I don't know why I found this one a bit difficult to read. It was a DNF for me after a few chapters because I did not really get it - maybe I am just the wrong demographic?? Sadly, this book was just not for me at all.

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Thank you for the free eARC copy as always.

This was such a fun read and reminded me a bit of Curtis Sittenfeld's Prep and You Think It, I'll Say It in its sharp and elegant prose and plotline that explored privilege and agency in social situations. I liked the way the author incorporated social media into the narrative, which added a layer of intrigue in a fresh way. The characters were very believable and the pacing was excellent.

Smartly told in retrospect, SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT takes readers through a year in the life of Callie, who we first meet shortly after her wedding. Her marriage has already fallen apart—but what could have gone wrong? Callie uses her Instagram feed and her own personal camera roll to reflect on formative experiences and relationships, while bringing everything together for readers to understand what exactly got her to this disastrous wedding night.

The author's writing style was a true highlight of the story for me—the writing is sharp and witty, and Callie has a distinct voice that draws you in for the ride even when you find it difficult to root for her sometimes. I think so many people will be able to relate to Callie's desire for validation and her tendency to self-sabotage—the toxic relationship she finds herself in can be uncomfortable to read about, but because it feels so real and true to what many people experience. I also really enjoyed the role that social media played in the book, how it can be a window into someone's life but also obscure the reality of what's going on offscreen. All of the different relationship dynamics and how the cast of characters played into them were so fascinating to read about, and I wished some of them had been fleshed out even more (like the friendship between Callie and Virginia, especially considering how the book ended). Overall, SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT is an absorbing story that will leave you thinking long after you've turned the final page! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Intricately told in retrospect, Callie Holt retraces where her 6-hour marriage fell apart, through the past year of Instagram posts and photos from her private camera roll. Callie is in a bit of a quarter-existential-identity-crisis and it all kind of builds slowly to a climax at her wedding. It starts with meeting her finance bro boyfriend, Whit, them moving in with her privileged (really privileged) best friend (if you can even call them that), Virginia. Then the reappearance of her ex, Ollie, who is also Virgina’s cousin. It’s all very messy and all very twenty-something.

I loved Callie’s voice and Forrey’s gorgeous writing. It’s biting and witty and so so smart. I found myself rereading and memorizing so many lines in the book. It’s a quick and sharp commentary on the one percent and the privileged, which is always fun to read about.

However, I just couldn’t stand any of the characters. I was truly rooting for Callie in the beginning of the novel, wanting her to find love, find herself, find her place in this complicated world. But as more and more of her insecurities and bad habits are revealed (without any development or growth), it got repetitive and frustrating. She keeps going back to the wrong people and making wrong choices, knowing they would eventually hurt her (and they do). I found myself yelling through my screen at her to stop making terrible choices. The other characters are also all awful people, except Whit (who I hated at first but ended up actually liking a bit), Callie’s mom, and Walter. Yeah, Walter. That’s how you know the other characters (Virginia, Ollie, Mimi) are truly something else.

Also, the ending. The freaking ending. I’m okay with an open ending and maybe even an unresolved one, if it somewhat satisfies and shows some growth and development and some sense of direction to the characters. Except, Callie ends up nowhere. Absolutely nowhere. The ending was unsatisfying and infuriating. Nothing happens and she just lets her life blow up in front of her. Truly, I wish it ended with her on a plane to Seattle. Anything is better than this ending. Even her stayingin that bathtub and drowning herself in champagne would be a better open ending than what it was. Maybe I’m biased because I hate Virginia, but god, Callie, girl, please tell me you cut ties with the Murphys.

Anyways, that’s why this felt like a three-star read for me. All three stars go towards Forrey’s gorgeous writing and setting and world, but I just could not root for anyone, really, or really understand the ending. But here’s my favorite quote to end this review.

"Instead, it felt like a sentence (death, prison) or the end of a sentence—a period that weighed me down, a mark that wouldn’t let me continue a thought. Let me have more clauses, I wanted to say. Let me run on and on, becoming more incorrect and messy and true. "

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this ARC!

Callie has been married for about 7 hours when it all falls apart. While she lays in the tub, eating an entire pizza in her wedding dress, Callie wonders where everything went wrong. We immediately jump back a year ago and celebrate a year filled with weddings for Callie, her friends, and her eventual groom.

Ok so first of all I have to say, I kind of prefer this cover to the final. This is just so simple and perfect for the book. The final cover is fabulous too but I just really love this one. I will Also start by saying if you need a full conclusion at the end of a novel, this is not the book for you. I really enjoyed this book, but when I read the last page I was like wait…but what happens???? I feel like we all have a friend like Callie. Someone that starts dating someone and goes along for the ride because the relationship is good enough. Shit, I have been Callie myself. That said, I really loved the way this story was told, and I had a few inklings on things that were happening that ended up being confirmed later in the book. I also found the family dynamics to be fascinating, especially the way Callie played into them.

OUT MAY 23, 2023!

Forrey's debut is gripping from the first page. Delving into the social-media frenzy of modern weddings, this book explores friendship, relationships, class, and wealth with a piercing eye toward authenticity in a world governed by curation. As I read, I felt compelled to nod along or underline each word because Forrey's language often captured exactly how I think about various aspects of life as a late-twenties person navigating complex relationships that either aren't serving us or force self-reflection. I found it incredibly hard to put down because I felt so seen by it.

