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28 days and 11:51:42
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Augusta Pine Does Not Exist
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Expected 7 Jul 26Win a free print copy of this book!
28 days and 11:51:42
50 copies available
U.S. only
Combining the suspense of a thriller, the intrigue of spy fiction, and the emotional resonance of a confessional narrative, this is gripping, wholly original novel about a teen secret operative who must outwit a band of murderous cyberterrorists.
I was fifteen when I became a murderer.
After a hack gone tragically wrong, a teen girl is given an ultimatum: accept a harsh prison sentence or leave her old life behind and use her talents in the service of a shady government agency.
Three years later, the newly-named Augusta Pine has become a skilled wraith, one of the Identity Security Division’s secret operatives. She has no home, no family, and her only friends are her coolly professional handler and a snarky AI spybot. So when she is sent to Portland for an assignment, she seizes the chance to catch a glimpse of her beloved grandmother and rents the apartment next door.
What begins as nostalgic stalking turns into a fight for survival when a group of cyberterrorists hacks the building and imprisons the residents. Augusta doesn’t know exactly what they want, but she does know they are ready to murder for it. With her quick wits, tech savvy – and help from an intriguing fellow hostage – Augusta must race against the clock to stay one step ahead of the killers.
Unfolding through a suspenseful narrative interspersed with case-file excerpts, this is a pulse-pounding novel about identity, connection, and justice.
I was fifteen when I became a murderer.
After a hack gone tragically wrong, a teen girl is given an ultimatum: accept a harsh prison sentence or leave her old life behind and use her talents in the service of a shady government agency.
Three years later, the newly-named Augusta Pine has become a skilled wraith, one of the Identity Security Division’s secret operatives. She has no home, no family, and her only friends are her coolly professional handler and a snarky AI spybot. So when she is sent to Portland for an assignment, she seizes the chance to catch a glimpse of her beloved grandmother and rents the apartment next door.
What begins as nostalgic stalking turns into a fight for survival when a group of cyberterrorists hacks the building and imprisons the residents. Augusta doesn’t know exactly what they want, but she does know they are ready to murder for it. With her quick wits, tech savvy – and help from an intriguing fellow hostage – Augusta must race against the clock to stay one step ahead of the killers.
Unfolding through a suspenseful narrative interspersed with case-file excerpts, this is a pulse-pounding novel about identity, connection, and justice.
416 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication July 7, 2026
11717 people want to read
About the author
Emily Lloyd-Jones
12 books2,233 followersEmily Lloyd-Jones grew up on a vineyard in rural Oregon, where she played in evergreen forests and learned to fear sheep. After graduating from Western Oregon University with an English degree, she enrolled in the publishing program at Rosemont College just outside of Philadelphia. She currently resides in Northern California.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
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January 26, 2026Some books are easy to write. And then there are books that take seven years.
This is the latter.
AUGUSTA PINE DOES NOT EXIST is my white whale of a book. It took the aforementioned seven years, several drafts, and a lot of heist planning. It’s about a lot of things: the lengths we go to for family, how technology is encroaching into our lives, how we recover from mistakes we’ve made, and of course, a very snarky heroine.
It also has a slightly sociopathic AI spybot that looks like a bumblebee. And he is everyone’s favorite.
This book (and the whole fictional world) is very dear to me, and I hope readers will love Augusta as much as I do.
Right now you can bid on an advanced reader copy!
This is the latter.
AUGUSTA PINE DOES NOT EXIST is my white whale of a book. It took the aforementioned seven years, several drafts, and a lot of heist planning. It’s about a lot of things: the lengths we go to for family, how technology is encroaching into our lives, how we recover from mistakes we’ve made, and of course, a very snarky heroine.
It also has a slightly sociopathic AI spybot that looks like a bumblebee. And he is everyone’s favorite.
This book (and the whole fictional world) is very dear to me, and I hope readers will love Augusta as much as I do.
Right now you can bid on an advanced reader copy!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
꣑ৎ⋆˙⟡⋮ 3.25 stars ☆
carmen sandiego x home alone 🙂↕️ think carmen sandiego heists & hacks meet home alone chases & traps (except set in a hotel) to outsmart the villains.
i can’t lie, this was a bit silly and quirky so it kind of felt like a fever dream at times…but not necessarily in a bad way. overall, this was an entertaining and cute spy reverse heist! it was also a pretty quick read as it kept me on my toes throughout—there was never a lack of action and there were some plot twists i did not see coming. i adored augusta’s cleverness and resilience and the whole premise of the ISD (identity security division) was quite interesting.
i loved the messages in this book as well! the technology was innovative and quite original (i especially thought the tattoo tech was interesting) and it explored some of the ethics behind deepfakes and ai, including the possibility of sentient ai, which is super relevant in today’s day and age. it was also an interesting exploration of moral complexity—the modus operandi of the ISD was, in many ways, about doing the wrong things for the right reasons.
