Absolutely devoured The Meadows. I’ve been waiting for this book for years and it’s just *chef’s kiss* It is queer and beautiful and made my heart ache in the best way. Stephanie’s writing is amazing (if you haven’t read The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, do that now!). So many beautiful lines, I might need to get a second copy to highlight to my heart’s content.

My heart can’t contain how much I loved this book. As I read the last few chapters, my emotions overflowed in the form of tears. Eleanor is messy, and broken, and healing in a world that wants to erase girls like her.

One of my favorite quotes repeats several times “Maybe friendship is just a decision, one you make over and over again.” At the heart of this book are the friendships we make that help us survive, and even grow, in places that desperately want to destroy us.

Another quote, from the author’s note, gets to the ‘why’ of this story “But trauma is only ever the beginning of the story.” Eleanor’s story (and June’s and Rose’s and Sheila’s and Jo’s and Marina’s and Betty’s and and and) is one of trauma, inflicted by those who should protect and nurture them. But it is also about the love and community and family we can form and find that have the power to sooth even the deepest scars.

I honestly believe this book can and will change lives. In a time of increasing challenges to the health and happiness of queer people, especially queer kids, this book affirms that you deserve to be loved exactly as you are, that you are not broken or wrong, and that no matter how hard the world tries to break us, we have always been here. And always will be.

I am devastated.

I wrote that when I first finished this book, overcome with the urge to cry and laugh and yell, all at once. It holds true. The Meadows is a story that I hold near my heart. I hope with everything within me that this book blows up — because it's such a special, beautiful story of struggle in the face a world that fights your existence — but I hope it at least finds the people who need it.

In a country torn apart by climate disaster and remade with the abolishment of religion, race, and culture, Eleanor is accepted into the Meadows, a prestigious school for the "best and brightest." Four years later, Eleanor has a job in the city, living the beginning of a life she was always told to image for herself. But as secrets are uncovered and the dark truths of this picture-perfect school start to tear her apart, Eleanor is left to pick up the pieces of what remains of herself.

The Meadows is a hard book to discuss without spoilers. It's a YA dystopia, but one more in the vein of The Handmaid’s Tale than any of the 2010s YA classics. It's about pain and struggle, but it's also full of love and strength. It captured my heart, expanded my mind, and hit me harder than I have been in a while. I truly hope this book finds its audience. It's devastatingly important, with beautiful writing and a story that will keep you guessing throughout.

This is a story that never truly ends. So much is packed within it, and it's beautifully explored. There are so many quotes that took my breath away, so many themes and moments that made me unsure of myself. I truly was never far away from the story when reading it, and I don't foresee it ever leaving me.

I buddy read this and it was such an engaging experience — sharing our theories, our favorite quotes, our screams and teary eyes. Grab a friend when you pick up this book. Share this experience. I'm sure you'll find the pieces of yourselves just waiting for you to let them in.

Trigger Warnings: conversion therapy, parent death, gaslighting, violence, physical abuse, emotional abuse, homophobia, transphobia, racism, misogyny, cultural erasure, self-harm, suicide

Thank you netgalley for providing this arc.

Because of some of the reviews, I did not start with super high hopes, but I was presently surprised. This was amazing. For whoever is missing the dystopian era? This is for you. And with the added benefit of queerness ofc.

The only critique I have, is that the first 30 pages don’t grab your attention. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it, but as soon as the plot dropped in-omg-I was hooked.

I loved Eleanor. Sheila I loved at first, but was back and forth with. June I kinda liked but not my fav. Rose was cool, Jo as well.

The setting of this story was so good; I loved the unsettling feeling it gave, but it also felt mysterious and never ending.

The author did the topic well, and I would definitely read another book by them.

Queer dystopia for the win, mate.

“I see you as you. You are good, just as you are.” -author. :)

P.s: poor frog😪

i… genuinely don’t know where to begin. how much should i say? everything i want to say, really, feels like a spoiler.

i guess, let me just say. i hope this book receives the recognition it deserves. the importance it has to our current day. the slippery path our world could easily go down, if extremist parties gain more traction. this book, does a beautiful job portraying how deeply frightening it can be if this does happen. it scares me with how unfortunately probable this path is in our current political landscape, especially here in the states.

but also, throughout it all. it gives us hope. it shows people like eleanor, people like me, who subtly fight back. like sheila, who’s a flame, burning almost too bright. like betty, who bury their hurt deep deep down until they drown. the amount of times i held back sobs reading this story. it’s so damn powerful. so well portrayed. it uses a dystopian landscape with highly advanced technology to “mask” the how similar it is to our modern world. but at its core, its a story about us now. and it’s done so well. so intricately constructed. i really, truly, could not explain this all this book contains properly.

i had the lovely opportunity, albeit completely unplanned, chance to buddy read this with mel (@mel.muses). and i honestly think this is the way to go. grab a friend or two. make a lil group chat and buddy read it. because your brains will be swimming with theories and confusion and beautiful quotes. and you will want to talk to it with someone.

this book is made for conversations. so lets start them.

