This book was very distinct from Catfishing on CatNet, yet somehow simultaneously manages to feel very much the same. This is a good thing, given how much I loved Catfishing on Catnet.
There’s much less focus on internet friendships in this one (the Clowder is still present, but they’re background) and much less focus on Steph’s relationship with Rachel (that’s taken as a given; Rachel’s support is automatic, and anyway she lives two hours away). Instead, Steph is enrolled in a magnet school in Minneapolis for students whose education has been unconventional, and she and her mother are both doing their best to adapt to a life not spent constantly on the run.
At school, Steph is immediately introduced to Nell. Nell was raised by a religious cult on a compound where they are prepping for the imminent apocalypse, and was kicked out when it was discovered that she was gay. Steph finds herself in the unfamiliar position of being the worldly, cool one instead of the weird outsider.
Meanwhile, CheshireCat is very interested/troubled by the possibility of a second AI.
The stakes are definitely higher than in the first book as we gradually find out what the second AI is up to. The two different plotlines - the AI plotline and the Nell plotline - come together pretty quickly in a way that, if I’m being honest, really strained my ability to suspend disbelief. It made the first half of the book a little bit of a challenge to get through, because I just thought it was far too contrived.
Around the midpoint, though, things came together in a way that made things make a lot more sense. I flew through the second half.
Even with this flaw, though, this book was, like Catfishing, a delight. It all comes down to the strength of the characters. Steph is as great as she was in the first book, and Nell is just about as good.
Another strong recommendation.
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