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Tell Your Friends
A thrilling and intoxicating tale of envy, revenge and the price of perfection, from the acclaimed author of THE GOLDENS
IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN HER …
Reluctant online sensation Crystal Shaw sees university as her chance to escape the clutches of her controlling vlogger family. While outwardly agreeing to her mother’s demands to create a spin-off channel about her university experience, Crystal is secretly looking for someone who can help her expose some damning evidence about her parents – which she hopes will destroy their social media empire, giving her and her younger siblings freedom.
Crystal opens up to Alyssa, a fellow journalism student, and the two begin to form a friendship. But Alyssa is a secret superfan of Crystal’s family’s vlog – and has her own dark plans. Alyssa isn’t ready to say goodbye to her perfect surrogate family just yet … and she’ll do anything to be welcomed into the fold.
IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN HER …
Reluctant online sensation Crystal Shaw sees university as her chance to escape the clutches of her controlling vlogger family. While outwardly agreeing to her mother’s demands to create a spin-off channel about her university experience, Crystal is secretly looking for someone who can help her expose some damning evidence about her parents – which she hopes will destroy their social media empire, giving her and her younger siblings freedom.
Crystal opens up to Alyssa, a fellow journalism student, and the two begin to form a friendship. But Alyssa is a secret superfan of Crystal’s family’s vlog – and has her own dark plans. Alyssa isn’t ready to say goodbye to her perfect surrogate family just yet … and she’ll do anything to be welcomed into the fold.
345 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 18, 2026
About the author
Lauren Wilson
2 books151 followersLauren Wilson has a BA (Hons) degree in Journalism and an MA in Creative Writing. She lives in North East England with her fiancé and their snuggly spaniels. Her acclaimed debut novel, The Goldens, was selected as a Waterstones Book of the Month in July 2025.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 192 reviews
August 9, 2026
I recently read and loved THE GOLDENS and I was overjoyed when I found out that the author had another new book out, called TELL YOUR FRIENDS. THE GOLDENS was about the rise-- and fall-- of a cult. So, in a way, is TELL YOUR FRIENDS... but it's a different kind of cult: social media influencers and family vlogging channels.
Crystal is the oldest child in the Shaw Family, of "At Home with the Shaws" fame. When her sister died when she was young, and her family coasted over her death, even using it too boost their ratings, Crystal started to become jaded and disillusioned with the vapidity and lack of sincerity in her family. Coming to college his her fresh start, and her potential chance to get back at her parents for using her and her siblings for profit and clout.
Alyssa is also a college student, and she's studying journalism. However, she also has a problem: she doesn't feel much inside and copies the people around her, drawing more and more of themselves into her to fill the void until they notice and cut her loose. She's also a devout watcher of At Home with the Shaws and when she finds out Crystal is at her college, she latches on immediately, thinking that her new friend might be the key to what she's always wanted: approval, family, warmth, and love. But then she finds out about Crystal's plan.
This was taut and suspenseful and even though I predicted a lot of the twists, it was done in a way that made me feel clever rather than bored because of how neatly everything was foreshadowed. I have to figure that the ratings for this book are partially because of the "unlikability" of both FMCs, but that's the point. This is, at its core, a ruthless condemnation of how social media tends to lift up people with the very worst personalities who will do ANYTHING to get and hold onto their fifteen minutes of fame. Crystal is the product of that infamy, and Alyssa, with her shady journalism, is just the other side of the coin.
4.5 stars
Crystal is the oldest child in the Shaw Family, of "At Home with the Shaws" fame. When her sister died when she was young, and her family coasted over her death, even using it too boost their ratings, Crystal started to become jaded and disillusioned with the vapidity and lack of sincerity in her family. Coming to college his her fresh start, and her potential chance to get back at her parents for using her and her siblings for profit and clout.
Alyssa is also a college student, and she's studying journalism. However, she also has a problem: she doesn't feel much inside and copies the people around her, drawing more and more of themselves into her to fill the void until they notice and cut her loose. She's also a devout watcher of At Home with the Shaws and when she finds out Crystal is at her college, she latches on immediately, thinking that her new friend might be the key to what she's always wanted: approval, family, warmth, and love. But then she finds out about Crystal's plan.
This was taut and suspenseful and even though I predicted a lot of the twists, it was done in a way that made me feel clever rather than bored because of how neatly everything was foreshadowed. I have to figure that the ratings for this book are partially because of the "unlikability" of both FMCs, but that's the point. This is, at its core, a ruthless condemnation of how social media tends to lift up people with the very worst personalities who will do ANYTHING to get and hold onto their fifteen minutes of fame. Crystal is the product of that infamy, and Alyssa, with her shady journalism, is just the other side of the coin.
4.5 stars
June 13, 2026
An intense story from start to finish, Lauren Wilson does a fantastic job of showcasing the pervasive, darker elements of influencer culture and the parasocial relationships that can form from it. Each and every one of the characters was fully fleshed out; their unhinged nature laid completely bare. In fact, weeks later, they still cross my mind from time to time.
While I had an idea where the story was ultimately headed, that didn’t lessen my shock value when I reached the end. There was a little bit of an over-the-top nature that so many thrillers have begun to incorporate, but I think the social commentary around the how far people are willing to go to go for clicks, and the toxicity that surrounds that, is important and can lend to some great post-read discussions.
🎧 I enjoyed this book on audio. I am not as familiar with narrator Lily Lefkow-Green, but appreciated her vocal dexterity and her ability to set each character apart.
CW: this story features very heavy topics. Please check triggers prior to reading if you are sensitive to any.
Read if you like:
▪️domestic suspense
▪️coming-of-age stories
▪️social media/influencer component
▪️toxic relationships
▪️dual POV
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy.
While I had an idea where the story was ultimately headed, that didn’t lessen my shock value when I reached the end. There was a little bit of an over-the-top nature that so many thrillers have begun to incorporate, but I think the social commentary around the how far people are willing to go to go for clicks, and the toxicity that surrounds that, is important and can lend to some great post-read discussions.
🎧 I enjoyed this book on audio. I am not as familiar with narrator Lily Lefkow-Green, but appreciated her vocal dexterity and her ability to set each character apart.
CW: this story features very heavy topics. Please check triggers prior to reading if you are sensitive to any.
Read if you like:
▪️domestic suspense
▪️coming-of-age stories
▪️social media/influencer component
▪️toxic relationships
▪️dual POV
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy.
February 18, 2026
Tell Your Friends by Lauren Wilson. Thanks to @pineandcedar for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Crystal is excited to begin university and be independent from her family, the famous family from the family blog, At Home with the Shaws. Her mother wants her to document her time at university, but Crystal has a completely different narrative in mind. When she befriends fellow journalist student, Alyssa Hayes, she’s unaware of Alyssa’s obsession with her family.
After loving The Goldens, this was one of my highly anticipated reads of 2026 and it did not disappoint! While on the shorter side, and a fast paced read, it doesn’t feel rushed and it leaves you missing nothing. The story flies by and a lot is placed into the pages. There’s a sense of dread throughout and then a lot of action at the end. It sheds light on the dangers and addictions of family influencer blogs as well.
Read if you like:
-Influencer stories
-Families not what they seem
-Social media tropes
Tell Your Friends comes out 6/2.
Crystal is excited to begin university and be independent from her family, the famous family from the family blog, At Home with the Shaws. Her mother wants her to document her time at university, but Crystal has a completely different narrative in mind. When she befriends fellow journalist student, Alyssa Hayes, she’s unaware of Alyssa’s obsession with her family.
