I knew nothing of this book or author going in, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  It was fantastic ! Loved it! Fast paced, gripping and with twists I didn't see coming.  The mother though? Damn!!  Worst mother of the year award!

Impressive!! I loved this book from the start and couldn’t put it down!  Such an eye opening account if one woman’s bravery through such adversity! 
Kept me on my toes from page one right until the end!!!!

Tara lives with her adoptive mother in a psychologically abusive relationship - finding her escape by following vlogging families as her emotional escape.  She finds an opportunity to become an intern one of the families and makes her escape after an altercation with her mother.  While taken into the folds of the new family she discovers not all as it appears online.

Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the ARC!

This synopsis gripped me right away, but unfortunately the book didn't completely hit the mark for me as I thought it was a bit predictable and wanted more action and twists/turns. With that said, this is a perfect, quick summer thriller and I definitely recommend it! 

This is another thriller that is full of family drama and keeps you guessing until the end. I just wish it was more "action packed" in the middle and that I related with the characters a bit more!

Tara has had a difficult life. Abandoned by her birth parents at the age of 8, she was then adopted by Mother. Mother is controlling and manipulative and abusive, and Tara desperately dreams of a life outside of her prison. Her only escape is through YouTube, where she watches normal families live their normal lives and fantasises about joining them. But when her dreams show signs of coming true, Tara must question whether she is really strong enough to leave everything she has ever known. Can she truly find happiness in the outside world? Or is Mother right when she says that Tara will never leave her?

Ok, this is a bit of an odd one in terms of plot. You've got a young woman, who was adopted by an absolute horror of a woman at age 8. To escape from the abuse, she becomes an intern for a popular YouTube family, the Feely's. But they too are hiding a darker side, and nothing is quite as it seems behind their picture perfect facade. So yeah, it just all sounded a bit odd to me, and I wasn't really sure how it would all tie together. But fortunately, it worked really well!

Genre wise, it's a mix of a psychological thriller and domestic drama. There's definitely a strong tone of suspense throughout the novel, and although there are elements of it that may stretch reality a bit, altogether it does make for a very unique and interesting read. It definitely stands out in comparison to other thrillers around nowadays, and by the ending I was completely gripped, flying through the pages desperate to know how everything would tie together! On the whole, it's one I would recommend, by an author I'd love to read again. 

POTENTIAL TRIGGER WARNING: Now, I will admit there is quite a lot of child abuse described in this one, which I imagine may be off-putting for some people. For me, I felt like these elements of the plot were handled cautiously and with respect, and that their presence in the story was not gratuitous in any way. However, others may disagree, and obviously everyone knows their own limits when it comes to reading this sort of content. For anyone who is trying to decide whether to give it a go - the abuse is largely emotional, with some physical abuse/deprivation also included. There is no reference to childhood sexual abuse, although there is an incident of sexual assault later in the book between two adult characters.

I wanted to love this book, but I  struggled and truthfully,  didn't finish it.  I have a hard time reading anything that alludes to or implicitly describes child abuse or emotional abuse. I am sure the book is well written, but the content was just not for me. I may at some point try reading this again,  and I will at that time update my review.  ( until I can properly finish,  this will be my only review, so I don't skew anything based on book I was unable to complete).

Tara was adopted by her foster mother at the age of eight when her parents decided that they could no longer take care of three children. Now twenty-years-old, she hasn’t managed to see much of the world. Mother is extremely controlling. Tara is forced to work for Mother shoplifting and reselling the items they acquire. Tara yearns for something more. She wants a life and a family like those popular accounts on YouTube. What would happen if she ran away from Mother? Could she find her own happiness or would Mother find her first?

WHAT IT SEEMS drops the reader into Tara’s life with Mother. We see an unhappy life of shoplifting and imprisonment. Tara isn’t free to leave Mother, her house, or even her room without the possibility of severe consequences. Being front and center watching Tara’s life immediately allows the reader to bond with her and cheer for her escaping this life. This start also adds an immediate sense of tension and dread with thoughts of what Mother is capable of and what could happen to Tara if she did escape.

I want to keep the bulk of the plot to this story vague, so I won’t be digging deeper than that. I really think this is one of those stories you need to go into blindly to avoid any spoilers. What I will say about the progression of the story is that Bleeker does a fantastic job of holding a sense of suspense throughout the book. There are moments when you feel extremely worried for Tara, but you can’t look away because you need to know what will happen next.

