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challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Classism
Minor: Racism, Sexual content, Suicide, Excrement, Stalking, War
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Great concept that had me hooked! It did fall a bit flat at times, abd wish there was more depth since the story is told from the perspective of the MC as opposed to the reader being an audience to reality tv
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My first reaction? Love Island, but make it post-apocalyptic. Basically what the next season will look like once society fully collapses. Honestly, I was into it. Two of my life goals are 1) become a reality TV icon and 2) survive the end times, so this felt like a two-for-one special.
I usually enjoy speculative reality TV stories with ambiguous endings, but this book kind of gave... entry-level. Like if I were grading it, I’d give it a C+—solid concept, some interesting themes, but the execution felt like it ran out of budget halfway through.
You can tell the author wanted to explore real issues—racism, misogyny, homophobia in reality TV—and I respect the attempt. For example, there’s a moment where the only Black woman expresses concern she’ll be paired with the only Black man just because they match skin tones. Real! Valid! And then… nothing. The moment just vanishes like someone said “racism exists” and then sat back down like it was handled.
Same with the queerness angle—there are a couple characters who express same-gender attraction, and the show’s fear of it is noted, but again… the narrative just throws a tarp over it and walks away. Like—are we confronting this or what?? If you’re gonna invite the elephant into the room, either talk to her or give her snacks. Don’t just let her hover awkwardly in the corner like a middle school substitute teacher.
It felt like watching someone go, “Look! A cockroach!” and then do nothing. Not stomp it, not spray it, not even trap it under a cup. Just letting it vibe out. And no offense to cockroach truthers, but I grew up with flying ones the size of small birds, so I do not play like that.
You get what I’m saying? The problems were pointed at, but never actually handled. It’s like if the book said, “This man is a misogynist,” and then expected me to give it a standing ovation for noticing. Like… yes?? Correct?? But now what??
Final Verdict:
This book had the bones of something great, but never really put meat on them. It felt like it wanted to be deep but got distracted by hot people making out in the apocalypse—and hey, same, but I needed a little more follow-through. Would I watch this as a Netflix show at 1 a.m. with a snack I’m ashamed of? Absolutely. Would I reread it? Probably not unless the world actually ends and I need something to barter with.
This book had the bones of something great, but never really put meat on them. It felt like it wanted to be deep but got distracted by hot people making out in the apocalypse—and hey, same, but I needed a little more follow-through. Would I watch this as a Netflix show at 1 a.m. with a snack I’m ashamed of? Absolutely. Would I reread it? Probably not unless the world actually ends and I need something to barter with.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Dysphoria, War
dark
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is just a very weird and creepy book, and I mean that in the best way possible. I guess I would categorize it as reality show dystopia?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexism, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Self harm, War
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism, Violence
Minor: Animal death, Racism
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Part Love Island, part Black Mirror, The Compound takes place on the set of a hit reality show in a near-future society mired in war and hardship. 10 women and 10 men must pair up to make it through the night, and compete for a series of rewards ranging from basic necessities to increasingly lavish luxuries. How far would you go to win it all?
This book is slow but searing, simmering with tension as it pits human connection against material desires. Beneath the glossy surface of reality TV, the Compound’s residents contend with just how much they're willing to trade for comfort, status, and luxury, exposing the darker threads of desire, performance, and consumerism propping it all up. With love and survival on the line, what does it really mean to win - and at what cost?
Hints of devastation in the outside world create a contrast with the Compound’s curated paradise, where the residents are constantly performing for the cameras and each other. While I wanted to know more about the world beyond the set, there was enough to fill in the blanks, and the vagueness added to the sense of unease and desperation to stay in the Compound. The story starts out light and superficial, but slowly builds unease as it devolves into the darker side of the influencer-consumer culture, leaving you with lingering questions about meaning, desire, and the cost of wanting more.
Thanks to Random House for the advance review copy.
This book is slow but searing, simmering with tension as it pits human connection against material desires. Beneath the glossy surface of reality TV, the Compound’s residents contend with just how much they're willing to trade for comfort, status, and luxury, exposing the darker threads of desire, performance, and consumerism propping it all up. With love and survival on the line, what does it really mean to win - and at what cost?
Hints of devastation in the outside world create a contrast with the Compound’s curated paradise, where the residents are constantly performing for the cameras and each other. While I wanted to know more about the world beyond the set, there was enough to fill in the blanks, and the vagueness added to the sense of unease and desperation to stay in the Compound. The story starts out light and superficial, but slowly builds unease as it devolves into the darker side of the influencer-consumer culture, leaving you with lingering questions about meaning, desire, and the cost of wanting more.
Thanks to Random House for the advance review copy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Violence
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Animal death, Sexual content
Minor: Gore, Mental illness, Torture, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, War
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In the desert, there's a compound. Ten women are there, waiting for ten men to arrive. When the men arrive (late and less one of their number), the game is afoot. Every person who is not sharing a bed with a member of the opposite sex when the sun rises is banished.
Everything is filmed, everything must be earned through tasks (communal or personal), and the contestants are punished for breaking any of the rules.
The Compound really doesn't read like a debut novel. It's assured and propulsive, and uses its premise to examine all kinds of social issues without losing any of its pace or bite.
The contestants are mostly interesting and well drawn, Lily especially so. She's hyperaware of how she looks, how she'll look on camera, the effect she's having on the men, and initially seems pretty shallow. Another blonde who lives and dies by her fashion magazines, who likes to be dolled up to the nines, and wants shiny things. She's not just that, though - people seldom really are what they seem on the surface.
Most of the contestants are morally grey and are nudged one way or another by the unseen producers. It's fun to see the manipulation, until it suddenly isn't and the tension ratchets up several gears.
The last third of the book is genuinely scary in places - it earns its comparison to Lord of the Flies.
I stayed up way too late (on a school night!) to finish this, and had trouble sleeping afterwards (complimentary). By rights, The Compound should be one of the buzziest books of the summer.
Thanks to Harper Collins and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Everything is filmed, everything must be earned through tasks (communal or personal), and the contestants are punished for breaking any of the rules.
The Compound really doesn't read like a debut novel. It's assured and propulsive, and uses its premise to examine all kinds of social issues without losing any of its pace or bite.
The contestants are mostly interesting and well drawn, Lily especially so. She's hyperaware of how she looks, how she'll look on camera, the effect she's having on the men, and initially seems pretty shallow. Another blonde who lives and dies by her fashion magazines, who likes to be dolled up to the nines, and wants shiny things. She's not just that, though - people seldom really are what they seem on the surface.
Most of the contestants are morally grey and are nudged one way or another by the unseen producers. It's fun to see the manipulation, until it suddenly isn't and the tension ratchets up several gears.
The last third of the book is genuinely scary in places - it earns its comparison to Lord of the Flies.
I stayed up way too late (on a school night!) to finish this, and had trouble sleeping afterwards (complimentary). By rights, The Compound should be one of the buzziest books of the summer.
Thanks to Harper Collins and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Biphobia, Body shaming, Sexual violence, Suicide, War