A queer, YA Handmaid’s Tale you say?! Sold! Also, can we take a moment to appreciate that cover?!?! 😍
The story follows Eleanor, a young woman living in a post-climate crisis world where society is attempting to make amends to nature by eradicating things that make us different - sexual orientation, culture, language, religion, etc. One day Eleanor receives a letter to attend The Meadows a school for the best and brightest… or so they say.
The story unfolds in different timelines, past and present. Some areas are slower than others and there were times after setting it down and coming back to it that I struggled to get back into the book. Overall, it was an okay read.

The Meadows is a YA dystopian that is reminiscent to The Handsmaid Tale but queer and for a younger audience. I enjoyed reading about this futuristic America that was ravaged by climate change and how easy it was for a dangerous power to arise.

The group that is now leading the country is bent on relentless conformity. No different languages, no traditions, no religion, and “traditional” gender specific roles. I’m happy that this book discussed how this world effected everyone from different races to transgender people. The world were brought into was interesting and haunting!

I liked getting to know these characters. Eleanor was a complex character with flaws and I think a lot of young adults will be able to resonate with her. She doesn’t have a linear path she has lots of ups and downs on her journey which was extremely relatable.

I enjoyed the writing style I think it was at times really beautiful and atmospheric. I do think pacing was a little bit of an issue.. the middle was a little long to get through and rushed at the end.

Overall I definitely recommend this book and I’m so thankful stories exploring these themes exist!

Read If You:
Developed a lot of “close female friendships” in boarding school (niche, but true)
Are eagerly awaiting the next Ruby Rose project
Can endure uneven pacing that will give you whiplash.


Thank you PenguinTeen and Dial for the ARC.

“Everyone hopes for a letter—to attend a Facility.. These are the special places where only the best and brightest go to burn even brighter.
When Eleanor is accepted at the Meadows, it means escape from her hardscrabble life by the sea, in a country ravaged by climate disaster. But despite its luminous facilities, endless fields, and pretty things, the Meadows keeps dark secrets: its purpose is to reform students, to condition them against their attractions, to show them that one way of life is the only way to survive.”

Billed as a “queer, YA Handmaid's Tale meets Never Let Me Go,” there was so much here I was dying to like, but the chopped pacing and frustrating main character made for a draining read. And in a world already content to suck all the fun out of queer life, this seems like an unnecessary addition.

Chapters chaotically jumped between past and present, without consideration for flow. The story follows these girls from ages 14, or younger, to late teens, and the dialogue and characterizations never really change to align with the age change. When they are young they sound way too measured, and as they get older they sound childish.

One thing that was cool was the use of techno-environments that reminded me a lot of the arenas in The Hunger Games. It was a nice kind of nostalgia to see the legacy from that series show up in an unexpected way.

The instant I saw queer handmainden’s tale I knew I would have to read this book. I thought the premise was very interesting even if it was in equal parts horrifying. To imagine a world that has been told that allowing men to marry men is the cause of the destruction of the earth (instead of global warming and our general disregard for our planet). I will admit the main character was hard to connect to, but I felt that pretty much fit the story given what she went through. Eleanor dreamed of getting her letter to one of the special schools where the best and brightest children went. When she got her letter for The Meadows she was ecstatic. This was her chance to leave her tiny home town of The Cove and become someone important. When she got to school she was surprised to find a finishing school that was only teaching her how to be a wife and mother, but she was more horrified when she realized that the school was not about finding the best and brightest but those most likely to stray from the strict societal gender norms and reform them. I liked the ending and overall enjoyed this story (although the back and forth between timelines was hard to follow at times and the story could have moved a little faster).

I expected so much from this book, especially after being it compared to The Handmaid's Tale, but this just didn't seem to serve its purpose well? I wasn't expecting this. It didn't seem like anything in the story was that important or like the book wanted you to feel it was important. I just wanted more from this.

4.5 stars Thank you Penguin for this ARC
Powerful, emotional, and quite frankly traumatizing, The Meadows is a queer dystopian novel I won't soon forget.
Eleanor has dreamed of being chosen for a speciality school her whole life, only the best of the best get accepted. What she finds at the school is the opposite of what she expected, and soon it's clear why every girl was chosen to attend.
The book is comprised mostly of flashbacks to Eleanor's time at the school, with moments from the present interspersed throughout. It's odd to say I found a book symbolizing conversion therapy, and having a lot of parallels with the The Handmaid's Tale so enjoyable, but I did. Oakes has a way of making you feel as suffocated and isolated as the characters, and at times I felt I was losing myself as much as Eleanor was. I think it's clear to see from just how much I wrote on this book, how much it made me think and has stuck in my brain.
I am so thankful the inclusion and discussion of racism was brought up. You really can't have a perfect uniform society, without people who don't match the ideal having to change themselves constantly. Sheila and her battle to retain her sense of self is symbolized by her hair, and her fight and the eventual events just killed me to read. The matrons are masters of quiet and insidious abuse. No raised hands, no torture, just a long and slow process where they slowly break and domesticate everyone's spirits. I'd almost classify this is a horror with how true to life it is, and how utterly terrifying it is to watch a slow torture. Because a the end of the day, that's what it was. Torture and abuse. Not the kind you think of when you read those words, the bruises left aren't noticeable. But the effects never go away, and we see Eleanor struggle with everything she went through years later. (As well as the other students) What's worse is that it is constantly framed as being a "choice". It's so ironic that a book where the society got rid of religion would so heavily still read like religious trauma. I am not nuanced enough to know why I feel that way, but I am sure someone smarter than me could figure out why I made those parallels. (It is basically a cult guys, join and conform, or die and be cast out, though they make it seem like a choice)
This quote gutted me when I read it, and I just can't stop thinking about it.
"Maybe for the ones who get good at pretending, it won't come out for years and years...Or they'll, quite without warning, walk into the ocean until their life disappears. And everyone will be stunned. And everyone will blink in perplexed anger. She was so happy. Always so happy." *
I feel the common response to someone who commits or attempts to commit suicide is always one of "but they seemed so happy, but they were always smiling, we had no idea!" When in reality if anyone had ever taken the time to know the person or look for more then two seconds past the surface, they would see the cracks and the sadness, and the pain. There is so much symbolism to found, particularly centering around homophobia, and how that makes us hate each other and ourselves. At the end of the day, all anyone ever wants is to be accepted, loved, and to be able to be themselves. (Poor Eleanor takes so long to get any of these!)
I really love this book (but Avery, why didn't you give it 5 stars?!), but for me I did have a few issues with the ending, and how the tone changed. [I'm always happy to see a book end on hope, and not retain that overwhelming sense of hopelessness sadness that comes with topics like these. For this one, I do find it almost too abrupt of a departure from the rest of the story. Everyone gets a happy ending (except Betty) and all end up saved, or finding their way through one of the doors. It almost felt like it was lacking the emotional impact, or the characters had too heavy of plot armor. I do think June should have been killed, or died from her wounds. At the very least I wish we had seen more characters face the brutal consequences that everyone is constantly afraid of. We even get told about prisons that torture subservients, yet never glimpse that. Every single character mentioned basically gets a happy ending. (Except Betty) It feels like once the end happened it was just a domino effect of "everything is going to be okay now!" In keeping with the tone of the book, I do think it would have had a greater emotional impact had it been more sad, yet still retained the note of hope for the majority of characters. It's odd that all of the book is stuck in my mind because I love it, but the ending I don't even dwell on because it isn't of consequence. (hide spoiler)]
With the technology, there are a few pieces that I am a bit confused on still, or didn't quite understand. [ Everyone is being watched and lives in fear, yet Eleanor has ample time to escape. She is literally able to walk around her hometown and just hang out for a few days. I know they mention the peacekeeper have left the area, but it doesn't make sense for how she was able to be so subservient when she was in the city still. If the algorithm is able to detect and know when the people are queer or not, wouldn't it be able to pick up on her erratic behavior? She literally asks the matches to see pseudo Rose, which considering her backstory and file should have been a red flag immediately, and had security on her. There are men who constantly watched everything the students did at The Meadows, they would have known about her and Rose. If anything with the heart racing and eye contact, they would have realized Eleanor still had feelings for her. Technology in this book seemed to be used to explain a lot when convenient, then left us with plot holes for how much it was used to gloss everything over. I will say the argument can be made that society itself was responsible for much of the imposed rules and punishment, and the big bad guys in charge really were just symbolism for how we view each other and that internalized homophobia.
Touching on that, I do wish we got to see more of who was actually in charge, and responsible for all of the ongoing cruelty. (Again I understand how it could have just been less people then thought, and just a few loud voices which the public picked up, and the reality became society was punishing itself and there was no "big bad") Other then the obvious context clues of them being white men, I kinda wanted to know more. ALSO JUSTICE FOR THE POOR FROG! The symbolism there was excellent, though I sobbed like a baby.
(hide spoiler)]
I HIGHLY recommend this book, just please be kind to yourself and look at the content warnings first. (Always available on storygraph guys, don't forget!) This is my first book to read of Stephanie Oakes, and I must say I am hooked. I can't wait to read her others!
The cover is incredibly powerful, symbolic, and suits the book perfectly. On so many levels Eleanor didn't want to see her face, because she couldn't face herself and accept who she is. To see the painting that Rose did, albeit smeared, shows so much symbolism and conveys so much. I am always happy to see a book that does not try to sugar coat its contents, or pretend that the inside contains a happy rainbow sparkle world, when really it is covering depressing and traumatizing material. I would buy this book for the cover, and the content!
*Quote comes from an ARC of the book, and not the finished publication

