In this sharply written, emotionally resonant YA contemporary, Bad Influence dives into the high-gloss, high-stakes world of social media influencers - only to peel back the filters and reveal the real costs of internet fame.

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte Goh is walking a tightrope. At home, she’s a dutiful daughter trying to support her Korean American family through financial hardship. Online, she’s a rising fashion influencer in the NYC scene, carefully curating a persona meant to attract attention, sponsorships, and hopefully, a way out. But when a racist incident at an influencer event goes viral, Charlotte is catapulted into a spotlight she wasn’t fully prepared for - complete with glamorous new friends, celebrity attention, and all the brand perks she’s ever dreamed of.

The novel doesn’t flinch away from the pressures Charlotte faces - both as a teen of colour in predominantly white spaces and as someone trying to juggle visibility, identity, and integrity. Her relationship with her best friend Steven grounds the story beautifully, offering an emotional anchor as Charlotte’s online life begins to take over. Their slow-burn chemistry, layered with old loyalties and new tensions, adds a warm, romantic thread that contrasts with the more brittle reality of influencer life.

What’s most compelling here is the way the story navigates that contradiction at the heart of internet culture: everyone knows it’s toxic, performative, and stressful - but many still chase it, whether out of desperation, ambition, or both. Charlotte’s motivations are never shallow, even as she makes questionable choices. The author deftly balances empathy and critique, making this a smart, nuanced exploration of how social media fame affects mental health, friendships, and family ties.

For readers who enjoy romcoms with depth, social commentary with heart, and characters who make mistakes but keep learning, this is a standout. It’s also a timely look at the pressures young women - especially young women of colour - face in a world that rewards exposure but punishes vulnerability.

If you liked this book, try:
📖 Frankly in Love by David Yoon – for another thoughtful, funny take on navigating identity, love, and family expectations.
📺 The Bold Type – for its fashion-forward NYC setting, close female friendships, and behind-the-scenes look at working in the spotlight.

Bad Influence by Claire Ahn is a really fun take on being a teen influencer while not actually wanting to be, but doing it out of necessity and secretly.

I really enjoyed this novel. While YA isn’t my favorite age range to dive into, this one wasn’t too bad. It was relatable in many ways and lots of kids around her age and slightly older will get something from this story.

I loved the perspective of this young girl trying to reference a period of pop culture that she had completely wrong. It really embodied her age range and not caring or truly understanding the things that came before her. In addition to that, her being the oldest child of immigrants added such a deep impact to the story due to the level of responsibility that was put onto her.

Between her focusing on making money by secretly being an influencer and trying to maintain her regular life, there was a lot for her to deal with. She couldn’t be just a regular kid and live her life as others around her, due to her familial duties.

I also really enjoyed the Korean culture and language built into the story. The fact that her parents or at least one, is living in a country completely foreign to them and having to adjust to that new lifestyle. It’s extremely difficult and just trying to survive.

Finally, the touch on racism hit hard. Thanks for putting this in the forefront of the story and allowing it to be acknowledged for what it is. It’s something so prevalent in this country and people still act like it doesn’t exist. Craziness. Call that crap out! Thank you Claire!


If you love a good coming of age, teen, child of immigrants, Korean, Asian in America, racism, influencer type story, then this is definitely for you! It is great for readers 13 or 14 and up. Highly recommend checking it out.

*This was an honest review for a complimentary copy of Bad Influence from Claire Ahn via NetGalley

Charlotte is probably the girl that some of us envied in our younger years - someone who was dedicated to their social life and doing something with it. At least for a while before the popularity and the influence almost swallowed her whole. I found that Charlotte was a little bit flat for a character, or perhaps it was just the way she spoke/presented herself. I did, however, appreciate the themes of social media awareness, the social hierarchy of teens and racism still prevalent and in the presence of teens and the younger children. I think these messages would be worth discussing if teachers would like to use this title as a class read.

This is a YA book following Charlotte Goh, a young woman interested in becoming an influencer. The book follows her as she tries to balance her responsibilities as a sister and daughter in her Korean family, caring for her young sister and worrying about her parent's responsibilities (her dad not working, money and their relationship), her close friendship with longtime friend Steven and new friendships with other influencers. I understand what the author was trying to do in this book, but unfortunately it missed the mark. The main character is unlikeable with an annoying tone and the interactions are disconnected. While I think this book highlights some of the worst things about our culture of influencers (disconnection, distraction, bad feelings), it did so in a way that did not feel authentic to me. Overall, I suffered through this book and would not recommend it to young adults in my life.

While I mainly read Adult fiction I do tend to read a fair amount of YA. I think that YA is kind of a spectrum, and I think this book is on the younger end of YA books. The characters are very much young teens. I felt like at times it felt a little Gossip Girl-esque in a way that I didn't understand. While I know that all teens are different, these teens just didn't feel that real to me. I also didn't fully understand how Charlotte was able to be so sneaky about her influencing for so long. All in all, it was an enjoyable and quick read that touched on some important themes. Thank you NetGalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for this ARC!

