Distortion

'Engrossing . . . Part post-truth nightmare, part social commentary' Financial Times 'Thought-provoking' Spectator 'Taut and timely . . . A brilliant exploration of social media' Nikesh Shukla 'Original and important . . . Essential reading' Sathnam Sanghera Meet Dillon: a high-functioning fuck-up and carer for his dying mum. Trapped in an absurd cycle of pre-bereavement bereavement, he has been hiding his pain and some horrible truths, not least from his girlfriend, Ramona. His distortions have been growing dangerously more hardcore and hardwired, both online and off, thanks to the self-reinforcing effects of social media and creepy digital surveillance. And when a pair of snooping goons turn up, threatening to expose him, he is forced to confront a gut-wrenching secret that he would rather leave well alone. This audacious novel asks what happens when our minds are twisted beyond recognition by our digital data and search histories, and when our darkest truths are forced into the light by the uncanny predictive capabilities of our smartphones. What lengths would you go to in order to hide from yourself? "Dillon is a high-functioning but disturbed young man otherwise known as Dylan or Dhilan. The way he spells his name and his online identity depends on the circumstanes he finds himself in. None of his identities is imaginary. Although Dillon has worked very hard to escape to university, there's no getting away from all his complicated family problems, with its plentiful intangible guilt and all-too-tangible bodily fluids. Like many young carers, he has kept his domestic life a secret from his friends - and even from his long-suffering girlfriend, Ramona. His various lives have now become hardwired, leaving him stuck somewhere between love and resentment, fixating on the physical horror of his mother's sickness to drown out the emotional pain. But the appearance on campus of two strange men who seem to know everything about Dillon's different identities forces him to track down his shady, estranged father. And that's when trouble really sets in."--Cataloguer Meet Dillon, a high-functioning mess with a rather inconvenient foot fetish, who has been keeping some very big secrets from his girlfriend Ramona.Also, meet Dhilan, a young carer caught in an endless loop of pre-bereavement bereavement for his dying mother.And then there is Dylan. The less said about him the better.These three very separate identities for the same young man have been growing dangerously hardwired thanks to the self-reinforcing effects of social media and search engines, and the uncanny predictive capabilities of his smartphones.When two men threaten to expose Dillon/Dhilan/Dylan, he is forced to unravel a gut-wrenching mystery that he would rather leave well alone. The internationally acclaimed author of Londonstani returns with his first novel for twelve years: a propulsive tale of identity crisis in the digital age 'Part post-truth nightmare, part social commentary' (Financial Times), this is the acclaimed second novel from the author of Londonstani