SHINY HAPPY PEOPLE

A new drug craze promising perfection has dangerous consequences, even for those who abstain.

Rather than party and discover a similar penchant for “fun” as the biological mother who abandoned her, Kyra Cartwright determinedly sticks to the straight and narrow. The trauma of her mother’s addiction has left Kyra with a distaste for her peers’ drug- and alcohol-fueled lifestyle, and she struggles to control the creeping tendrils of her “anxiety ivy.” Lately, Kyra’s adoptive brother, Gabe, who’s normally chaotic and unserious, has been a different and unsettling version of himself. When her edgy, offbeat best friend, Halley, suddenly becomes invested in hanging with the in crowd, Kyra knows something is seriously wrong. The influence and power of local pharmaceutical company BoTanic, the school’s corporate sponsor, is showing up everywhere, leaving only Kyra and new student Logan Kidman, who’s equally unimpressed by everyone’s shiny new selves, to resist the pressure to be perfect and solve the mystery of what’s going on. Inspired by a variety of classic horror and science-fiction books and movies, Chapman’s young readers’ debut offers satisfyingly gruesome body horror alongside pointed social commentary. However, Kyra’s voice doesn’t come across like that of an authentic teen girl, and her portrayal feels derivative. The thin characterization makes this work feel out of step with the believably drawn teens typically found in YA. Main characters read white.

A modernized homage to vintage horrors that would have benefited from greater emotional depth.