People Like Her: A Novel

Written by Ellery Lloyd

Narrated by Nathalie Buscombe, Finlay Robertson and Anna Bentinck

""Beyond being a brilliant skewering of social media and influencer culture, People Like Her is, quite simply, a damn good thriller . . . . The novel reads like Gone Girl on steroids in all the best ways.”— BookReporter

“Breathlessly fast, brilliantly original. Bravo, Ellery Lloyd!”—Clare Mackintosh, New York Times bestselling author of After the End

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Club, a razor-sharp, wickedly smart suspense debut about an ambitious influencer mom whose soaring success threatens her marriage, her morals, and her family’s safety.

Followed by Millions, Watched by One

To her adoring fans, Emmy Jackson, aka @the_mamabare, is the honest “Instamum” who always tells it like it is. 

To her skeptical husband, a washed-up novelist who knows just how creative Emmy can be with the truth, she is a breadwinning powerhouse chillingly brilliant at monetizing the intimate details of their family life.

To one of Emmy’s dangerously obsessive followers, she’s the woman that has everything—but deserves none of it.  

As Emmy’s marriage begins to crack under the strain of her growing success and her moral compass veers wildly off course, the more vulnerable she becomes to a very real danger circling ever closer to her family.

In this deeply addictive tale of psychological suspense, Ellery Lloyd raises important questions about technology, social media celebrity, and the way we live today. Probing the dark side of influencer culture and the perils of parenting online, People Like Her explores our desperate need to be seen and the lengths we’ll go to be liked by strangers. It asks what—and who—we sacrifice when make our private lives public, and ultimately lose control of who we let in. . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Jan 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9780063065833

Ellery Lloyd

Ellery Lloyd is the pseudonym for the London-based husband-and-wife writing team of Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos. Collette is a journalist and editor, the former content director of Elle (UK), and editorial director at Soho House. She has written for the Guardian, the Telegraph, and the Sunday Times. Paul is the author of two previous novels, Welcome to the Working Week and Every Day Is Like Sunday. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Greenwich. They are the authors of People Like Her and The Club.

Reviews for People Like Her

[Alicia Jennings · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is not at all how I thought as fuck would go. It has some very dark and unlikable characters. I don’t know if I just skimmed too fast but one of the major plot was very confusing to me. Emmy is a social influencer who makes everything look perfect on the outside, but no one really knows what’s going on underneath. But that’s just her character, she is very superficial. But not everyone does like her, and there are at least a few people that are planning to make her life miserable.

There was a lot going on in this book and it just kind of scratched the surface on some of it. I think if it would’ve gone with one plot line and followed it through it would’ve been better, but overall it was OK.

[Jenni Hoover · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I can’t tell you how many times I fast forwarded 30 seconds while listening to this book! I did not miss anything by the way. I think that says it all. It could’ve been so much better and so much was repetitive it was ridiculous. There are much better books out there.

[Kristie · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

One of the worst books I have ever read. Slow, repeative and just a dud.

[Donna Benoit · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really interesting to learn about what makes an Instagram influencer along with the mystery sub plot. Narration was very good.

[Aimee Sparklebear · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was the kinda audiobook I wanted to just keep listening to all the way through, and was excited to pick back up again! Guilty pleasure storyline, I loved it.

[Chelsey Smith · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved it. The voice actors are great. Exciting story that kept me guessing. It would be a nice book club read- a lot to discuss. Recommending to my friends.

[courtnee garr · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There are no likeable characters and no real depth to a book that wants to be a cautionary tale about the dangers of becoming InstaFamous.

[Patgri · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loathed (in a good way) the main female character until the very end. She didn’t redeem herself per se but Dan made her palatable. I enjoyed this wild ride of an audiobook tremendously.

[Victoria Edelsbrunner · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Compulsive reading and highly recommended for anyone interested in social media. Some very heavy stuff related to children so be warned.

[Deyait Watson-Irvine · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A cautionary tale on the bad side of social media use. Good plot I thought. A few twist that I didn’t expect. I enjoyed the unfolding story and search for those responsible for the drama!
A nice listen.

