3 stars? 3.5 stars? I can't decide!

This review is probably going to be very short, because not only is it really hard to talk about this book without giving away spoilers (and you know how I feel about spoilers), but I still can't decide how I feel about the book! Without giving anything away, the basic premise is that Jess lives in the late 1990s and has the typical problems of a teenager, only with the extra burden of a sick younger sister. She’s fallen in love with her male best friend, she’s starting to feel left out by her two female best friends even though they’ve always been a trio, etc. Only weird things are starting to happen, like the fact that an iPhone falls out of her friend’s bookbag, even though the iPhone hasn’t been invented yet.

The book was very readable, which is a huge plus for me, especially with everything going on in the world right now and how that is affecting my focus. I also enjoyed the pacing throughout the first half or so, as little clues added up slowly until the twist was revealed, and then things rapidly unfolded from there.

The things that lower the rating for me are 1) the pacing of the last third or so of the book, when I think the "thriller" aspect was supposedly kicking in, but I was actually just bored by this point, and 2) believability. I think that any premise can be sold to the reader if handled well, but I never fully bought into the situation of the book. The execution was lacking. Also, going into it, I thought it would be a standalone. I think that's part of where it fails a little, because the world isn't as fleshed-out as it could be because, guess what, there's going to be at least one other book! Blargh. At least it didn’t end in a cliff-hanger, which I hate.

But, as I said, I found most of the book really readable and I so badly needed a page-turner right now. I think I'll stick with the 3-star rating for now.

This book was so unique! I didn't see the twist coming, and it made this book unlike anything I've ever read. It's contemporary realistic fic, it's almost a little Dystopian, it's a little bit of a thriller....! I enjoyed it so much because I understood all the 90s references. I wonder if a teen reading this would get the references.

Thank you, NetGalley, for my free review copy of this title.

2.5 stars

It’s 1998. Titanic has just won big at the Oscars. The Wedding Singer is in theaters. Jess Flynn is a mostly typical 17-year-old high school junior with an overprotective mother, living in a small town she can’t wait to escape after graduation. Everything seems normal in her 90s bubble, until one morning she hears weird chanting outside her window. Then, her school is practically empty. Her friends explain it away as some terrible flu that’s going around, but when Jess’s dog is not her dog, she starts noticing other things that are just...off about her town, her school, her whole life. Add to that the strange electronic device that falls out of Jess’s best friend’s backpack, and Jess starts to question everything around her, noticing other things that just aren’t quite right. Like the strange trees deep in the woods that she encountered when she was a kid. Jess confronts her crush, who confirms her suspicions with some further explanation. When someone close to her leaves, she realizes that this is her chance to make an escape and find out what lies beyond the walls of her town. A little help from an unexpected ally brings her into a world she had no idea existed and throws her into the thrill of her life.

I really wanted to like this one more than I actually did. For a book that is marketed as a thriller and described as “Black Mirror meets My So-Called Life” and further described as “fast-paced,” I unfortunately felt that the plot was too slow and never truly thrilling enough for me. I will admit that there’s one small part, when Jess is on the run, that moved a little quicker for me. But it was just one scene. Of an entire book that’s meant to be a thriller. I guess with comparisons to Black Mirror, I also expected something a little darker. I can certainly see how Jess Show relates in the sense of questioning our realities, but it just never fully lived up to its potential for me. With regard to the My So-Called Life comparison: again, I expected something a little heavier/more dramatic. This felt like a comparison solely because: TV + 90s + teens. Speaking of which, there are a lot of 90s references, which makes sense, I guess. I initially liked them until, at a certain point, it started to feel as though they were just randomly name-dropped or listed rather than woven into the actual story.

I thought this was definitely an interesting concept, but it unfortunately just did not fully deliver for me.