After loving The Goldens, this was one of my highly anticipated reads of 2026 and it did not disappoint! While on the shorter side, and a fast paced read, it doesn’t feel rushed and it leaves you missing nothing. The story flies by and a lot is placed into the pages. There’s a sense of dread throughout and then a lot of action at the end. It sheds light on the dangers and addictions of family influencer blogs as well.
Read if you like:
-Influencer stories
-Families not what they seem
-Social media tropes
Tell Your Friends comes out 6/2.
May 2, 2026
I love a good influencer drama thriller story and this delivered. A super fast read, one sitting for me! I thought the characters were unique and I enjoyed their POVs. It kept me hooked! Definitely recommend if the story appeals to you.
Thank you to the publisher for the gifted arc
Thank you to the publisher for the gifted arc
June 5, 2026
Crystal is a former child star and famous influencer. She meets Alyssa, who is an obsessed fan with some inappropriate social behaviors. Crystal is determined to expose her family's dark past. When Alyssa finds out, she is determined to save the family's carefully curated image.
I had high hopes for this. What should have been propulsive and tense came across as boring and "high school". This leans more YA in my opinion. It didn't feel like a thriller. More like a dysfunctional friendship.
The audiobook performance is excellent but the narrator can't make the story better.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the gifted advance listening copy. All opinions are my own. 🎧
I had high hopes for this. What should have been propulsive and tense came across as boring and "high school". This leans more YA in my opinion. It didn't feel like a thriller. More like a dysfunctional friendship.
The audiobook performance is excellent but the narrator can't make the story better.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the gifted advance listening copy. All opinions are my own. 🎧
July 26, 2026
This is going to make me sound super old, but my mind can’t quite get to believing people on YouTube/tiktok etc can be stars. When the jacket copy read “former child star” I was expecting Hollywood and all that comes with it, not British Isles and small screen fame.
Anyway, that’s not the biggest problem here, juvenile writing, flat characters, first person that is all tell….I’m out.
Anyway, that’s not the biggest problem here, juvenile writing, flat characters, first person that is all tell….I’m out.
June 22, 2026
⭐⭐⭐✨ 3.75 Stars
I think this one was a case of wrong expectations on my part. I went in expecting a darker, more adult psychological thriller, but it leaned much more YA than I anticipated.
The story kept me interested, and I liked the themes surrounding family vlogging, internet fame, and obsession. It just felt a little slow in places for me, and I never fully connected with it the way I hoped I would.
Overall, it was a solid read. If you enjoy YA psychological suspense and slow-burn character-driven stories, this one may work better for you than it did for me.
🎧 Narrated by: Lily Lefkow-Green
⏱️ Runtime: 7 hours 16 minutes
📚🖤🎧
Thank you @Netgalley for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
I think this one was a case of wrong expectations on my part. I went in expecting a darker, more adult psychological thriller, but it leaned much more YA than I anticipated.
The story kept me interested, and I liked the themes surrounding family vlogging, internet fame, and obsession. It just felt a little slow in places for me, and I never fully connected with it the way I hoped I would.
Overall, it was a solid read. If you enjoy YA psychological suspense and slow-burn character-driven stories, this one may work better for you than it did for me.
🎧 Narrated by: Lily Lefkow-Green
⏱️ Runtime: 7 hours 16 minutes
📚🖤🎧
Thank you @Netgalley for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.
June 4, 2026
I absolutely loved listening to Tell Your Friends by Lauren Wilson. This book completely blew me away. It’s such a smart, sharply written thriller. And the story feels incredibly relevant right now with its focus on internet fame, obsession, and the dark side of social media. I was truly obsessed from start to finish and couldn’t stop listening. If you’re someone who loves stories about online culture and the messy, dangerous ways it shapes people, this one will absolutely hook you. And the audiobook experience made it even better because Lily Lefkow-Green’s narration is completely intoxicating. Her voice pulled me in right away and kept me glued to every second. This was easily one of the best thrillers I’ve read in a very long time, and I highly recommend it.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
June 18, 2026
°❀⋆ Tell Your Friends .ೃ࿔*:･
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
'It should have been her...'
For Crystal, university is her chance to get out from under the thumb of her controlling parents and begin living a life off camera. When she meets Alyssa, another student with a suspiciously murky past and a habit of alienating everyone she grows close to, the two form a friendship and Crystal recruits Alyssa's help in exposing the truth behind her family's picture-perfect online persona.
Unbeknownst to Crystal, Alyssa is an avid watcher of At Home with the Shaws, and vows to thwart her expose at every turn. But as Crystal gets closer to unearthing the lies hidden in her past, it could bring revelations that will change her life forever - and Alyssa will go to any lengths to make sure the truth never gets out...
Tell Your Friends has a boatload of current social commentary around the dark side of family vlogging and kid influencing, while retaining the compulsive and addictive pace typical of thrillers. Seriously, I'd recommend picking this up when you have a good couple of hours free, because once you start, you're not going to want to stop! The themes dissected hit far too close to home - the sad reality of a childhood lived in front of cameras and put on display for public consumption, and I think it's one that a lot of us recognise from our FYPs or news articles.
I also loved how Wilson put female friendship at the forefront of the story. I thought it was really interesting how Wilson explored the parasocial relationship that Alyssa developed and detrimental it was to her own life - from her family to the furthering of her own insecurities. As for Crystal, her internal battle between exposing her family and potentially perpetuating the cycle of abuse felt like a realistic portrayal of a grown-up kidfluencer. The guilt, anger and resentment she oscillates between felt true to life.
Overall, a stunning follow-up to Wilson's debut last year The Goldens. If you loved Yesteryear or Julie Chan is Dead and their somewhat satirical, razor-sharp commentary on influencing, I think you'd similarly love Tell Your Friends. Tell Your Friends is out today!
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
'It should have been her...'
For Crystal, university is her chance to get out from under the thumb of her controlling parents and begin living a life off camera. When she meets Alyssa, another student with a suspiciously murky past and a habit of alienating everyone she grows close to, the two form a friendship and Crystal recruits Alyssa's help in exposing the truth behind her family's picture-perfect online persona.
Unbeknownst to Crystal, Alyssa is an avid watcher of At Home with the Shaws, and vows to thwart her expose at every turn. But as Crystal gets closer to unearthing the lies hidden in her past, it could bring revelations that will change her life forever - and Alyssa will go to any lengths to make sure the truth never gets out...
Tell Your Friends has a boatload of current social commentary around the dark side of family vlogging and kid influencing, while retaining the compulsive and addictive pace typical of thrillers. Seriously, I'd recommend picking this up when you have a good couple of hours free, because once you start, you're not going to want to stop! The themes dissected hit far too close to home - the sad reality of a childhood lived in front of cameras and put on display for public consumption, and I think it's one that a lot of us recognise from our FYPs or news articles.
I also loved how Wilson put female friendship at the forefront of the story. I thought it was really interesting how Wilson explored the parasocial relationship that Alyssa developed and detrimental it was to her own life - from her family to the furthering of her own insecurities. As for Crystal, her internal battle between exposing her family and potentially perpetuating the cycle of abuse felt like a realistic portrayal of a grown-up kidfluencer. The guilt, anger and resentment she oscillates between felt true to life.