Thank you to #NetGalley, Claire Ahn and the publisher of the book for the eARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

Charlotte is busy juggling two different personas: the respectful Korean daughter, and the hustling NYC fashion influencer. Her best friend Steven laughs at her ambition, but she secretly hopes that her posts will help financially support her family who is struggling. Everything changes when she posts about a racist experience she had at an influencer event, Charlotte soon goes viral and earns the fame she’s been craving. As much as she doesn’t want her newfound popularity to change her, she can’t help but be enticed by the exciting perks: hip new friends, the attention of a Hollywood hottie and tons of companies dying to sponsor her. Soon though she learns she has to sacrifice more than she thought she would. Will Charlotte lose the things that are important to her?

A great YA read about learning about the things that are the most important in your life and learning to learn what you are willing to give up.

Charlotte is the perfect daughter; she steps up to the plate and helps with her younger sister, gets good grades, and respects her parents. So when Charlotte becomes a secret influencer on Instagram, she starts becoming a person unknown to her family and her best friend, Steven. Charlotte starts lying, sneaking out, and her grades start to slip. Can she keep up this new persona without losing everything she has? This is a good coming-of-age YA for the time, but I don't know if this book will be read for years to come. The best part of this story is the difficulties she and Steven face with their evolving friendship. The title of the book is what drew me in! I also enjoyed learning more about Charlotte's asian heritage

I loved Claire Ahn’s debut novel I Guess I Live Here Now.
And her newest title was just as amazing.
A quick read that kept me glued to the pages.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

This was a quick read, and all the expected elements of a YA rom-com book. Agree with some of the other comments that this would probably be more believable if the characters were college students instead of high school students. (Especially with the main character being an Asian American girl in a house of stereotypical Asian parents - there is no way she could’ve gotten away with randomly going out to dinners and parties without getting interrogated the second she got home.).

I appreciated the main character being Asian American, and could relate to a lot of the things mentioned about family expectations, doing well in school, and even the dynamics of keeping a happy front for strangers while there was a lot of trouble brewing at home. An enjoyable read, but not necessarily a book I’d add to my home library/read again.

2.75 ⭐️

Bad Influence was a quick read, and I felt pretty meh about it. There was good and bad throughout the book.

I really liked the peek into the influencer life and how much money sponsored posts can make. I also thought the effects of social media and all its negative comments on mental health was super realistic. The racism was unfortunately super relevant. And the look into more traditional Korean families and customs was great and I learned a lot. For instance, I had no idea that it was customary to give your parents your first paycheck as a way to say thank you.

What I didn’t like was basically any of the characters, with the exception of 3.5 year old ball of sunshine Jojo. Charlotte was pretty insufferable and self-centered, even though she tried to make herself seem like she was all about helping her family. Steven was the most unsupportive best friend I could imagine, Audrey acted holier-than-thou, and Alan was kind of a jerk pretending to be a nice guy. Don’t even get me started on Charlotte’s mom, who absolutely sucked.

I definitely think this book would have hit harder if it was about 20-somethings instead of 16 year olds. I understand the not-so-subtle warnings for teenagers on social media that was rolled up in the themes of the book, but I just think 16 is too young to be the focus. Their ages made every action and emotion feel extra immature. And I say this as someone who generally loves YA books and shows even though I’m in my mid-30s, because the teen angst is usually so good. This one just wasn’t quite right.

Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Young Readers Group, and Viking Books for Young Readers for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a good read. Charlotte had to balance being a respectful daughter and pursuing her aspirations as a fashion influencer. The story does have a great message about popularity, values and social media. I would recommend the book to my friends.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I had a hard time with this book. Im sad because it did sound great too. I just couldn't get into it like I wanted to. Growing up when social media was still a new thing and see how it has progressed into the present day I thought that I may connect with it more. Unfortunately this just may have not been the book for me.

The plot of this book was good and shows how dangerous social media can be, along with the pressures of being a different race, being the perfect child.... I think every teen should read this.

What frustrated me was the writing. I felt like it just went from one thing to another, and you aren't sure how you got there. Maybe a YA reader wouldn't notice certain things, but I thought it was interesting how she got checks without taxes taken out, how they decided to go on a trip and got a flight ASAP, how she could not return home from school until 9 PM and she never told anyone where she was, and no one cared to ask her. I do wish someone had taken more time to help edit this book to make things make sense.

And for being a YA/teen book, I feel like there should be a disclaimer about social media, drinking....

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group for this ARC.

