A Touch of Jen

Remy and Alicia are an unhappy couple in their 20s. They both work unfulfilling restaurant jobs, have no real interests, and are not sure what they want to do with their lives. The only thing that seems to unite them is a shared obsession with Jen, a former coworker of Remy’s who has become a low-level influencer. They dissect her social media posts, investigate her boyfriend, and roleplay being Jen in and out of the bedroom. When a chance encounter leads to Jen inviting Remy and Alicia on a surfing trip to Montauk, their obsession with her twists and curdles. Alicia invents a large-scale art project to impress Jen’s friends, and bringing it to life awakens something dark and strange. The book starts off slowly, peopled entirely with characters it’s hard to become invested in—if they have so little interest in their own lives, why should listeners care? But things get weird very quickly after Remy and Alicia come back from Montauk, and listeners who stick it out are in for some fun. Casey Turner’s narration is a little flat, but fittingly so for a group of people whose primary emotions are ennui and disappointment.