This was the Les dramatic and more character driven telling of Love Island. It could have done with more plot and drive. Slow burn book.

This is like a more cut-throat version of Love Island with some survival skills being required of the contestants. It was both intense and extremely unserious at the same time. I wouldn’t say this is necessarily high-quality literature; but, if you’re a fan of reality shows and love to be a drama observer, this is a good choice for you! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this in advance.

I think The Compound will be one of this summer’s biggest hits in the book world. I used to be a huge Big Brother fan when it first came out, and this book reminds me of why I enjoyed it so much. Watching how people behave under certain circumstances is exactly what this book is about.

Aisling Rawle takes the reader on one heck of a wild ride. Absolutely loved her writing style. I am blown away that this is her debut novel. There are a lot of characters to keep straight in the beginning, but stick with it, because I think the payoff is well worth it.

Lily is chosen to go on a reality show with 9 other women, and 9 men. The women arrive at the compound first and they eagerly await the men, who are trekking across the desert to join them. You get a feel right away that something is off. These are not normal times. Definitely a post dystopian feel in the outside world. Lily references wondering if the male contestants fought in the War, etc.

Once the men arrive, things get interesting. They must be paired up each night to survive banishment the next morning. With 10 women, 9 men, on night 1, someone is going home tomorrow.
Relationships must form quickly and the characters need to decide who they can and can’t trust.
There are TV type screens with daily personal and communal tasks. To win rewards, and necessities for the household, these tasks must be completed. This is a house with bare minimum. The contestants need to earn the stuff they need or want. As time goes on, and more people are banished, this is where things get really unsettling.

I loved everything about this book. The author had me engaged from the first page. I thought the whole concept was fresh and unique for a novel. Yes, you can reference reality shows when talking about this book, but this book is so much more. How far are you willing to go for “material things” is showcased among Lily and these housemates. Is betrayal, loss of friendships, human life worth a hairbrush or sun loungers? Trust no one.

It’s dark, it’s addicting and it’s made its way onto my Top Books of 2025 list.

If you are looking for an edgy, creepy summer read, I highly recommend picking this one up. It releases June 24, 2025.

Thank You to NetGalley and Random House for the early copy.

This debut novel was entertaining, enticing and imaginative. The author depicted the events and provided enough details for the readers to actually picture the characters and The Compound itself as if it was a reality TV show.

I found the ending not very satisfying, I wanted to learn more about Lily and what was ahead of her after her journey.

This one had me from the beginning and never let go! I thoroughly enjoyed this dystopian tale full of the great MTV’s Cribs vibes. The characters were relatable and easy to love and hate. I thought the author did a really good job of creating a sense of self-questioning when the reader can’t help but ask themselves, “What would I do?” The pacing was perfect. The only thing I didn’t care for was the ending feeling a bit abrupt. I really wanted to know what happened after the show. I greatly appreciate this ARC gifted to me from NetGalley and the publisher and all opinions are my own.

Loved this! The Compound is a darker take on Love Island with clever shifts to the reality show's mechanics and a strong theme of consumerism.

While you'd still enjoy this without being familiar with Love Island, I got way more out of it as someone who watches the show. Each choreographed action by the "cast" is right out of the show's playbook, just with far more interesting rewards and payoff that I won't spoil in this review. And unlike the actual reality shows, it's fun to see from a "behind the scenes" perspective, how each character tries to balance what they want with what the viewer will want to see.

Other reviews have hinted at how different the story is from how it's advertised, or how much darker it gets. Personally, I think these reviews did the opposite of what they probably intended - they made me think the book would be something it's not! There's some faint references to what's going on in "the real world", but it's not explored, and it's not as shocking or interesting as I assumed it would be based on those reviews. And yes, there's some darker elements by the end both with one of the cast and the rules shifting once there's only a few contestants left, but nothing shocking. Those parts reminded me a lot of another recently read book, We Won't All Survive.

Fun, engaging writing, and overall liked this a lot; a solid debut for the author. The minus one star is for the ending. I felt it was a bit anti-climactic after the build up. Observing Lily's thought process and story through the book was one of the most compelling aspects for me. Will she choose love over "things"? Will she grow as a person, or dig into the persona needed to compete on the show? Since there's no way to add spoiler tags in Netgalley, there's a section in my Goodreads review with my thoughts about the ending. But in general, I felt like Lily's arc ended in an unjustifiably "happy' reward for her.

