The gripping new thriller from the bestselling author of VOX and Q 'A compelling, fast paced read.' Guardian 'The queen of dystopia' Nina Pottell, Prima 'Explosive' Heat 'Provocative, sinister, and fascinating' Stephanie Wrobel, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Recovery of Rose Gold 'Clever and chilling - and all too plausible' Carole Johnstone, ...
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The gripping new thriller from the bestselling author of VOX and Q 'A compelling, fast paced read.' Guardian 'The queen of dystopia' Nina Pottell, Prima 'Explosive' Heat 'Provocative, sinister, and fascinating' Stephanie Wrobel, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Recovery of Rose Gold 'Clever and chilling - and all too plausible' Carole Johnstone, author of Mirrorland * * * * * * * * * * * Miranda Reynolds has lost her home, her job and her husband - all thanks to an economic collapse that has brought America to its knees. The shops are empty; the streets no longer safe. Miranda and her daughter Emma have nowhere left to turn. There is one final hope, a self-sufficient haven for women who want to live a life free from men. Femlandia. For Miranda, the secluded Femlandia is a last resort. Life outside the gates is fraught with danger, but there's something just as sinister going on within. Welcome to Femlandia... It's no place like home. * * * * * * * * * * * What readers are saying about FEMLANDIA 'I felt immediately pulled in and intrigued...I cannot wait to see what is going to come next from this author' 'It was completely gripping and I couldn't put it down; absolutely thought provoking' 'A chilling and layered read which I couldn't put down. A true modern horror which exposes the dangers of a world without gender equity and ends with a horrifying sense of circularity.' 'I couldn't stop reading. There were many shocking twists throughout the book and I loved how it flicked between characters and timelines!' 'Well-written, thought provoking and challenging'
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Seller's Description:
New. 2021. Paperback. Femlandia is a female-only community. A utopia for women. There's a reason Miranda never joined before. Now she has no choice......We ship daily from our Bookshop.
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Fine. Glued binding. Trade paperback (UK). In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New. Glued binding. Trade paperback (UK). In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
I do love a chilling dystopian story and have previously enjoyed Christina Dalcher's Q so I was excited to start Femlandia. Set as the world banks collapse leaving society in shreds, Miranda and her teenage daughter Emma trek to Femlandia - a feminist commune set up by Miranda's mother. Although it advertises itself as paradise, it soon becomes apparent that things are not as they appear.
Femlandia is a great concept, there's something chilling about a safe-haven that might be anything but and an extra claustrophobic dimension to the story when the outside world is so broken. Christina Dalcher is a master story-teller and her books are engaging and well-written, keeping you hooked and engaged to the last page. I read through Femlandia quickly, wanting to find out what happened next.
However, I had a few issues with the plotting of the book. I think it would have made more sense for Femlandia to feel more like a paradise from the beginning and to have had more time spent on world and character building when we arrived in the commune. As Miranda is so suspicious of the place because of the history with her mother, it made the twist not very surprising and also made Emma's character feel very flat as she just trusts these obviously shady strangers right from the off. There was a lot of conflict, bad decisions and Miranda getting into trouble or being put in isolation that you struggled to empathise with Emma at all and as a reader you never felt taken in by the place. The ending was also weird and I found it odd that someone who worked with animals in a zoo would mis-identify a noise which should be easily identifiable (no spoilers!). It seemed quite a far-fetched plot point twist and one that seemed more ridiculous than shocking.
The book also seemed to struggle with what message it was trying to convey. It made some very interesting and hard-hitting points about how important feminism is in a male-dominated and biased society but then cast those same feminists as evil monsters with no empathy or ethics. I also found it odd that in a book about feminism written in 2021 trans issues were glossed over so easily. It would have been nice to see a bit more debate about that in the story.
Overall Femlandia is an engaging and interesting story but had a bit of a mixed message at its core and could have been plotted better to make a more impactful read. Thank you to NetGalley & HQ Stories for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.