Julie Chan Is Dead

Julie posts a sponsored video of herself scattering Chloe’s ashes in the Hudson River. To her followers, it appears that Chloe is heroically grieving the loss of her sister.

Julie becomes increasingly concerned about her finances and maintaining the lifestyle Chloe led. She also begins looking through some of Chloe’s old videos. Julie is becoming more curious about Chloe’s adoptive family and sends a text in their group chat. She is also confused by messages from a writer named Jessica, who seemed to have been planning to work with Chloe on some sort of feature story. Julie sends Jessica a message stating that she has decided not to move forward with the story, and she also decides to visit the Van Huusens (the family who adopted Chloe).

Julie arrives at the Van Huusens’ home and lets herself in when no one answers the door. The home looks as though no one has lived there for some time, and Julie finds invoices from a nursing home, indicating that Margaret and Charles Van Huusen have resided there for several months. She heads to the nursing home.

Julie arrives at the nursing home, where everyone presumes that she is Chloe. She is shocked to find that the Van Huusens are unconscious; she decides that “they must have been involved in a severe accident together. It’s the only way I can rationalize how two able-bodied individuals have regressed to such a point within months” (127). She looks at their medical records and confirms that Margaret and Charles suffered severe brain damage after being struck by car in a hit and run accident months earlier. Julie begins reviewing video footage from the hospital room, which shows that Chloe visited her parents regularly. In footage from the period shortly after the accident, Chloe appears very distressed and refers to something being “her fault.” This statement worries Julie, who recalls Chloe using similar language when she made the garbled phone call shortly before her death.

Julie runs into Jessica Peters, the writer who was working with Chloe. Jessica is very confused about why Chloe is no longer interested in collaborating on a story after she had initially worked so hard to get Jessica to agree to collaborate. Julie brusquely demands that Jessica leave her alone. After the encounter, Julie gradually calms down, realizing that with the Van Huusens unconscious, there is a much a lower chance that anyone will ever uncover her fraud. She is also heartened to receive an invitation from Bella Marie to the annual island retreat for the Belladonnas.

Inspired by the success Bella Marie experiences with a new clothing line, Julie begins to explore the possibility of starting a skin care brand. However, she is very frustrated when she finds out that she cannot afford to do so due to the large sum of money she is paying her aunt.

After a few months, Julie is thriving in her new life. She enjoys working as an influencer and significantly expands the sponsorships and endorsements she signs on to. Although she feels some ambivalence about the lifestyle she leads, she can’t deny the pleasure it gives her.

By May (about 3 months after Chloe’s death), Julie is unsettled by a video that complains about how Chloe’s content has shifted and become less authentic and more focused on corporate sponsorship. Most worryingly, the video claims that Julie Chan is now posing as Chloe. Julie is relieved that no one seems to be taking these claims seriously, but she is very worried that people may begin to see through her. Julie posts about how much the video has distressed her, and her influencer friends quickly use their platforms to decry the claims. The video is removed, and Julie feels satisfied that she has quelled the rumors.

Julie is excited as the trip with the Belladonnas approaches. When she gets a spare suitcase out of storage, she unexpectedly finds Chloe’s journals.

Julie begins reading the journals, which date back to 2010 (when Chloe was 11). Around 2014, Chloe begins writing about her twin, expressing a sense of missing Julie and wondering what her life is like. Chloe rarely mentions her adoptive parents and seems to have a tense relationship with them. Chloe also describes gaining increasing attention as an influencer, especially after she is befriended by Bella Marie, and her excitement about being accepted into the Belladonnas. In June 2018, shortly before she went on the first Belladonna retreat, Chloe writes with grief and anger about learning a terrible secret: Her parents adopted her after being caught making racist remarks, mainly to rehabilitate their public image. After this, Chloe stops journaling. Julie is left very frustrated that there is no information about the car accident or Chloe’s choice to reach out to Julie.

Julie boards a private plane along with Bella Marie, Isla, and the other influencers. Julie and Isla are both nervous when offered an unknown pill and urged to swallow it. They later find out that it was a test to check their loyalty and willingness to conform to the group: The pills were simply sugar pills.

The Belladonnas arrive on an idyllic private island in the Caribbean. Julie and Isla are both nervous to realize that they will have no internet or phone access and no way to leave the island.