursed! Every single Wieland for generations has died a strange and tragic death, including her parents. In the middle of her brother Teddy’s political campaign to become senator, a revenge porn video of Clara comes out and becomes extremely viral. The thing is… she’s not completely sure that the girl in the video is actually her.

Throughout the story we follow Clara’s POV and we also follow her best friend and Teddy’s wife, Jess, as the deepfake videos keep coming out and creating tension between the three of them. I wouldn’t categorize this as a mystery thriller because the main characters (and we as the reader) sort of suspect what’s happening and who’s behind it pretty much the whole time. I would categorize this as a very suspenseful, very eerie family drama with tech elements that would be fun for John Marrs fans.

One thing I really loved about Vantage Point was the eating disorder representation, and how Clara felt so disconnected from her body due to her illness that she truly doesn’t know what she looks like (so real for that), and how that plays into the deepfake debacle. I thought that was so smart!

Definitely keep this one on your radar, it comes out January 2025!

Vantage Point is the kind of psychological thriller that made me feel truly anxious while reading it because the concept is so bizarre and disturbing, yet something that could plausibly actually happen at some point given advances in AI technology. I also felt incredibly anxious reading each characters' chapters as the events slowly unfolded and they confronted what they thought was reality. In addition I appreciated the chapters that provided backstory to who these characters are and what led to their current undoing.

The Wielands are an extremely wealthy family in Maine with a "curse" upon them, clearly inspired by the so-called "Kennedy Curse." Clara and Teddy are the sole survivors of their immediate family after their parents died in a tragic curse related accident 16 years prior (at least Clara believes in the curse, other characters dismiss it as coincidence) and Teddy is Clara's legal guardian despite them both being adults now. Without going into too much detail as it relates to the plot, Clara is in a conservatorship due to mental health issues. Teddy is also married to Clara's best friend Jess which puts strain on their friendship for reasons that are more than just platonic.

Teddy feels a calling to run for Senator representing Maine and their lives begin to unravel starting with a sex tape of Clara appearing online and Clara seeing disturbing and hyperrealistic visions. Then they all begin to question their reality as a variety of videos drop online exposing the Wielands as rich, out of touch assholes, and they see each other in real life doing a variety of out of character and cruel things which they don't actually remember doing.

This book has some cliches around class issues and the trope of a "poor woman" being rescued and given a "good life" by a rich man, however it isn't laid on too heavy, and despite their wealth, Clara and also Jess, are shown to be self aware about it enough to not be completely insufferable, especially Clara who was born rich as a Wieland. Some of Clara's choices were frustrating to read, but I understood that she was coming from a place of being treated like a child her entire life due to mental illness. I appreciated also how the book depicts that a man's "care" can also be a form of coercive control and that conservatorships are abusive no matter what anyone's intentions (this should be clear anyway for anyone who followed the Britney Spears case). This also applies to the institution of marriage and the power dynamics in a marriage with a man who is from a much wealthier social/economic class than the woman he marries.

Vantage Point is also fascinating in how it explores how AI and other forms of virtual reality can be used to psychologically torment people. This is magnified when a person being tormented is already regarded as unreliable and unstable. In real life AI is being used as a way to psychologically terrorize people with the rise of fake pornographic images being made of both celebrities and every day women who are targeted. Plenty of people believe AI images of anything are real despite various ways we currently have to know if something isn't an actual photograph. Even the keenest eye can be fooled no matter what and it's terrifying to think of what consequences there could be. Reading this book was horrifying in that it really laid bare how lives can be destroyed by deceptions like this.

I absolutely love thrillers that are slow burning, scary, and at times made me cringe (in a good way! I'd recommend this for fans of Yellowface by R.F. Kuang). This was a mystery that I absolutely did not want to put down. I also loved reading a mystery that wasn't a murder mystery. I definitely want to read Sara Sligar's first book, Take Me Apart, after reading this.

Many thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and to NetGalley for this ARC to review. This review is my honest opinion.

Thanks to Netgalley for a sneak peek at this book.
I am loathe to review it because I can't give it any better than 3 stars and that's even stretching it. There wasn't one person in this book who had any redeeming character traits or anything positive I could say about them.
The "mystery" aspect wasn't believable to me and I found bored more than anything.
I'm sure there are many who have a totally opposite opinion from me, but I won't be posting this review anyplace but here. Not on GoodReads, bookbub or amazon because I don't want the author's ratings to suffer.

Taking place on an island off Maine out story is centered around best friends, Jess and Clara. Jess marries Clara’s brother Teddy, and thus is thrown into the world of the wealthy and cursed Wieland family. Every Wieland has died a bizarre death in the month of April. While Teddy is running for senate, Clara’s sex tape is released online. Presumed to be deepfakes or a forgotten memory of Clara’s past, who is trying to destroy the Wieland family?

