MYFACE

This debut novella offers a scathing indictment of those who take the fantasies of social media too seriously.

At the center of this prescient tale of deadly catfishing is Angela Fox, a sexy, blond bombshell and social media influencer who has millions of followers. There’s only one problem: Angela isn’t real. She was created by Sebastian Shafer in a desperate attempt to land a sales job at an exclusive car dealership. Using a plastic surgeon’s “after” picture of his wife, fading actor Liz Shafer, Sebastian sets up a Myface profile for Angela. Angela’s popularity soars when she’s chosen “Hottest Myface User of the Month.” Then an angry Liz hijacks Angela’s profile, changing the password and locking out Sebastian. One of Angela’s ardent followers is Norman Jarrett, a has-been child actor who livestreams his life 24/7 in a vain attempt to remain relevant. Liz as Angela decides to use Norman to eliminate obstacles in her life, starting with killing Amir Siddig, the director of a play that’s meant to be her comeback vehicle. The obvious suspect is Amir’s innocent wife, Jada, who can’t mount a sufficient defense. Sebastian still wants to cash in on Angela’s fame, so Liz aims Norman at him. But a pair of detectives wants to interview Angela, so it may be time for her to die as well. Bravo to Landt for casting blame on those living vicariously through social media celebrities and the nefarious people taking advantage of followers seeking to escape their humdrum lives. Still, it’s naïve to believe that safeguards on social media sites would prevent an Angela from existing. The author preaches a smart sermon of caution in this novella. But while Landt has a worthwhile message, he lacks sympathetic characters. The closest to likable is Max, the perjuring, closeted gay videographer who captures Norman’s life for the masses. The rest seem more than content to swim in the social media cesspool. The author seems to be imploring the audience to do better than these players and to step back into reality occasionally. This engrossing book may manage to get readers to ignore Facebook and Twitter—at least for a time.

An engaging cautionary tale about social media’s toxic inventions.