Description

Sometimes people just…click.

‘Wonderful’
Kaliane Bradley, author of The Ministry of Time

‘A literary firecracker’
Pandora Sykes, Books and Bits

‘Brilliant’
Elle

Thirty-something Girlie Delmundo works a day job as a content moderator, removing the very worst that makes it on to the internet. She’s one of the best at it, too, so it’s no surprise when she’s given a big salary rise to start moderating its new venture: virtual-reality theme parks, lush simulations of civilizations long since dead.

But as she begins to explore the intricate worlds that she moderates, Girlie notices two deeply troubling things: that there might be something much darker built into the very code of the company, and that William, technically her new boss, a man whose barriers are as mighty as her own, might just be that long-forgotten thing… Girlie’s type.

Publisher Review

Moderation is a novel that refuses to do things by halves. It is a piercing, laser-precise exploration of big tech… breathtakingly funny…and a highly charged, passionate and tender love story. A wonderful book. * Kaliane Bradley, author of The Ministry of Time * ‘Blisteringly funny’ * Susan Barker, author of Old Soul * ‘A precision-guided bomb’ * The New York Times Book Review * ‘Biting’ * New Yorker, Best of 2025 * ‘Wry and witty’ * Financial Times * ‘Tender and cutting’ * Bryan Washington, author of Family Meal * ‘Fearless’ * TIME, Must Read of 2025 * ‘Girlie Delmundo is one of the most memorable, expertly drawn characters in recent fiction… Delicious, full-bore immersion’ * The Atlantic, Top Ten Books of 2025 * Castillo is a literary firecracker… Reading her is like pressing your finger on a bruise just to feel the thrill. If you liked Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and/or The Circle by Dave Eggers, you’ll like this * Pandora Sykes, Books and Bits * With its unyielding density of sharply observed detail, high-resolution psychological drama, and driving narrative momentum, Moderation reminded me that the novel is still the best form of virtual reality we have * Jenny Odell, author of Saving Time * Masterful…Castillo shifts seamlessly in scale and tone, from a wide-angled systems novel to a love story, and from barbed satire to staggering emotional depth. It’s a triumph. * Publishers Weekly *starred review* * With this novel…Castillo raises the bar for writing about tech and virtual reality, family stories, and workplace romances…A brilliant novel with much to say about work, family, excess, identity, and love * Kirkus *starred review* * Slyly brilliant… Castillo again proves to be an enviably erudite chronicler of (racist) history, power structures, identity politics, and socioeconomic inequities * Booklist *starred review* * Castillo is a writer of razor-sharp acuity who takes seriously the sinister instrumentalisation of storytelling, in a world increasingly veering right. * Guardian *