Member Reviews

This is a really interesting book that explores the relatively unwritten about world of vlogging. It exposes the pressures of this unregulated area of the internet, and what happens when it all starts to fall down, how spectacularly that can happen. With little or no support or regulation for this part of the industry, it exposes the stark reality of social media popularity. I'd recommend reading this, and talking about it, to discuss the dangers and issues. An engaging read.

Was this review helpful?

I'm sorry. I really tried to get into this book but it's just not for me I'm afraid. I could not finish it.

Was this review helpful?

A clever fast paced modern thriller set in the world of social media. I enjoyed this book. Lots of twists and turns throughout. I found I didn't really like or warm to any of the characters but this didn't affect my enjoyment of the story which I found intruiging and compelling. The tension builds gradually throughout the book and the plot deepens with each twist. I enjoyed the ending.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Sorry for the delay in the review of this book but it wasn’t what I was expecting.
I found it hard to get into the story and it just didn’t flow for me as a thriller,did sound better on the blurb.
But thankyou

Was this review helpful?

Probably not one I would have picked of the shelf

It is,well written and I did enjoy it,

It makes you think........

Thank you netgalley, Bonnier Zaffre and Amy Heydenrych for allowing me to read and review this book.

Was this review helpful?

Generally, I enjoyed reading this book- it kept me interested throughout and was full of twists. Unfortunately the vast majority, if not all, of these twists were predictable.

I knew exactly what Holly's secret was within the first 10%, fortunately the reveal isn't too far ahead coming in around 1/3 of the way through but I did feel that it was so obvious it didn't even constitute a surprise. Tyler's secret was also fairly obvious and a bit of a let down.

My main issue with this is that both of the main characters are so intensely unlikeable that despite their genuinely upsetting backstories, I felt no sympathy or care for either of them throughout. They're both despicable people- I'm sure they're meant to be but to give them no redeeming features in their adult lives was an oversight from the author in my view.

I also despise the ending of the book. Holly was given a redemption arc that she didn't deserve then went and ruined it right at the end. To be honest, I think the author is planning a sequel as the final sentence is so ambiguous and many people will be intrigued enough to continue with Holly's story.

I appreciate the messages about social media not reflecting real life etc and think they are genuinely important in the current climate.

More of the book should have been focused on the reaction of people Holly knew from home to the news. Her parents, friends and colleagues get incredibly limited page time and there is no way that the news wouldn't have spread in the age of social media. Surely Alice, the girl undergoing cancer treatment towards the end of the book, and her friends would have raised awareness of what was going on.

Finally I have a personal issue with books set in the UK using American terms i.e mom, which is used consistently throughout. Also, there is talk about money and Holly refers to cents- it's pennies over here.

Was this review helpful?

Are you the type of person who will gullibly believe all you see on social media? Or are you of the opinion that everyone bends the truth to some extent online?

In an age where social media has come to the brink of taking over our lives, the subject matter of ' Shame on You' can be seen to apply to everyone to some extent.

Holly, our protagonist, as a result of school bullying, was an insecure young girl before she made a new life for herself. As an Instagram sensation as a result of her posts about beating cancer with her healthy clean eating diet and inspiring yoga sessions, she now feels loved and adored by her many followers. The penny drops when she is attacked and left for dead by a seemingly nice man she met in a coffee shop. But why? It only gets worse for her from here on out. Her life begins to unravel as a secret she has been keeping is revealed to the world, resulting in people questioning if she is all she's made herself out to be.

Well written with a pace that flowed easily, I enjoyed discovering how this story would play out. It had me wanting to have a word with my teenage kids on thinking twice about what they post on Instagram and the like. The book did feel like the author was preaching to the reader regarding social media though, trying to teach the reader a lesson, almost to the point of leaving the plot behind at times, which did affect my total enjoyment of the book.

I feel this book would be great for the younger generation fixated on social media...it would certainly give them food for thought, as it did me.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the author and Bonnier Zaffre, Twenty7 for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion of this book.

Was this review helpful?