The concept of this book was really fun, but it didn't go deep enough to truly grip me. This is described as a thriller, but I was never particularly thrilled. I would have loved a more in-depth discussion of how society got to this insane point, but that conversation never happened. We, as readers, are just supposed to accept that in less than 20 years, it will be okay to raise a child 100% in the public eye, not even knowing she's living in the wrong decade? I know there is a second book, so I'm hoping that will come more to light in the sequel. For now, I don't love it, but I don't hate it either.

#ThisisnottheJessShow
#NetGalley
#Edelweiss
A light sci-fi book that is set in a small town with strange behaviors and has a cute, sweet plot line.

When a device falls out of one of her best friends backpack Jess has no idea what it is. What she does know is that her friends are keeping a secret from her. Jess has no clue what impact that secret will have on her life.



THIS IS NOT THE JESS SHOW was an interesting read for me. I liked the characters. I didn't find Jess overly whiny as so many teens tend to be in books. Also once Jess found out the big secret she didn't stick around and play the victim or allow people to manipulate her. She took charge of her life and did something to change it. I liked that about her character.



I haven't read a young adult book in awhile so I was a bit put out with the foul language in the book. At the risk of becoming too preachy I'll just say this, I don't think that it was necessary to the story line.



An entertaining story line, with likable characters.

This was so much fun! A soapy 90s teen drama mixed with light sci-fi and a touch of a cute romance meant I couldn't help but read almost this entire story in one sitting.

Jess as a main character was so sweet and endearing, but still smart enough to stand up for herself when she needed to. Her family was so frustrating in the choices they made, but her sister Sara was an adorable light in their messed up family. I do wish we had gotten more time with some of the side characters like Kristen, Amber, and Tyler. They all played interesting roles in the story, but we didn't get to know them that well (which I think was intentional), and I really would've liked to have known their secrets and intentions.

This book is really similar in its basic plot to a 1998 movie, but I can't say which one without spoiling the plot twist (<spoiler> it's The Truman Show </spoiler>), but I really liked the spin Carey put on it. The world in this book was touched on only a little, and while we got answers to the major questions, I still have so many! I'm definitely excited for the sequel.
This book also has so much nostalgia for people who grew up in the 90s. I was only 7 in 1998, but I still loved the beginning scenes of the book because they felt so genuinely 90s. I think Carey did a good job with including pop culture references from the 90s organically-they didn't feel forced or gimmicky to me. The mention of the trendy but super uncomfortable inflatable armchair was one of my favorites.

Overall I'd definitely recommend this one! It's a super fun ride that you can lose yourself in for a day.

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my copy of this book in exchange for my review!*

This Is Not The Jess Show is a different kind of story. At first Jess and her family appear to be a normal small town people. They live in a small town and everyone seems to know everyone, but do they really? As life continues on Jess begins to notice strange behavior within her family...even her dog is acting weird. Soon Jess begins to see how things really are, but is this real? Jess starts to investigate and what she finds sends her running for her life. Will she escape to safety? Read This Is The Jess Show and find out for yourself!

Jess doesn't know, but she's about to find out. It is 1998 and 17 year old Jess is thinking about college and getting out of her town, but she's also crushing on her best friend and hanging with her sister who is homebound from an illness. But things start to get a bit strange - are those voices Jess is hearing? What secrets are her best friends hiding? And is her sister really dying? Who can Jess trust as she starts to see through the facade and sets off on an adventure with a person she had been trying to avoid. 90's kids will love the nostalgia and everyone can appreciate the moment when things become clear and you understand a bit more about your world.

Let me begin by saying that the whole premise of this book is a massive irrational fear of mine: that my reality isn't real. I knew that going in and decided to read it anyway. And for me, it was a thriller novel because of that fear, but to others it'll probably just be an action novel.
I loved the story, and I really love the 90's (which was the decade I grew up in). That being said, there were parts of the book that felt shallow. Jess gets told the truth about her reality and immediately accepts it. In fact, she hardly seems bothered by what she's been told. Yes, she immediately tries to escape, but she doesn't really get hit with the gravity of what she's been put through, at her expense. There are a lot of descriptions of random things, and for a first-person perspective, I wished the novel would tell me what Jess is feeling, not so much what she is seeing. Without giving too much away, Jess is introduced to things that are brand new to her, life-changing, and all we get as a reader is her describing what it looks like, not what it feels like. Also, I thought the ending was a little dry and rushed, and ended really abruptly.
The majority of the novel, though, I adored, and I can't wait to put this on my shelves in August for my students!

