This was a really intriguing and thrilling premise, rather fast paced which I like with a thriller and the plot twist at the end made it all the more brilliant.

This is a whodunnit mystery thriller, set on board a yacht with lots of super rich, super snooty people….its an easy breezy read, not too taxing, an ideal beach read for summer hols

A hugely gripping read. It kept me hooked, although I did find the main character a little annoying. Fantastic twist at the end, didn't see it coming.

I do love a story that involves influencers, hence being drawn to this book.

And this is a mixed bag of influencers, many of which appear to be hiding something,

But just why was Stella really killed, and who by is the question on everyone's lips, as she was the biggest star of the internet, but also treated people atrociously,

In steps Maggie who is a relatively unknown true crime blogger who was invited to the influencers of the year awards on a yacht, and on discovering Stella's demist, decides she will investigate herself.

After all the first few hours are critical and they won't be back to land for a few hours!

This was an intriguing story that had me baffled at points, I definitely didn't predict the outcome. I rather enjoyed reading this and trying to get to the bottom of things.

Thank you to Canelo and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

I received an advanced copy of this ebook from the publisher for an honest review. This book is well written and the characters are described well. I enjoyed Maggie's character. This book is set in London, England. This is definitely in my top ten favorite books of the year. It is so twisted and it makes you sit on the absolute edge of your seat trying to figure out who did it, cause eyou will think it is one character but it isn't them. This ebook is in stores for £1.99 (GBP).

I really, really enjoyed this book. It gripped me from the start, it was fast paced, enjoyable, jumpy just what I was hoping for. Would definitely recommend.

In this story we meet Maggie, who is a budding true crime blogger. Maggie finds herself invited to the Influencer of the Year awards. Although quite soon it becomes apparent that Maggie isn’t all that successful. However she is finally in the midst of other influencers. Which means Maggie might finally achieve her dreams of turning her blog into a full time career. Will it be plain sailing?!

I really liked the build up as Maggie attempted to network with other influencers. All of this changes when a murder occurs and she is determined to investigate. It was great to see that nothing was quite how it seemed. Maggie finds a troubling mix of secrets and superficial appearances in the influencer world. I thought this all helped the reader to get a feel for her character and the victim.

It’s safe to say that The Influencers premise definitely intrigued me and for the most part I felt the story worked well. I did enjoy investigating with Maggie but at times I felt like there was something missing. I really enjoyed the parts set on the yacht. These parts helped to build up a tense feeling. So I did feel like the story could have benefited from more of these scenes. I think they would have helped to cement a more claustrophobic feel. Let’s face it, even on a luxury yacht you wouldn’t want to be stuck with a killer!

Even though I might have had a couple of niggles, the story kept me invested. I was eager to see who the killer was especially as there were quite a few suspects to choose from. As with anything when you look below the surface there was so much more going on and the influencer world became a lot less glamorous.

On the whole The Influencers was an interesting and twisty tale!

Thank you to Canelo and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Influencers by S. V. Leonard is a fun social media murder mystery that will have you turning the pages quickly. The story revolves around Maggie, who is attending the Influencer of the Year award. Although her blog is still in the fledgling stages, she's exciting to rub elbows with the elite of the blogging / podcasting world. But before the end of the night, the most famous influencer, Stella Knight, is found dead. Who killed her? It's up to Maggie to find out!

Here is an exciting excerpt from Chapter 1:

"My blog The Social Sleuth is only a year old, and my most popular post has had 1,220 views. I'm under no illusions that I've not got a lot to do, but I have huge ambitions for it. I will be the go-to girl when people need their true crime fix. Being invited to this event is a positive step towards that. The creme de la creme of the social media world will be there. If I can establish a connection with just one of them, it would change everything for me."

Overall, The Influencers is a murder mystery and thriller that will appeal to fans of the podcast My Favorite Murder or Agatha Christie. One highlight of this book is the fun premise, which starts off on a yacht. Another highlight of this book is the relatable protagonist, who channels her inner Nancy Drew to investigate the murder. One last highlight of this book is the stunning twist, which I wasn't expecting at all! If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of thrillers in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book, which is available now!