Shame On You is a techno thriller based around Instagram and the likes and on the whole was an interesting read but I didn’t connect to the main character which unfortunately you need to do when reading a book of this genre.
Holly is a social media blogger that knows the more likes you get the more popular you become and finds her lifestyle is now full of people throwing things her way, free accommodation is only the start. She has become a web sensation in that she had cancer and beat it but she also harbours a very big secret and if this were to get out she would be ruined. One evening she meeets Jack a friendly guy until they turn down a dark alley and he attacks her, leaving her in a world she is unable to control as Jack seems to know rather a lot about her.
This was an ok read, I didn’t like Holly so couldn’t have cared less about her but there were some characters I did like, the ending left me a bit really!!! Would that really happen!!!
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre-twenty7 for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I can’t BELIEVE I’ve had this sitting there waiting to be read so I’m reviewing straight away. Here was a book I gobbled up in a night, absolutely LOATHE to put it down. So we start in McDonalds, where we are sitting watching all the usual madness that comes at night time and suddenly all eyes are on the young woman running towards the counter. Some phones begin to film as

“Something about her hair, her stance, the way she moves, suggests that something is about to happen”

And so we enter Holly’s world, where everything is about clicks and likes and people wanting to see a filtered image of a person they think they can become. Holly is famous for being the girl who beat cancer purely through clean eating, and everyone wants a piece of her, even now, when she has become an object of pity due to her destroyed face and mental health issues. It is a book that demonstrates how tough and cruel modern day living and people are, and how everyone is quick to judge. It shows us both Holly and her attacker’s past, as we see his rationale for the attack and subsequent haunting of Holly. I have to admit his pov grabbed me as much as Holly’s, and I found some of his later issues to be almost comedic as his mindset morphed and unravelled. The ending didn’t quite rank alongside the rest of the book but it didn’t matter. Very much recommended and beyond enjoyable. Thanks so much to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: 4.5/5

Was this review helpful?

So do you believe everything you see online? Is everybody who they make themselves out to be? In this day of social media this book is very apt. Shame On You by Amy Heydenrych had me staying up way past my bedtime to find out what was going to happen next... I was hooked!

Holly is a young and insecure girl who suffered from bullying at school but has made a new start and a new life for herself in London.. She has become an Instagram sensation after her posts about her raw diet and how they cured her cancer. People can't get enough of her online and she finally feels loved. She meets who she think she is a nice man in a coffee shop and agrees to have dinner with him.. things are going well until he attacks her with a knife and leaves her for dead. Why? As she recovers her life starts to fall apart and people start to wonder if she is all she says she is.

A fantastic fast read that I didn't want to stop reading. Thank you to Bonnier Zaffre and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and and are in no way biased

Was this review helpful?

Thankyou to NetGalley, Bonnier Zaffre and Amy Heydenrych for the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of Shame On You.
I have to admit, I struggled to finish this book. I felt it had a very slow but predictable plot. I really enjoy my thrillers, but this one didn't do anything for me.

Was this review helpful?

I think this book had a really intriguing premise. The whole idea of exploring the 'clean-eating' trend and this holistic, all natural lifestyle that so many internet gurus promote, advertising and all. But, this book markets itself as a borderline thriller and yet, it's so slowly paced. The first 25% is incredible- the action is fast, it's sharp (pun intended) and wittily written, and you feel an undercurrent of genuine fear. However, as we start to get further into the novel, it struggles with maintaining that horror-esque tonality. What makes a thriller exciting and hooking is when there's continuous turns, continuous changes in the plot. The dual perspective really doesn't add much to understanding the book. Ultimately, it feels a little disappointing, especially with such an exciting concept. Not well executed.

Was this review helpful?

In a world where almost everyone accessed social media in some way this book is a very interesting concept.

Meet Holly. She’s a social media sensation. People want to live their life like her. Girls want to be her. She’s the epitome of clean, healthy living creating vegan recipes for the masses and inspiring yoga sessions. But she has a secret. She’s attacked by a man and slowly her life begins to spiral out of control.

This book is well written and I enjoyed it. The story flows well and kept me interested throughout. Thank you to NetGalley, Bonnier Zaffre and the author for the chance to review.

