This book took me back to that period of time when books like The Hunger Games and Divergent were coming out. It had the teenage, dystopian world feeling with some major 1984 and Handmaid’s Tale vibes. I was totally into it!
Eleanor is the protagonist and she has been waiting her whole life to get a letter saying she was chosen for a facility that supposedly caters to the best and brightest. Once she gets to The Meadows she begins to figure out that it is not what it seems. At the end of her time at The Meadows she meets Rose and a tragedy on their last day at the facility leads to Rose’s supposed death. Upon leaving The Meadows Eleanor is given a job checking up on the reformed and reporting back to officials on how people are living their lives. She rebels in her own way by not giving full reports on the reformeds’ status. As she is out in the world she gets clues that Rose may not have died and she begins looking for her. This story is told from dual timelines; Eleanor’s past at The Meadows and Eleanor’s present working as an adjudicator.
This book dealt with so many interesting societal issues; environmental destruction, LGBTQIA+ rights, the idea of natural families, conversion therapy, etc and it was wrapped into a very well told story. I was immediately hooked from the very first chapter. The bits of mystery throughout and wondering who in the facility was lying and who was good all kept me very engaged in the story. It was also one of those books that feels a little close to home at times (with the environmental destruction and stripping of rights) which can be terrifying at times, but is also a good reminder of why it is important to read books that show these extremes so we can hopefully learn from it and not go down that path. There wasn’t a huge climax towards the end of the story but enough to push it forward and come to a conclusion but it also felt like it was left a little open for the possibility of a sequel. I have no idea if there is actually a plan for that and it completely works as a stand alone, but I would love to see a sequel that dives into the impending rebellion. If you are a fan of YA, dystopian stories I would highly recommend this book. And honestly even if that isn’t your usual genre I would still recommend this book.
Eleanor is the protagonist and she has been waiting her whole life to get a letter saying she was chosen for a facility that supposedly caters to the best and brightest. Once she gets to The Meadows she begins to figure out that it is not what it seems. At the end of her time at The Meadows she meets Rose and a tragedy on their last day at the facility leads to Rose’s supposed death. Upon leaving The Meadows Eleanor is given a job checking up on the reformed and reporting back to officials on how people are living their lives. She rebels in her own way by not giving full reports on the reformeds’ status. As she is out in the world she gets clues that Rose may not have died and she begins looking for her. This story is told from dual timelines; Eleanor’s past at The Meadows and Eleanor’s present working as an adjudicator.
This book dealt with so many interesting societal issues; environmental destruction, LGBTQIA+ rights, the idea of natural families, conversion therapy, etc and it was wrapped into a very well told story. I was immediately hooked from the very first chapter. The bits of mystery throughout and wondering who in the facility was lying and who was good all kept me very engaged in the story. It was also one of those books that feels a little close to home at times (with the environmental destruction and stripping of rights) which can be terrifying at times, but is also a good reminder of why it is important to read books that show these extremes so we can hopefully learn from it and not go down that path. There wasn’t a huge climax towards the end of the story but enough to push it forward and come to a conclusion but it also felt like it was left a little open for the possibility of a sequel. I have no idea if there is actually a plan for that and it completely works as a stand alone, but I would love to see a sequel that dives into the impending rebellion. If you are a fan of YA, dystopian stories I would highly recommend this book. And honestly even if that isn’t your usual genre I would still recommend this book.