What would you do to be a social media star? Well, in this book, due to the tragic situation of her twin's death, Julie finds out! And what a wild ride it was. Not only does it give you a good look into what it takes to be an influencer but how the highs of likes and followers are super addictive and that can cloud thinking and lead to choices that might not be so wise. Add in a dash of something like Stepford wives and something darker (way darker) for a riveting read that drew me right in to see if Julie can get out of the mess she did not know she was stepping in when she took over Chloe's life and gets tangled in with the Belladonnas (aptly named for sure!). It is a nice balance of horror and comedy and I really enjoyed reading this! Being influencer famous can take you down odd and dark paths, at least in this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read an advance copy of this thrilling and exciting read!

It took a while for me to get into this and I never felt like I fully did. I like the funny, dark humour POV stories but this one didn’t really work for me, I never connected with the main character. This was just ok.

I won’t lie, I was a bit anxious about this one! It’s not my usual genre of book, but I was very pleasantly surprised!

I really enjoyed this book. I ended up feeling quite bad for Julie, she wasn’t perfect and was actually quite terribly flawed, but I definitely understand why she did everything that she did

As someone who grew up struggling to make friends etc, I get it! She just wanted to be loved and feel seen for maybe the first time in her life, she perhaps just didn’t go about things in the right way

It was a very entertaining read and I really loved how it tackled influencers and social media

Thank you so much for this arc!

I really enjoyed this read, I felt so sorry for Julie, her life sounds like it had been such a struggle for her so I absolutely did not blame her when she ‘took over’ Chloe’s life but I don’t think she was expecting what she got!!

I love how Julie really embraces being Chloe and the fact that she can spend money on things because she has it now instead of stealing sandwiches from her place of work. Obviously, it’s not all plain sailing as her aunt is still as greedy as ever!!

She finds herself making friends for what sounds like the first time in her life, and the appreciation and adoration she gets as Chloe on social media really boosts her. The ‘friends’ however, are not what they seem and this for me was the best part, I couldn’t believe what I was reading and I think at one point Julie was really ‘under their spell’ it could have hone in either of two ways but I’m really glad that it went the way that it did.

I thought this was really well written, it seemed to flow really well and I found myself flying through the chapters to see how it was going to end up.

A fun, fast paced and addictive story. I knew nothing about this book going in and that made it all the more enjoyable. Julie was terrible, but such an entertaining character to root for. She was flawed, egotistical and annoying but I loved reading about her. I really enjoyed the plot too, it was clearly barrelling towards something big and the ending did not disappoint. The back up characters were also immensely entertaining, this entire story was so much fun to read. A great commentary on social media and influencers, with the added bonus of being funny too.

A whip-smart contemporary thriller about influencers and the power of social media. I enjoyed the first half of this book a lot, but the second half not so much as the tone changed and it became a heck of a lot darker. But I did still enjoy it as a whole and thought it was very clever. I particularly liked the writing style which weaved in elements of humour into the darkest of scenes.

Thank you for the ARC net galley! I was so excited to read this. It’s a contemporary thriller exploring the themes of influencers, societal media and identity.

The novel, is such a fast read which a mush mash of grey characters, I loved to hate. I didn’t know where the story was going and that was half the fun! The morality of the Julie’s decisions and actions keep you turning the page. It had me cringing, gasping and laughing at different stages. My only “criticism” which wasn’t an actual issue, was that it felt like 2 books in one, the turn the story line takes contributed to that feeling but upon reflection- that’s what makes the book so unhinged, in an entertaining way.
While exposing a side of social media influencing we may have some idea about, it digs deeper into the relationships of influencers, the good the bad the ugly & how much they sell their souls for the success. Highly recommend! A great bookclub option too!

The premise is super intriguing, what if your life sucked but had an identical twin, who’s life you wanted and could be her.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book, the pacing was good and stories were being rounded out. The second half, seems too long and feels more repetitive.
Overall I did enjoy the tension and most of the build up.
Chloe lives in NYC but it really could have been any major city. Some of the vernacular didn’t sound American to me.
If you enjoy the psychology behind who influencers behave and work, this will appeal to you. It also touches on the ethics of their work especially when they start doing family content.
Also taking another look at para social behavior on both the side of the influencer and the influencee.

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

Julie Chan may not have killed her twin, but she did take her life.

I did not find Julie likeable. That did not stop me from reading as the whole time, I was like, “Girl, how do you not find that suspicious?!” I did sympathise with her up until the point where she becomes Chloe, because let’s be real, her life kinda sucked. She was not happy, her aunt was abusive, and she was alone.

Once she became Chloe and started meeting the other influencers, it was clear how bizarre the whole situation had become. Julie started off the book thinking about influencers as vapid but over time, we see her turn to social media and her fellow influencers for validation.

It’s an interesting narrative; just like how we can get sucked in by social media, Julie finds herself changing to the point that she almost had me believing she was Chloe.

Thank you to Bloomsbury for sending me this arc.

It took me a couple of weeks after finishing this book to decide how I actually felt, but I overall really enjoyed it. The start was incredibly fun and Julie was a really funny character to follow, she's definitely easy to dislike!

The main issue I had was that it felt like two different books once we hit the halfway point. I did enjoy the horror show we entered in the second half, but if you're squeamish or looking for something light, the second half is not for you!

