Some books entertain you while you’re reading them and then disappear from your mind a few days later. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke is not one of those books.

This story leaves you with such an unsettling feeling that it lingers long after you finish. Not because it is shocking in an over-the-top way, but because so much of it feels uncomfortably believable.

Why Yesteryear Feels So Disturbing

This is not satire in the humorous sense, but there is something addictive about it. It has that can’t-look-away quality where you are watching everything unravel while already knowing it is not going to end well.

The novel takes a hard look at social media culture, influencer dynamics, and the way audiences can be manipulated so easily. That part honestly felt a little too real at times. You can clearly see the parallels to influencer culture and online personalities, which is probably why I can also understand why some readers may feel uncomfortable reading it.

But I think that discomfort is the point.

The Main Character Is Meant to Make You Uncomfortable

The main character is not written to be liked, and she does not follow the typical arc of growth or redemption that readers often expect. Instead, she spirals deeper into her own mindset, which somehow makes her both frustrating and impossible to look away from.

You keep hoping for a moment of clarity or change, but it never fully comes.

What makes the character so compelling is that she exists in this uncomfortable space between villain and victim. The story hints at how mental health struggles, distorted self-perception, narcissistic tendencies, and postpartum mental health issues can intertwine in ways that become difficult to separate from one another. Nothing feels simple or easily explained, and I think that complexity is what makes the story hit so hard.

The Real Message Behind Yesteryear

What stood out to me most was the message underneath everything else.

Authenticity is not what drives attention online. Social media thrives on performance, perception, and whatever keeps people watching. The book really forces you to think about the relationship between influencers and their audiences, and whether any of it is actually genuine.

That is what makes the story feel so unsettling.

It leaves you questioning the role of the audience itself. As people who follow, watch, engage with, and emotionally invest in influencers, are we just observers, or are we part of the cycle too? At what point does consuming this kind of content start affecting us more than we realize?

In a strange way, the audience may actually be the real victim.

Final Thoughts on Yesteryear

This is definitely not a light or feel-good read, but if you enjoy books that challenge your perspective and leave you thinking long after the final page, Yesteryear absolutely does that.

The most unsettling part is not even the story itself. It is the way it makes you question your own reaction to it. Are you disturbed by the character, or by how realistic parts of it actually feel? That tension feels completely intentional, and honestly, that is what makes this book so memorable.

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