Fast paced, tech thriller that leaves you constantly wondering… what’s real? The characters are all very complex as we get narratives from both Clara and Jess. I really enjoyed this novel! I felt the end was a bit jumbled and predictable, however I still thought it was a great read.

I was not a fan of this book! I found the plot to be very confusing and I didn’t really love the direction that the storyline went. The characters were not likable and I did not have a great time reading unfortunately.

Interesting storyline. Holograms, cursed family, deepfake videos. A page - turning thriller with a lot going on.

Clara has struggled with an eating disorder and mental illness all her life. She is part of the Wieland family, an extremely wealthy and prominent name. Everyone knows the Wieland curse - many, many Wieland's have died in the month of April from tragic, sometimes freak accidents. Her brother, Teddy, is running for a political office. Embarrassing deepfake videos emerge of Clara, Teddy, and Teddy's wife Jess, causing Teddy's political career to be in turmoil. Not only that, but Clara is starting to see things. Clara swears she is seeing her dead parents and even caught them on videotape. No one believes her due to her mental illness, but is she right about everything?

It was an interesting concept for a book. I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would. I felt like the story was lacking and I needed more disturbing events. It was a bit slow for me. I felt like the characters were unlikeable and I couldn't relate to them. The story just didn't grab me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed 90% of this book. The Kennedy-esque curse, location, and characters were all extremely interesting and kept me reading for 4 days straight.

However, the last 10% of the novel had me rolling my eyes and sighing as the pages turned. The narrator breaking the fourth wall was extremely cringe as there was little sense that the narrator COULD be unreliable.

I found this enjoyable, but it didn't quite stick the landing for me.

Thank you, NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the opportunity to ready this book ahead of its release.

I enjoyed this very much. It's a very timely look at things coming up in the world as far as AI, deep fakes and social media. It's actually rather scary and complicated when you think of it. Anyone could put stuff out there that is not the truth, but the tools and processes they use make it look almost incontrovertible. You could give yourself an alibi when committing a crime - or you could make it look like someone else is guilty of a crime. It's definitely a story that makes you think!! And it sure makes one uncomfortable about the advances in technology. A perfect example of "just because you can, doesn't mean you should."

Many thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the ARC of this book! I thought that this was a really interesting read. The characters were mostly realistic, I liked the different perspectives/focus areas and found myself intrigued by the plot. It was a slow burn at the start but once I was in, I really enjoyed it!

I really enjoyed this book! The lives of Jess, Teddy, and Clara, was intriguing and drew me in! I will be looking for more books by Sara Sligar! Thanks again to @netgalley for this ARC! Definitely put this in your "to be read" list now!

Well, this is a unique and captivating tech thriller that focuses on deepfake technology and holograms, intertwined with a famous family curse that keeps your attention intact!

The story revolves around Clara Wieland and her best friend, who is also her sister-in-law, Jess. Clara and her brother Teddy grew up on a small island in Maine, part of a wealthy family with a tragic history. Each family member has died accidentally in April, a phenomenon known as the “Wieland Curse.”

The two siblings witnessed their parents’ deaths, growing up with guilt and trauma. Clara, in particular, suffers from an eating disorder and self-sabotaging behaviors. Thankfully, her best friend Jess, who is also Teddy’s wife, helps her gather the pieces of her shattered life. Clara even lands a leadership position in their family company, while her brother runs for the Senate, supported by his beautiful wife Jess, who is still adjusting to her new wealthy lifestyle after a past filled with abuse and poverty.

However, Clara's life is turned upside down when a sex video of her goes viral on the internet. Clara has no idea where the video came from or who is in it, leading to the suspicion of deepfake and hologram technology. Someone is targeting the family's reputation, but who? As they delve into the family's skeletons, what they uncover could ruin their entire lives.

The Wikipedia-style entries detailing the Wieland family curse and the creative ways the author describes the deaths of family members are absolutely mind-blowing. If these entries were published separately, I would give that book five stars!

There are many layers to this book beyond deepfakes and cyberbullying. It addresses slut-shaming, body shaming, political manipulation, and realistically approaches themes of traumatic loss, guilt, grief, self-sabotage, self-deprecation, eating disorders, and sociopathic tendencies.

The flashback scenes showing the blossoming friendship between Jess and Clara over the years are another highlight. These two polar opposite characters build a relationship on shaky ground, yet tragedy keeps them bonded. Their mutual envy for different reasons adds a love-hate-obsession dynamic to their friendship, making it even more intriguing.

The author skillfully juggles various topics without dropping any balls until the end. The characterization is strong, though one character's sudden turn into a villain felt exaggerated to me. It's noted that this character hid their true nature perfectly, but it's hard to believe they left no clues behind throughout their life.

