This Is Not the Jess Show

Name: This Is Not the Jess Show
Brand: Penguin Random House NZ
SKU: 9781683692133
Price: 22.0 NZD
Availability: OutOfStock

By Anna Carey

0.0 (0 reviews)

3.61

( 5,946 ratings, 1,294 reviews)

Summary

This Is Not the Jess Show by Anna Carey is a gripping young adult novel set in the 1990s, centred on Jess Flynn, who discovers that her seemingly ordinary life in a small town is not what it seems. As unusual occurrences unravel, Jess begins to question her reality, leading her on a journey of self-discovery and truth that blurs the lines between what's real and fabricated. This thrilling and unique narrative explores themes of identity, reality, and the impact of technology.
Read More

Format: Paperback / softback

TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK Please add to wishlist to be notified when back in stock

Sorry, we're currently out of stock of This Is Not the Jess Show. Please add to your Wishlist and we'll send you an email as soon as it's back in stock.

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

If you enjoy unexpected twists and a blend of reality with technology in a story, this engaging young adult novel may capture your interest. Set in the 1990s, it offers a nostalgic trip with a thrilling twist, making it perfect for readers who appreciate mysteries with a retro vibe.

A timely YA thriller about a teenage girl whose reality may not be what it seems, blending 90s nostalgia with a speculative hook that dissects our modern reality TV and influencer-obsessed culture.

Black Mirror meets My So-Called Life in this fast-paced, timely YA thriller about separating fact from fiction-and how far we'll go to create our own version of reality.

Description

Black Mirror meets My So-Called Life in this fast-paced, timely YA thriller about separating fact from fiction—and how far we'll go to create our own version of reality.

"A fantastically smart, funny, and thoughtful thriller."—Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star

The year is 1998—Titanic just won six Oscars, boy bands are dominating MTV's airwaves, and like any other teenager, Jess Flynn is just trying to survive high school. Between a crush on her childhood best friend, overprotective parents, and her sister's worsening health, the only constant is her hometown of Swickley, which feels smaller by the day.

Jess is resigned to her small-town life, until the day she discovers a mysterious device with an apple logo, causing her to question everything and everyone she's ever known. As more cracks appear in Jess's world, she faces a choice—can she live the rest of her life knowing it's a lie, or should she risk everything for the truth?

A fast-paced, mind-bending YA thriller packed with '90s pop culture references and perfect for fans of Riverdale, This Is Not the Jess Show will keep readers guessing until the very end.

And don't miss the explosive and thrilling conclusion, This Is Not the Real World!

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Anna Carey's This Is Not the Jess Show is praised as a thrilling, thought-provoking young adult novel that combines nostalgia and contemporary issues. It's described as a smart and insightful exploration of celebrity culture and the impact of technology on personal relationships. The book's compelling plot and clever twists draw comparisons to The Truman Show, making it an addictive read that engages readers thoroughly.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781683692133

Publisher: Quirk Books

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 02 February 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: Quirk Books

Edition: International edition

Audience: Teenage

DIMENSIONS

Width: 135.0mm

Height: 203.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 288

Collections

Anna Carey Children's Fiction Children’s, Teenage and Educational Fiction Penguin Books Young Adult

About the Author

Anna Carey is the author ofBlackbird,Deadfall, and the Eve trilogy. She lives in Los Angeles.

Also by Anna Carey

View all

Our Song

‘SO ROMANTIC. A beautiful, moving and uplifting love story. I loved it’ MARIAN KEYES ‘Heartwarming, moving and nostalgic’ LOUISE O'NEILL ‘Funny and tender - a gorgeous second chance romance’ SARRA MANNING It's time to finish what they started ... Laura used to have big dreams, but she gave them up - because that's what grown-ups do. Trying to turn her...

By Anna Carey

Paperback

$37⁹⁹

Available
Ships in 4-6 weeks
Love Scene

HATE AT FIRST SIGHT. THEN COMES THE REWRITE. 'Utterly delicious - I couldn't stop reading this' MARIAN KEYES 'Warm, sexy, and full of whip-smart humour that had me cackling through each page, Love Scene is everything I crave in a rom-com. I adored it!' CATHERINE WALSH 'A balm for the soul, this is a gorgeously sweet and sexy novel with...

By Anna Carey

Paperback

$37⁹⁹

Available
Ships in 4-6 weeks
Our Song

'So hopeful and romantic it lifted me for days' Marian Keyes 'Heartwarming, moving and nostalgic' Louise O'Neill 'Funny and tender - a gorgeous second chance romance' Sarra Manning IT'S TIME TO FINISH WHAT THEY STARTED . . . Tadhg and Laura used to be in a band together. They used to be a lot of things. Now he's a superstar,...

By Anna Carey

Paperback

$27⁹⁹

Available
Ships in 4-6 weeks
This Is Not the Jess Show

"A fantastically smart, funny, and thoughtful thriller." — Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star The year is 1998 — Titanic has just won six Oscars, boy bands are dominating MTV's airwaves, and like any other teenager, Jess Flynn is just trying to survive high school. Between a crush...

By Anna Carey

Paperback

Sold Out
This Is Not the Real World

Nineties nostalgia takes a dark turn in this thrilling sequel to This Is Not the Jess Show, perfect for readers of We Were Liars and One of Us Is Lying. Months after Jess escaped from the set of Stuck in the '90s, the nostalgic reality show she believed was her real life, the teen star is getting to know the...