I thought the basis for the story was really original and not what seems to be rather run of the mill these days in the thriller world. There are a lot of great modern touches, which make the story relatable and believable for the current generation. I loved how everything came together at the end! I absolutely flew through the last fifty pages simply glued to my seat needing to know more! 

If you’re looking for an entertaining and heart pounding read, you’re going to want WHAT IT SEEMS on your TBR!

What It Seems is the first book I have read by Emily Bleeker and although I liked it, I didn't love it. I guess my expectations after reading the blurb of the book were pretty high and the book didn't turn out to be how it sounded in the blurb.

The strongest point about the book was 20 year old Tara and her story about the dismal life and the psychological and emotional damage she suffers constantly at the hands of her foster 'Mother' with whom Tara is living since she was 8 years old. By suffering both physical and mental torture at the hands of her foster mother, Tara has lost all sense of self worth and self love; she is constantly reminded that her birth parents gave her up willingly, a point which she doesn't completely understand. Her only friends are her dolls and a sparrow who visits her and her only outlet are the YouTube family videos she loves to watch, especially of the Feely family. 

For Tara, the Feely family represent the ideal family for her and when an opportunity arises for her to both accept an internship with them and escape her foster mother's clutches, she grabs it. However, she soon realises that her ideal family is not who they show themselves to be and on top of that her foster mother is still adamant to get her back. 

The weakest point in the book were the Feely family. I thought that this family would be hiding some dark, sinister secret but it was nothing of the sort. Also, the characterisation of every member of the Feely family was vague... they just seemed like types rather than real characters.

The best parts of the book were the ones that dealt solely with Tara, her inner musings and her interactions with her dolls as they clearly show how vulnerable, scared and starved of love she is while still clinging onto this hope that things will get better. And it is for these parts that I rate the book around 3-3.5*.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Lake Union Publishing and the author Emily Bleeker for the e-Arc of the book. I look forward to reading more books of the author and will look out for her other titles.

Hank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy of this book. 

When I read the excerpt for this book, it sounded like something I would love to read. Unfortunately this book just didn’t work for me at all and I’ve had to put it down at about 30%.

Living with her abusive foster mother from a young age, Tara doesn't know love or family. Her only escape from her terrible life is the Feeley family videos online. When she manages to get her dream job working for the family, Tara has to be brave and clever to escape her foster mother. She loves the job but struggles with the baggage from her previous life. I really enjoyed this book. I found myself quickly being drawn to the characters and staying up late to read that "one more chapter". The story is clever with those much needed twists and is well written. Will now be looking to download some more of this authors work to my kindle.

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliant idea for a thriller! What it Seems is the story of Tara/Angela, a young woman who has been raised by an abusive woman and whose only joy in life is watching her favourite Youtube family. One day she gets the chance to work with them and so she runs away from home, although this might not be the perfect escape she dreamed of.

This book starts slow for the first few chapters but I soon got into it. As soon as the Youtube stuff begins, the plot really takes off and I couldn't wait to see how things played out. I will say, I was expecting this book to be slightly darker based off the cover and description. It is light on the thriller elements (although not tone) and it never really went to the places I wanted it to. Similarly, there aren't really any twists? There is a revelation our main character has which was sort of treated like a twist but I can't believe it was intended to actually be one since I assumed that was the intended plot from the start. Having said that, I was engaged throughout and this definitely has a unique plot compared to most thrillers. What it lacks in thriller gimmicks, it makes up for in a solid story and interesting characters.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to lovers of the genre. It isn't especially dark but it creates a great atmosphere and it stood out just for the novelty of the content. I have a few other books on my TBR by this author that I've been putting off but I will definitely make them more of a priority now.

Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

This book grabbed my attention from the cover but as soon as I started it, it wasn’t anything like what I thought it was going to be and I didn’t even want to finish it. 

Triggers: Child abuse, Physical/ Emotional abuse

I received this early readers’ copy from @netgalley and @LakeUnionPublishing an exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book for my honest review.  Yayy I was so excited that I was chosen to read and review this book and it was simply delicious that I devoured it in one sitting.  Great book!

I've only read one of Bleeker's other novels, but this one still didn't quiiiiite measure up. Don't get me wrong, I still really liked and enjoyed reading this one, but I don't feel it was her strongest move as a writer.