This book, in many ways, felt like a manifestation of a moment in an interview with Stephanie Danler where she said that life is a series of micro-movements that add up to a big moment(s) (paraphrasing here). From the opening scene, we know that Callie's marriage lasted mere hours and then we spend the novel scrolling through her camera roll as she tries to pinpoint where it went so wrong. I think this is a unique storytelling device but also speaks to something greater, which is the fact that many things don't happen in a vacuum, rather a series of steps and missteps get us from point A to point B and sometimes that means lost friendships, damaged friendships, broken trust, and broken relationships. When we lose someone, we wonder "how in the world did that happen?" And then we attempt to go back and connect the dots and make sense of the loss. But the thesis of this book seems to be, no matter how much we zoom in and dissect in hindsight, we often can't see it coming because we're too caught up in ourselves.

While this book felt distinct in its tone and outlook, I think fans of Jennifer Close will enjoy this one.

I’m not sure I get the point of this book. The writing feels choppy and it’s a very long inner monologue of a very strange character who is really not that likable.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

REVIEW TO FOLLOW.

I don't understand the point of this book. I stopped reading after a few chapters. DNF




********************************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley.*********************************

When we’re introduced to Callie Holt on her wedding night, she’s lying in a bathtub, eating pizza in her sauce-stained gown while the groom is asleep in the next room. Determined to pinpoint the marriage’s undoing, Callie looks at her phone and combs through the last year: the camera roll, the photo uploads, the status updates. Social Engagement, Forrey’s debut novel and a uniquely 21st-century mystery, runs with a pretty clever conceit, a detective story using the detritus of social media as the clues they are. “Everyone talks about how their phone is a rabbit hole,” Callie says, “but tonight, I imagine it as a magnifying glass.”

From Callies point of view of various times in her life and what she's experienced on her road to growing up, finding love, and building friendships. This novel was witty, fun, and easy to read.
Forrey does a great job at character development even if they are not all liked. She uses somewhat of a social media lens to tell the Callies story from her camera roll. From the beginning you know a relationship is over, and then you backtrack through memories to see how and why.
It was a cute little telling of the life of a twenty something woman who's looking for love.
Would recommend.

Thanks to Netgalley and Mariner for allowing me to read an advanced copy.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ this was great. @averycarpenterforrey is a VERY gifted writer and her commentary on our generation’s version of image obsession via social media is both original and poignant.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

I have mixed feelings about this books the writing was sharp and most of my dislikes were personal. I hate books with random and constant spillage of body talk and disordered eating. For some reason, I liked Callie and I stuck with this. I'm curious to know why the author chose to end the book when they did, and I feel like I would like a discussion on the themes.

All in all, not my favorite book but enjoyable. Also a lot of people comparing it to Tell Me Lies, which is not a great comparison. Yes they deal with bad exes... but completely different vibes.

An enticing debut fueled by a quick-witted narrator, Social Engagement offers a closer look at millennial wedding culture and the social media etiquette that immortalizes relationships we may be questioning offline. Throughout this story we watch the narrator grapple with her desire for beauty and validation while questioning her love for self-destruction. Populated by interesting supporting characters and biting commentary on the decisions of those around her, you can’t help but wonder if the narrator, Callie, will ever find the love she is seeking within herself.

I'm honestly not sure what to say about this book. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. In no way is this an easy, light read. The characters aren't particularly enjoyable and the story line is almost cringe-worthy at times. Still, I continued to read on, and I am glad I did. This isn't a book I will forget any time soon.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.

Once I got invested in this story and the cast of characters, I absolutely flew through this book. The writing was sharp and smart though felt slow throughout the first half. The twists and turns kept me engaged (lots of surprises I didn't see coming!) right up until the very last page.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review.

This book didn’t do it for me. I think the story had potential but it felt disjointed and clunky at times.

I had the hardest time relating to and/or rooting for Callie. I wanted to but she wasn’t easy to cheer for. Not only was the self-hate such a dominant force in her life the dependence on Ollie was too much. Yes, we all talk badly about ourselves to ourselves, I think that’s “normal” and something most people (especially women) can relate to. The “relationship” with Ollie was very hard to read. He was so clearly using her. Not only for her body but for her brain. To see how she put herself and her friendships on the backburner to be there for her continually made me cringe. Yes, I think this is also a common theme for lots of people but again, I wanted to love her and wanted the best for her, but it almost felt like she didn’t deserve it.

The cast of characters surrounding Callie (Virginia, Gray, Bex, Whit) were interesting and I think their characters could've been explored more to perhaps explain themes in the book. Maybe they could've help put some thoughts to bed instead of the thoughts left unattended.

The ending was NOT IT for me at all. I can handle an open ending where it’s easy to imagine an ending but this book didn’t even send you down a path … it just left you there, abandoned without a map or an idea. That is unacceptable in my opinion.

I wouldn’t recommend this book. It left too many questions that you never get answers to.

**Thanks to NetGalley and Mariner Books for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review**

I enjoyed this book (I flew through it in two days!) but it ultimately wasn't the best fit for me. I really liked the author's writing style--it felt very authentic to the character. However, I think this book is better for people who don't mind unfinished/unsettled endings. Also, I had no sympathy for the main character, and the Cal/Ollie plotline reminded me too much of Tell Me Lies (which I hated), so I think that made it hard for me to root for her. But if you enjoy slightly moody, slightly depressing, very well-written books about thirty-somethings in NYC, this is the book for you.

This was definitely a book that I could not put down although I did not really care for the chapters and the back and forth in the book. It was hard at times to tell whether I was in the past or present with the character. The main character Callie was absorbed into the quintessential wealthy Murphy family through her lifelong friendship with Virginia, however she never does quite belong into the family's lifestyle. Throughout the book, the main character is trying to find a manuscript that her father left behind when he passed away. When she discovers that the manuscript leads her directly back to the Murphy family, there is definitely drama and relationships are exposed and secrets come out. I think that this author is really going to be one to watch in the future. I want more from her. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

Placeholder. Will update when the Harper Collins union new contract is finalized. Thank you again to the publisher for the copy.