By Anna Carey

Paperback

Sold Out

More from Young Adult

View all

New Release

Song of the Saltings

On the isolated island of Brack, the people live by an ancient bargain: every year, a sacrifice must be made to the Glimm, the creature that haunts the salt marshes. Eight years ago, it should have taken Lotta. Instead, the monster spared her and claimed her pony, shattering tradition and anointing her both folk hero and object of suspicion. Now...

By Rachael King

Paperback

$24⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$27⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships today
New Release

Tell Me with Kisses

From New York Times bestselling author and Wattpad sensation Mercedes Ron comes the English translation of the third in the Tell Me series, where Kamila Hamilton is caught between the two Di Bianco brothers after they burst back into her life. From New York Times bestselling author and Wattpad sensation Mercedes Ron comes the English translation of the third in...

By Mercedes Ron

Paperback

$23⁹⁹
Elsewhere:
~~$28⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships today
Release Me

The searing second volume in a new series set in the #1 global bestselling Shatter Me universe ten years after the fall of The Reestablishment. Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. Now she wants revenge. To save her sister she needs to get back home and destroy the system that created her. Rosabelle’s greatest strength is her ability to deaden her...

By Tahereh Mafi

$22⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$24⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships today
A Language of Dragons

The most exciting debut of 2025 – an incredible fantasy Dark Academia, perfect for fans of Babel, Fourth Wing, and the Scholomance trilogy. EVERY FIRE STARTS WITH A SINGLE SPARK. Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons. London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivien Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules,...

By S. F. Williamson

Paperback

$17⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$22⁹⁹~~

(1)

In Stock
Ships today
Shatter Me: Shatter Me series 1

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi is a gripping dystopian novel that plunges readers into a world where society is on the brink of collapse. At the heart of this chaos is Juliette, a 17-year-old girl with a fatal touch—literally. For 264 days, Juliette has been imprisoned in solitary confinement, her only crime being an accidental touch that resulted in death....

By Tahereh Mafi

Paperback

$22⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$39⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships today
Cozy Corner

Relax and unwind with this adorable colouring book – it’s time to get cozy! Step into a world of calm and comfort with Cozy Corner, featuring 45 beautiful hand-drawn pages ready for you to colour in. Settle into your very own cozy corner with these brand new colouring pages! This follow-up to Coco Wyo's beloved Little Corner promises a new...

By Coco Wyo

Paperback

$17⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$21⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships today
Bunny vs Monkey: The Great Big Glitch (a Phoenix Comic Book): the instant number one bestselling book from Jamie Smart, Illustrator of the Year

When Bunny, Monkey and friends discover a glitch in reality, life gets even crazier than normal: Bunny declares himself The Woods' Magical Protector, Pig becomes a superspy, plus there's complete metal Monkey mayhem! Experience the laughs and chaos in Bunny vs Monkey: The Great Big Glitch (a Phoenix Comic Book), the instant number one bestselling book from Jamie Smart, Illustrator...

By Jamie Smart

Paperback

$24⁹⁹

In Stock
Ships today
The Summer I Turned Pretty

The Summer I Turned Pretty is now a major new TV series on Amazon Prime! If you loved The Kissing Booth and Jenny Han's smash-hit Netflix movie series To All the Boys I Loved Before, then you'll adore this gorgeously funny, romantic story! Everything that happened this past summer, and every summer before it, has all led up to this....

By Jenny Han

Paperback

$24⁰⁰

In Stock
Ships today
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson is the New York Times No.1 bestselling YA crime thriller that has captivated readers globally. Now adapted into a major BBC series, this intricately plotted and intensely gripping novel is being lauded as a modern classic in young adult literature. Pippa Fitz-Amobi, an intelligent and determined high school student, is looking...

By Holly Jackson

Paperback

$18⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$22⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships today
Powerless

OVER A MILLION COPIES SOLD! THE INSTANT NO. 1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON. ‘Nothing short of epic’ - Rosie Talbot, bestselling author of Sixteen Souls ‘A thrilling fantasy with the most delicious slow-burn romance’ - M.A. Kuzniar, bestselling author of Midnight in Everwood ‘[A] titillating debut’ - Publishers Weekly ‘A masterpiece’ - Goodreads Reader Review ‘Everyone needs to read it’ -...

By Lauren Roberts

Paperback

$25⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$28⁹⁹~~

In Stock
Ships today
Free Gift

The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks

Louise Rennison for the Dork Diaries generation - hilarious, relatable and full of heart. The first book in the hilarious new series for children by the bestselling creator of Hurrah For Gin. The Extremely Embarrassing Life of Lottie Brooks follows Lottie Brooks, who is 11 and feels like her life is already officially over. Not only is she about to...

By Katie Kirby

Paperback

$17⁹⁹

In Stock
Ships today
Free Gift

Lottie Brooks's Totally Disastrous School-Trip

The fourth book in this hilarious bestselling series full of friendship, family, and first experiences from the creator of Hurrah for Gin. Lottie Brooks's Totally Disastrous School-Trip continues to navigate the many perils of growing up in this fantastically funny illustrated series for a 9-12 audience, filled with friendship, embarrassing moments, and plenty of lols. Woe is me. So much...

By Katie Kirby

Paperback

$19⁰⁰
Elsewhere:
~~$21⁰⁰~~

In Stock
Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.