Overall, a stunning follow-up to Wilson's debut last year The Goldens. If you loved Yesteryear or Julie Chan is Dead and their somewhat satirical, razor-sharp commentary on influencing, I think you'd similarly love Tell Your Friends. Tell Your Friends is out today!
May 3, 2026
The Goldens was one of my favourite reads of 2025 and Tell Your Friends has solidified Lauren Wilson as an auto-buy author for me! Much like her debut, I devoured most of this in a single day! NO ONE writes toxic female friendship like Lauren Wilson! This is a must-read for anyone with an internet presence.
Reluctant child star Crystal hopes university is her chance to escape her controlling vlogger family. Sick of her mother's demands, Crystal is secretly planning to expose her parents and destroy their social media empire. She befriends fellow journalism student Alyssa, who seems kind and supportive. But Alyssa has her own secrets, and she'll do anything to get what she wants…
This was sharp, insightful, and unsettling - it’s a book I’ll be thinking about for a long time. I was hooked from the shocking first page! What an opening! I thought I knew where this story was going - I did not! This was such a thought-provoking read, and will open a lot of discussion around child influencers and family vlogs. I was so angry for Crystal right from the start - her parents really treated her as a commodity and were uninterested in anything but her earning potential. Alyssa was so well-written, with scattered clues hinting that she was troubled and maybe even dangerous, and a slow burn build to reveal her motives and machinations. I was totally gripped and couldn’t put this down! It really made me think about the idea of what you see on the Internet and how much is real versus an image that is being curated. What I found really clever was the snippets throughout the book of certain events contrasting between the picture perfect vlogs and Crystal’s actual memories. I also loved how the family home was constructed as a metaphor for their online presence. Lauren Wilson is so genius at weaving in details and clues! It was a perfect read for a long weekend!
I highly recommend Tell Your Friends to fans of books like The Escape Game, Yesteryear, and The Favourites! A huge thank you to the publisher for sending me an advance copy.
Reluctant child star Crystal hopes university is her chance to escape her controlling vlogger family. Sick of her mother's demands, Crystal is secretly planning to expose her parents and destroy their social media empire. She befriends fellow journalism student Alyssa, who seems kind and supportive. But Alyssa has her own secrets, and she'll do anything to get what she wants…
This was sharp, insightful, and unsettling - it’s a book I’ll be thinking about for a long time. I was hooked from the shocking first page! What an opening! I thought I knew where this story was going - I did not! This was such a thought-provoking read, and will open a lot of discussion around child influencers and family vlogs. I was so angry for Crystal right from the start - her parents really treated her as a commodity and were uninterested in anything but her earning potential. Alyssa was so well-written, with scattered clues hinting that she was troubled and maybe even dangerous, and a slow burn build to reveal her motives and machinations. I was totally gripped and couldn’t put this down! It really made me think about the idea of what you see on the Internet and how much is real versus an image that is being curated. What I found really clever was the snippets throughout the book of certain events contrasting between the picture perfect vlogs and Crystal’s actual memories. I also loved how the family home was constructed as a metaphor for their online presence. Lauren Wilson is so genius at weaving in details and clues! It was a perfect read for a long weekend!
I highly recommend Tell Your Friends to fans of books like The Escape Game, Yesteryear, and The Favourites! A huge thank you to the publisher for sending me an advance copy.
June 16, 2026
3.5⭐️
If you enjoyed Yesteryear and its satirical look at influencer culture, I’d recommend adding Tell Your Friends to your TBR.
I flew through this one. At under 300 pages, it’s a quick read and one I found very easy to consume over a couple of sittings.
The influencer culture aspect was easily my favourite part of the story. Family vloggers, parasocial relationships, curated online personas - Lauren Wilson leans into all of it, and it made for a really interesting backdrop to the thriller elements.
Having recently read Yesteryear, I found myself drawing comparisons between the two. Whilst they’re very different stories, both explore what happens when children become part of a public brand and the impact that can have as they grow older. Crystal’s desire to step away from the spotlight and live a normal, private life reminded me of some of the themes explored in Yesteryear, which made this an especially interesting read.
Whilst I enjoyed the premise and flew through the pages, I did find myself wanting a little more from the ending. That said, I was entertained throughout and would happily pick up another book by Lauren Wilson.
If you enjoyed Yesteryear and its satirical look at influencer culture, I’d recommend adding Tell Your Friends to your TBR.
I flew through this one. At under 300 pages, it’s a quick read and one I found very easy to consume over a couple of sittings.
The influencer culture aspect was easily my favourite part of the story. Family vloggers, parasocial relationships, curated online personas - Lauren Wilson leans into all of it, and it made for a really interesting backdrop to the thriller elements.
Having recently read Yesteryear, I found myself drawing comparisons between the two. Whilst they’re very different stories, both explore what happens when children become part of a public brand and the impact that can have as they grow older. Crystal’s desire to step away from the spotlight and live a normal, private life reminded me of some of the themes explored in Yesteryear, which made this an especially interesting read.
Whilst I enjoyed the premise and flew through the pages, I did find myself wanting a little more from the ending. That said, I was entertained throughout and would happily pick up another book by Lauren Wilson.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
I absolutely loved the cover, so I knew I had to dive into this book! What a wild ride it turned out to be, combining elements of young adult fiction with a secluded, atmospheric campus setting.
Crystal grapples with the constraints of her mother's family vlog, "At Home with the Shaws," while attempting to navigate her university life. When aspiring journalist Alyssa offers to assist Crystal, their partnership reveals darker truths and obsessions. As their secrets collide and the Shaws' facade threatens to collapse, Crystal must discern whom to trust, or risk losing her freedom along with her fame.
The story unfolds through multiple perspectives, primarily those of Crystal and Alyssa. We also get a glimpse of Crystal's past through online article flashbacks woven into the narrative, which really enriches the character development. The touch of YA is evident in the characters' ages and behaviors, but the story flows steadily. Since I approach every book without prior knowledge, it all revealed itself like a tale of college girls searching for their places in the world, making mistakes, and facing tough choices along the way. You could really feel the pressure Crystal was under, even if it wasn’t overtly discussed. The pressure was just a palpable expectation in the air.
Alyssa, a newcomer to Crystal's world and hailing from a completely different background, struggles to relate to it all. I recognize people like Alyssa. These individuals often feel lost and unsure of their identities, trying to blend in like chameleons by mimicking behavior, styles, and lifestyles to feel more relatable and accepted.
The pacing of the story is moderate, and the themes resonate with current discussions, especially in light of how things have shifted since the pandemic. Many individuals are now seeking to monetize their lives online, aiming to become influencers who overshare their daily experiences. You can really sense the pressure Crystal felt from a young age, having grown up in a family of vloggers—dealing with the demands of being popular, whether offline or online, can be overwhelming. It's completely understandable why she yearned to break away from her family’s brand and carve out her own identity.
I had an inkling of where the story was heading, but I was still surprised! I guessed some of the twists, but the author did an excellent job of tying everything together by the end. It was truly an emotional rollercoaster, loaded with toxicity!
The darker side of vlogging, with the constant need to keep up with trends and share everything, is vividly portrayed. This book is definitely for anyone interested in the latest tales about high-stakes influencers, life documentation channels, and peeking behind the curtain of both sides of online life. These days, many people seem to prioritize likes, shares, and shallow online relationships over genuine face-to-face connections. If you’re okay with the social pressures, toxic friendships, and unhinged characters, this book is right up your alley!