This was a fast-paced, fun read with well-drawn characters and a very original premise. A great beach read. Highly recommended.

This book reads like a decadent series, a lot like watching Dynasty. Social media influencers aboard a catch, hiding secrets, grand revelations and much more. I enjoyed the end of the book the most because I did not see most of it coming. If you like thrillers, you will not be disappointed!

S.V. Leonard has a knack of identifying the current trend/cultural norm, turning it on its head and creating a compelling tale where you love to hate the characters but at the same time, you can't put it down. Thoroughly loved this and raced through it. A clever twist. She makes writing seem so easy and that is a great talent.

I really enjoyed this book, I loved the twists and the turns and especially loved the ending - I didn't see it coming. Great story and worth a read if you love twisty thrillers.

I found the plot of this book to be quite tedious and far-fetched. With the protagonist running around London interviewing potential suspects, I found it incredulous that complete strangers were so willing to speak with Maggie. Although the ending was a clever twist, it was not enough to keep me fully interested throughout.

At first I was relishing in the premise of this ‘who dunnit?’ story and the glitz and glamour that is associated with the media awards. The excitement and nerves that Maggie feels is palpable and I think this is intensified further by the blazing heat. (I actually thought this book was being set somewhere abroad because the weather was so nice!) Setting off on a luxury yacht along the River Thames was a great way to isolate the characters, but I had hoped the story would stay adrift, adding to the intensity of the plot. For me, once the novel had returned to land, I thought the plot became less exciting and I could not get a feel for Maggie’s determination to solve the murder.

For me, Maggie is too keen to befriend complete strangers. Despite being a true crime blogger, she is presented as incredibly naïve and willing to partner up with potential suspects. In my opinion, it would have worked better if Maggie was working on this crime completely independently; instead I cringed at her desperation of making friends with Reiss, who lives the rich and lavish lifestyle that Maggie clearly craves. Furthermore, Leonard frequently makes ambiguous references to Maggie’s past. Often, I felt that I had mis-read sections, not properly processing clues about Maggie’s character. Although I had not, it made me feel frustrated that large parts of her personality are not developed until the final reveal at the end. In my opinion, it would have been more interesting if Leonard had added more depth to Maggie, instead of leaving it until the Epilogue.

This novel lacked the pace of a thrilling murder mystery and the first part of the story was definitely my most favourite. After disembarking, I think the pace lessened incredibly and I could not believe how Maggie was able to get so far involved in the police investigation, without actually annoying the authorities for interfering. Furthermore, knocking on people’s doors and asking questions about Stella’s death did not provoke suspicion and I was a bit taken aback by how readily characters would let Maggie into their homes without knowing anything about her, or that she is clearly not a detective.

So, the big question of all, why did I carry on reading? To be honest, I was fixated on a character being the murderer and I really wanted to be proven correct! As it turns out, I was incredibly wrong but enjoyed the final reveal in the penultimate chapter – it certainly was not something I had foreseen. In addition, I liked how the murder mystery was established and I think it would have been more intense if Leonard had somehow kept everybody on the boat. Perhaps this would read too similar to an Agatha Christie novel, but it would have created a feeling of claustrophobia as Maggie seeks the truth.

This was not my favourite read and I was disappointed by how slow and unbelievable the plot became. I have seen a lot of promotion about this author, so maybe their debut novel is more up my street.

With thanks to Canelo books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

S. V. Leonard's The Influencers was an enjoyable read. The main character Maggie was interesting and I found her to be very realistic. The setting featured fabulous influencers partying on a yacht, which lends itself to a fun and dramatic background, while Maggie attempts to solve Stella's murder. The story started off strong and pulled me in, but I found my mind wandering through the middle. The conclusion was a strong way to end as well. If you like locked room mysteries and/or reading about social media mavens, give this one a try!

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo for my copy of this book. My interest was piqued with this book initially because of the title, then when I read the description and saw that it involved a true crime blogger, social media influencers and murder, I was very excited to read The Influencers.

