Book Title: All Better Now by Neal Shusterman

In a post-COVID society, a novel, unprecedented virus known as Crown Royale begins sweeping across the globe. While the virus starts with a high fever and carries a mortality rate, those who survive it experience a bizarre, life-altering side effect: absolute, unending contentment. Negative emotions such as greed, anxiety, anger, jealousy, and depression completely vanish from the mind of every survivor.  

While many view this mass unburdening as a miracle, powerful figures, corporate elites, and governments realize that a population lacking discontent, insecurity, or ambition is disastrous for global economics, consumerism, and political control. As anti-happiness campaigns ramp up and a rushed vaccine is engineered to restore traditional human discontent, a faction of “Recoverees” fights to intentionally spread the virus to cure humanity’s flaws. Three teenagers from wildly different socioeconomic backgrounds—Mariel (an immune girl surviving near poverty), Rón (the wealthy son of a mogul turned super-spreader), and Morgan (an ambitious young woman funded to eradicate the virus)—find themselves trapped in the center of a high-stakes conspiracy that will determine the future of human free will.  

Key Benefits of Reading All Better Now

• Thought-Provoking Moral Dilemma: Explores a fascinating “what-if” philosophical premise—questioning whether true happiness is worth losing ambition, edge, or drive.  

• Masterful World-Building & Social Commentary: Delivers sharp satire on consumer culture, media manipulation, and how institutions profit off human insecurity.  

• Multi-POV Storytelling: Keeps the plot fast-paced through alternating perspectives, giving insight into opposing sides of the conflict without painting characters as pure evil or good.  

• High-Stakes Thrills: Combines fast-moving action, global conspiracies, and corporate espionage, making it a gripping read for fans of dystopian thrillers like Scythe or Unwind.