I just finished True Life in Uncanny Valley, and wow, what a ride! Eleanor is trying to uncover the truth about her famous dad, Hugo Harrison, a tech genius whose AI creations are changing the world. She takes a summer nanny job for his son (her half-brother) in hopes of getting close to him, but she has to lie her way in.

This book really digs into identity, family secrets, and the blurred lines between reality and tech. Eleanor’s journey of self-discovery was so compelling, and I couldn’t put it down. There are plenty of twists, and the romance was an added bonus!

If you love books about family drama and figuring out who you really are, this one’s definitely worth checking out!

This book had a lot in it and I would have liked to see more character development with the friends and their book reviews, however the main storyline had enough going on that the friends were a nice support. Lots of gotcha moments that didn't happen the way they typically would, which I really liked. I really wanted the narcissistic behavior of the mom to be addressed better, but it was accurate. Overall it was an interesting story and I was satisfied with the ending!

I was really excited to read True Life in Uncanny Valley based on the description but I just couldn't get into it. I've read some of the other reviews so far and I think maybe it gets better but the beginning is just too wordy. I feel like it's providing too much into Eleanor’s thoughts and is just taking too long to really get started, losing my interest within the first 15% of the book (according to my Kindle).

I am going to try and finish in hopes that it gets better but if I'm having trouble staying interested, I doubt students will.

I enjoyed this and I think teens will connect with the technological ethics issues raised here. I had like...some questions...

but overall a solid contemporary fic with some fun friendships, and I think it will definitely hit in this current era of Elon Musk etc....

Enjoyable read. Original idea and I liked the 40’s style comic panels at the beginning of each chapter. The main characters were interesting but not thoroughly developed I felt the whole thing was a little scattered and somewhat sketchy like a high school girl really. However it kept me reading and turning pages.

Thank you to netgalley, Labyrinth Road and the author, Deb Caletti for this ebook ARC to read. All opinions are my own.

4.5. Wow! This book is so timely. Eleanor gets a nannying job for the summer. Nannying her half brother, in the home of her dad who abandoned her. But dad is a tech genius, like Elon and Gates, because Seattle. Eleanor is like so many of us, trying to figure out who and what kind of person she is. There’s a friendly dog, a little brother, a scary robot, a cute window washer, and so many surprises. These characters are teenagers in the best sense of the word, finally captured correctly. I love them, I love this book, and I love all the big important things blended into it. So good.

True Life in Uncanny Valley tells a compelling and relatable coming of age tale that tackles questions around family, personal identity, and the advent of AI.

Eleanor, the protagonist, has always wanted to know her father, a tech genius who had an affair with her mother and abandoned them all years ago. When a live-in nanny position at his home becomes available, she applies, seeing it as the perfect opportunity to get close to him and to know her half-brother, Arlo. The only catch is this: she must keep her true identity a secret.

With a few white lies, Eleanor is thrust into a world of money, power, and ego, and soon finds herself caught between blurring lines of reality. Not only is her father not who she thought he would be, but the new invention he's working on could change how humans interact with technology forever. Will she be able to do the right thing? If the answer is not so simple, what will she learn about herself along the way?

I liked how this novel explored the layers of parent-child dynamics, the haunting desire that so many feel to belong, and the power of found family. Eleanor is a timely character who experiences both the pangs of adolescence as well as the impetus to grow, learning more about herself, her family, and her place in the world in the process. The ending was a tad abrupt, but I appreciated that it wasn't wrapped up in a tidy bow that resolved everything because that's not how life works. Worth a gander!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for my review.

You already know I love a fun book more than anything, and boy lemme tell ya this book was FUN!!!!! It had mystery and drama and adventure and a deeply relatable and painfully flawed MC with a 10/10 found family dynamic and a perfect level of realistic resolution at the ending.

I really really enjoyed Eleanor’s internal struggle with figuring out who she is and how her parents play into her perception of self. I loved seeing her relationship with Aurora, her unknowing stepmom, develop. That was my favorite part of the book hands down.

I also really enjoyed the writing style of this book. It was unusual but in a really approachable way that felt like how a sixteen year old might write her story. I felt like it added a lot of depth.

ALSO THAT ENDING. There was a twist at the end that I had NO idea was coming but made me SO happy. That was so well played. Incredible.

Bottom line: yes I’m gushing I don’t care I loved this one

Very much enjoyed this timely and tender story. This is the first book I've read by Caletti, but I will be on the look out for her work from now on.

I was not expecting this YA book so be so dang good! I am a first time reader of Caletti and only requested the ARC because I thought that the premise seemed entertaining. Boy was it ever! From the characters, to the prose, to the twists and turns I didn't see coming, I could not stop reading! I'm so thrilled that a book I thought would be just a fun time between chunky fantasy novels, turned into such a relatable, entertaining and thought provoking book! I will definitely be buying a copy for each of my book buddies!

I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book from Netgalley. This review is honest, unbiased, and completely my own.

