Those well-versed in internet culture understand that most of social media is a facade. They know that the posts of friends, family, and influencers reflect only the best parts of life, and that anyone can look carefree on Instagram while being miserable behind the scenes. But how deep does this deception go, especially when the livelihood of the poster depends on them persuading the viewer that their family is happy? In her 2025 thriller novel Everyone Is Lying to You, Jo Piazza reveals the grisly truths of content creation in the Momfluencer sphere, including the pressures of conformity, pervasive corporatization, and abusive family dynamics.
Everyone Is Lying to You features two characters: Lizzie, a journalist who witnesses the reality of motherhood content creation as an outsider, and Rebecca, one of the most famous influencers in the community. The two were best friends in college, before Rebecca’s influencer days, but lost touch after Rebecca started dating her now-husband Gray. Lizzie has kept up with Rebecca through her social media posts and obsesses over how Rebecca, who singlehandedly raises six kids while running a family farm, seems to find motherhood easy compared to her. When Rebecca contacts Lizzie out of the blue offering an exclusive interview on a big announcement she plans to make during Mombomb, a popular momfluencer conference, Lizzie jumps at the chance for a reconnection. Their reunion is cut short when Gray is found dead at his and Rebecca’s ranch, murdered with a piece of farming equipment. From there, the book becomes a thrilling chase to discover the truth behind Gray’s murder and Rebecca’s life. Lizzie must use her skills as a journalist to sleuth through the disbanding remnants of Mombomb and chase rumors of jealousy, affairs, and abuse to clear Rebecca’s name.
Lizzie struggles to adapt to the culture of content-creation, which sacrifices authenticity for increased marketability, when her own career is truth-seeking. She is surprised to see just how deceptive influencers are: how much those that promote traditional lifestyles rely on large corporate sponsors and secretly hired nannies, how two-faced they are towards members of their own community, how much they eagerly leave unsaid to feign conformity. As Lizzie parses through the lies she has been told through social media, Jo Piazza, a journalist herself, imitates the thrill of the pursuit of truth and challenges the reader to think twice about their own conceptions of internet personalities.
Piazza particularly confronts the adherence to traditional gender norms within momfluencer and tradwife content. Through flashbacks in Rebecca’s perspective, the reader learns that Gray refused to participate in childcare or homemaking insisting that, as the wife, they were entirely Rebecca’s responsibility. As Rebecca posts content and builds a brand around her family’s management, she gains more sponsorships and money, leaving Gray uncomfortable with their shifting power dynamic. Other influencers that Lizzie interview at Mombomb share similar stories. By owning businesses and having corporate partners, these women gain more economic and social power than their husbands, and they refuse to be underestimated just because that power was gained through adhering to an identity of motherhood. Though the characters are fictional, it’s obvious that the same phenomenon likely happens in real life, bringing to question just how much “tradwife” influencers adhere to the “submissive wife” role outside of their online personas.
Despite this thriller’s focus on uncovering deception and solving a murder, Piazza does not depict all influencers as terrible people. Instead, in a humanizing move, she picks apart their veneer of perfection to reveal them as regular people. The women at Mombomb can be gossipy and judgmental as well as sympathetic and friendly. They are ambitious and passionate while being insecure and complacent. In other words, like everyone else, they are multifaceted. But does an influencer disguising the truth of her life empower her or leave her vulnerable to hidden abuse? Does lying to followers give them hope or make them feel like they aren’t good enough? Everyone Is Lying to You leaves the reader wondering where the boundaries of authenticity are and where they should be in modern internet culture, making it the perfect novel for anyone who wants to experience a thrill while being challenged to rethink their perception of social media.
You can purchase a copy of Everyone Is Lying to You here and learn more about Jo Piazza here.
Everyone Is Lying to You
Jo Piazza
Dutton
July 15, 2025
336 Pages
Isabelle Morrison is in her third year at Drexel, pursuing an English major with a concentration in secondary education and a minor in writing. Outside of literature, her interests include visual art, zoology, and paleontology. She can often be found outside, at a library, or in a museum.