The entire book is a fast paced, intense ride that had me hooked the entire time. To me, this book was a perfect blend of Dexter, You, and Heathers and i highly recommend Influencer to anyone looking for a good thriller. At times a little over the top but let’s face it, social media is life to some these days.

My students are always clamoring for new thrillers. This one breaks away from the predictable (if fun) traditional YA thrillers & I think they will be here for this text. I was not a fan of the gore—that’s not my thing—but the kids? Some of the kids live for that. I need to read the Clown in a Cornfield series now… well, maybe when it’s light & bright outside!

Gross and gory and very teenage. Definitely was too old for this book because I felt ancient and anxious reading about these teens behavior.

This was a fun horror story, it definitely got under my skin. It's also something that feels...horrifyingly possible in today's social media driven society,

thank you netgalley & the publisher for this advanced reader copy.

Boy was the book something! I’m a big fan of Cesare’s other books and I was really looking forward to this!
The violence definitely still help in this one and im honestly shocked that this is consider young adult. There are some horrifying things that happen in this book that I personally wouldn’t want my young adult children to read but reading it as an adult provided a lot of entertainment!

Be warned going into this there’s definitely some triggering content, some that I personally had to skip over.

There’s a lot of entertaining things in this book, but I don’t think it’s going to be for everyone. I think there’s definitely flaws with this one but overall fun!

Such a good horror per usual by Adam Cesare. The way he writes is so detailed and engaging. It truly creates a picture in your mind. The way he weaves deeper meanings, such as social media, is so good.

Expertly written, compelling, and creepy. Some of the animal cruelty--while accurate--might be a little too much for some of my kiddos who are contemplating this kind of activity.

A YA slasher? Yes, please, sign me up. I was not disappointed at all in this fun, tense, unhinged thriller/slasher. Can't wait to read more from Cesare!

Thank you NetGalley, Union Square & Co., and Adam Cesare for the early access copy of Influencer.

Influencer is a dual point-of-view horror novel that follows a teen psychopath with cult leader qualities that uses his charisma and the popularity of social media to influence his classmates. The other point of view is a teen who sees through the antagonist's charismatic facade and is at risk because of it.

The prologue of the book sets the tone for the gruesome nature that will follow. The story will hook horror fans with interest in gruesome descriptions and psychopathic mindsets. This was an eerie read that is geared for an older YA audience. The novel contains trigger warnings with graphic scenes, animal death, and violence.

Thank you to NetGalley and Union Square & Co for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. As will most young adult novels, a bit of suspension of belief is required to fully immerse yourself in the story and I would say this one is no different. It can seem far fetched at times but to me that is part of the fun. I took this one camping with me and it was the perfect read isolated from society and away from social media. The kids in the novel feel like kids, flaws and all, which is hard to do but something Cesare does flawlessly. Aaron had a bit of a Joe Goldberg feel to him being both downright despicable and yet charming and funny at times. I think every teen girl who went to high school had a bit of Crystal’s insecurity in them and her character was a fantastic counterbalance to Aaron. The plot had a bit of mystery to it which I appreciated and kept an intense pace from the very beginning. The prologue hooked me in and I enjoyed the firecracker bang of an ending. This one has trigger warnings in the front but it is a young adult novel and I do think it is appropriate for younger teens looking for a disturbing thriller.

If you thought Clown in a Cornfield was wild ride, then Influencer is going to rock your world in every way possible.

First, as I haven't seen many reviews of Influencer that have content warnings, I want to give people a heads-up about sexual violence and animal deaths. If you're sensitive to either of those subjects, then you may want to skip this one.

Synopsis: Influencer centers an endlessly charismatic teen boy named Aaron, who moves to a small town with his parents in the middle of his senior year of high school. Aaron has all the trappings of a "cool kid" that everyone wants to be friends with, but Crystal isn't buying what Aaron is selling. She can tell that something is off, and tries - and fails - to warn her friends.

And that's where the mayhem begins. Crystal's intuition about who Aaron really is spot-on, and Aaron can't allow her warning to her friends to go unpunished.


Review: This one was a rough read, and I am someone who enjoys splatterpunk and extreme horror. Maybe it's because Aaron isn't the typical spook you find in horror novels. He's much worse than any ghost, monster, or demon, because he's human.

Also, the prose left a little to be desire. There was too much exposition, and a rush to get to the next point in the story. There wasn't any of the "finesse" that was in Clown in a Cornfield.

Overall, it's not a bad read, and if a dizzying horror story about deliciously psychotic teenager is up your alley, then you'll enjoy this one.