The ending was questionable and disturbing, but if you ask whether I enjoyed the book, my answer is a resounding yes. It’s a well-executed premise!

Overall, the writing style is gripping, the characterization is well-developed, and the concept is unique. Despite some questions about drastic changes and far-fetched revelations, I enjoyed this intelligent mystery, earning it four tech thriller stars. I look forward to reading more works by Sara Sligar in the near future.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux / MCD for sharing this gripping tech mystery’s digital review copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

This is a very intriguing story. It is narrated by the 2 main female characters, Clara and Jess. There are other characters, of course. You learn about them from the narrators.
The plot revolves around deepfakes, videos and holograms. It shows how the most innocent comment or occurrence can be turned into a disaster.
I'm still not sure if I loved or hated the ending. I will say it was reasonably satisfying and most appropriate for the plot.
I would recommend this book to other readers.
TW: Eating Disorder
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC of Vantage Point
#NetGalley#FarrarStrausAndGiroux#MCD#VantagePoint#SaraSligar

Vantage Point was a wild ride. I loved the way it played with genre. The writing itself was beautiful.

This book was well written, but I feel like there was just too many subplots going on. Why was it so easy to find the bad guy? Why did the husband all of a sudden flip out? Everything just seemed to be sprinkled in without reason.

Did I like this book? Yes,
Was the plot interesting? Yes
The curse/wikipedia entries were excellent, as were the throwbacks into Jess and Clara’s pasts.
The technology described in the book seemed a bit reaching- I have never heard of perfectly opaque hologram projections…
Also, it’s definitely a case of unreliable narration which, if you somehow missed it on your own, the author spells it out for you in the final chapter. I found that unnecessary. Lots going on here - cool free ARC from NetGalley

This book was ok. I expected a bit more than was delivered. But, overall I would recommend giving it a try.

This book had me hooked from the first page! The whole idea of deepfakes, AI, cancel culture and technology fooling us is so timely and was executed very well in this book. I found myself feeling bad and rooting for every character, you could resonate with how they were each feeling. The biggest issue I have with it though was the ending, it just didn’t quite stick the landing for me. Without giving anything away it just felt rushed and unfulfilling. I was waiting for the big reveal to be something more than what it was. The ending fell flat for me, but otherwise I throughly enjoyed the book!

I enjoyed this terrifying romp through technology and our worst impulses. Almost as much fun as Sligar’s debut.

The vantage point :

Thank you to Netgalley, Farrar, Strauss & Giroux and the author for providing me the eARC of The vantage point.

Modern technology - a BOON or BAN??

A Vantage point is a position or place that allows one a wide or favourable overall view of a scene or situation which is ironically quite contrary to the circumstances the characters are currently facing.

Clara and Jess are bestfriend's since middle school despite their vastly different upbringings. This is their story over the years, detailing the doubts and setbacks they have faced both individually and together, and the looming family curse that threatens to disrupt their seemingly perfect lives.

Starting with the premise, it had everything I wanted: multiple POVs, mystery creating tension, a story set on a small island, a generational curse, and a fresh take on modern technology. The writing was good and immersive, but that's where the positives end. Despite these promising elements, the execution fell short. I had heard a lot about the author's previous book and was genuinely excited after getting the eARC, but my expectations were not met at all.

The mystery was well-crafted and kept me suspecting everyone, but the final reveal and the motive disrupted everything. The ending felt abrupt and off-putting to the point where it simply didn't make any sense.

The one two aspects I appreciated were the portrayal of human complexity woven throughout the story, prompting reflection. It highlighted how people are rarely content with what they have, often envying others who, in turn, envy them, believing everyone else leads a better life. And the portrayal of eating disorder.

CW: Death of a loved one, description of several accidents, social media harrassment, eating disorder and grief.

3.5 stars - Clara and Teddy Wieland were orphaned as teenagers and inherited their infamous family estate, "Vantage Point". The story mostly follows them as adults, but ping-pongs back to their childhoods and late-teen years to further explain the caveats of the sibling relationship. Over the course of the first few chapters, you learn (via "Wikipedia" entries) about the Wieland Curse and those who have fallen to it, which adds to the plotline and builds the story nicely and provides some dark humor.

While there are overarching themes about privacy, slut-shaming, classism, political optics, and deepfakes, the author stays very surface-level and doesn't delve too much into detail. The references make it feel current but glossed over, as if they're only being introduced to check off a buzzword.

As much as I enjoyed the writing, I had a very hard time completing this book. This is one of those instances where the first chapter of the book tells you the entire storyline, and then you spend the whole time looking for other ways it could end differently.

Thank you to NetGalley, and Farrar, Strauss & Giroux for the advance copy!