In this instance, I think an audiobook is the way to go. The narrator did an excellent job of bringing the story to life, and I found myself speeding it up a bit to inject some energy, as serious stories like this can sometimes drag on. Great choice of narrator!
Thank you, MacMillan Audio and FlatIron Books, for the DRC copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Crystal grapples with the constraints of her mother's family vlog, "At Home with the Shaws," while attempting to navigate her university life. When aspiring journalist Alyssa offers to assist Crystal, their partnership reveals darker truths and obsessions. As their secrets collide and the Shaws' facade threatens to collapse, Crystal must discern whom to trust, or risk losing her freedom along with her fame.
The story unfolds through multiple perspectives, primarily those of Crystal and Alyssa. We also get a glimpse of Crystal's past through online article flashbacks woven into the narrative, which really enriches the character development. The touch of YA is evident in the characters' ages and behaviors, but the story flows steadily. Since I approach every book without prior knowledge, it all revealed itself like a tale of college girls searching for their places in the world, making mistakes, and facing tough choices along the way. You could really feel the pressure Crystal was under, even if it wasn’t overtly discussed. The pressure was just a palpable expectation in the air.
Alyssa, a newcomer to Crystal's world and hailing from a completely different background, struggles to relate to it all. I recognize people like Alyssa. These individuals often feel lost and unsure of their identities, trying to blend in like chameleons by mimicking behavior, styles, and lifestyles to feel more relatable and accepted.
The pacing of the story is moderate, and the themes resonate with current discussions, especially in light of how things have shifted since the pandemic. Many individuals are now seeking to monetize their lives online, aiming to become influencers who overshare their daily experiences. You can really sense the pressure Crystal felt from a young age, having grown up in a family of vloggers—dealing with the demands of being popular, whether offline or online, can be overwhelming. It's completely understandable why she yearned to break away from her family’s brand and carve out her own identity.
I had an inkling of where the story was heading, but I was still surprised! I guessed some of the twists, but the author did an excellent job of tying everything together by the end. It was truly an emotional rollercoaster, loaded with toxicity!
The darker side of vlogging, with the constant need to keep up with trends and share everything, is vividly portrayed. This book is definitely for anyone interested in the latest tales about high-stakes influencers, life documentation channels, and peeking behind the curtain of both sides of online life. These days, many people seem to prioritize likes, shares, and shallow online relationships over genuine face-to-face connections. If you’re okay with the social pressures, toxic friendships, and unhinged characters, this book is right up your alley!
In this instance, I think an audiobook is the way to go. The narrator did an excellent job of bringing the story to life, and I found myself speeding it up a bit to inject some energy, as serious stories like this can sometimes drag on. Great choice of narrator!
Thank you, MacMillan Audio and FlatIron Books, for the DRC copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
3.75 range rounded up
What a fun, obsession-fueled, envy-driven, influencer suspense!
I had a good time following Crystal and Alyssa as the two FMCs, and I think the dual POV was the right choice for this story because you really get into each of their heads. Both of them are really well fleshed out and are foils of one another, yet also overlap in a few ways.
On the one hand, Crystal is full of resentment, worry, exhaustion, and desperation after growing up as a child influencer against her will. She's tired of being an 'act,' a performance, and she's worried about her younger siblings growing up the same way. She's desperate to escape and to help the twins escape, too. You can really feel everything tumultuously wrestling inside her head and heart as she tries to figure out how to finally put an end to things after getting away and moving to the city for uni. She loves her family, but she's done with the influencer lifestyle and all it requires. Her interactions with her mother are really reflective of what Crystal describes; everything is transactional, superficial, and void of genuine warmth and love.
On the flip side, Alyssa grew up with parents who were absent, and she lost herself in stories and influencers to live vicariously. She's desperate to be loved, to feel cared for, to have a true family and sense of belonging. It's hard to like her because she's so obsessed with trying to be other people and thwart Crystal, but it's also reasonable to see why she is envious and frustrated with Crystal. Alyssa sees Crystal as ungrateful, which, given Alyssa's upbringing, is understandable for her to feel, even if (as a reader and outsider) I don't agree with Alyssa.
Both of them are desperate for real connections and want to be one another's best friend, but there's the tension between them that is unspoken as Alyssa becomes more and more obsessed and tries to hinder Crystal's plot to bring the Shaw empire down. I found it really interesting how, given their differences, they were both drawn to journalism. Crystal figures she can use journalism to make a difference for her siblings and the influencer lifestyle as a whole, drawing on the skills she's had to acquire over the years to bring light to the problematic nature of it. Alyssa, though, was always drawn to stories because they offered her that connection to people, and she also wants to make some kind of difference and name for herself through reporting on big stories.
I really enjoyed following the story because, since we get into both of their heads, it's compelling to analyze their interactions knowing each of their *actual* inner thoughts and feelings. Watching them grow closer helped build up tension for the events near the end. I will say the pacing dragged a bit for me in the middle, and I found the major reveal predictable (I guessed it at the prologue). That said, I still enjoyed it and the events at the very end as things unfold was fantastic! I loved how Alyssa wasn't JUST obsessed with the Shaw family and trying to keep it going - there's SO much more to her character and an enigmatic past that we get bits of throughout the story that tied into the end in such a gripping way.
The end, again, was great, and it actually left me with more questions in a good way. It left me wanting to know what happens to the characters 5, 10, even 15 years in the future!
I'd definitely recommend this one if you like obsession and/or influencer-based suspense stories!
Audio notes: The audio is fantastic! The narrator does a great job conveying the emotion and bringing the characters to life. You can hear the characters' desperation, obsession, and feelings throughout the story, and I felt immersed in the different POVs every time I listened.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the eALC to listen to and review. All opinions are my own.
What a fun, obsession-fueled, envy-driven, influencer suspense!
I had a good time following Crystal and Alyssa as the two FMCs, and I think the dual POV was the right choice for this story because you really get into each of their heads. Both of them are really well fleshed out and are foils of one another, yet also overlap in a few ways.
On the one hand, Crystal is full of resentment, worry, exhaustion, and desperation after growing up as a child influencer against her will. She's tired of being an 'act,' a performance, and she's worried about her younger siblings growing up the same way. She's desperate to escape and to help the twins escape, too. You can really feel everything tumultuously wrestling inside her head and heart as she tries to figure out how to finally put an end to things after getting away and moving to the city for uni. She loves her family, but she's done with the influencer lifestyle and all it requires. Her interactions with her mother are really reflective of what Crystal describes; everything is transactional, superficial, and void of genuine warmth and love.
On the flip side, Alyssa grew up with parents who were absent, and she lost herself in stories and influencers to live vicariously. She's desperate to be loved, to feel cared for, to have a true family and sense of belonging. It's hard to like her because she's so obsessed with trying to be other people and thwart Crystal, but it's also reasonable to see why she is envious and frustrated with Crystal. Alyssa sees Crystal as ungrateful, which, given Alyssa's upbringing, is understandable for her to feel, even if (as a reader and outsider) I don't agree with Alyssa.
Both of them are desperate for real connections and want to be one another's best friend, but there's the tension between them that is unspoken as Alyssa becomes more and more obsessed and tries to hinder Crystal's plot to bring the Shaw empire down. I found it really interesting how, given their differences, they were both drawn to journalism. Crystal figures she can use journalism to make a difference for her siblings and the influencer lifestyle as a whole, drawing on the skills she's had to acquire over the years to bring light to the problematic nature of it. Alyssa, though, was always drawn to stories because they offered her that connection to people, and she also wants to make some kind of difference and name for herself through reporting on big stories.
