![Jenny Mollen - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_a_jenny_mollen.jpg)
City of Likes
A wickedly funny and sharply insightful novel about motherhood, female friendships, and the seductive allure of social media culture from the New York Times bestselling author of I Like You Just The Way I Am and Live Fast Die Hot.
Megan Chernoff is a talented but unemployed copywriter in an identity crisis after the birth of her second child. Seeking a fresh start, she and her family move to New York City, where she meets Daphne Cole-a gorgeous, stylish, well-known momfluencer. To Meg's surprise and delight, Daphne shows an inordinate amount of interest in Meg, showering her with compliments, attention, gifts, and all the perks that come with having a massive digital platform. Before she knows it, Meg finds herself immersed in Daphne's world-hobnobbing at exclusive power mama supper clubs, partaking in fancy wellness rituals, and reveling in the external validation she gets from her followers who grow daily by the thousands. Her friendship with Daphne, as well as the world she's been granted access to, is intoxicating and all-consuming. But is it authentic? When Meg realizes she's losing track of what matters most-her relationship with her sons and her husband-the deep cracks in Daphne's carefully curated façade are finally exposed. It's up to Meg to find her way back to her real life. But first she must determine what "real" even means.
Written with Jenny Mollen's signature razor sharp wit, City of Likes is a compulsively entertaining, unforgettable, and unsettling satire of modern life and relationships in a "pics or it didn't happen" world.
Megan Chernoff is a talented but unemployed copywriter in an identity crisis after the birth of her second child. Seeking a fresh start, she and her family move to New York City, where she meets Daphne Cole-a gorgeous, stylish, well-known momfluencer. To Meg's surprise and delight, Daphne shows an inordinate amount of interest in Meg, showering her with compliments, attention, gifts, and all the perks that come with having a massive digital platform. Before she knows it, Meg finds herself immersed in Daphne's world-hobnobbing at exclusive power mama supper clubs, partaking in fancy wellness rituals, and reveling in the external validation she gets from her followers who grow daily by the thousands. Her friendship with Daphne, as well as the world she's been granted access to, is intoxicating and all-consuming. But is it authentic? When Meg realizes she's losing track of what matters most-her relationship with her sons and her husband-the deep cracks in Daphne's carefully curated façade are finally exposed. It's up to Meg to find her way back to her real life. But first she must determine what "real" even means.
Written with Jenny Mollen's signature razor sharp wit, City of Likes is a compulsively entertaining, unforgettable, and unsettling satire of modern life and relationships in a "pics or it didn't happen" world.
Editorial Reviews
"City of Likes has Jenny
Mollen's trademark lacerating humor and her ear for the outrageous, but this
novel brings a new level of pathos to her writing. It's a dark and engrossing
satire of motherhood, wealth, and friendship, laced with insight into the
danger of remaking ourselves in the social media age. To be gulped down in one
sitting." -Stephanie Danler, New York Times bestselling author of Stray
and Sweetbitter
"Jenny Mollen tackles the novel with all the signature hilarity, insight, and page-turning candor that she brings to her memoirs. A rollicking, joyful read that will make you want to put down the phone-and pick up a book." -Rebecca Serle, New York Times bestselling author of One Italian Summer
"Jenny Mollen's City of Likes is a propulsive story of motherhood, social media, and obsession-and the ways we can lose ourselves in each. A delightful blend of social commentary, dark humor, and good old-fashioned suspense that I devoured in two days." -Emily Henry, #1 New York Times bestselling author of People We Meet on Vacation
"City of Likes is a hilarious take-down of what happens to people when they overdose on social media. It is an escape from social media while still reading about social media; a fantastic awakening to help clear your head and your addiction. And it's hilarious. The greed, the lies, and the interminable desire to get more likes turns innocent people into horrifying versions of themselves. I couldn't put it down." -Chelsea Handler, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Life Will Be the Death of Me
"First things first: I would pay good money to sit at a bar with Jenny Mollen and listen to her hilarious observations about the people around us. And I promise, on...
"Jenny Mollen tackles the novel with all the signature hilarity, insight, and page-turning candor that she brings to her memoirs. A rollicking, joyful read that will make you want to put down the phone-and pick up a book." -Rebecca Serle, New York Times bestselling author of One Italian Summer
"Jenny Mollen's City of Likes is a propulsive story of motherhood, social media, and obsession-and the ways we can lose ourselves in each. A delightful blend of social commentary, dark humor, and good old-fashioned suspense that I devoured in two days." -Emily Henry, #1 New York Times bestselling author of People We Meet on Vacation
"City of Likes is a hilarious take-down of what happens to people when they overdose on social media. It is an escape from social media while still reading about social media; a fantastic awakening to help clear your head and your addiction. And it's hilarious. The greed, the lies, and the interminable desire to get more likes turns innocent people into horrifying versions of themselves. I couldn't put it down." -Chelsea Handler, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Life Will Be the Death of Me
"First things first: I would pay good money to sit at a bar with Jenny Mollen and listen to her hilarious observations about the people around us. And I promise, on...
Readers Top Reviews
MFeustelAlison Sm
Loved this book, Jenny Mollen! It’s timely and representative of the pressures all moms feel! Great, light hearted, summer beach reading!
OCma3OCma3MFeuste
Jenny’s book is reflective of her personality so if you enjoy her IG, you’ll like turning the pages in City of Likes. It’s an easy read and while I’m not ROFLing, I find myself doing the half-nod/snort like, “yup.” It’s an easy summer read, good for moms who are mentally fried and needing a palate cleanse heading into summer break. That said, there is one odd edit choice that is making me twitchy. Throughout the book there are random mid-sentence paragraph breaks that make no sense. At first I thought it was a single error but as I kept going, I found it often through the book. So while I’m sure it’s intentional and maybe supposed to be a meta message about love or motherhood or an attention grabbing Easter egg, as an aforementioned mentally-friend mom, it bothers me and you may find it distracting too. I assume there was likely an argument with the editor over this stylistic choice and wish the other person won that battle. I still have a chapter or two left to go so maybe the mystery will reveal itself at the end. Still, light and funny enough to read. We’re not curing cancer here and that’s the point.
Becky HolcombeBec
Not finished… but could of in one night. I keep putting it down because I don’t want it to be over!!
AnonBecky Holcomb
This book was so good! I finished it in a day because I couldn’t put it down. It was funny and entertaining with a serious and important message. I’ve loved all of Jenny’s books and just love her as a human being.
Emily Walzcameron
First half of the book is fairly entertaining, and I began to build some empathy for Meg, but she really lost me with the ridiculous flirtation and sexual tension between Meg and Daphne. Obviously understanding this book is fiction, it’s still completely over the top to suggest that this self-proclaimed “happily” married (straight) woman with two kids would contemplate a love affair and cast her family aside for a shallow and controlling woman like Daphne. Also being familiar with the author through Instagram, and seeing her regularly post about designer goods, jewelry, trips to the plastic surgeon, her live-in staff, and fancy vacations… was she basing the character Daphne on herself? I couldn’t help but draw a comparison between Jenny and Daphne, which just added to the cringe factor of this book for me.