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=2.5 | 😘=3 | 🤬=3.5 | ⚔️=2 | 14+

summary: basically if The Handmaid's Tale had a YA ripoff??

thoughts: boring?? I feel like YA dystopia has died out so much that if you're publishing a YA dystopia you have to do something really new and inventive with it or I won't be invested, and "traditional gender roles and homophobia bad" wasn't interesting enough for me to, like... care. it felt very juvenile theme-wise, and maybe that's because I'm growing out of YA and this is literally juvenile fiction, but I also think it was bland overall.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for this arc!!

““You can’t erase who people are.” My mother has told me. The sun is still a sun even if you call it the moon.””
A riveting tale of a post-climate crisis world and a society attempting to make amends to nature itself. Religion has been eradicated. Different cultures no longer exist. Everyone is equal.
We follow Eleanor, a young girl, who receives an envelope, inviting her to attend The Meadows. The Meadows is a school, for the best and the brightest? But is it?
This is not an easy read. I am extremely grateful that trigger warnings are included in this book.

read this if you like:
✨dystopian novels
✨handmaids tale but make it LGBTQ+
✨found family
✨beautifully written social commentary

this book was SO unique. i was drawn in from the very beginning - a futuristic, but not too distant America where cities have been destroyed & a new government has taken over. There’s no more race or religion, but there’s a TON of gender roles 🙃 this book had similarities to the Handmade’s Tale (which i loved) but was so unique in the world building that it felt very fresh. The author did such an amazing job portraying the struggles & trials of the LGBTQ+ community & that ENDING! 🥹 such a great heartwarming end to a not so great situation.

overall - if you’re a dystopian lover & like books about the LGBTQ+ community… grab this one as fast as you can!

Thank you @penguinteen for this #gifted copy for my honest review! #penguinteenpartner


i would say the only thing i didn't like about this book is that the pacing felt a ~little~ off -- sometimes there was SO MUCH happening and other times it was like "okay where are we goign w this". the dual timeline was ambiguous (literally never mentioned when the chapter was occuring, you had to guess) and for the most part it was fine but made things a tad choppy. overall enjoyed tho

DNF @ 20%

I really thought this book would be a new favorite. The Handmaid’s Tale is my all-time favorite book, so any book that is inspired by or even loosely related to it is automatically added to the TBR. Unfortunately, this book just didn’t do it for me. It took me weeks to get through 20% and I couldn’t figure out why. The prose is beautiful and I really like the way the author plays with time, going back and forth to weave an interesting narrative. But the book lacked urgency for me. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to care about, unfortunately. I expected much higher stakes. Maybe they come later, but I couldn’t get there.

The Meadows by Stephanie Oakes combines dystopian, young adult and suspense equally.

“How do you make a choice?” I whispered. “About which direction your life is supposed to go?” ...... “You just do, I think,” ..... “And wait to find out if you made the right one.”

The Meadows is like a conversion camp on steroids. In a drowned post-apocalyptic world, life is monitored and the eyes that watch know more about you than you know about yourself. Algorithms decide what your orientation will be and work to 'fix' it early on. Women have fallen backwards into housewives without choice and without growth. And if you're a certain sexual orientation.... well... welcome to The Meadows. A conversion camp disguised as a school for the best but hidden in the background, choice is stripped and options are limited.

"You can't be what you can't see"

This novel rotates between past and present that isn't always easily distinguished. It's slow moving but builds on a growing tension. I had a hard time grasping the technology that existed in what felt like a destroyed world. The science fiction aspects are intriguing but for me they didn't fit what my brain was crafting. Still intriguing though.

The characters were some of the hardest to like in the end. I loved the underlying theme of this book and I can't help but admit that the flawed characters and frustrating MC made it more prevalent. There is a lot to unpack in these pages from grief to love, guilt and freedom. All tied up in finding self acceptance and breaking chains.

This is my second novel by Oakes and just as unique as the first. If you're a fan of sci-fi YA dystopians with queer rep, you'll want to check this out.

I enjoyed this queer dystopian book. This was a tough read. I got mad and emotional while reading. Just the thought of rehabilitation communities makes my skin crawl. I loved how some of the girls were able to grow despite this repression. I liked how the end was final. There is more possibility. I will definitely be reading more by this author. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

thank you netgalley for the arc!

the meadows is marketed as a dystopian ya version of the handmaid's tale, and while there were similar elements, i went into expecting it to be heavier than it was, but i'm glad for it. the handmaid's tale is a heavy piece of literature, so i'm glad this one wasn't.

the setting is mysterious, and with the alternating timelines, readers wonder if the meadows school is what it seems or if it's more to that. i think i would have enjoyed the setting more if the explanation of what was at work (the fake trees and passage ways) was more in depth. that part was really interesting to me.

as for the characters, i didn't really buy into eleanor's personality, but i still found myself rooting for her to find what happened to rose. her personality was okay, and sometimes her confusion of what she wanted confused me as a reader, but it also made it seem more genuine than it would have been if she saw everything in black and white. instead, she would sometimes see things in black and white, or sometimes there was that grey line.

overall, it was just an okay book. i thought it was incredibly too long, or maybe it felt like that because the document i had to read was messy and had typos in it. i haven't read dystopia in years, aside from crimson rivers back in march and the first few books of the shatter me series in may, but it made me remember why i liked that genre so much in the peak of it all.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Group for the ARC of this queer feminist dystopian!

In the vein of The Handmaid’s Tale x But I’m a Cheerleader, this showed a world where gender norms had to be strictly held to with rehabilitation communities for those who stepped outside the lines with their “subversive behavior”. This was absolutely fascinating and definitely had the bones of a five star read, I’m looking forward to more from this author. I really liked the way that the society was portrayed, the way the girls found themselves despite society trying to reshape them, and the possibility of left open for them to fight the system.

Overall I liked this whole premise. It was tough to read at times just because it makes you really angry. Definitely gives me the same feelings that The Handmaids Tale gives me. I’m a sucker for dystopian stories. I would read more by this author!

In a dystopian world, Eleanor, a young adolescent receives a letter inviting her to attend a school called The Meadows claiming that she is chosen as one of the “best and brightest”. The matrons at the school teach the girls that climate change is a result of The Turn, caused by LGBTQ+ individuals. The students at The Meadows soon figure out that they have all been chosen, not as the best and the brightest, but because they have been identified as having same sex attractions and/or gender identity questions and must be trained for female roles as wives and mothers. The story is told by Eleanor in two timelines, during her years at The Meadows and post-graduation in her work as an adjudicator. As she works in her chosen profession while waiting for a marriage match, she struggles to find the truth about what was really conversion therapy at the school while searching for her lost love, Rose who escaped from The Meadows and reported as dead.
Unfortunately, as with most dystopian novels, this story is based on real events. This book is timely as currently, the LGBTQ+ community and anyone who supports them, at least in the US, are ridiculously labeled as WOKE which is viewed as a threat to “mainstream” society. This book is thought provoking while being an engaging story. I enjoyed Eleanor’s story as well as the inclusion of characters who all come from different perspectives in regards to gender and sexuality.
#NetGalley #PenguinGroupPublishers