Publisher's Weekly Review
Structuring their unevenly told high-concept thriller around a playlist, Lapuente, a debut author, and Shusterman (Roxy) take on social media usage and Big Tech. To get revenge on blond, popular friend Samantha for shoplifting and scapegoating her, 17-year-old Luna María Valero Iglesias, who's Spanish and Mexican, anonymously posts a video of Samantha drunkenly trashing classmates at their small-town Northern California school. Regret sets in, but not before the video goes viral on high-profile social media site Limbo, after which Samantha attempts suicide. Limbo, facing bad press for the algorithm that promoted the post, holds a contest at the youths' high school: the teen who goes without any technology made after 2000 for an entire school year wins a full-ride scholarship to the college of their choice. The contest, which makes Luna's life feel like something out of one of the glamorous retro movies playing at her mother's indie theater, brings Luna new friends and internet fame. But as contestants begin to vanish, Luna realizes that Limbo's plan may involve more menacing motives. Indistinct dialogue across the quirky cast undercuts thoughtful meditations on capitalism and technology, making for a thinly fleshed out novel with a charmingly vintage vibe. Ages 14--up. Agent: (for Lapuente and Shusterman) Andrea Brown, Andrea Brown Literary. (Jan.)
Kirkus Review
A no-technology challenge in a small Northern California town turns sinister. After Samantha shoplifts but lets her friend Luna take the fall for her crime, Luna is rightfully enraged--and not least because her mother, a Spanish immigrant, is at risk of losing her visa to remain in the U.S., making any sort of criminal activity especially harmful. Luna uploads a video of a drunk Samantha bad-mouthing her friends and other classmates to Limbo, the social media app everyone's obsessed with. Even though she has regrets and deletes it shortly after, she isn't fast enough, and the video goes viral. The harsh response results in Samantha's attempting to take her own life. The fact that she survives alleviates some of Luna's guilt, but she still sends a private message to the app developers, explaining her role in what happened and asking for their help as she seeks accountability. Much to everyone's surprise, the Limbo CEO comes to their school and proposes a challenge: Any student who manages to go the entire school year without using technology, including their phones, will receive a full-ride scholarship to college. As the year progresses, however, some of Luna's friends disappear and the real nature of #RetroChallenge becomes clear. Though the fast pace will appeal to reluctant readers, it comes at the expense of character development and relationship-building, making it hard to feel attached to any of them. The stilted dialogue poses another obstacle. A disappointing, unfulfilling journey with forgettable characters. (Thriller. 13-17) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
After Luna posts a revenge video of her ex-best friend trashing other students at their high school, the video goes viral. The fallout prompts the proprietors of Limbo, the social media app hosting the video, to step in to rectify the situation. The company unveils a new program in partnership with the school: the Retro Challenge, which invites students to eschew modern technology to simplify their lives and earn a full college scholarship. As Luna and other students set aside their online lives, they initially feel a newfound freedom. But as she progresses through the challenge, Luna begins to suspect that Limbo has ulterior motives for its generous offer. Despite a somewhat contrived premise, the story explores the divides modern technology can create in young people's lives. The story hews close to sci-fi, with the Limbo company employing futuristic resources that must be countered by the young protagonists. Even so, the themes of the book are prescient, asking readers to consider how much they are manipulated by the devices that are supposed to make life easier.
