Follow Me Back

Gr 10 Up—Tessa Hart (@TessaHeartsEric) is 18, severely agoraphobic, and an Eric Thorn fan—some may call her #obsessed. Most of Tessa's human interaction comes through sessions with her therapist, who makes house calls, and Twitter. The teen doesn't leave her bedroom. Mystery surrounds the circumstances that got her there and her new Twitter friend, Taylor (@EricThornSucks). Eric Thorn is a popular, adored, and somewhat narcissistic pop star recently made leery of the adoration since a fellow pop star was killed by a fervent fan. In a moment of resentment, Eric creates @EricThornSucks under his middle name, Taylor, and ends up striking up a friendship with Tessa, which unfolds via direct message on Twitter. A nonlinear account of Tessa and Eric's relationship develops, jumping back and forth from past to present, and readers are privy to both characters' perspectives and to the transcript from Eric's police interview. This is a moderately paced, character-focused story in which familiarity with Twitter is helpful but not necessary. Fuzzy details cloud the tale as pieces are revealed one at a time until they all come together at the end—right before everything falls apart before a final, dark twist.