The New York Times Book Review - Brendan Kiely
Throughout the compulsively readable story…Ahmadi raises thought-provoking questions about the role and influence of social media in our lives…While this smart, timely and riveting novel addresses…profound questions, Ahmadi keeps the philosophy tucked neatly between the lines, foregrounding the emotional questions that drive Opal and her friends' story…Ahmadi shows that the best investments are the ones we make in each other, because the opportunity to love another person is something each of us can offer and all of us deserve.
Publishers Weekly
03/25/2019
In this near-future thriller, Ahmadi (Down and Across) questions the benefits of technology and its role in creating instant celebrity, shortening attention spans, and insidiously impacting democracy. When 17-year-old coder Opal Tal’s father, Aaron, went missing seven years earlier, she attempted to track him down by reaching out to his business partner, Howie Mendelsohn. But Opal’s requests were ignored. Now legally known as Opal Hopper and a senior at Palo Alto Academy of Science and Technology, she is given an opportunity to meet Howie by entering the Make-a-Splash competition on WAVE, a virtual reality social media site that Howie created. All Opal has to do is give up her privacy and become a viral media sensation, which she and her friends do using ill-gotten information about how people react to an infamous personality’s very public emotional breakdowns. The narrative blends with texts, transcripts, and other technologies, sometimes affecting pacing, but Ahmadi’s relatable characters keep the story engaging. Ages 12–up. Agent: Tina Wexler, ICM Partners. (May)
From the Publisher
Raves for Girl Gone Viral:
"Tense, twisty, and oh-so-timely, Girl Gone Viral is the perfect thriller for the virtual reality era. Don’t start this book unless you can finish in one sitting. I loved it!”—Brendan Reichs, New York Times bestselling author of Nemesis
“In Opal’s story, Arvin Ahmadi has crafted a timely and gripping sci-fi tale, grounded in the technology that links us, and what finding ourselves within it can cost.”—Alex London, bestselling author of Proxy and Black Wings Beating
"A fast-paced Black Mirror episode with an endearing teenage protagonist." —Marie Claire Magazine
School Library Journal - Audio
03/01/2020
Gr 7 Up—Opal Hopper wasn't always Opal Hopper. When she was ten, her father, famed entrepreneur Abba Tal, went missing, leaving behind an ambiguous note. After failing to get answers, Opal changed her name and enrolled at a prestigious boarding school for technical prodigies. Then Howie Mendelsohn, founder of the virtual reality platform WAVE, and her father's old partner, announces a contest where the winner gets to meet him in person. The contest reignites Opal's need for answers, even if it means ruining friendships, engaging in political debates, and reclaiming her name. Jorjeana Marie's inquisitive tone captures Opal's sometimes indecisive and uncertain, occasionally egotistical voice. Listeners will feel Opal's struggle with relentless media inquiries, high school romances, college planning, and family dynamics. Character development is a bit strained, and the abrupt ending leaves room for a sequel. VERDICT Recommended for collections needing more dystopian fiction or where there are a lot of Ready Player One fans.—Amanda Schiavulli, Liverpool Public Library, NY
School Library Journal
05/01/2019
Gr 8 Up—When 17-year-old Opal Tal's father disappeared seven years ago, everyone believed it was suicide…except Opal. After years of desperately searching for her beloved Abba, Opal changes her name to avoid the stigma and attention and tries to move on with her life. But when WAVE, the world's leading virtual reality platform, announces a contest to create the most viral VR experience, Opal has to enter. Because first prize is a chance to meet the company's founder and reclusive gazillionaire, Howie Mendelsohn—the same Howie Mendelsohn who was working with her dad when he disappeared; the same Howie Mendelsohn who was the last person to see him alive. Now Opal must discover how far down the virtual rabbit hole she is willing to go to find out what really happened the night she lost her father. The world of Ahmadi's book is as much a character as any other. Setting his book in a not-too-distant future where Seth Meyers is considered "old school" and political lines are drawn not between Republicans and Democrats but instead between Technology and Luddites, Ahmadi creates a nice balance between the familiar and the future. Characters power the story and, though there is not much action, there are still plenty of surprises and suspense. Ahmadi leaves enough loose ends dangling that a sequel is possible, which would be eagerly anticipated by readers. VERDICT Despite a slow start, this novel picks up the pace and rounds into a very entertaining story with a protagonist readers will invest in.—Erik Knapp, Davis Library, Plano, TX