Overall I did have a great time, if you love a dislikeable main character and a fast, contemporary plot with a horror twist, give it a go!

✨what in the actual ya-ya-sisterhood living f*ck is this?✨

I 😂 could 🫣 not 🤣 put 🥵 this 😜 book 🙃 down!! I was only approved for it this morning and I devoured it in one sitting this evening. For lovers of brilliant character development and total ✨vibes✨ of a read! Think Bunny. This is a zany read that I know will be divisive but it’s the most exhilarating book I’ve read in a while, the adrenaline to get through was palpable. It didn’t disappoint. Despite what you may think this is not your average influencer inspired book, I don’t even think it’s the book I thought it was when I started it. You’re in for a ride with this one and I can’t wait to relive it on audiobook!

Bravo to Liann Zhang, what a debut!!! Thank you so much to Bloomsbury Publishing, Raven Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Julie Chan Is Not Dead before it’s released on 1st May 2025!!! I can’t wait to get my copy and for the audio! 💛

I read a new book, "Julie Chan is Dead," and it was wild!

Twins get split up as kids. One gets rich, one stays poor. Then, one twin dies. The poor twin takes her rich sister's life online.

It's a funny story about fake internet people and hiding secrets. I liked it!

I really enjoyed this book. Fantastic story about twins, who, due to being separated at an early age go on to lead very different lives.

Thank you Netgalley for opportunity to read this fantastic book!

This book wasn’t what I expected it to be at all, and I loved it. The book is expertly written in two different parts. It begins as a great concept - woman has identical twin, the twins are raised separately after their parents’ death, her twin ends up a successful influencer whilst she struggles in a minimum wage job, the twin dies and she takes over her dead twin’s life. The first half of the book shows her trying to fit in with the other influencers, loving her twin’s lifestyle etc. The second half of the book is a twisty horror. I loved the whole thing. It’s a really fun read and I would definitely recommend it!

I was immediately drawn in by the premise of this story and I really think it started and ended really strong!! The middle put lost me a touch tho.
Julie is one of those great characters that you are not sure of you should like her or not, and I love that!! I really enjoyed seeing her move into her sisters life, and take it over. I do think the island portion of the story was a little bit rushed and we jumped from being so involved with everything to suddenly being against it! So I do think we could have spent some more time fleshing that out. But the very end was so good! I love it when a story has an ambiguous ending like this, knowing that the characters have gone through all of this and not really changed that much, and they are still gonna walk the same path.

First part: Fun idea—excited to see where this is going!
Second part: WTF.

Fast-paced, captivating, and definitely intriguing! I absolutely loved the WTF part and honestly wished it had an even bigger presence. Also, I really enjoy how I pretty much dislike every single character.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this advanced copy!

How did the "Belladonnas" become the queens of social media? Well, let's ask Julie Chan....

This book went from dark to unhinged so quickly, but I am absolutely here for it!

This book has everything, social media, true crime, murder and a fantastic monologue from Iz about white privilege....

Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this eARC.

3.5 stars rounded to 4.

This was one wild ride! I was definitely hooked by the premise and some comparisons to Yellow Face from early reviews, which was one of my favourite books last year. I really enjoyed the beginning of the novel and the tension built up due to Julie’s actions.

The second half of the book is where things start to get kind of weird (not in a bad way necessarily!). The events on the island all felt very Bunny-esque, and whilst it was fun, it just didn’t quite sync with the first half of the book for me - it almost felt like a different story to the one we started with. I also felt like the ‘big reveal’ with Chloe’s death and what happened to her adoptive parents was very rushed.

I found the ending to be pretty lack lustre and was actually surprised where it ended. I get what the author was trying to do, and the message was definitely delivered, but I was hoping to see what happened at Julie’s trial.

This was surprisingly dark in some parts and one particular scene made me physically shudder - definitely a win in my book and testament to some great writing. This was offset with some funny commentary and satire of influencers, so it never felt too heavy. I have to say I do really love a story about influencers being bad and I honestly wish there had been more of this.

Overall I did really enjoy this and I finished it in 3 sittings and could feel myself wanting to keep reading on, and it was definitely very well written. I would absolutely read anything else this author writes!

What happens when your estranged identical twin dies and you "accidentally" take her identity and make a new life for yourself as a highly popular influencer?

Chloe Van Huusen is everything Julie isn't, she's a well known social media personality with tons of cash whereas Julie is a cashier that barely makes ends meet and lives with her insufferable aunt.

I loved that the book highlighted the dark side of social media and Julie had quite a few funny moments.

The book lost me after the halfway mark as I found the Belladonna's to be quite annoying and the book took a completely different turn to the point I wasn't even sure what genre it's supposed to be.

I also feel the ending felt unfinished but perhaps it's setting up for a sequel?

I quite literally tore through this - pacing, tone and general social commentary were stand out elements for me and it actually made me laugh out loud a few times despite the last 40% of the novel being a pretty drastic tonal shift requiring suspension of disbelief. I also think the story could have benefitted from more in depth characterisation in lieu of some of the more on the nose social commentary, and the ending felt slightly incomplete and rushed. Overall it was a great read with lots of engrossing twists and turns, perfect for a beach read.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.