Was this review helpful?

Everyone lies on Social Media, even just a little, don’t they ?

This book follows Holly, who is an Instagram star. Her story started when she was diagnosed with cancer and took to social media to show details of her treatment. Following on from traditional treatment she adopted a healthy diet and lifestyle which gained her even more followers and fans. One day she is attacked and a secret she has been keeping is revealed to the world.

This book shows the pitfalls of social media and how not everything is at seems !! It also covers the dangers of posting on social media when you don’t know who is following you.

This is a great book with a very relevant storyline and will make you think twic about your next post on social media.

Thank you to Bonnier Zaffre and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

Was this review helpful?

Although I’m not the Insta generation I do understand the attraction (?addiction) of the social media world so I was intrigued by this story. I think overall it was a good theme but it was a little heavy handed in parts and totally unbelievable in others - really would someone who has just been cut and discovered that their flat had been broken into by the perpetrator not change their locks? Would the police not take her attack more seriously; would Frankie’s family not ‘out’ their daughter’s nightmare boyfriend. There were many crazy anomalies like this in the book but as I previously said, I think the theme was interesting. Holly could have been a more likeable character, despite her lie about cancer but again although her backstory of abuse both physical and mental by her father was written about, it failed to elicit a sympathetic response and therefore Holly stopped being an understandable character and stayed a little two dimensional. Having said all of the above, I did like the concept and feel with a little tweaking this could be a great book. I think it will appeal to the millennial females who no doubt will find it resonating and hopefully fire a warning shot across their bows

Was this review helpful?

The idea for this book was great but for me it failed in the execution. Neither Holly nor Tyler were likeable characters and the "thrill" element just didn't reach the level i expected. It seemed predictable and for this reason some of the side character and events were more interesting - I enjoyed the Zanna / Holly interactions and those in the "wellness" centre - almost more than the main plot. I thought the ending was a cop out OR a signpost to the fact that there will be a second in the series

Was this review helpful?

I am afraid I struggled with this book, maybe I am not in the right age group,and other readers may identify with it more.I hope so I just didn't connect with the main character and that meant I didn't really care what happened to her.I can't really say much more I just didn't enjoy the book.

Was this review helpful?

Have you ever reached New Year and thought it's time to reinvent yourself? Have you lied about yourself to get more like She? Have you ever followed someone online who you think is perfect? Meet Holly, a social media sensation.

This book is about Holly, a girl who was bullied. When Holly is told she has cancer, she posts on Facebook and Instagram about it. Now, she has thousands who follow her. She claims healthy living and a vegan diet cured her cancer. Tyler's girlfriend, Frankie, also has cancer. Frankie followed the advice Holly gave out but Frankie died. Tyler, who is a doctor, is out for revenge. This is a story about how social media can take over your life. People pretend to be something they are not. I did not like the characters Holly and Tyler. The pace is fast and the book is well written. It is written in alternating chapters between Holly and Tyler in both the present day and the past.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Bonnier Zaffre and the author Amy Heydenrich for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

You know Holly. She’s that famous healthy eating influencer, who has basically invented ‘clean eating’ and has an Instagram full of juices, yoga wear and being #thankful. Everything about her life is picture perfect – aside from the fact that she doesn’t appear to have any love interests, family or friends – aside from her PR agent. When an impromptu date turns into an almost deadly attack, Holly has to work out why this man wants to kill her – or destroy her reputation at the very least.

This is quite an interesting, albeit cheesy, thriller about the world of influencers. This story is pretty clearly inspired by the scandal surrounding the Australian wellness influencer, Belle Gibson, and the revelations about her health empire in 2017. But, of course, this is fiction so the story goes off on one crazy, but relatively believable, tangent. There’s a moment about midway through the book (without giving away any spoilers) where I thought Holly was going to go completely 180 and have a total feminist rampage with her target set squarely on the world of influencers. Sadly, this doesn’t happen (that would have been amazing though) but this is still a pretty fun and thought-provoking read. Definitely a great summer reading option for the beach these holidays.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed this book, very current and relevant, grabbed me from the first page and didn't let go!

Was this review helpful?