5 Stars from YOU Magazine

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"This One Time is a damning criticism of our modern culture of insta-fame. If Stephen King wrote Misery in 2015 instead of 1987, it might have unfolded something like Van Tonder's gripping tale. Her debut novel is a breakneck, nailbiter of a psychological thriller with a main character you'll start out hating but end up feeling sorry for. Gripping stuff." - Jared Orlin, YOU Magazine

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PanMacmillan Author Series: Alex van Tonder talks about This One Time

"Alaska as a setting is really important. Apart from being physically isolated and impossible to penetrate… what was really important for his character development was for him to be emotionally isolated. A large part of his sense of self is linked to his affirmation online… he chases likes, he chases that endless online affirmation that you get when you’re a social media celebrity, so he needed to be in a place where he could get none of that… He has to escape, but he also has to come to terms with what he’s become."