WOW.

Wow wow wow wow wow.

I apparently missed that this is a duology, so it was a bit of a surprise when I got to the end and realized it wasn't over.

But like.... such a great story! I love Jess, and the world building is PHENOMENAL and I can't wait to read more!!!

Full review to come as we get closer to the publication date, since I read this super early (like, the second I got it early).

But jsyk, this isn't a "round it up" 5 stars or a "someone will love this book even if it isn't me" 5 stars- it's a "holy cow I can't believe that was such an AMAZING story!!!" 5 stars. And I'm already looking forward to rereading it before I read the sequel. And possibly before then.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinion was not affected by the free copy.

I requested this book because it sounded like a variation of The Truman Show, one of my favorite Jim Carrey movies. This, I think, did a little better with the idea since Jess's narrative allowed the reader to know exactly what she was thinking and feeling as the truth was revealed to her. I also admit I really liked all the 90's throwbacks going on; using that nostalgia was pretty genius on the author's part.

This would be a pretty good book for discussion because I can honestly see this sort of reality TV show popping up in the future. We've already had shows that follow people's lives. While I was reading, I kept waiting for certain things to be revealed as still being part of the show. I don't want to explain what I mean for spoiler reasons, but with all the manipulation Jess endured most of her life, I couldn't help but be suspicious of everything. I didn't particularly like one part of the setting. It felt a little inconsistent, and unbelievable when certain events happened. I was remembering when something similar happened in another book I read, and there was a much more widespread reaction and actions being taken. The Truman Show did better at that particular plot point as well, I think.

I won't complain too much about the editing since this is an ARC, but that editor needs to make sure things are spaced out properly in the final copy. I also hope that text is different fonts or something, because there were times when captions were being quoted and I couldn't always tell where that started and Jess's narrative took over. Also, this one's super nit-picky, but Jess was confused by the word "device". Like someone was talking about a device and she was all "What's that?" even though "device" is an extremely common word. I know that's a small thing, but it bugged me so much.

I'll only touch briefly on the romance. Because of course there still has to be a romance, for some reason. I honestly feel like it was unnecessary and the book would've been fine without it, but I guess it wasn't terrible. It was paced nicely enough-- no instalove or anything like that.

Overall, it was an enjoyable. It'll definitely be great for discussion, and maybe make us take a closer look at where reality TV shows are going.

Wow wow wow.

I love The Truman Show, and this is a great YA version told from the perspective of a female character, with some added gut-punching commentary about our society's obsession with the media. Also, I got some End of the F******* World vibes from the last 1/3 of the novel.

There were some very interesting twists within the book, and the ending was really well done. Not too keen on the sudden romance near the end, but I feel like it was about par for the course for a YA book. And this book flew by. Highly recommend. Thanks Netgalley and Edelweiss!!!

This compelling book was impossible to put down and left me fascinated and drawn in until the very end. Jess is living an average life in the 1998 in her small suburban town. She is grappling with her sister being in hospice which makes her even more on edge. One day, one of her best friends drops something out of her bag: an iPhone. From there, her life begins to spiral out of a control as finds out nothing is as it seems.

I read this book in one setting. I was fascinated with all the hints that were dropped in the beginning. Once more of the plot was revealed, I kept wanting to see what would happen next. I got very invested in both the world and the characters. I highly recommend this book.

This went from weird to slightly frightening to downright disturbing in the best possible way. Try to avoid reviews though - finding out is half the fun.