True crime blogger Maggie has been invited to an awards ceremony aboard a luxury yacht. At first she seems a bit out of her comfort zone mixing with these 'influencers', but soon she gets herself talking to a few of them.
I found the 'Influencer' characters to be as I would imagine many 'Influencers' to be, a little self obsessed and all about looking good. (I know all are not like this). Soon enough, one of the big influencers who is due to collect an award is found dead. Maggie sees this as an opportunity to put her true crime blogging experience to work, and decides she wants to help the police find the murderer. At the start of each chapter, we read an excerpt from Maggie's blog. I didn't find a relevance to these particularly and was waiting for something to link them up. Either I missed it, which is quite possible! Or they were just to show Maggie's blog.

My favourite part of this book was definitely the end. Everything came together well, and I wasn't expecting what happened at all. I found the beginning to be interesting, but the middle of the book was a little slow for me. I like gritty thrillers and this was a bit of a slow burner. It was totally worth it for the end though.

I found this to be some lazy writing, The characters were very hard to like and very one dimensional.

DNF

Our protagonist, Maggie Shaw, is fairly new to the influencer scene, with her true crime blog rising in the ranks, she's thrilled to find she is invited to attend the 'Influencer of the Year' Awards. Taking place on a glamorous yacht. it gives Maggie a chance to rub shoulders with the elite main players in the Influencer world, including the infamous Stella Knight.
The boat provides a beautiful setting for the awards, but it also quickly becomes the setting for murder!
Everyone on board is shocked to hear that Stella Knight has been killed, and Maggie decides with her true crime knowledge and new influencer friend, Reiss Rose, that they'll uncover what exactly happened to Stella...
The beginning of the book set on the yacht was fabulous, and the introduction to all the characters (the good and the bad!) was really great, and reminded me a little of an Agatha Christie mystery, with lots of characters, all with their own secrets!
Although Maggie's personality at times came across as rather rude (I found myself wrinkling my nose at her a few times!), and very much 'on a mission', it ultimately worked perfectly in defining her character, her goals and her intentions.
Although I loved the beginning, truth be told the book did lose me a little on the middle, there were a couple of chapters that didn't quite seem to move at the same pace. Having said that, the ending was simply brilliant. I loved it. Without spoilers - there are plenty of mysteries and twists within the last few chapters to keep you thoroughly glued!!!
So who did kill Stella Knight...? You'll have to read to find out!!!
An easy 4 stars from me 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
Thank you so much to @netgalley , @canelo_co & @svleonardauthor for this e-book of #theinfluencers in exchange for an honest review. I loved it!

A good story but I just did not live up to the hype. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley, S V Leonard and Canelo for the ARC of this book.

Maggie Shaw runs The Social Sleuth, a true crime blog. When invited to the Influencer Of The Year awards held on a luxurious yacht, she is very excited! It will be the perfect place to gain new followers and friends.
Upon arrival Maggie feels like a fish out of water among all the bright and glittery influencers. So when the body of the brightest star of all, Stella Knight, is discovered she knows this is her time to shine. Can she solve the murder before another body appears?

This is a novel that shows that not all is as it seems. That just because someone is so well loved by the public doesn't mean their personal life is perfect.
Maggie Shaw was interesting to me. I didn't really like her at all, but I wanted her to solve the case! You can feel her desperation to fit in.
The plot was a fun whodunnit.
The only issue I had was the pacing, it was very slow in the middle. I had hoped the whole story would be told on the yacht as I love those kind of thrillers.

Overall a good book with a great ending. I did figure it out before the end but that didn't make it any less enjoyable.

3.5 stars

I enjoyed S.V. Leonard's last book, The Islanders, and was intrigued by The Influencers's premise - a murder at an Influencer of the Year awards ceremony, a closed circle mystery on a cruise. It sounds like a lot of fun, but it fell flat for me. The characters were uninteresting, including protagonist Maggie, who decides her true crime blog qualifies her to investigate the death. (Pro tip: that is not sufficient credentials, folks.) The writing felt clumsy, unpolished and hard to sink into, and I never got into that edge of my seat, page-turning place I want to with a thriller. That being said, the twist at the end is pretty clever, and given how short the book is, might be worth getting through the mediocre writing along the way - I just wish it wasn't a bit of a struggle to get to that point.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canelo for the advance review copy.