A review by aayyashley
Fever Dream by Samanta Schweblin

challenging dark mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Fever Dream truly reads like one. Beyond the surreal conversation that drives the telling of the story, the characters involved are inexplicably neurotic before the conflict even begins. Between Carla’s cluelessness and Amanda’s paranoia, the story has little room to breathe and become actually horrific, and instead just feels inevitable. I was intrigued by the mystery of the poison and its relationship to the land, but unfortunately the story strayed quickly from that point. Overall, I think the premise and the narrative frame were interesting and effective, but the development of a meaningful impact was lost to the lack of character depth.