Anon Pls

The evocative if underwhelming debut novel by the creator of celebrity-gossip Instagram account Deuxmoi, cowritten with Goodman (They Wish They Were Us), delves into the gossip and toxic culture of fashion and media. Cricket Lopez, assistant to celebrity stylist Sasha Sherman, has dealt with routine abuse and humiliation at her job for eight years. But when an influencer client reneges on a deal, ruining Cricket’s prospects for a promotion, she takes to Instagram to rant, and, in a drunken stupor, calls on followers to dish on other big names, with Sasha in the crosshairs for her toxic behavior and enabling of sexual predators. Overnight, her anonymous style account morphs into a celebrity-gossip blog called Deuxmoi. Cricket’s DMs fill with celebrity sightings and juicy Hollywood scoops. Soon, investors and journalists want to collaborate amidst growing curiosity about who runs Deuxmoi. As the Instagram handle gains notoriety and Cricket has a virtual romance with the editor-in-chief of a popular magazine, she starts slacking at work and neglecting friendships. And when a journalist starts connecting the dots between Cricket and Deuxmoi, she realizes social media could make or break her. While the authors examine important themes—sexism, power imbalances, and enabler culture—there’s often too much exposition, and Cricket’s character development feels forced. It offers some insights on what makes an influencer tick, but not much else. Agent: Eve Attermann, WME. (Nov.)