I am having a hard time reading this and don't think I'll be able to finish. The voice this is written in is too surface level and doesn't really speak to the situation at hand in a realistic way.

This will be one of my favorite books of the year. A prescient concept combines with sparkling prose and endearing characters for a ride to remember. With twists upon twists, this book will make it impossible to stop reading.

It all begins with a lie—a fake last name. Eleanor, the illegitimate daughter of one of the world’s biggest tech billionaires, fabricates her identity to get close to Hugo, the father she never knew. As nanny to adorable four-year-old Arlo, Eleanor gains a front-row seat to the secrets of a tech genius and his influencer wife while also navigating a potential summer romance with the intriguing teenage window washer.

However, as she uncovers the lengths Hugo will go to in the name of progress and the lives he’s willing to ruin, Eleanor is forced to question everything she thought she knew, leading to a summer she’ll never forget.

The characters—aside from Hugo—are captivatingly endearing. From four-year-old Arlo, who’s so precious you’ll want to hug him, to the enigmatic second wife, Aurora, who’s nothing like her online persona, to her eccentric fortune-teller, Leo Gemini, who exerts an outsized influence on their lives, each one brings richness and depth to the story. I became deeply invested in their lives and was genuinely sad when the book ended. I would happily spend more time with Eleanor, Aurora, and Arlo—and this story will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Sure, a robot can replicate our best parts - out creativity, our talents, the ability to solve the world's most difficult problems, and on and on, but maybe what makes us most human is the way we can entirely fuck things up."

Maybe this should be required reading for all the generative AI people? It shows how the upcoming generation is TERRIFIED and in awe and feeling all sorts of emotions, but the biggest emotion is human connection. Eleanor's narrative is a reminder of the importance of art, how uncomfortable it is to hold multiple truths, and that the world can feel all too big when you are learning to take it on. She's not a perfect character by any means, but she is perfect as a voice of how so many people feel about big tech and billionaires and the ever-rapid pace of life in the 2020s.

I will say: the best character in this is the relationship between Eleanor and Arlo. Every interaction between the two of them sings.

I wish that some things were explored more in depth, like Clementine's abandonment and Eleanor's non-allergies, but those things were sacrificed in favor of repeating the message again. The book can be super preachy, but let's be real: many people need the message hammered into their (human!) skull.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I will not be finishing this as there was language that I did not appreciate and the writing style of the story was extremely weird and distracting. I couldn't even get into the story because of how it was written.

I was thrilled to read this book, as I've been a fan of Deb Caletti since my early teenage years. While the smaller themes, like comics and AI, didn’t resonate with me as much, the story as a whole was another solid addition to Caletti's work. This book is perfect for a new generation of YA readers, offering much-needed stories about the power of friendship, self-love, and acceptance.

First off, who names a dog Boolean.....though that kind of grew on me by the end of this novel.

I wanted to be a bigger fan of this novel than I was. I grew up reading Deb Caletti's books and loved them. I also read some of her more recent works like Plan A. However, I felt like this novel was more of a hype grab than it needed to be. Overall, this novel could have used another round of editing to make everything more realistic and have a better flow. I spent m0st of the novel asking myself what kind of rich/important family hires a nanny without doing a background check on them first and who doesn't recognize their own children when they're right in front of them. I struggled to see past that for a large portion of the novel and I know it was supposed to be a plot twist, but it kind of ruined the fun for me.

I also didn't really like the portrayal of Eleanor's mother and sister throughout the novel. I felt like Eleanor was getting some unfair hate and was being poorly treated for trying to do something for the summer.

I felt like there were lots of unnecessary tangents, especially in the beginning, and wasn't a huge fan of the general resolution of the novel. I get that it's YA and is supposed to be mostly lighthearted, but it felt like something was missing and the plot felt rushed. I know this is the ARC and there's a chance some of that is resolved in the final version, but I can't get past the feeling that one more round of editing would make a huge difference here. However, that being said, I think if I was a teenager again and picked this novel up, I would have loved it without a second thought.

I nearly gave up on this novel as I had a difficult time relating to the main character. In the end, I liked that the characters embraced the universal truth that a person doesn't have to try to be like everyone else. It's better to just be your one true self.
High school readers will enjoy this read.

I could not love this story anymore!! Eleanor is such a fun character and I love the theme of family and nothing is as it seems. I have already recommended this to students and will absolutely be getting a copy or two for my classroom!!

There was a lot going on here. The preposterous plotlines made me roll my eyes, and Eleanor is unlikeable from the start. You're lying to your father who wants nothing to do with you, and while deceiving him you stumble across a robot-involved conspiracy? Ok.

Publication: March 18th, 2025

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is such a fun book! Elenor her famous father from afar and when her spying leads to posting a live-in nanny job for Hugo's youngest son, her half-brother, she knows she can't pass this up, she can learn more about her father and his family. with a few lies, Eleanor is put into a unfamiliar and of money ego and very well-paced book.

I think a lot of people are going to like this book, especially elementary and early middle schoolers