#BadInfluence #NetGalley

Although I liked the beginning of the book the pacing slowed after the initial incident and seemed a bit boring. I didn’t think it felt realistic that a teen would think influencing would bring quick money. It never felt like Charlotte enjoyed posting which I think many influencers do like. It also felt like she her feelings for Steven sorta came out of nowhere and felt like it just helped the story move along. It was a decent story with important themes about online bullying, addiction and racism but failed to touch upon poor body image and peer pressure. and other things that are dangers for everyone online. I appreciate the story but wish it felt more like actual teens struggles rather than what adults think are teen challenges.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

An emotional YA friends to lovers romance that sees Charlotte Goh, an aspiring Korean American high school fashion influencer struggling to balance family obligations, friendships and romantic relationships while also being true to herself. There was a lot of family drama and pressure in this story that added an extra layer of relatability to balance out the NYC influencer lifestyle the FMC is aspiring to. Good on audio and perfect for fans of books like Suzanne Park's Sunny Song will never be famous. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Choppy writing and uneven pacing made this a tough read, and I struggled to connect with the main character and her mother. Charlotte's motivations felt forced and her mom was too overbearing. Charlotte and Stephen got to where they were because of how Charlotte let's everyone walk all over her.

Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Viking Books for Young Readers for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I absolutely loved this book and read it in one sitting. I loved the characters and their storyline. I did laugh in parts of this book. I would definitely recommend this book.

Charlotte Goh is a dutiful Korean daughter by day, NYC fashion influencer by night. When a viral post brings her sudden fame, she’s swept into a world of glam perks and unexpected romance. But staying true to herself—and to Steven—might cost her more than she ever imagined.

Every element about this book is fabulous. She’s a fashionista. Warm Korean family. Travel. Tension between her and her mom. Best friends to lovers. It had all the ingredients to be a story I was charmed by, but it was just... missing the actual charm. I wanted the trendiness of Kitty Song Covey (Xo, Kitty + To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before) with the sparkle and angst of PREQUEL Carrie Bradshaw (The Carrie Diaries). It had the ingredients to get us there but failed somewhere in the execution.

If you can get past the flat descriptions and Charlotte’s annoying tone, this story does have great messages! Social media is not worth sacrificing values, the intimacy of friendship is sweeter than popularity, and sometimes parents are just as much in the wrong as their kid.

I primarily read via audio, and the narrator represented the character well!

Perfect for you if you like:
Korean American families
Fashion influencer + social media
Friends to lovers subplot

Similar to:
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han (if Xo, Kitty was a book, that’d be the closest)
The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell
The Do-Over by Lynn Painter

⛔️fade to black language but nothing happens
⚠️explicit language, racial bullying, underage drinking, previous divorce of friend’s parents (cheating father)

My thanks to NetGalley and Viking/Penguin Random House for the ARC of "Bad Influence" in exchange for an honest review.

Author Claire Ahn has given us something I didn't think possible......a teen influencer we can empathize with and cheer on in her quest for "likes" and followers. (It seems lately such characters only hang out in horror of murder mysteries....)

Korean-American Charlotte is by no means your standard vapid fashionista living out a click bait life on social media. Her family has fallen on hard times making ends meet, and Charlotte's secretly helping them out with money she's earned from her site's first sponsorship, (Her family has no clue about her media life, so she makes up a series of lies about where the money came from.)

Charlotte's ups and down as an influencer take her on quite an emotional ride. Decrying the anti-Asian bigotry of some of her fellow influencers gains her a growing fan base, but she suffers derision and scorn by a taking a sponsorship from a company accused of that exact misdeed. To complicate things even more, she catches the attention of a rising, devil-may-care young movie star at the very same time she realizes she's been in love with that always familiar standby, the combo lifelong friend/boy next door.

But it's none of those usual, typical and predictable YA tropes that attracted to me to this book. The beating heart of "Bad Influence" lies in Charlotte's relationship with her loving, close-knit Korean family. (including, of course, mouth=watering descriptions of Korean cooking at the dinner table.) She and her parents dote upon Jojo, her irrepressible toddler sister, with Charlotte often assuming co-parenting duties of the little girl. But she harbors a long simmering deep resentment of her mother, whom she feels never raised Charlotte with the love and care she now lavishes on Jojo.

While I realize that a lot of readers will, unlike me, find the social media stuff fascinating and compelling., along with the questionable choices Charlotte makes, it's her family dramas and their resolution that kept me glued to the book. (Sorry, but the rising amounts a character's 'likes' doesn't pump out much adrenalin for me....)

A pleasant, satisfying read, that manages enough heart to overcome the self-absorbed superficial world of influencing.

When struggling but determined influencer Charlotte posts a racist interaction to her platforms, she goes viral and is swept away into the fancy world of fellow influencers, brand deals, and famous actors. Her goal is to make enough money to help support her family and care for her little sister. Though she has made new friends, caught the attention of a Hollywood actor, and has millions of new followers, Charlotte realizes that the influencer world isn't as perfect as she expected.

This was a quick read that focused on Charlotte's influencer achievements before shifting to focus on her feelings for her friend Steven. Her feelings came out of nowhere since she spent the majority of the story obsessed with her influencer lifestyle and new friends. Charlotte also wasn't the most likeable character, but she eventually learned to let go of her bad habits.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC.