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A review by holdenwunders_
The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Laila Lalami the writer you are! My first sit down with her as an authour and while this is my favourite genre, my bias typically works against me with the highest of hopes and the biggest let downs. Fortunately for me, Lalami did not let me down.
In a not so distant future, technology is “helping” to curve the crime rate by picking up “criminals” before committing the actual crime they’re being retained for. It’s “not” prison, right? Through heavy monitoring, big brother is watching, even through your dreams.
As a lover of scifi, apocalypse, societal monitoring, philosophical and psychological exploration, I found Lalami hit all of my wants and needs while still maintaining a solid story without bouncing all over the place. We follow one main character throughout and while there was one perspective switch mid story that had me confused then quickly had me jaw dropping loudly, everything was well honed and succinct.
There were so many things packed into this tight story that would make Kazou Ishiguro and fans alike pleased. While this sparks hints of my love for things like Black Mirror, it’s less doom filled while still being entirely bleak. I know it’s unlikely to happen but I’d absolutely love for a bunch of other stories set in this world of new characters experiences. We don’t get much of anything in the outside world, and this is a necessary choice for the book, but Lalami creates a luscious world I just seem brimming with potential.
In a not so distant future, technology is “helping” to curve the crime rate by picking up “criminals” before committing the actual crime they’re being retained for. It’s “not” prison, right? Through heavy monitoring, big brother is watching, even through your dreams.
As a lover of scifi, apocalypse, societal monitoring, philosophical and psychological exploration, I found Lalami hit all of my wants and needs while still maintaining a solid story without bouncing all over the place. We follow one main character throughout and while there was one perspective switch mid story that had me confused then quickly had me jaw dropping loudly, everything was well honed and succinct.
There were so many things packed into this tight story that would make Kazou Ishiguro and fans alike pleased. While this sparks hints of my love for things like Black Mirror, it’s less doom filled while still being entirely bleak. I know it’s unlikely to happen but I’d absolutely love for a bunch of other stories set in this world of new characters experiences. We don’t get much of anything in the outside world, and this is a necessary choice for the book, but Lalami creates a luscious world I just seem brimming with potential.