Two bored, obsessed teenagers break into - and secretly live in - influencers' houses. But when they choose the wrong home, their twisted experiment turns deadly. A darkly funny, breathtakingly tense thriller from 'one of the most original writers in Britain' (Daily Express)…
'A darkly funny and twisty thrill ride' Mirror
'Skewers the vacuous narcissism of influencers and reality TV with trademark acerbic wit … darkly funny and twisty' Express
'A blistering skewering of influencer culture' Crime Monthly
'Social media has never been this deadly. A brutally brilliant story!' Satu Rämö
'His best yet!' S.J. Watson
'Biting, acerbic, darkly funny and, most importantly, it shines a spotlight on the ridiculousness of modern living, the importance of social media and how we see ourselves' Chris McDonald
'Will Carver uses his unique voice to skewer the vacuous world of wannabe influencers and reality TV … a savage, scathing, compelling but deeply funny take-down of a fake, narcissistic world' Trevor Wood
------
Two bored teenagers.
One stupid game.
The wrong place to play…
Alyssa wants to be seen. Less wants to be someone. She takes two buses to class, posts pictures of her lunch, and pretends it's all effortless. He hides his privilege beneath thrifted clothes and a sketchbook full of impossible designs. Together, they are inseparable - two outsiders constructing a version of themselves the world might finally applaud.
Then Alyssa stumbles upon the hidden world of phrogging - living unnoticed inside other people's homes. She and Less slip through Los Angeles' glossy veneer: influencers, producers, pop stars, all so busy performing their perfect lives they don't notice the shadows in their attics, the scratching in their walls.
An act of rebellion. A harmless thrill. A social experiment.
Until they choose the wrong house.
Until the influencer they idolise catches them in the act.
Until the cameras, already rolling, capture everything.
What begins as a reckless adventure becomes a nightmare of lies, power … and murder…
____________
'Will Carver follows Kill Them With Kindness with another satirical look at the world we live in and he does it brilliantly. He has captured the zeitgeist of 21st-century culture and I cannot wait to see where he goes next' Michael Wood
Praise for Will Carver
'A smart, stylish writer' Daily Mail
'Incredibly dark and very funny' Harriet Tyce
'Unlike anything you'll read this year' Heat
'Impossibly original, stylish, sinister and heartfelt' Chris Whitaker
'Weirdly page-turning' Sunday Times
'Ambitious, dark and funny' Mike Gayle
'A highly original state-of-the-nation novel' Literary Review
'Oozes malevolence from every page' Victoria Selman
'Arguably the most original crime novel published this year' Independent
'Mesmeric' Guardian
'Memorable for its unrepentant darkness…' Telegraph
'Perceptive and twisted in equal measure' CultureFly
'Pitch-dark, intelligent and utterly addictive' Michael Wood
'Unflinching, blunt and brutal' Sam Holland
'Equally enthralling and appalling' James Oswald
'Brilliantly original' Sam Holland
| ISBN: | 9781917764285 |
| Publication date: | 18th June 2026 |
| Author: | Will Carver |
| Publisher: | Orenda Books |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 337 pages |
| Genres: |
Crime and Mystery Thriller and Suspense Fiction: special features |
Two bored, obsessed teenagers break into - and secretly live in - influencers' houses. But when they choose the wrong home, their twisted experiment turns deadly. A darkly funny, breathtakingly tense thriller from 'one of the most original writers in Britain' (Daily Express)…
'A darkly funny and twisty thrill ride' Mirror
'Skewers the vacuous narcissism of influencers and reality TV with trademark acerbic wit … darkly funny and twisty' Express
'A blistering skewering of influencer culture' Crime Monthly
'Social media has never been this deadly. A brutally brilliant story!' Satu Rämö
'His best yet!' S.J. Watson
'Biting, acerbic, darkly funny and, most importantly, it shines a spotlight on the ridiculousness of modern living, the importance of social media and how we see ourselves' Chris McDonald
'Will Carver uses his unique voice to skewer the vacuous world of wannabe influencers and reality TV … a savage, scathing, compelling but deeply funny take-down of a fake, narcissistic world' Trevor Wood
------
Two bored teenagers.
One stupid game.
The wrong place to play…
Alyssa wants to be seen. Less wants to be someone. She takes two buses to class, posts pictures of her lunch, and pretends it's all effortless. He hides his privilege beneath thrifted clothes and a sketchbook full of impossible designs. Together, they are inseparable - two outsiders constructing a version of themselves the world might finally applaud.
Then Alyssa stumbles upon the hidden world of phrogging - living unnoticed inside other people's homes. She and Less slip through Los Angeles' glossy veneer: influencers, producers, pop stars, all so busy performing their perfect lives they don't notice the shadows in their attics, the scratching in their walls.
An act of rebellion. A harmless thrill. A social experiment.
Until they choose the wrong house.
Until the influencer they idolise catches them in the act.
Until the cameras, already rolling, capture everything.
What begins as a reckless adventure becomes a nightmare of lies, power … and murder…
____________
'Will Carver follows Kill Them With Kindness with another satirical look at the world we live in and he does it brilliantly. He has captured the zeitgeist of 21st-century culture and I cannot wait to see where he goes next' Michael Wood
Praise for Will Carver
'A smart, stylish writer' Daily Mail
'Incredibly dark and very funny' Harriet Tyce
'Unlike anything you'll read this year' Heat
'Impossibly original, stylish, sinister and heartfelt' Chris Whitaker
'Weirdly page-turning' Sunday Times
'Ambitious, dark and funny' Mike Gayle
'A highly original state-of-the-nation novel' Literary Review
'Oozes malevolence from every page' Victoria Selman
'Arguably the most original crime novel published this year' Independent
'Mesmeric' Guardian
'Memorable for its unrepentant darkness…' Telegraph
'Perceptive and twisted in equal measure' CultureFly
'Pitch-dark, intelligent and utterly addictive' Michael Wood
'Unflinching, blunt and brutal' Sam Holland
'Equally enthralling and appalling' James Oswald
'Brilliantly original' Sam Holland
Bad Influence features in the following genres: Crime and Mystery, Thriller and Suspense, Fiction: special features
Bad Influence is available in Paperback
Bad Influence was written by Will Carver and published by Orenda Books
Bad Influence has 337 pages
£8.99