Ahoy there me mateys!  I received this young adult sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  So here be me honest musings . . .

This be the second full-length CatNet series novel by Naomi Kritzer.  The first novel was based on "Cat Pictures Please" which won the 2016 Locus and Hugo awards for best short story.  Book one followed Steph who was on the run from her evil father.  She is saved in the end by her friends from a social media site called CatNet and the AI in hiding called CheshireCat who runs the site.

I enjoyed the first book and was glad to hear that it was getting a sequel.  Turns out that I liked this book even better.  Steph is back and trying to live her life out in the open and gain some stability.  At her new school, she makes a new friend, Nell.  Nell's mother happens to be missing.  And Nell happens to have grown up in a cult.  The two friends join an online social media game.  But something seems weird about it.  Steph, Nell, and Cat find themselves trying to solve the mystery of Nell's mom and maybe also save the world.

What I loved about this one was how lovely the friendships are, how grown-ups are involved in saving the day, and of course CheshireCat.  I really do enjoy getting to see Steph again.  But I thought Nell was an excellent character.  Watching her change during the course of the book was awesome.  I also thought her family was a hoot.  Old friends make an appearance and well as some new unexpected arrivals.  The larger themes of privacy, family, and trauma are here too.  This book was fun and I was glad to see what was evolving with the AI.  I recommend this book but make sure ye read book one first!

So lastly . . .

Thank you Tor Teen!

Side note: I have to admit that the cover of this book in the series also doesn't thrill me.