My favorite thing about Bleeker as an author, and this book, was all the dark turns and twists that seemed to come out of nowhere so many times. Figuring out who to trust was difficult and ever-changing, and the MC was determined and never gave up-- despite making some decisions that I personally might have done differently haha. The story is a rollercoaster and it ends up being juuuust unbelievable enough that it succeeded in telling a thrilling, compelling story.

I will definitely be following Bleeker for more.

Wow!  This was a good book and hard to read at the same time!  I know terrible stuff like this happens, probably way more than we want to know, but it is hard to read about.  I am so glad that she got out!  Amazing story!

I am a big Emily Bleeker fan. I’ve read all her books and really liked them. I have to admit that this is my least favorite of her books, but I still liked it well enough. 

The main character is Tara/Angela—a 20 year old who has been raised in a horrendous, abusive, intolerable situation which just broke my heart. Her mother is awful. (Like angry, psycho, sadistically awful.) Part of me kept thinking this would never happen in real life. Except it does. I know people who have lived similar lives.  

As a result of her upbringing, Angela is very socially awkward, has no friends, and doesn’t have the best hygiene habits. She is very smart in many ways (she finds ways to rebel in secret using advanced computer skills) but has very few interpersonal skills (develops a strong emotional attachment to a YouTube family). Again, this seemed a little unbelievable, except that I know people like her. 

When Angela escaped her abusive situation and applied for a job with this family, I really cheered for her. She was so brave. I couldn’t figure out at first why the Feelys would hire her since she was so socially inept (and smelled). But then as the story went on, it started to make sense. 

As in all of Bleeker’s books, the plot was twisty. Figuring out motivations and who Angela could trust (or shouldn’t trust) was compelling. While Angela made some really dumb decisions, she was also tenacious in her determination to become an independent person. I liked the end well enough, but felt it went a little too fast and wrapped up too neatly. 

All in all, I recommend this book with some cautions. It’s not a story for young teens. There is quite a bit of violence at times. If you’re triggered by kidnapping, physical harm, death threats or emotional manipulation, this may not be the story for you. While the issues resolve, it’s not what I’d call redemptive for people who’ve experienced abuse. But it was a good mystery, with unfolding characters and lots of twists—and the title is a red herring, because nothing and no one in this book are what they seem to be at first.

I give it 4 stars, and recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers, ages 18+. (Also, if this is the first book you’ve read by Emily Bleeker, I recommend you read WRECKAGE or THE WAITING ROOM, which is her at her absolute best.)

This is one wild thriller! I liked the pacing and the general plot. I do feel like the story was a little unbelievable at times, but overall this was a fun, binge worthy read!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of What It Seems by Emily Bleeker.

Tara is a pregnant twenty year old that has just been confronted for shoplifting while out with her mother.  Except, she's not really pregnant, and her mother put her up to it.  Tara has hazy memories of her life before mother, but her mother is now all she knows, and her life is terrible.  Turning to any solace she can, Tara quickly becomes enamored with a Youtube family and their seemingly perfect life.  So when they advertise for an intern, Tara finds it an offer too good to pass up, and definitely worth the risk of angering mother.

Eh, okay sure, it was fine.  COMPLETELY unbelievable, every bit of it, but it was readable, and during a quarantine, that's all I ask.  I think what drove me the most crazy was the complete gullibility of ALL of the characters, excluding Henry.  But even Henry's complicity and savvy was unbelievable.  So, I was entertained, but not exactly sold.

Thank you to Netgalley for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review!

This book was so good! It kept my attention and was fast paced the whole time. 

This book follows Tara who lives with her abusive foster mother who makes her steal and locks her in a room coming up with these outrageous punishments if Tara does something wrong. She discovers and starts following the Feely family on YouTube and ends up applying for a position with them on a whim. She manages to escape her mother to join the perfect family-or so it seems. With the Feely family comes more secrets that are hidden from the cameras and the few million followers. Tara jumps from one unstable situation into another. 

From the abusive situation into one full of secrets, this book kept my interest all the way through. 

My only complaint is the ending felt really rushed-like the author had basically used up the allotted word count but still needed to wrap up the story. Otherwise the story from start to finish was interesting. 

TW/CW: kidnapping, abuse and neglect, attempted sexual assault.

What it seems was an average read for me.  The storyline was an interesting one that held my attention throughout.   This was my first book i have read by the author and I would be interested in reading more of her work.