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bookishpip's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, and Sexual assault
zsuzsireads's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
An interesting concept, but could have benefitted from (many) extra rounds of editing. Everything that happened was way too convenient, which made me feel like there were no stakes because the ight thing would always happen next often without sufficient built-up to explain why/how it happened. Where Dalcher did play with tension, the plot dragged and dragged, especially as the plot was always pretty predictable. Considering it's a book centred around feminism, I thought that concepts of gender and equality were explored poorly and without much nuance.
lottie1803's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
okevamae's review
4.0
Femlandia takes place in the near future during the next great depression, some kind of financial apocalypse situation. The point of view switches between Miranda, a recently widowed mother whose husband left her with massive debt and no way to provide for her teenage daughter, and flashbacks from the point of view of Win, Miranda’s late estranged mother and the radical feminist founder of a string of self-sufficient women-only communes. Miranda, who swore she would never set foot in Femlandia, has no choice but to flee there. But once she’s there, she finds that her mother’s feminist utopia is hiding some dark secrets.
I knew going into this book that the author had a reputation for some pretty dark and disturbing content in her books, but man. Parts of this book were really hard to get through. This book reminded me of The Road in some pretty significant ways, and the journey on foot to Femlandia is the least of them. I will say that it ends on a hopeful note, though.
Mother-daughter relationships are a major theme in this book. The relationship between Win and Miranda is beyond fraught – there is toxic resentment and genuine hatred on both sides. The relationship between Miranda and her daughter Emma seems, at first, to be close and very loving, though it turns out to be very complicated, especially once Win’s adopted daughter Jen enters the picture. Jen is the perfect hyperfeminist daughter Win always wanted Miranda to be – a fact which Win made known to Jen and Miranda both.
Both of our POV characters have biases (understandable ones, but still biases) coloring their narration - Win is far worse than Miranda, but Miranda still has her blind spots - so if you’re a person who can’t deal with an unreliable narrator, this is probably not the book for you.
TW: Suicide, rape, child abuse, child molestation, violence, gore, transphobia, misogyny, misandry, cult environment, psychological torture, gaslighting
I received an ARC of this ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I knew going into this book that the author had a reputation for some pretty dark and disturbing content in her books, but man. Parts of this book were really hard to get through. This book reminded me of The Road in some pretty significant ways, and the journey on foot to Femlandia is the least of them. I will say that it ends on a hopeful note, though.
Mother-daughter relationships are a major theme in this book. The relationship between Win and Miranda is beyond fraught – there is toxic resentment and genuine hatred on both sides. The relationship between Miranda and her daughter Emma seems, at first, to be close and very loving, though it turns out to be very complicated, especially once Win’s adopted daughter Jen enters the picture. Jen is the perfect hyperfeminist daughter Win always wanted Miranda to be – a fact which Win made known to Jen and Miranda both.
Both of our POV characters have biases (understandable ones, but still biases) coloring their narration - Win is far worse than Miranda, but Miranda still has her blind spots - so if you’re a person who can’t deal with an unreliable narrator, this is probably not the book for you.
TW: Suicide, rape, child abuse, child molestation, violence, gore, transphobia, misogyny, misandry, cult environment, psychological torture, gaslighting
I received an ARC of this ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
readingwithrebs's review
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
thepagelady's review
4.0
A chilling look into an alternate near future where a woman and her daughter seek refuge in a women-only colony, only to find that the safe haven they were hoping for is the most dangerous place they could be.
Miranda Reynolds always thought she would rather die than live in Femlandia. But that was before the country sank into total economic collapse and her husband walked out in the harshest, most permanent way, leaving her and her sixteen-year-old daughter with nothing. The streets are full of looting, robbing, and killing, and Miranda and Emma no longer have much choice—either starve and risk getting murdered, or find safety. And so they set off to Femlandia, the women-only colony Miranda’s mother, Win Somers, established decades ago.
Although Win is no longer in the spotlight, her protégé Jen Jones has taken Femlandia to new heights: The off-grid colonies are secluded, self-sufficient, and thriving—and Emma is instantly enchanted by this idea of a safe haven. But something is not right. There are no men allowed in the colony, but babies are being born—and they’re all girls. Miranda discovers just how the all-women community is capable of enduring, and it leads her to question how far her mother went to create this perfect, thriving, horrifying society.
Thank you Berkley Books and netgalley for the opportunity to read this absolutely dark, disturbing and oh so good book!
Well, this is definitely a dark and disturbing book. Its about a mother and daughter living in a world that has pretty much ended. Miranda the mother never wanted to go to femlandia. Femlandia is a women's only colony, or cult.So when Miranda's husband leaves her and her 16 year old daughter Emma with nothing she is left with no choice but to go. But it becomes very apparent that the colony is not a safe heaven, it's more like stepping right into the fire. I'm sure there will be a few people that will have a hard time reading it. It is disturbing but man is it good! I was hooked from the start! I look forward to reading more by Christina Dalcher!