I really enjoyed following the story because, since we get into both of their heads, it's compelling to analyze their interactions knowing each of their *actual* inner thoughts and feelings. Watching them grow closer helped build up tension for the events near the end. I will say the pacing dragged a bit for me in the middle, and I found the major reveal predictable (I guessed it at the prologue). That said, I still enjoyed it and the events at the very end as things unfold was fantastic! I loved how Alyssa wasn't JUST obsessed with the Shaw family and trying to keep it going - there's SO much more to her character and an enigmatic past that we get bits of throughout the story that tied into the end in such a gripping way.
The end, again, was great, and it actually left me with more questions in a good way. It left me wanting to know what happens to the characters 5, 10, even 15 years in the future!
I'd definitely recommend this one if you like obsession and/or influencer-based suspense stories!
Audio notes: The audio is fantastic! The narrator does a great job conveying the emotion and bringing the characters to life. You can hear the characters' desperation, obsession, and feelings throughout the story, and I felt immersed in the different POVs every time I listened.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the eALC to listen to and review. All opinions are my own.
May 19, 2026
Ahh, family vloggers. Always a great subject because you know things are never as perfect as they seem, but are they actually up to something sketchy?
After growing up as part of a famous influencer family, Crystal is excited to finally get away when she heads off to university, where she quickly becomes friends with Alyssa.
I listened to the audiobook, and while the narrator did a good job and fit both characters well, it really could’ve used a second narrator. With two first-person perspectives, it got a little hard to follow at times when both characters had the same voice. I found myself regularly forgetting whose chapter we were in until something specific reminded me.
Early on, we get hints that Alyssa has some strange behavioral patterns, which made her interesting, but I think the book could’ve leaned more into the mystery surrounding her character. She also wasn’t exactly subtle, considering she clearly had never gotten away with anything in her life.
I also wish the book had explored the investigative side a bit more. It felt like every time we learned something new about the family, the answers were revealed almost immediately, so there wasn’t much left that genuinely surprised me.
Overall, this one was okay. It was easy to listen to and entertaining enough, but it was a bit predictable, and the ending wasn’t all that shocking.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy.
After growing up as part of a famous influencer family, Crystal is excited to finally get away when she heads off to university, where she quickly becomes friends with Alyssa.
I listened to the audiobook, and while the narrator did a good job and fit both characters well, it really could’ve used a second narrator. With two first-person perspectives, it got a little hard to follow at times when both characters had the same voice. I found myself regularly forgetting whose chapter we were in until something specific reminded me.
Early on, we get hints that Alyssa has some strange behavioral patterns, which made her interesting, but I think the book could’ve leaned more into the mystery surrounding her character. She also wasn’t exactly subtle, considering she clearly had never gotten away with anything in her life.
I also wish the book had explored the investigative side a bit more. It felt like every time we learned something new about the family, the answers were revealed almost immediately, so there wasn’t much left that genuinely surprised me.
Overall, this one was okay. It was easy to listen to and entertaining enough, but it was a bit predictable, and the ending wasn’t all that shocking.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy.
June 29, 2026
Thank you so much to the MacMillan Early Listeners Program for this ALC!
Typically, I steer clear of anything thriller-adjacent. The premise of this book just intrigued me though: girl who wants to escape her vlogger family and the girl who is obsessed with the channel (and then met meet). So, I decided to take the leap into a new genre with this title.
I was really pleasantly surprised by this book! Crystal and Alyssa were interesting characters to follow, especially because at first everything seems normal. Crystal wants to get away from the family business and Alyssa is just trying to make her way through university. As you uncover more about Crystal’s family and more about Alyssa’s past, the story twists into something sinister. I really enjoyed how readers were able to uncover bits and pieces of information all throughout the story. The dual perspectives in this novel work phenomenally well.
For the audiobook, I really wish we would’ve had two different narrators for each perspective. I think that would’ve added to the listening experience. However, I believe the narrator did a good job in showing the different feelings behind each character in their performance.
Overall, this book possibly has opened me up to the possibility of trying more thriller-type titles. Excited to potentially explore the genre more.
Typically, I steer clear of anything thriller-adjacent. The premise of this book just intrigued me though: girl who wants to escape her vlogger family and the girl who is obsessed with the channel (and then met meet). So, I decided to take the leap into a new genre with this title.
I was really pleasantly surprised by this book! Crystal and Alyssa were interesting characters to follow, especially because at first everything seems normal. Crystal wants to get away from the family business and Alyssa is just trying to make her way through university. As you uncover more about Crystal’s family and more about Alyssa’s past, the story twists into something sinister. I really enjoyed how readers were able to uncover bits and pieces of information all throughout the story. The dual perspectives in this novel work phenomenally well.
For the audiobook, I really wish we would’ve had two different narrators for each perspective. I think that would’ve added to the listening experience. However, I believe the narrator did a good job in showing the different feelings behind each character in their performance.
Overall, this book possibly has opened me up to the possibility of trying more thriller-type titles. Excited to potentially explore the genre more.
June 15, 2026
This was amazing! It was like watching good reality tv, I just needed some popcorn to go along with it.
Crystal has grown up under the spotlight as one of the Shaw children of the popular At Home with the Shaws vlog channel. But what people don’t see behind the perfectly curated image, is the reality of living life under her mom Marjorie’s thumb. The countless retakes, letting food grow cold for the perfect shot, having your every moment be someone’s entertainment. Alyssa doesn’t see that. This family’s channel has been a lifeline for her. Watching their videos is a balm for her soul, a place of comfort when she feels so adrift in life. So when she befriends Crystal and finds out that she wants to expose her family’s vlog, Alyssa needs to come up with a plan. She can’t believe how spoiled and entitled Crystal is. Alyssa would give anything to be a part of that family, to have such attention from her parents, to have siblings that adore her. She can’t live without this family & knows what she must do.
I highly recommend the audiobook as it brings this story to life. Great narration!
Dual pov
Psych thriller
Family vlog
Crystal has grown up under the spotlight as one of the Shaw children of the popular At Home with the Shaws vlog channel. But what people don’t see behind the perfectly curated image, is the reality of living life under her mom Marjorie’s thumb. The countless retakes, letting food grow cold for the perfect shot, having your every moment be someone’s entertainment. Alyssa doesn’t see that. This family’s channel has been a lifeline for her. Watching their videos is a balm for her soul, a place of comfort when she feels so adrift in life. So when she befriends Crystal and finds out that she wants to expose her family’s vlog, Alyssa needs to come up with a plan. She can’t believe how spoiled and entitled Crystal is. Alyssa would give anything to be a part of that family, to have such attention from her parents, to have siblings that adore her. She can’t live without this family & knows what she must do.
I highly recommend the audiobook as it brings this story to life. Great narration!
Dual pov
Psych thriller
Family vlog
May 15, 2026
Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for this ALC in exchange for an honest review!
Out June 2, 2026.
This was a super slow burn for me. While it was entertaining enough to keep me listening, it just felt like it was missing something the entire time. The story took a long while to really get going, a lot of the themes and conversations felt repetitive, and most of the twists were pretty predictable for me.
I also went into this expecting more of an adult psychological thriller, but it read very YA to me. I was honestly surprised to see it wasn’t categorized that way. That being said, I actually think this could work really well for younger readers who want to dip their toes into thrillers and can handle some darker themes and chaotic behavior.
The strongest part for me was definitely the premise. The whole family-vlogger/internet fame angle is unsettling in a very modern way, and I liked the commentary on exploitation, obsession, and curated online personas. I just wish the tension had been pushed further.
And I have to mention the cover because WOW—I absolutely love it. The colors and design immediately caught my attention and honestly were a huge reason I picked this one up in the first place.
Overall, this one didn’t fully work for me, but I can definitely see it finding an audience, especially with readers who enjoy slower, character-focused suspense with social media drama mixed in.
Out June 2, 2026.
This was a super slow burn for me. While it was entertaining enough to keep me listening, it just felt like it was missing something the entire time. The story took a long while to really get going, a lot of the themes and conversations felt repetitive, and most of the twists were pretty predictable for me.
I also went into this expecting more of an adult psychological thriller, but it read very YA to me. I was honestly surprised to see it wasn’t categorized that way. That being said, I actually think this could work really well for younger readers who want to dip their toes into thrillers and can handle some darker themes and chaotic behavior.
The strongest part for me was definitely the premise. The whole family-vlogger/internet fame angle is unsettling in a very modern way, and I liked the commentary on exploitation, obsession, and curated online personas. I just wish the tension had been pushed further.
And I have to mention the cover because WOW—I absolutely love it. The colors and design immediately caught my attention and honestly were a huge reason I picked this one up in the first place.
Overall, this one didn’t fully work for me, but I can definitely see it finding an audience, especially with readers who enjoy slower, character-focused suspense with social media drama mixed in.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Author of The Goldens is back, and I enjoyed this book more than her last. Read this if you enjoy fast thrillers, dark academia, and crazy social media obsessions. The obsession and addiction of social media is a dangerous thing. This book did a great job highlighting the lies and facades of social media.
Crystal has made it to university out of the grip of her parents and the eye of her mom’s social media channel. She quickly finds friendship with classmate, Alyssa. Alyssa seems like the perfect friend and confidant but does she have other motives for befriending Crystal?
I really enjoyed this audiobook with alternating chapters and POVs. Narration done by Lily Lefkow-Green and she did a superb job. I flew through this one. Thanks Macmillan Audio for the ALC! Tell Your Friends will be available to public on Tuesday 6/2.
Crystal has made it to university out of the grip of her parents and the eye of her mom’s social media channel. She quickly finds friendship with classmate, Alyssa. Alyssa seems like the perfect friend and confidant but does she have other motives for befriending Crystal?
I really enjoyed this audiobook with alternating chapters and POVs. Narration done by Lily Lefkow-Green and she did a superb job. I flew through this one. Thanks Macmillan Audio for the ALC! Tell Your Friends will be available to public on Tuesday 6/2.
June 3, 2026
TELL YOUR FRIENDS by Lauren Wilson
🎧 audiobook review • out now!
Narrated by Lily Lefkow-Green
Length: 7h 16m
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
thank you @macmillan.audio for my ALC!
for fans of books involving influencers/social media, this one is for you. Crystal’s family has been in the spotlight for years, navigating their life after the tragedy of losing her sister at a young age. As crystal gets older, she despises the attention she gets. She goes to college, where she starts working as a journalist, and makes friends with Alyssa- who she confides in to call out her family, and hopefully bring an end to the channel.
I think this audio could have absolutely benefited from two narrators, it’s told in dual POV between Crystal and Alyssa- I was actually a few chapters in and totally confused, until I realized it was two different POV 😵💫 aside from that, the story was fast paced and pretty interesting, and I listened to it fairly quickly because it was a solid story.
🎧 audiobook review • out now!
Narrated by Lily Lefkow-Green
Length: 7h 16m
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
thank you @macmillan.audio for my ALC!
for fans of books involving influencers/social media, this one is for you. Crystal’s family has been in the spotlight for years, navigating their life after the tragedy of losing her sister at a young age. As crystal gets older, she despises the attention she gets. She goes to college, where she starts working as a journalist, and makes friends with Alyssa- who she confides in to call out her family, and hopefully bring an end to the channel.
I think this audio could have absolutely benefited from two narrators, it’s told in dual POV between Crystal and Alyssa- I was actually a few chapters in and totally confused, until I realized it was two different POV 😵💫 aside from that, the story was fast paced and pretty interesting, and I listened to it fairly quickly because it was a solid story.
May 13, 2026
I absolutely adored the journey this book took me on. I was initially drawn in by the story of a child from a family vlogging empire heading off to college. Finally getting the chance to discover herself outside of the carefully curated image her family built online. What completely caught me off guard, though, was the twist in the last half of the book. I genuinely did not see it coming at all. Just when I thought I understood where the story was headed, it completely pulled the rug out from under me in the best way possible. It added so much depth and tension to the story and made me fly through the final chapters. The emotional impact of that reveal stayed with me long after I finished the book.
Thank you for the advance readers copy!
#TellYourFriends #NetGalley
Thank you for the advance readers copy!
#TellYourFriends #NetGalley
June 26, 2026
Tell your friends
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Family drama, social media influencers and a stalker? Always a big yes for me. However, I have mixed feeling with this book. I think that in many ways the writing style is just as good than it was in The Goldens, which I really liked, but at the same time, it lacked the wow factor of the latter, both in terms of setting and execution.
I started it excited, the premise was good and I was curious about both POVs and tho it was entertaining enough for me to keep reading, I also got uninvested from time to time.
Lets start with Crystal, out of the 2 she was my least favorite. Her character was a bit plane and I wish I could connect with her much more. I needed to see, I don’t know, a desire for actual revenge and also, a lot more depth to the conflict, cause yes, for the most part of the book the family wasn’t great but the bad parts were shallow so the final plot twist was like too much, too soon? Kinda out of nowhere? Its hard to explain.
As for Alyssa, she was more interesting to read, villainous characters would do that to you I guess, but she felt victim of the pace of the book. I wanted to see more of her at work, I wanted more mystery surrounding her, more obsession. What you read in the synopsis is exactly what you get, nothing beyond that, and again, it got superficial.
The build up of the book was intense yet too slow. i think it was definitely handle better in The goldens where the vibes got even claustrophobic but within Tell your friends, I was constantly waiting for something that didn’t arrive.
The setting also, lacked magic and appeal, it was just so normal, and that is not what I want to read once you put an influencers lifestyle in the mix, this could just have been about 2 random teenagers and that’s it.
That being said, I liked the ending. Both here and in The goldens is clear that no matter how much you run, sometimes you cannot escape from that very thing your are trying too and I loved that aspect.
Overall, the book was fine, just not as good as I expected after loving so much the authors debut. I kinda still recommend tho!
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Family drama, social media influencers and a stalker? Always a big yes for me. However, I have mixed feeling with this book. I think that in many ways the writing style is just as good than it was in The Goldens, which I really liked, but at the same time, it lacked the wow factor of the latter, both in terms of setting and execution.
I started it excited, the premise was good and I was curious about both POVs and tho it was entertaining enough for me to keep reading, I also got uninvested from time to time.
Lets start with Crystal, out of the 2 she was my least favorite. Her character was a bit plane and I wish I could connect with her much more. I needed to see, I don’t know, a desire for actual revenge and also, a lot more depth to the conflict, cause yes, for the most part of the book the family wasn’t great but the bad parts were shallow so the final plot twist was like too much, too soon? Kinda out of nowhere? Its hard to explain.
As for Alyssa, she was more interesting to read, villainous characters would do that to you I guess, but she felt victim of the pace of the book. I wanted to see more of her at work, I wanted more mystery surrounding her, more obsession. What you read in the synopsis is exactly what you get, nothing beyond that, and again, it got superficial.
The build up of the book was intense yet too slow. i think it was definitely handle better in The goldens where the vibes got even claustrophobic but within Tell your friends, I was constantly waiting for something that didn’t arrive.
The setting also, lacked magic and appeal, it was just so normal, and that is not what I want to read once you put an influencers lifestyle in the mix, this could just have been about 2 random teenagers and that’s it.
That being said, I liked the ending. Both here and in The goldens is clear that no matter how much you run, sometimes you cannot escape from that very thing your are trying too and I loved that aspect.
Overall, the book was fine, just not as good as I expected after loving so much the authors debut. I kinda still recommend tho!
May 27, 2026
3.5⭐️
This was definitely a wild listen. Crystal is off to college, which is a vast reprieve from her home life, where her family has done the whole family influencer vlogs her whole life. Looking to forge her own path, she tries to adjust to college life, and make new friends that don’t know who she is. Turns out her new best friend secretly knows everything about her, and will do anything to have the life she is desperate to leave behind 👀
Like I said, this was a wild listen. I was definitely entertained, but it was a bit anticlimactic towards the end.Not bad by any means, but wanted just a bit more shock factor!
Thank you MacMillan Audio for the early listen.
This was definitely a wild listen. Crystal is off to college, which is a vast reprieve from her home life, where her family has done the whole family influencer vlogs her whole life. Looking to forge her own path, she tries to adjust to college life, and make new friends that don’t know who she is. Turns out her new best friend secretly knows everything about her, and will do anything to have the life she is desperate to leave behind 👀
Like I said, this was a wild listen. I was definitely entertained, but it was a bit anticlimactic towards the end.Not bad by any means, but wanted just a bit more shock factor!
Thank you MacMillan Audio for the early listen.
June 2, 2026
Tell Your Friends by Lauren Wilson
⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Tell Your Friends was such a fun, fast read. The thriller/drama mix worked really well for me, and the social media angle didn’t feel forced at all,it actually made the story feel current. I listened to the audiobook and the narrators alone are worth 5 stars. They made everything hit harder. If you’re looking for something propulsive and entertaining that doesn’t ask too much of you, this one delivers. Genuinely had a great time with this one and I’d pick up whatever Lauren Wilson writes next.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.
Tell Your Friends was such a fun, fast read. The thriller/drama mix worked really well for me, and the social media angle didn’t feel forced at all,it actually made the story feel current. I listened to the audiobook and the narrators alone are worth 5 stars. They made everything hit harder. If you’re looking for something propulsive and entertaining that doesn’t ask too much of you, this one delivers. Genuinely had a great time with this one and I’d pick up whatever Lauren Wilson writes next.
June 10, 2026
I really enjoyed this author’s last book and thought it deserved more attention, so I when the publisher sent me this one I gave it a go. While the influencer thriller premise was just entertaining enough to keep me reading, it felt a bit too YA for my taste and never fully delivered on its potential. Not a bad read, but ultimately just an okay one for me.
June 8, 2026
3.5 stars, rounded down. This book was unhinged, but somehow not as fun as I’d expect for such a trope. While still entertaining, it was wildly unbelievable and very predictable. Not the worst read, but not the best.
July 13, 2026
3.5 ⭐️ round ⬆️
This book was super enjoyable and entertaining. Parasocial relationships are always a complicated situation. I absolutely loved the lengths that the FMCs went to protect their own interests. This was the definition of single white female peak energy 🍿
This book was super enjoyable and entertaining. Parasocial relationships are always a complicated situation. I absolutely loved the lengths that the FMCs went to protect their own interests. This was the definition of single white female peak energy 🍿
June 5, 2026
3.75/5 stars
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy!
This was an entertaining, albeit fairly predictable story! This book was easy to devour and, believe me, I did. I could see the main plot points coming from a mile away, but that doesn't mean it wasn't still fun to listen to as they came up.
Overall, this was a fairly twisted psychological thriller about obsession and a strong desire to change the circumstances you're in. It was easy to tear through and I didn't want to put it down. It wasn't, however, totally groundbreaking and I do wonder how much of this I'll remember in the months to come.
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy!
This was an entertaining, albeit fairly predictable story! This book was easy to devour and, believe me, I did. I could see the main plot points coming from a mile away, but that doesn't mean it wasn't still fun to listen to as they came up.
Overall, this was a fairly twisted psychological thriller about obsession and a strong desire to change the circumstances you're in. It was easy to tear through and I didn't want to put it down. It wasn't, however, totally groundbreaking and I do wonder how much of this I'll remember in the months to come.
July 30, 2026
Crystal has spent her whole life being filmed, edited, and packaged for her mother’s influencer brand. Now she’s done. She wants college to be her fresh start, her escape, her real life. Superfan Alyssa has spent her whole life wishing she was someone like Crystal. Now she’s close enough to do something about it. When these two collide at university, the obsession, envy, and secrets spiral fast.
This one simmers before it explodes. It starts slow while you settle into both perspectives, but once it locks in, it LOCKS IN. Crystal’s longing for freedom, her grief, her decades of knowing exactly what to say to keep the peace, all of it hit hard. And Alyssa’s obsession was deeply uncomfortable in the best way. I finished this in one day and did not see that ending coming.
Audiobook Thoughts: Narrator Lily Lefkow-Green captured Crystal’s exhaustion and quiet rage beautifully, and Alyssa’s barely-contained, delusional obsession felt raw, real, and unsettling. The one thing I kept thinking was that dual narration would have elevated this even more. Two such different women deserved two distinct voices, especially in those early chapters when you’re still figuring out who’s who.
If you love messy female friendships, influencer culture, and dark academia vibes, this thriller about identity and the desperate need to be loved needs to be on your TBR.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
This one simmers before it explodes. It starts slow while you settle into both perspectives, but once it locks in, it LOCKS IN. Crystal’s longing for freedom, her grief, her decades of knowing exactly what to say to keep the peace, all of it hit hard. And Alyssa’s obsession was deeply uncomfortable in the best way. I finished this in one day and did not see that ending coming.
Audiobook Thoughts: Narrator Lily Lefkow-Green captured Crystal’s exhaustion and quiet rage beautifully, and Alyssa’s barely-contained, delusional obsession felt raw, real, and unsettling. The one thing I kept thinking was that dual narration would have elevated this even more. Two such different women deserved two distinct voices, especially in those early chapters when you’re still figuring out who’s who.
If you love messy female friendships, influencer culture, and dark academia vibes, this thriller about identity and the desperate need to be loved needs to be on your TBR.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Tell Your Friends really said what if The Truman Show was run by a mommy vlogger with a brand partnership addiction and absolutely zero respect for human dignity, and unfortunately? That premise hits immediately because every time I see a family influencer online making their sobbing child do a thumbnail face, I already feel like I’m watching evidence for a future lawsuit.
