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3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Death
This looks like a modern Handmaid's Tale with lots of disturbing moments. The premise was good but the execution is not what I expected. It seems like a book about hating men and using victims to keep on hating them and create a world only made of women. There a few comments about transgenders that are not needed at all. I do believe epilogue should not be at the end of a book unless it really adds something to the story. What I found interesting is how a community ran for and by women, with limited resources from the outside world, was this succesful. However, I was disappointed by this one, to be honest.
A very thought-provoking dystopian futuristic novel by the author of Vox. Femlandia is the womyn-lead colony which Miranda and her daughter Emma go to for safety during an economic crisis resulting in mass destruction of society as we know it. However, it would seem that Femlandia isn’t like what it’s advertised as… and Miranda senses that she could be in further danger if she remains there much longer.
I actually found this novel incredibly chilling and at some points quite disturbing. I found that the author’s writing was so realistic and powerful that it made you wonder what would happen if a similar situation was to arise IRL. I really felt empathy towards Miranda, you could feel her helplessness and fear through the pages.
Overall, a really well-written novel and I definitely will be reading more from this author in the future
I actually found this novel incredibly chilling and at some points quite disturbing. I found that the author’s writing was so realistic and powerful that it made you wonder what would happen if a similar situation was to arise IRL. I really felt empathy towards Miranda, you could feel her helplessness and fear through the pages.
Overall, a really well-written novel and I definitely will be reading more from this author in the future
terf-y and very few likeable characters. the main character's own thoughts don't even pass the Bechdel test
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Femlandia by Christina Dalcher is a riff on what happens when radical feminism meets cult.
Published in 2021 and set in the immediate future of 2022, it presents a world where economic chaos makes the Great Depression seem relatively minor as economic system crash brings down infrastructure and society itself. There are many, many illustrations of the difference between the present and the very recent past - a few too many to my liking.
Meanwhile, returning to plot exposition, over the previous 25 years, a number of “womyn’s” communes called Femlandia have been established. Our protagonist, Miranda, is the estranged daughter of their founder.
The writing is pedestrian and yet, the plot with some mysteries and twists and throwbacks to much earlier periods in the lives of some major characters, is interesting enough to get me through. And there are serious ethical questions presented which, with echoes of Nazi practices against minorities, do it without any specific mention of that history, to its credit.
An editorial quibble. I cannot get over a reference in the book to a sign on a door described as an unnecessary “verbal” statement. There were others that also annoyed, but did not stick.
Published in 2021 and set in the immediate future of 2022, it presents a world where economic chaos makes the Great Depression seem relatively minor as economic system crash brings down infrastructure and society itself. There are many, many illustrations of the difference between the present and the very recent past - a few too many to my liking.
Meanwhile, returning to plot exposition, over the previous 25 years, a number of “womyn’s” communes called Femlandia have been established. Our protagonist, Miranda, is the estranged daughter of their founder.
The writing is pedestrian and yet, the plot with some mysteries and twists and throwbacks to much earlier periods in the lives of some major characters, is interesting enough to get me through. And there are serious ethical questions presented which, with echoes of Nazi practices against minorities, do it without any specific mention of that history, to its credit.
An editorial quibble. I cannot get over a reference in the book to a sign on a door described as an unnecessary “verbal” statement. There were others that also annoyed, but did not stick.
Rating this right in the middle because I'm torn.
I liked reading it and it certainly held my interest and was good as a utopia to dystopia twist. It clearly took Herland and made it evil. But I don't know about the themes and messaging, they seem a bit much and not enough at once.
Femlandia and the women running it felt more like exaggerated caricatures of feminists that an incel would come up with moreso than layered and complicated characters grappling with creating a better world to escape male violence. It also relies heavily on the gender binary, for obvious reasons, but only in a way that enforces it. There is a brief discussion about transwomen not being allowed in because the women of Femlandia consider them men. The main character gives a pretty hollow "but like, maybe they're not?" And then there's no further discussion or expansion on why that's fucked up. Also no mention of people without xx or xy chromosomes... It just insinuates that if someone has a penis they're bad and a vagina they're fine, but no mention of intersex or any other variation.
I think had this book been slightly different I could have loved it. Mainly if instead of vilanizing feminists as a whole and thus feeling like a psa against Take Back The Night rallies, it could villanize the white and terf feminism we see so often today. It would feel a lot more realistic while remaining dystopic with similar story.
Oops, I wrote way more than I intended to.
I liked reading it and it certainly held my interest and was good as a utopia to dystopia twist. It clearly took Herland and made it evil. But I don't know about the themes and messaging, they seem a bit much and not enough at once.
Femlandia and the women running it felt more like exaggerated caricatures of feminists that an incel would come up with moreso than layered and complicated characters grappling with creating a better world to escape male violence. It also relies heavily on the gender binary, for obvious reasons, but only in a way that enforces it. There is a brief discussion about transwomen not being allowed in because the women of Femlandia consider them men. The main character gives a pretty hollow "but like, maybe they're not?" And then there's no further discussion or expansion on why that's fucked up. Also no mention of people without xx or xy chromosomes... It just insinuates that if someone has a penis they're bad and a vagina they're fine, but no mention of intersex or any other variation.
I think had this book been slightly different I could have loved it. Mainly if instead of vilanizing feminists as a whole and thus feeling like a psa against Take Back The Night rallies, it could villanize the white and terf feminism we see so often today. It would feel a lot more realistic while remaining dystopic with similar story.
Oops, I wrote way more than I intended to.
For the reader who enjoys feminist dystopian. I both listened to and read this newest from Dalcher and must say it’s my least favorite of hers. I was thoroughly engaged for the first half but lost interest when the pacing just did not pick up. I definitely recommend Master Class if you’d like to give this author a try.
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes