The quick pitch of Love Island meets Lord of the Flies is pretty spot on. Lily is part of a long-running reality tv show that drops 19 beautiful people in the middle of the dessert where they’re forced to survive. They must complete challenges to earn items ranging from frivolous (a hairbrush) to necessary (food, a front door). To take it a step further, each contestant must wake up next to someone of the opposite sex or they leave the compound. Vicious mind games ensue. Whoever outlasts the rest gets to stay and enjoy their riches. But after producers have pushed them to the brink, upping the stakes of the increasingly dangerous challenges, who even wants to stay?
Lily is a very interesting protagonist because she’s not particularly likable, but she’s not alarming and overly unlikable. When you clock the allusions to a dystopia of sorts outside the compound, it has the affect of off-centering the reader and making things a bit eerie – kind of the vibe characters Tom and Andrew each gave me for different reasons. As a social experiment playing out, it’s wild to see who loses themselves when forced into a corner and who uncovers their true selves…as awful as that true self may be. Consumerism, morality, heteronormative agenda: this is quite the social commentary and it’s fun to unpack.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
Pair with: a margarita with a very salty rim
Peaches to Apples 