This book was so good. I always love Adam Cesare reads since his debut with Clown on the Cornfield. This book made me love the killer of the book so much. Plus the cover is pretty. I liked how it was written and the crazy storyline. Looking forward to more of Adam work.

Based on the audiobook original story, this is an expanded version of that fact-paced YA psychological thriller that plays on the overwhelming popularity of social media in teens lives tied up with a murderous psychopath. My first by this author, I really enjoyed it and couldn't put it down. A great spooky season horror thriller! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

This one was so fun! I've been wanting to read one of Cesare's books for a while so I was happy to get this digital review copy.

This book definitely does not read like a young adult story. I felt myself cringing so many times (that's a compliment).

I love books about the scary side of social media and Cesare did not disappoint. I liked the references to some known true crime legends thrown in as well. It definitely helped paint the picture of just how unhinged some of these characters actually were. There was also a huge amount of sincere teen feelings and demonstrations of the things that kids may do for their friends but also for their reputation.

Having been a fan of Adam Cesare since we first were introduced to Frendo in Kettle Springs, I was excited to be approved for this ARC of his newest book. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

This book, set on Long Island, is Cesare’s most psychological yet. It shows the impact the obsession with social media can have on the youth, how a hive mind mentality and blindly following someone can lead to all kinds of chaos. You never know who is truly the person on the other side of an Instagram stream.

One hiccup I had with the book was the sheer unlikability of the antagonist, Aaron. Maybe Cesare meant to make him that much of a tool, but god there was never any liking the guy. The same can be true for the protagonist, Crystal. She just isn’t someone I wanted to root for. The only likable character was Trevor who struggles with his own identity and trying to protect his friends from the beginning.

Overall, this book was a great read. The plot lines were solid and I couldn’t put it down. I wish the ending wasn’t so abrupt though. It reached the climax and then immediately went into an epilogue. But this was definitely one of Cesare’s best.

It was not nearly as good as Clown in a Cornfield. I hope teenagers aren't so dumb and easily influenced to do things like the characters in this book. Also, there was no need to throw the murder of a cat into it. NOT COOL!

Thank you NetGalley, Adam, and the publishing company for approving me to review the eARC of Influencer. Since this is my first book by the author, I went into this blind and picked it based on the book cover and title. It’s something I enjoy doing to get a better feel for the book. Influencer was better than I expected it to be. Of course based on the title it was something to do with a social media presence but with a twist! The storyline was dark, intense, gory, fast paced, and kept me on the edge of my bed! This is a book I wouldn’t put down. A great psychological thriller to read! I highly recommend it.

Adam Cesare’s writing was outstanding and incredibly descriptive. You basically can picture the entire book in your head like you were watching a movie or even one of the characters. Each of the characters brought a real sense of how kids are nowadays following “influencers” on social media and become easily influenced by what they see on the internet which made the story interesting to read.

My two favorite characters were no doubt Adam and Crystal. Aaron Fortin, social media influencer and new guy in town, was definitely an unhinged psychopath and he was a senior in high school! He the main reason I was glued to the book. The fact that he got away with murdering 6 people prior to moving to the small town was crazy! It was easy for him to manipulate them into doing anything he wanted. He pretty much created a cult like following without having to do anything besides post a couple videos a week and cryptic poems. Crystal was a more complex character. She basically was a social outcast who lacks confidence and has an overactive imagination. Just like Aaron, she observes people from a far and makes her own impression of them. Her character development throughout the story was probably my favorite. She could care less about who he was to others and saw right through the fake persona. That didn’t go well with Aaron so he wanted to tie up loose ends and stop her from ruining his true plans.

I was shocked when I seen Influencer by Adam Cesare sitting in my self!
I loved Cesare’s Clown in a Cornfield series! So I was ready to jump into his newest novel.
Which did not disappoint.

Getting Aaron and Chrystal’s POV was very entertaining.
Adams writing is incredibly descriptive without being labourious, the imagery is so vivid the words literally jump off the page.
The story was amazing, the characters were fabulous, and the atmosphere was perfection.

Thank You NetGalley and Union Square & Co. for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This book was dark, creepy and gross. This is a great read for YA horror fans. I would’ve totally gotten into it when I was a teen. It’s not my genre so much anymore, but it was still a decent read. I thought the writing was well done and if you like teenage psycho vibes, you’ll enjoy it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced reader’s copy.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

WOAHHHHH! The first chapter drew me in, in an instant. I would love to see more from the author. This was such a great sotry and it kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Makes me think of how much stan culture and social media is impacting kids, now this was on another level but wow. Great read.