Idol: The must read, addictive and compulsive book club thriller of the summer

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For her that something was the year 2016 and the aftermath of Asking For It, her novel that shone a spotlight on sexual violence and sexual consent pre-MeToo. Pretty much from the first chapter, I did not like Sam. This is by design—O’Neill has a talent for creating unlikable protagonists, and I think they have their place. We so often label women “unlikable” (or even less polite terms) simply for being strident, forthright, assertive, etc. Sam is these things, yes, but that isn’t why she is unlikable—I don’t like her because she is self-absorbed and perhaps even narcissistic. However, she isn’t a shallow character. Based on the limited third-person narrator’s perspective, Sam seems to truly believe in much of her grift—she meditates, etc. (Note that I am not suggesting meditation itself is always a grift—rather, I’m pointing out that many wellness gurus do not practise what they preach.) Sam doesn’t have a public and a private persona: she generally believes in her reality, and that is fascinating. I think this is what makes Idol work so well for me: O’Neill spends time exploring the different angles of what it means to be a flawed social media influencer, encompassing the perspectives of Sam herself, her manager, this antagonist, Lisa, her mother, etc. There is a compelling scene later in the book where Sam is meeting with Shakti’s board of directors, mostly old, white guys. One of them is adorably “woke” because of his younger daughter’s influence. They are discussing how Sam can distance herself from Shakti, given the allegations against her, so Shakti can go public. Sam, of course, balks at the idea of stepping away from her baby when men who have similarly been accused of sexual assault haven’t fallen from grace. I read columns of mine that I would have written 10 years ago, and I think it’s interesting how much my worldview or my feminism has really shifted.” It takes guts, I think, for O’Neill to examine these double standards in this way. It’s one thing to write books about women crusading against male abusers—and these books should be written. It’s another to write a book about a powerful woman who might be one of those abusers, to discuss how white women like Sam and myself are often complicit in propping up these abusive systems because we think we will be rewarded and think we will be safe as a result. At the same time, we can admit that when we as a society do hold women to account, we do so with a vociferousness and viciousness seldom seen for men.

In my experience, her books are easy to read, but not necessarily easy reading. With her last book, After the Silence, for example, I found the main protagonist difficult to like. It takes self-assured expertise and talent to handle strong characters within multifaceted stories, but these are writing qualities that Louise O’Neill has in abundance, and she uses them with superb skill. I enjoy reading her books because I know I’m in safe hands.

By turns utterly gripping and unsettling, this gorgeously written novel is a fascinating look at the ills of influencer culture. A book for our times." - Lucy Foley It was the most success I’ve ever, ever had with a book. My career took off, my life completely changed. And I just totally fell apart. I just could not handle it. It was awful. Honestly, it was the best year professionally and the worst year I’ve ever had on a personal level. I had a massive relapse. And I suppose that is the danger of not being fully recovered.” The kernel of an idea that would become Idol came to her years earlier, in 2014, when she read an essay by Lena Dunham, an American writer and creator of the HBO series Girls. This novel is a true examination of what it means to be a celebrity, and how we put them upon a pedestal. It is also an examination of sexual abuse, and especially how people construct narratives for their entire life. So, in this instance, which narrative is true? It’s set in the US because when Miller as a character appeared to O’Neill, she was American. It also makes sense as Ireland doesn’t have influencers at the same level of success as Miller is at. “When Samantha Miller came to me, the voice was so strong. And it was almost overwhelming,” says O’Neill.

A gripping read from start to finish. People are going to be talking about this book for a long time to come! Thank you to NetGalley and to Random House UK for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. Idol will be out on May 12th - guaranteed to be a hit!

I think when you see a lot of the abuse that influencers get… it’s interesting, because I suppose there’s a certain amount of envy that goes along with it, when you look at people who seem like their lives are perfect, and they’re getting a lot of free things and they’re getting free holidays,” she explains. Often what people call cancel culture is more like consequences culture. If someone is called out for something and they give a genuine apology, I do think people are okay about it Idol is set in the US, a handy choice for if a TV or film adaptation is made: O’Neill’s dream would be a four-part series starting Reese Witherspoon. There are talks, as with her other books, about optioning it for the screen.