“FOLLOW HIM OR DIE.

When The Speaker posts, his followers must listen … no matter the consequences.

Exposed as the masked social media influencer The Speaker by shy misfit Crystal, Aaron Fortin embarks on an insidious campaign to erase her – permanently.

Having already committed multiple brutal murders to try and feel some form of emotion, he charms and recruits Crystal’s friends as his latest loyal followers. Aaron’s influence is powerful and wide-reaching, and so begins his deadliest and most gruesome plan yet.

But has Aaron underestimated quiet Crystal? And can she stop him before it’s too late?

A dark and twisted psychological horror for fans of You, from Bram Stoker Award-winning author Adam Cesare, adapted from the Audible Original.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of Influencer by Adam Cesare. Influencer was published by Hodder Children’s Books on 26th September 2024 and is available in paperback and digital formats. I chose to read a free eARC of Influencer but that has in no way influenced my review.

I couldn’t resist this book! I’m a huge fan of both the author, Adam Cesare, and YA horror. Even more so when the subject matter is entertainment-based. In this case, social media. Anonymous influencer, The Speaker, has rapidly gained a huge following. His fans are avid. Dare I say obsessed with his content. When The Speaker posts, he expects his followers to be rapt, absorbing every detail, and do whatever he says. Any adult watching on will know this is a recipe for disaster. But believe me, you don’t know the half of it! With Adam Cesar at the helm (he of Clown in a Cornfield fame) you can guarantee a slick, unnerving, highly readable tale that will have you on edge from start to finish.

But I should mention at this point that this, if you’re a regular visitor to damppebbles, is one of the books I read last year. It is, in fact, one of the books which pulled me out of a fairly vicious reading slump. I won’t tell you when I read it as that’s starting to get REALLY embarrassing now, but know that it worked its magic on this reader. As a lot of time has passed between then and now, this review will be shorter than my normal reviews. Influencer certainly deserves its place on the blog though.

I loved Influencer. Crystal and her small group of “friends” (“friends” in inverted commas because I’m pretty sure these teens are NOT friends – not in the traditional sense anyway!) ride to school together every day. Some of the small group are captivated by an online influencer called ‘The Speaker’. Crystal, however, doesn’t share their passion. When new boy Aaron starts in their year, he immediately manages to charm everyone. Except Crystal. Crystal sees something in Aaron that others just don’t see. Crystal believes he’s secretly ‘The Speaker’. Her suspicions immediately start a deadly game of cat and mouse, all while The Speaker does what The Speaker does. With her friends falling under Aaron’s spell, it’s down to Crystal to reveal the truth…

Oh my gosh! Wonderfully intense, highly readable and impossible to put down for any length of time. The book starts with a bang and doesn’t really let up from that point forward. Aaron is despicable with his manipulative, controlling ways. His extreme superiority complex is uncomfortable, but I couldn’t get enough of it. He’s dastardly and malicious and I loved it! Crystal is as equally compelling but in a very different way. I loved how determined she was, how, when others were blinded by The Speaker’s light, Crystal just wasn’t. She didn’t fall for the smarm or the charm and I was wholly on her side because of that. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this dark, thrilling tale – particularly the final denouement which played out like a movie in front of me. Graphic, gory and full of wonderfully written tension. One for slightly older teens perhaps. I think I would wait a couple of years before giving this book to my fourteen-year-old (but I already know she will love it!). Bloody marvellous. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Influencer. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Influencer by Adam Cesare was published in the UK by Hodder Children’s Books on 26th September 2024 and is available in paperback and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Adam Cesare is a New Yorker who lives in Philadelphia.

He is the author of the Bram Stoker Award-winning Clown in a Cornfield series, the graphic novel Dead Mall, and several other novels and novellas including the cult hit Video Night. An avid fan of horror cinema, you can talk movies with him on YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, and the rest of his socials.