This Is Not the Jess Show: Volume 1

Anna Carey

Feb 2021 · This is Not the Jess Show Book 1 · Sold by Quirk Books

About this ebook

A teenage girl’s reality may not be what it seems in this riveting young adult thriller blending 90s nostalgia with a speculative hook that dissects our reality TV and influencer-obsessed culture.

“Nostalgic, romantic, thrilling, and with an exciting twist.”
—Sara Shepard, New York Times–bestselling author of Pretty Little Liars

The year is 1998: Titanic just won six Oscars, boy bands are dominating MTV’s airwaves, and like any other teenager Jess Flynn is just trying to survive high school. Between a crush on her childhood best friend, overprotective parents, and her sister’s worsening health, the only constant is her hometown of Swickley, which feels smaller by the day.

Jess is resigned to her small-town life, until the day she discovers a mysterious device with an apple logo, causing her to question everything and everyone she’s ever known. As more cracks appear in Jess’s world, she faces a choice: can she live the rest of her life knowing it’s a lie, or should she risk everything for the truth?
 
A fast-paced, mind-bending YA thriller packed with ’90s pop culture references and perfect for fans of Riverdale, This Is Not the Jess Show will keep readers guessing until the very end.

Now with an excerpt from the explosive and thrilling conclusion, This Is Not the Real World!

Ratings and reviews

This is Not the Jess Show by Anna Carey will probably become quickly popular with its intended young adult audience. It includes some romance and teen angst while addressing current Youtube/Tok Tok culture, throwing in a touch of reality television as well. The combination of these hot buttons might have wide-spread appeal, but its premise and execution here are not terribly original. Reminiscent of the “Truman Show” and some episodes of “Black Mirror,”, the plot of Carey’s book is already well-worn by better versions. Jess is a teen who is a protype child of the 1990’s and references to that era abound in the novel. She has her core group of friends, one of whom is a boy who she is beginning to have deeper feelings toward. Her life is relatively easy and uncomplicated, except for some typical conflict with her parents and a younger sister whose terminal illness envelops the family’s every moment. Things take a strange turn, however, when Jess starts noticing some weird coincidences and unexplainable happenings popping up around her. When she questions others about what she is experiencing, everyone seems to be covering up a secret of some sort. She soon discovers that everything that she remembers growing up in the town of Swickley is not as she has been led to believe. The story has some thrilling moments and interesting twists, but there are some major non-sequiturs and inconsistencies that will hopefully be corrected prior to the books’ final publication. Light and topically relevant, This is Not the Jess Show is far from great literature, but will still undoubtedly draw in those young readers who avidly follow the current digital zeitgeist. Thanks to the author, Quirk Books and Library Thing for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

About the author

Anna Carey is the author of Blackbird, Deadfall, and the Eve trilogy. She lives in Los Angeles.