Miranda Reynolds always thought she would rather die than live in Femlandia. But that was before the country sank into total economic collapse and her husband walked out in the harshest, most permanent way, leaving her and her sixteen-year-old daughter with nothing. The streets are full of looting, robbing, and killing, and Miranda and Emma no longer have much choice—either starve and risk getting murdered, or find safety. And so they set off to Femlandia, the women-only colony Miranda’s mother, Win Somers, established decades ago.
Although Win is no longer in the spotlight, her protégé Jen Jones has taken Femlandia to new heights: The off-grid colonies are secluded, self-sufficient, and thriving—and Emma is instantly enchanted by this idea of a safe haven. But something is not right. There are no men allowed in the colony, but babies are being born—and they’re all girls. Miranda discovers just how the all-women community is capable of enduring, and it leads her to question how far her mother went to create this perfect, thriving, horrifying society.
Thank you Berkley Books and netgalley for the opportunity to read this absolutely dark, disturbing and oh so good book!
Well, this is definitely a dark and disturbing book. Its about a mother and daughter living in a world that has pretty much ended. Miranda the mother never wanted to go to femlandia. Femlandia is a women's only colony, or cult.So when Miranda's husband leaves her and her 16 year old daughter Emma with nothing she is left with no choice but to go. But it becomes very apparent that the colony is not a safe heaven, it's more like stepping right into the fire. I'm sure there will be a few people that will have a hard time reading it. It is disturbing but man is it good! I was hooked from the start! I look forward to reading more by Christina Dalcher!
katykelly's review
5.0
Close to home, dark, chilling and another excellent gender-centred dystopia.
A little bit of The Road, and a large dollop of Dalcher's female-centred near-future hellish situations.
She always manages to make me shut the pages and give thanks for the imperfect yet vastly superior present to the one she vividly brings to life.
This slightly more complex story begins with the fairly swift collapse of society, a novel in itself, but puts within this the mother (Miranda) and daughter (and also the THEME of mothers and daughters) fighting to find somewhere safe as the world tears itself to pieces around them as the economy implodes.
And the only option? The cultish woman-only refuge of Femlandia, created by Miranda's cold, tour-de-force of a mother decades before. Which has its own rules, hierarchy and politics. And of course secrets.
Oh so dark, I listened to this as an audiobook and was chilled with the turns the story takes, it reminded me of how I felt reading Naomi Alderman's The Power, what can happen when there is a large gender imbalance, what humans can be capable of.
But. You can't deny the author's methods of drawing in a reader, of consuming them in a frightening world and narrative, and toying with their emotions... she's now a favourite of mine.
This won't give you many chuckles (though there is dark humour here in spades), but it's thrilling and scary stuff. Insightful, deep and surely bound for a screen some time soon?
I audio-read a lot of this, and the voice of Miranda, youthful enough yet motherly and strong suited the first person voice, I wanted to continue listening long past the end of each chapter. Easy to follow as an audio-read, and the additional narratives from other characters added background and slowed things down for context, leaving me wanting to know more of what was happening.
Come on men, don't just leave these titles for women - I want to talk about them with you!
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample Audible copy, and the publisher for the Netgalley reading copy.
A little bit of The Road, and a large dollop of Dalcher's female-centred near-future hellish situations.
She always manages to make me shut the pages and give thanks for the imperfect yet vastly superior present to the one she vividly brings to life.
This slightly more complex story begins with the fairly swift collapse of society, a novel in itself, but puts within this the mother (Miranda) and daughter (and also the THEME of mothers and daughters) fighting to find somewhere safe as the world tears itself to pieces around them as the economy implodes.
And the only option? The cultish woman-only refuge of Femlandia, created by Miranda's cold, tour-de-force of a mother decades before. Which has its own rules, hierarchy and politics. And of course secrets.
Oh so dark, I listened to this as an audiobook and was chilled with the turns the story takes, it reminded me of how I felt reading Naomi Alderman's The Power, what can happen when there is a large gender imbalance, what humans can be capable of.
But. You can't deny the author's methods of drawing in a reader, of consuming them in a frightening world and narrative, and toying with their emotions... she's now a favourite of mine.
This won't give you many chuckles (though there is dark humour here in spades), but it's thrilling and scary stuff. Insightful, deep and surely bound for a screen some time soon?
I audio-read a lot of this, and the voice of Miranda, youthful enough yet motherly and strong suited the first person voice, I wanted to continue listening long past the end of each chapter. Easy to follow as an audio-read, and the additional narratives from other characters added background and slowed things down for context, leaving me wanting to know more of what was happening.
Come on men, don't just leave these titles for women - I want to talk about them with you!
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample Audible copy, and the publisher for the Netgalley reading copy.
leesamudio's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
dalyandot's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A dystopia set in near future USA combined with a feminist utopia - with a dark twist. Kept me reading but hard to say much more without spoilers, and its not the sort of book you can read after knowing the plot twists. Found the epilogue - set even further into future with main characters grandchildren a bit of a litdown