In any event, if you like Love Island, you really need to read this book.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this ARC.

The Compound is a gripping and disturbing psychological thriller set against the backdrop of a reality television show gone terribly wrong. A group of contestants agree to live off the grid in an isolated compound for a mysterious, high-stakes social experiment. What begins as a seemingly typical reality show quickly devolves into something far more sinister, as strange rules, manipulations, and psychological games unravel the group's trust and sense of reality. As alliances shift and paranoia grows, it becomes clear that someone is pulling the strings—and not everyone will make it out unscathed.
I absolutely loved this book. It was dark, unsettling, and totally addictive. The premise—centered around a reality TV show—was right up my alley, and Aisling Rawle took it in such a fresh, twisted direction. I was hooked from the start and kept guessing all the way through. The story doesn’t shy away from exploring the darker side of human nature, especially when people are pushed to their limits in the name of entertainment. What made it even more compelling was that it didn’t offer a neat or tidy ending—no pretty bow to wrap things up, which only added to the book’s eerie realism and lasting impact. The Compound is a chilling and clever page-turner that fans of dark thrillers and media satire will devour.

Many thanks to Random House and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Well this was more than I bargained for... in a good way! Lily is young and aimless and looking for a way out of a dead end job, a lack of meaningful relationships, and a society embroiled in a war we never really learn much about. She is accepted as a contestant on a reality show, where she, with others, will live on a compound in the desert, performing tasks to gain creature comforts, luxury goods, and basics such as food. In order to stay on the show, contestants must also for a portion of the competition, remain paired "romantically" with fellow housemate.

I heard this compared to combos of Love Island, The Hunger Games, and Lord of the Flies, and while I've never seen Love Island, I feel like is probably an accurate comp all the way around. You may think you're getting a fast summer read, but this is much deeper, and much darker, than I expected. It's a pretty damning reflection of the surface level culture the West is devolving into, with people searching for any way to escape meaningless lives and identifying themselves by fame and material gain; or, just seeking SOMETHING because they have no idea who they are, what they want, or what matters to them.

This is an interesting study of group dynamics and power as well, and gets pretty ugly (but honest) in it's depictions of what people will do when they feel they have 1) Nothing to lose or 2) A lot to gain in a zero-sum environment. I definitely recommend this for something quite different. I also found out after I was done that Rawle is a teacher, which made me love this even more!

Lily is ecstatic to be on a reality show where she can escape the hellscape the world has become. In addition, she can win luxury goods. Why would she ever want to leave? She only has to survive banishment by maintaining relationships, fake as they may be, with the other guests and win competitions.

Reading this was much like watching an actual reality tv show – fascinating and frustrating at the same time. I went in skeptical and judgmental, horrified at everyone’s behavior most of the time and at myself for partaking in it, and by the end I was fully invested and could not look away or stop thinking about it.

Lily wakes up in a remote desert compound and is shortly joined by others – all part of a reality show in which the contestants compete to be the last one who is allowed to stay in the Compound as long as they want. They must complete group and individual “tasks” to earn food, tools, and items of luxury. The novel hints at an outside dystopian world that slowly tumbled into crisis; but, it honestly seems pretty much like how the world is now. The author’s prose is sparse and intriguing, nothing and everything happens at the same time. Themes of materialism, consumerism, stereotyping, and isolation weave throughout the story. I am still processing my thoughts on this one. I look forward to seeing what the author puts out next. Thank you very much to Netgalley for the chance to read and review this book!

Wow this book hooked me from the very first page! This was such a whirlwind of a book that I couldn’t put it down and read it in one sitting. For being a debut the story was easy to follow with characters that are easy to get to know. I think many readers will read the summary for this book and think it’s just another reality TV type of story they would be mistaken because it’s much more than that. It’s definitely an interesting view of reality shows, consumerism and motivations. Overall this was a great debut and I’ll be sure to be on the lookout for more books from this author in the future. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review and feedback.

Rawle takes the Big Brother concept to the next level in her debut novel. The story unfolds slowly–Rawle built a complex world and there was a lot to establish about the show and its rules. The story kept this slow-ish pace until the dramatic, explosive ending. There are a lot of characters at the start, but I was able to distinguish them well enough until the core group was established. Lily was mostly unlikeable but the perfect narrator for this world. This slow-burn examination of the reality TV universe was fascinating. I look forward to more from this author!

I was so excited to read this book, markets as Lord of the Flies meets Love Island, but I did not jive with the writing.

I think that others will really enjoy this one - I liked the story overall, but the prose and writing tended to take me out of the story a bit.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the eARC!

This book was compulsively readable. Despite generally creating characters who are basically all unlikable, I had to find out what was going to happen. I was also impressed by how Rawle chose to lay information to the reader - dripping bits and pieces to us as if we were on the show and figuring things out along with the characters. And it was also interesting to be focused so much on the Compound and what was unfolding within that we didn't really need to know much about what was going on in the outside world, or about the lives of the contestants before (or after) being on the Compound.
I think Rawle did a great job of creating complex characters, even with there being so many to keep track of. I think I liked every character and hated every character at various points in the book - they were just all so human.
I can't wait to see what else Rawle writes in the future!

I made myself a promise that if I was not really enjoying a book that I would just give up. Life is too short. I'm not enjoying this book at all. It's going nowhere.

I'm going to waste my time with something else.

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.

4-4.5⭐️

I didn’t know much about this book going in, other than it was supposed to be Love Island meets Lord of the Flies. I tend to enjoy going in mostly blind to books, so if that is also you, know that you should read this book, and stop here.

We are dropped in to the Compound as our narrator, Lily, wakes up in a room full of beds with one other person with little to no explanation. The two partner up as they explore the grounds and find 8 other women, waking up in various places throughout the property. They quickly decide they need to pick up (as the previous tenants left it a mess) as they prepare for the boys to arrive. We learn that these 19 strangers are contestants on a reality show where every moment is recorded and they have to live by a specific set of rules as they complete personal and group challenges to earn prizes and essential supplies—you can’t talk about the show or having seen it before, you can’t talk about yourself or the details of your personal challenges, and you can’t harm another contestant… until the final 5. As we get hints of a vaguely dystopian world, what’s not to love about this “paradise?”

This book is addicting and hard to put down. I binged it in about 2 sessions.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.

Thanks you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC.

The Compound was so intriguing to me. I didn't fully get the concept at first, but then I could not put it down. I disliked pretty much every character with a few exceptions and those exceptions were hurt by our FMC and that was annoying. There was a lot more violence than I would have guessed and I am confused why the people would have let it play out. Regardless, I read this in one sitting. It was such an interesting concept.

Interesting debut about the lengths people go to for a bit of fame and material possessions and how it can warp into something else entirely.

The bulk of the book is the day to day of the contestants which easily becomes a bit boring; it lulls you into a sort of complacent mood before yanking the rug from underneath your feet. Eventually things start to pick up and then it all snowballs, but I do think the pacing in the first 3/4 could have been a bit faster.

None of the characters are particularly likable yet I found myself reading this in one sitting despite the fact that I didn’t resonate with any of them. In fact, some were downright awful. It’s the book version of trashy reality tv that sucks in, but with a much darker and insidious undercurrent. You’re waiting for it all to implode and in that aspect, Rawle delivers.

There are some areas where things are a bit nonsensical; the producers intervene for one altercation yet when a contestant is in even more danger they let it play out. I know reality shows run on high drama, but that didn’t seem plausible. Entertaining, but not entirely believable.

All in all it was a decent read for me, and I’m interested to see what Rawle comes up with next. The Compound is entertaining but in that brain rot doom scrolling sort of way, which as a mood reader is absolutely appreciated, and at times is just what one needs.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the E-ARC; the above review is my honest opinion left of my own volition.

The Compound by Aisling Rawle has a fun premise and interesting concepts but never seemed to engage me like a lot of similar stories. Rawle I feel will have a knockout success soon but The Compound for me is just ok.

The Compound is unlike any reality TV novel I’ve ever read. It’s dark, thoughtful, creepy at times, and more literary than other reality TV novels. The Compound is a large house and grounds in the middle of an isolated desert in an unnamed country. And, it’s the center of a reality show that is a cross between Love Island and Survivor. Our main character is Lily and she’s a contestant on this reality show. It took me about 10% (when she’s world building) to get into the story, but I was obsessed after that. The concept for this reality show is fantastic and I’d actually love to watch it play out for real on TV. The structure of the show facilitates commentary on materialism, status, power, and group dynamics. There’s a bit of a Lord of the Flies element and the study of group dynamics was my favorite part of this story. The publisher is calling this novel dystopian, but that is very subtly in the background.