When X, a sharp-eyed nail artist with an MBA in Luxury Brand Management, receives an invitation to Elysian Fields 2.0 – an exclusive retreat for A-list influencers in the Maldives – she sees the perfect opportunity for her most ambitious project yet. Posing as their 'art concierge', X plans to document the unvarnished truth behind the carefully curated lives of digital royalty.

At the luxury retreat, X encounters the titans of social media: Lana 'Lifestyle' Luna, Victor 'Crypto King' Vexel, Chi 'Zen Diva' Chen, Max 'Xtreme' Power, and the notorious Glitter Twins. Whilst providing manicures to these digital deities, she collects their secrets like precious gems, observing that 'each a meticulously engineered brand, buffed to a mirror finish, each with its own selling proposition and, I am certain, a skeleton rattling in a designer closet'.

When the retreat enforces a digital detox, the influencers' façades begin to crack. Without their phones and constant validation, unexpected confessions emerge, and X witnesses the vulnerable humans beneath the glossy veneer. The arrival of Kai-Elias von Liechtenstein-Zero, 'The Architect of Authenticity', promises to help them monetise their 'True Self' – but X suspects darker motives.

Her suspicions prove correct when she uncovers Project Chimera, a sinister social experiment designed to study and manipulate influencers for mass opinion control. Elysian Fields isn't a wellness retreat – it's a proving ground for a new breed of human influence. When a devastating kompromat leak exposes the influencers' secrets, chaos erupts, and X faces an impossible choice: protect their vulnerabilities or expose the truth.

Risking everything, X reveals Project Chimera, leading to her banishment from the island. Back in London, she transforms her experiences into a novel that becomes a global sensation, sparking conversations about authenticity in the digital age and helping her former subjects find their true selves beyond the screen.

The Influencer's Canvas is a razor-sharp satire that peels back the glossy layers of social media culture to reveal the profound human need for genuine connection in an increasingly artificial world. With wit, insight, and unflinching honesty, Zolotova crafts a story that is both a thrilling exposé and a deeply human tale of redemption.