Crystal Shaw heads off to university hoping to finally escape her life as one of the unwilling stars of At Home with the Shaws, which is basically if your childhood memories were owned by YouTube commenters named things like MamaBear1978. Her mother has spent years turning every private family moment into monetized content, including the death of Crystal’s older sister, which is the kind of detail that makes you stare into the middle distance for a second thinking, wow, maybe we should’ve bullied people off the internet a little more.
Crystal worked for me because she’s angry in that exhausted, hollowed-out way where you can tell she’s spent years performing gratitude while internally dissociating. She doesn’t even know how to exist without imagining herself through a camera lens. Every interaction feels filtered through “would this play well online?” and honestly that made me sadder than the actual thriller elements. There’s something genuinely bleak about realizing this girl has never had a single ugly private moment that wasn’t potentially content. Meanwhile her mom is out here treating emotional trauma like bonus Patreon material.
And then we meet Alyssa, who immediately arrives with the energy of someone who says “we’re basically the same person” after one group project and then starts copying your haircut three business days later. I love a toxic female friendship. Inject it directly into my bloodstream. Alyssa has this deeply uncomfortable parasocial obsession with Crystal and her family that somehow feels both dramatic and incredibly realistic because the internet has absolutely produced people who think watching your vlogs for ten years means they spiritually helped raise you. There’s a specific kind of horror in realizing somebody knows intimate details about your life before you even know their last name.
The thing this book nails is how creepy internet fame actually is when you remove the ring lights and ukulele apologies. Crystal’s entire identity has been flattened into consumable content. Even her grief belongs to strangers now. And Alyssa, coming from her own deeply lonely and unstable background, latches onto the Shaws like she’s trying to crawl inside their lives and wear them as a skin suit from H&M. Their friendship gets increasingly sweaty and weird in a way that reminded me of being nineteen and making emotionally catastrophic decisions because someone validated you exactly once.
Now listen...the pacing in the middle absolutely wanders around the block a few times before getting to the murdery chaos. There were stretches where I wanted to shake everyone gently by the shoulders and say “you are all one bad dorm party away from an HBO documentary.” Some twists are predictable too, but honestly, once you hear “family vloggers,” your brain immediately assumes tax fraud, emotional abuse, at least one hidden crime, and a Notes app apology. The real tension comes less from guessing what happens and more from waiting to see exactly how bad these people are willing to get.
Also this audiobook absolutely benefited from Lily Lefkow-Green committing fully to the emotional instability of these girls. Alyssa especially starts sounding more and more tightly wound as the story goes on, like someone trying to keep a smile glued onto their face while actively unraveling inside. The narration really helps sell the obsessive friendship angle because half the tension is just hearing these girls emotionally imprint on each other in real time. Universities in thrillers continue to be the least educational institutions on earth though. Nobody attends class. Every student is either investigating secrets, trauma bonding, or one awkward conversation away from committing a felony.
What really stayed with me underneath all the messy thriller drama is how badly both Crystal and Alyssa want to be loved in a way that feels real. Crystal wants someone to see her outside the brand. Alyssa wants to belong to something so badly she starts reshaping herself around other people’s lives. The internet just magnifies all of it. This book gets that loneliness and obsession are basically steroids for bad decisions, especially when you’re young enough to think reinvention is the same thing as healing.
Overall, this was a 3.5 star read for me. Slightly predictable, occasionally meandering, but deeply entertaining in that “oh no these girls are making choices” kind of way. It’s messy, uncomfortable, weirdly sad, and just self-aware enough about influencer culture to make you want to delete TikTok and call your therapist.
Whodunity Award: For Making Every Family Vlog Intro Sound Like The Beginning Of A True Crime Podcast
And huge thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC, because nothing pairs better with folding laundry than listening to emotionally damaged internet children slowly implode while I mutter “absolutely not” at my ceiling.
Crystal Shaw heads off to university hoping to finally escape her life as one of the unwilling stars of At Home with the Shaws, which is basically if your childhood memories were owned by YouTube commenters named things like MamaBear1978. Her mother has spent years turning every private family moment into monetized content, including the death of Crystal’s older sister, which is the kind of detail that makes you stare into the middle distance for a second thinking, wow, maybe we should’ve bullied people off the internet a little more.
Crystal worked for me because she’s angry in that exhausted, hollowed-out way where you can tell she’s spent years performing gratitude while internally dissociating. She doesn’t even know how to exist without imagining herself through a camera lens. Every interaction feels filtered through “would this play well online?” and honestly that made me sadder than the actual thriller elements. There’s something genuinely bleak about realizing this girl has never had a single ugly private moment that wasn’t potentially content. Meanwhile her mom is out here treating emotional trauma like bonus Patreon material.
And then we meet Alyssa, who immediately arrives with the energy of someone who says “we’re basically the same person” after one group project and then starts copying your haircut three business days later. I love a toxic female friendship. Inject it directly into my bloodstream. Alyssa has this deeply uncomfortable parasocial obsession with Crystal and her family that somehow feels both dramatic and incredibly realistic because the internet has absolutely produced people who think watching your vlogs for ten years means they spiritually helped raise you. There’s a specific kind of horror in realizing somebody knows intimate details about your life before you even know their last name.
The thing this book nails is how creepy internet fame actually is when you remove the ring lights and ukulele apologies. Crystal’s entire identity has been flattened into consumable content. Even her grief belongs to strangers now. And Alyssa, coming from her own deeply lonely and unstable background, latches onto the Shaws like she’s trying to crawl inside their lives and wear them as a skin suit from H&M. Their friendship gets increasingly sweaty and weird in a way that reminded me of being nineteen and making emotionally catastrophic decisions because someone validated you exactly once.
Now listen...the pacing in the middle absolutely wanders around the block a few times before getting to the murdery chaos. There were stretches where I wanted to shake everyone gently by the shoulders and say “you are all one bad dorm party away from an HBO documentary.” Some twists are predictable too, but honestly, once you hear “family vloggers,” your brain immediately assumes tax fraud, emotional abuse, at least one hidden crime, and a Notes app apology. The real tension comes less from guessing what happens and more from waiting to see exactly how bad these people are willing to get.
Also this audiobook absolutely benefited from Lily Lefkow-Green committing fully to the emotional instability of these girls. Alyssa especially starts sounding more and more tightly wound as the story goes on, like someone trying to keep a smile glued onto their face while actively unraveling inside. The narration really helps sell the obsessive friendship angle because half the tension is just hearing these girls emotionally imprint on each other in real time. Universities in thrillers continue to be the least educational institutions on earth though. Nobody attends class. Every student is either investigating secrets, trauma bonding, or one awkward conversation away from committing a felony.
What really stayed with me underneath all the messy thriller drama is how badly both Crystal and Alyssa want to be loved in a way that feels real. Crystal wants someone to see her outside the brand. Alyssa wants to belong to something so badly she starts reshaping herself around other people’s lives. The internet just magnifies all of it. This book gets that loneliness and obsession are basically steroids for bad decisions, especially when you’re young enough to think reinvention is the same thing as healing.
Overall, this was a 3.5 star read for me. Slightly predictable, occasionally meandering, but deeply entertaining in that “oh no these girls are making choices” kind of way. It’s messy, uncomfortable, weirdly sad, and just self-aware enough about influencer culture to make you want to delete TikTok and call your therapist.
Whodunity Award: For Making Every Family Vlog Intro Sound Like The Beginning Of A True Crime Podcast
And huge thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ALC, because nothing pairs better with folding laundry than listening to emotionally damaged internet children slowly implode while I mutter “absolutely not” at my ceiling.
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