[sallyelizabethmurphy · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Do not bother. This was easily one of the worst books I have read in a long time.

[kulmona · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Thank you Goodreads FirstReads for my ARC.Don’t believe everything you read and/or watch online!Emmy is an influencer, a British Instamum. Her Instagram, @the_mamabare, has a million-plus followers. Married to Dan, a has-been novelist and mom of Coco(3) and newborn, Bear. As is the case with many influencers/bloggers, her real life(much of it, according to Dan, exaggeration or outright fiction), was fodder for her posts. Of course, there are risks to exposing one’s personal life online. Most followers interact via likes, comments, and shares. But there are also those who are…pathologically obsessed. Unbeknownst to her, Emmy has one such follower.And there’s also the detrimental effect on family dynamics and lack of privacy. Every special occasion is an opportunity to organize an event. Publicity and spectacle become the priority. Gone are sentimentality and the creation of cherished memories with loved ones. Marital and family conflicts no longer remain behind closed doors. Despite the risks and personal costs, Dan admits that being an influencer is a 24/7/365 job. Emmy works hard at it and excels at it. And it’s not like he and the kids don’t enjoy the rewards.This book took me longer than expected to read. I liked it enough to finish. The end was, in a word, …ironic. I feel it could have been shorter. Too wordy for me. The blurb, trendy topic, and alternating perspectives appealed to me. It opened my eyes to the pressures and drawbacks of being a social media influencer. There is a high price to pay for all the perks of free stuff.

[vanessa_menez-453497 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Amazing debut!

I found the premise interesting and unique. And once I started reading it I was hooked.

The plot is well written and it is so current. The main character Emmy, who is an influencer, and her husband, Dan, a novelist are both unlikable in a good way. It aptly covers the benefits and dangers of social media.

It actually got me thinking about the lifestyle of the various social influencers that exist. What seems like a simple job actually requires quite a lot of planning and detailing. And also, sometimes the trolls that they face are quite scary.

This book has a slight dark side in the form of the follower who is in search of revenge, which made it even more enjoyable, along with all the twists and the chilling conclusion.

Overall, an engaging read!

Thank You to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC!

[sunshine608 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was an enticing read, I didn't want to put it down. I enjoyed the take of IG culture and understanding some of it. I enjoyed most of the characters ( as much as you really can). The one thing I didn't like was the underlying reason for the vendetta- I found it far-fetched and almost borderline offensive.

[ecataldi-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I was anticipating a lot more from this "thriller." I liked the story-building, the descriptions of the influencing business, and the portrait of the family on the brink but the thriller aspect was buried and partially nonsensical. People Like Her shows the ugly side of what really goes on behind the camera in influencer's life and shows the strains in a couple's relationship as they try to manage two young children, Mamabare's perfect online persona, and her millions of followers. One of their followers seems to be trying to follow a little too closely although her occasional narration doesn't add much to the story other than confusion. The story is told through alternating viewpoints - the wife, husbands, and the creepy stalker lady. It had a lot of potential and it wasn't awful - it just wasn't my favorite either. I wanted a little more drama and excitement at the end I suppose.

[cats57_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I hated every single person in this book. But despite that, this book was unputdownable! I defiantly recommend this book to anyone who likes learning about Social Media stars and mystery lovers.If this is what it is really like to be a big-time 'influencer' (and do we put freebie book reviewers into this category LOL!?), I'm happy that I don't follow anyone big-time!This book deals with Emmy, the influencer, her author husband, and their two kids. You will find out just what a big-timmer will do to get there, how their family life changes as the BLOG grows, and what it takes to stay there, but you will also find out just what it's like to be hated and have someone plan an act of revenge.As I said, NONE of the characters are likable ( well, maybe baby Bear!), but the story is riveting.You may have a bit of trouble with the story's rhythm (I'm not sure if that is the correct word?) since interspersed within Emmy and Dan's part is blended the 'bad guys' ramblings.I really did love this book, even though I couldn't feel anything but loathing for the characters. As I said, I couldn't put this book down.*ARC supplied by the publisher and author...yes I know -the irony of it all! LOL!!!