however, it did feel a little more middle grade/younger ya than true ya, and i do feel like it should be marketed a little more towards a younger audience. this was due to a variety of factors. the mc’s jokes and quips and nicknames for others felt a lil juvenile and sometimes a tad cringe to me. the worldbuilding drops were a bit explicit and i wish they had been shortened and integrated more (there were paragraphs of background into various pieces of tech, and direct connections to modern-day tech were framed as references to the “past," since this book was set in the future). it wasn’t terrible but it did make the book feel a lil more middle grade, since it didn’t feel like the reader was trusted to put it together based on the context.
overall, though, i did enjoy! but i would recommend to a younger audience than it's marketed to. tldr: lighthearted, quirky, and quick-paced reverse spy heist.
thank you so much to emily lloyd-jones, macmillan children’s publishing, and netgalley for an arc (my first one!) in exchange for my honest review 🤍 this book comes out july 7, 2026!
꣑ৎ⋆˙⟡⋮ pre-read
YAY first arc (thank you to netgalley & macmillan publishing!) i'm so excited to read this one 😚 i've been meaning to get more into thrillers & the heist vibes here are immaculate (which i'll def be needing more of after finishing my lunar chronicles reread). anyways i have a feeling this will be fun 🙂↕️🕵️♀️💻💐
carmen sandiego x home alone 🙂↕️ think carmen sandiego heists & hacks meet home alone chases & traps (except set in a hotel) to outsmart the villains.
i can’t lie, this was a bit silly and quirky so it kind of felt like a fever dream at times…but not necessarily in a bad way. overall, this was an entertaining and cute spy reverse heist! it was also a pretty quick read as it kept me on my toes throughout—there was never a lack of action and there were some plot twists i did not see coming. i adored augusta’s cleverness and resilience and the whole premise of the ISD (identity security division) was quite interesting.
i loved the messages in this book as well! the technology was innovative and quite original (i especially thought the tattoo tech was interesting) and it explored some of the ethics behind deepfakes and ai, including the possibility of sentient ai, which is super relevant in today’s day and age. it was also an interesting exploration of moral complexity—the modus operandi of the ISD was, in many ways, about doing the wrong things for the right reasons.
however, it did feel a little more middle grade/younger ya than true ya, and i do feel like it should be marketed a little more towards a younger audience. this was due to a variety of factors. the mc’s jokes and quips and nicknames for others felt a lil juvenile and sometimes a tad cringe to me. the worldbuilding drops were a bit explicit and i wish they had been shortened and integrated more (there were paragraphs of background into various pieces of tech, and direct connections to modern-day tech were framed as references to the “past," since this book was set in the future). it wasn’t terrible but it did make the book feel a lil more middle grade, since it didn’t feel like the reader was trusted to put it together based on the context.
overall, though, i did enjoy! but i would recommend to a younger audience than it's marketed to. tldr: lighthearted, quirky, and quick-paced reverse spy heist.
thank you so much to emily lloyd-jones, macmillan children’s publishing, and netgalley for an arc (my first one!) in exchange for my honest review 🤍 this book comes out july 7, 2026!
꣑ৎ⋆˙⟡⋮ pre-read
YAY first arc (thank you to netgalley & macmillan publishing!) i'm so excited to read this one 😚 i've been meaning to get more into thrillers & the heist vibes here are immaculate (which i'll def be needing more of after finishing my lunar chronicles reread). anyways i have a feeling this will be fun 🙂↕️🕵️♀️💻💐
December 7, 2025
This book was all sorts of action-packed thriller but also adorably warm. It covers fighting your fears, loneliness, and the importance of family while also touching on moral dilemmas of technological advancement in a spy girl setting. And it was the found family side characters that really got me, making me laugh and giving me warm fuzzy feelings that left me hugging this book.
The pacing of the book in the beginning (with the use of flashback scenes) took me out of the main plot sometimes but I got used to it pretty quickly.
Thank you to Emily Lloyd-Jones, Macmillan Publishing, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
The pacing of the book in the beginning (with the use of flashback scenes) took me out of the main plot sometimes but I got used to it pretty quickly.
Thank you to Emily Lloyd-Jones, Macmillan Publishing, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
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November 12, 2025not at ALL what I expected from ELJ but okay !
November 19, 2025
I'm such a huge fan of Emily's books, and I've become an even bigger fan after this shift from fantasy to dystopian/scifi. God, the humor is TOP NOTCH and the emotional core is stark in the best possible way. Of course I fell so utterly in love with the book as whole.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Super fun! Definitely for young reader fans of Jennifer Lynn Barnes and shows like Veronica Mars or Totally Spies!
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
Such a fun YA book! So many genres rolled into one: part thriller, part mystery, part sci-fi, part dystopian, part found family, a hint of romance, part action, and part retro/nostalgic. I threw that last one in because the story reminds me of if Princess Leia and Nancy Drew merged into one being, combining the girl-boss skills of the former with the sleuthing skills of the latter. And then you added in a sentient AI bumblebee sidekick with R2-D2's personality and mannerisms, and the flying abilities of a Golden Snitch, and--voila- an unstoppable, "crime"-stopping duo. Add in a "handler" who is like how Oscar Goldman was for Steve Austin, combined with who "M" was for James Bond, as a mentor and sympathetic shoulder to lean on. In addition to the "old school" Spy Kids kind of vibes, it is mostly a clean read, which would be appropriate for most kids ages 12 and up. I could easily see many sequels being made in order to create a book series (although it works perfectly fine as a standalone as well), and I would not be surprised if this novel ends up being made into a tv series or a movie. Along the lines of Stranger Things, but not as dark. **I was provided this ARC in a GoodReads giveaway, but all opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.5 stars. I enjoyed this book a lot! It sort of reminded me of an older middle-grades/YA version (mildly sanitized) of the tv show Alias. The writing is great, and the characters are all excellent (I especially loved Edgar). I wasn't sure at first how I would like the interludes, but I ended up mostly enjoying them as a good window into the past to add context to current characters and events, without interrupting the current story too much. The reason I didn't give 5 stars is because I think I got lost a little bit in the bigger picture of the motivation for
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
What a great story! I really enjoyed getting to know "Augusta" right from the start- she's snarky but kind, guilt-ridden but decisive, strongly principled with a good head on her shoulders. The book is engaging the whole way through- when it's not following Augusta chasing criminals through back passages a la Die Hard (it's much more fun than Die Hard though), it's giving us flashbacks that hit all the right emotional beats without losing the story's momentum. There's a little bit of YA-typical romance, but it's not the focus at all; much more attention is given to family relationships (and human-robot relationships. For as little on-page time as Edgar gets, he has a surprising amount of character and importance to Augusta's story). Would recommend to anyone looking for a light thriller with some thoughtfulness to it.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
💜AUGUSTA PINE DOES NOT EXIST💜
Augusta Pine Does Not Exist had me immediately hooked. I tore through this book, constantly on edge, needing to know what was real and what wasn’t.
It’s eerie and tense, you'll feel like you're right there screaming at the characters but no one can hear you. The atmosphere comes to life, the suspense never lets up, and the questions it raises about identity and truth linger long after the last page.
I loved every second of it!! Highly recommend if you like unsettling, can’t put down reads. 🌲📖
@em_llojo @fiercereads @goodreads thank you for the opportunity to have read this!!
#emilylloydjones #psychologicalsuspense #bookstagram #bookreviews #bookrecommendations📚❣️
Augusta Pine Does Not Exist had me immediately hooked. I tore through this book, constantly on edge, needing to know what was real and what wasn’t.
It’s eerie and tense, you'll feel like you're right there screaming at the characters but no one can hear you. The atmosphere comes to life, the suspense never lets up, and the questions it raises about identity and truth linger long after the last page.
I loved every second of it!! Highly recommend if you like unsettling, can’t put down reads. 🌲📖
@em_llojo @fiercereads @goodreads thank you for the opportunity to have read this!!
#emilylloydjones #psychologicalsuspense #bookstagram #bookreviews #bookrecommendations📚❣️
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.5 stars
This was such an interesting story. I'm so thankful that I got approved for an e-arc.
I'm not usually a thriller reader, but the summary for this book was appealing. There is something about Emily Lloyd-Jones writing that is so addictive to read. I had to know what was going to happen next. I honestly could read an entire series following Augusta Pines. I was not expecting the twist. I was just vibing. The characters were well-written. The flashbacks helped to create a well-rounded story. I would highly recommend it!
Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Lloyd-Jones, and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
This was such an interesting story. I'm so thankful that I got approved for an e-arc.
I'm not usually a thriller reader, but the summary for this book was appealing. There is something about Emily Lloyd-Jones writing that is so addictive to read. I had to know what was going to happen next. I honestly could read an entire series following Augusta Pines. I was not expecting the twist. I was just vibing. The characters were well-written. The flashbacks helped to create a well-rounded story. I would highly recommend it!
Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Lloyd-Jones, and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
November 25, 2025
4⭐️ This book was a fun read. It was fast paced and I enjoyed the layout of the book with the case study passages and flashbacks for some background information. Edgar the sentient AI bumblebee was probably my favorite character. His and Augusta’s interactions were fun and witty. I think if you like YA spy books or black mirror-esque themes then you will enjoy this. It didn’t end on any cliffhangers or set up for a second book but if there was one, I’d definitely read it.
December 4, 2025
Bring on the robot uprising. I'll happily let Edgar take over the world. Throughly enjoyed this one. The humor was a delight and I loved the interactions between the characters. The format is a little different with the case studies, but it works well for the story. A quick paced, fun, spy filled read with a strong emotional core. Emily Lloyd-Jones has become one of my favorites!
August 1, 2025
(proper review to come)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews