This book was like a reality show gone haywire. We follow Lily, who works a dead-end retail job. She ends up signing up (and going on) a reality show on The Compound. It's this home/area in the middle of the desert. There are 10 women and 9 men at the start. Basically, you have to share a bed with the opposite sex at the end of the night, or you're gone by morning. You have to do challenges as a group to even be able to eat and live comfortably on The Compound. Some are uncomfortable, some silly, and some dangerous. There are also personal challenges as well. There are certain rules you have to abide by, or you get punished. At first, the rewards start out small, but the fewer people left, the more luxurious they get. There are other ways people get banished, but that's the gist.

People choose to go on the show mostly because the real world sucks. It's kind of vague what's going on, but there are wars and violence. Pollution. A bunch of natural disasters, and it's implied that either the world isn't to be around long or people don't live as long.

It's like the author mashed up Survivor, Big Brother, Love Island, and Fear Factor into a dystopian speculative fiction book. It surprisingly worked out really well.

I know I explained a lot about the book, but it really doesn't spoil or take away from anything. I'm not exactly sure what it was about this book, but I really liked it. It was very well written. Compelling and interesting. Unique and refreshing. I couldn't wait to finish it to see what happened. The end left me wanting, which was unfortunate, but I think that was the intention.

Thank you, Aisling Rawle, Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for the ARC of this gem. ❤️

This book was highly addictive and I’m still trying to figure out why. The MC is quiet at first, but not exactly passive aggressive, she has agency but she’s kind of empty - which is maybe the point. Who else would let themselves be exploited on TV for a prize of endless stuff as long as you remain alone on the compound. It’s a commentary on consumerism, performance, and human nature but I wanted more. The violence felt obvious even if it was propulsive. I wanted more manipulation, more outside commentary, more nuance, more loose threads expanded, more from the ending. I think it could have benefited from other POVs. 3.5 rounded up bc it kept me so engaged. Queer rep: bisexual MC and queer side characters.

Short summary: Lord of the Flies meets Big Brother. Lily will do anything to avoid the mundanity of her life, especially if it comes with a prize - all she has to do is outlast 19 other competitors.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

A unique premise that completely worked to keep me engaged and interested. A reality television competition where strangers meet and live on a compound and have to complete challenges to earn food and luxuries. However it’s written as dark literary fiction even though it sounds like it would be upbeat or comedic. Men and women must couple up in order to not be banished from the compound so relationships turn sour quickly and easily. It was good but I did want more from the ending.

This took a bit for me to get into but at around 10% I was hooked. Perfect for reality tv competition shows like love island or the challenge, but with lord of the flies/ unhinged crazy mixed in. I wanted more at the ending as it felt a bit rushed but overall had a great time with this!

*Thanks to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for my eArc of The Compound. All opinions expressed are my own.*

I would say this has a great premise for a book. You’re on a reality tv show where the stakes are high and if you don’t end up with a man in your bed at the end of the night, you are off the show. Along with this competition brings tasks that you can choose to complete, but at what cost? This book had great potential, but I was hoping it to lean more on the “Lord of the flies” angle rather than “love island.” This read more as watching a reality series like big brother all day rather than a high stakes competition where who knows the atrocities they may face. Our main character was very one dimensional and vain just as the other contestants were. We were a little too wrapped up in her thoughts and I think 3rd person might’ve been the better format for this book. I also think if we had multiple POVs of the girl and guys, there would be more substance. It was still interesting but I think my favorite character was Jacinda and I think she would have been a better main character. This book definitely had the possibility to be a 5 star book, but many parts were slow moving and not as fast paced as I was hoping for, so I’m giving this 3 stars.

I love a dystopian read and this one was an interesting twist on the genre—think reality TV vibes with a dash of dystopia. The competitors on the show all live in a compound somewhere in the desert (I got the feeling climate change had a lot to do with the desert setting) and are escaping an outside world where an unspecified conflict is raging and ordinary people distract themselves with reality TV. The competitors (young women and men) have to pair off every night or they're kicked off the show. Also, they need to complete daily tasks in order to earn various things (essentials like food and clothes, and other items like makeup, jewelry, etc). It's not as high stakes as say, The Hunger Games, but it does keep you turning the pages and the world Aisling Rawle built is creepy and immersive.

Wow! This book was so interesting. It was like reading a reality TV show series and just as addictive! I love the concept and how the story progressed. It was a lot deeper and darker than you’d think for a book written about a reality show and the information we received about the outside world explained why that was. I like that most of the contestants weren’t likable but were still fun to read. It was a really easy read that I finished quickly and enjoyed. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC.

A mix of your favorite reality shows with a bit of danger, The Compound is a place to earn your greatest desires and meet the partner of your dreams. Or…is it? Lily ends up at the compound with 19 of her closest friends. Will she make it to the end, as she has seen others do? Or will the others beat her out for the rewards?

This book was crazy in the best way! I started it and was immediately hooked. Between the strong willed and clearly defined characters that you feel like you’ve known for years, the setting & environment, and the “what will happen next?” Propensity of the book, I could not put this one down. I appreciated the themes, and diving deeply into them, even in such a short book, and the clear character study that was presented to me. If you are a fan of reality TV, suspense/thriller novels, or both like me, I’d highly recommend this book.

Thank you to the publisher for this copy in exchange for my honest reviews.

I was really really interested in reading this book but NetGalley changed its whole system after I was approved so I couldn't read it on my Kobo anymore, and then they said they would make books available on Kobo again but this one isn't, so I can't read it, but I'm giving it 5 stars anyway because this isn't the book's fault and it sounded really good, can't wait to read it once it comes out!

3.5/5

Thank you for the ARC, NetGalley & Penguin Random House!

I was hooked from page one because of the concept of this book: a dystopian reality dating show. The setting is immediately tense, something you wouldn't expect while watching Love Island, but I loved the unsettling feeling from the bits and pieces of world building we received. Our narrator, shared her story through an apathetic lens; sometimes entirely detached from what was happening, almost like a camera recording the events unfolding around her. This was a quick, original read and although I had some issues throughout, there was nothing notable to complain about. It was eerie, tense, and a new concept that makes it worth reading but not revolutionize the genre.

The Compound was an absolutely wild ride from start to finish. It starts abruptly, throwing the main characters and the reader into a Big Brother-style show where the stakes are high, but the rewards are so much higher. At times, it felt like a commentary on overconsumption, other times it seemed to make clear parallels to wartime austerity and the response there, and occasionally it seemed like the characters had absolutely lost it. Throughout it all, though, we accompany our protagonist Lily on the descent into the final five, and see the lengths the contestants will go to in order to win -- and whether they truly won in the end, or lost themselves along the way.

As someone who never watched Big Brother or many other reality shows, I found this story was captivating. The gist is that the outside "real" world is not going great and there is one reality show that everyone watches to escape the grim reality. The MC, Lily, wakes up as a contestant inside the compound like house and believes that this is the answer to all her outside problems. The contestants only get to remain if they sleep the night in a bed with a member of the opposite sex. This causes a lot of shifting allegiances and politics as members get "banished". Lily is a of the road player, with a lot of common sense. She manages to last into the final rounds, where all bets are off.

Solid 3.5 stars

Wow, I cannot even think with words about this book. I think this book really about the human experience in dire situations. This book makes you think about what you would do in their positions. It was very eerie and had a high-tension atmosphere. I got to a certain point in the book, where I couldnt put it down. It was very interesting and would recommend it for a phycological thriller.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for the eARC. Al my opinions are my own.

A chance to star in a reality tv show, showered with gifts and the promise of romance. Thrilling, right? The Compound takes the “thrill” literally, as the story becomes more and more suspenseful… and even dangerous.

I thought the premise of this book was really interesting! The content was addicting to follow, kind of Black Mirror meets Love Island, and I always wondered what would happen next.
But.. as it went on it really slowed down, and I thought that the ending felt very unsatisfying.

Highly recommend for reality tv show enjoyers!!

~For fans of dystopian fiction and/or reality TV~

4.5 - thank you NetGalley and Aisling Rawle for an arc of this excellent book.

What a fantastic read. I've always enjoyed dystopian sci-fi that feels like it is either happening in a time not too far from our own. I truly feel like this book could have been an exposé on the reality TV of now, and I would not be surprised. This was a very strong debut and I look forward to following Rawle's career!

As an avid reality TV watcher myself, I was pretty excited for this one. I will say that every time I watched my weekly episode of 90 Day Fiance or a old episodes of Love is Blind, I found myself realizing how dystopian these producer-driven "realities" are.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House & the author for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Set in a future that is vaguely bleak, contestants seeking an escape compete in The Compound to find love, win prizes, and participate in the most sadistic HGTV reno of all time.

I LOVED this book (and I’m stingy with my 5 stars!). I finished it in one sitting on a 7-hour flight, even! Lord of the Flies meets Love Island is perfect to describe this, and would also appeal to anyone who’s a fan of reality TV, Black Mirror, the spectatorship aspect of The Hunger Games, Yellowjackets, and grounded dystopian “5 minutes in the future” fics.

I am a big fan of all of the above so I had a blast with this book. The premise of the Compound TV show is so clever and I’ll be thinking about it a while. It is such a cool commentary on consumerism and detachment from reality in media, and eerily believable (it’s so twisted, but also, if it was real, ngl, I’d probably watch it…..)

Only thing is I wish the MC was a bit more complex (ironically I think Lily also thinks this about herself LOL) but it makes it easy to self-insert and imagine you’re in her shoes. The conclusion was quite open-ended, with the plot being entirely the events of the show’s season with no ‘outside world,’ and I’d have loved to see more of a development arc for Lily.

Definitely pick this one up when it’s published in May! Kudos to the author!

This review is on GoodReads (posted December 2024): https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6975026362

Thank you to NetGalley, author Aisling Rawle, and Random House for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

Lord of the Flies meets Love Island is the perfect way to describe The Compound and was what I was drawn to in its blurb. It figures that I really enjoy one (Love Island) and don't like the other (Lord of the Flies), so I would come away ambivalent towards this read. This is an extremely gripping read in that I never knew where it was going, and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. Rawle does a fantastic job with how eerie she makes the setting; The Compound feels truly icky and unsettling the entire read. The greatest question posed is "How far will you go and at what cost?" This is an interesting musing, and I think by setting the book in a near future/dystopian world, it works as a whole. Each character has different morals that we as a reader see present and shifting as new horrors appear in the book, and they work sometimes as foils to each other, sometimes as outliers. I think personally I would have preferred to read this book through the perspective of a different character besides from Lily because I really didn't connect with her. But I think that is partially the point, as she is very candid about being pretty vapid. There are parts (even though the book is short) that lulled a bit, whereas other parts weren't explained enough for my liking. I also wish that Rawle would have pushed the horror aspects a bit more, as while the book was unsettling as a whole, I feel like I kept waiting for the other shoe to fully drop, and it never did. I would have enjoyed more context as to their "outside world" setting as well, just to better be positioned in this world, but again, this might be intentional to keep you in the isolated space with the characters. If you are someone that enjoys reality TV, I do think this is still worth a read because it poses some very interesting questions into what constitutes entertainment and how easily people can be manipulated.

Dark love island vibes. I really enjoyed this book- it's a page turner set in a dystopian reality TV show. The characters were complex and imperfect. Made me think about consumerism and some of the passages have stuck with me for weeks after reading (rare)!

The pages just flew by in this book. The premise is brilliant -- a nebulous post-apocalyptic or dystopian world with a Bachelor/Squid Game hybrid reality show, with characters who feel absolutely real. Though the novel is quite bleak, it's undeniably entertaining. And I've never encountered such a plain heroine (not in terms of appearance, because she's apparently beautiful) who actually stayed with me after the book ended. I'm still thinking about her weeks later, and still thinking about what this novel is saying.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reader's copy of this novel.

Love Island x Black Mirror.
*3.5 stars*

I read this in the span of a day - fast-paced and compelling, and a fairly short read. The confined compound setting and limited information about the broader world keeps you on the edge of your seat. Don't expect explosive plot twists, but rather a measured, uneasy building of tension alongside social commentary. I loved how the themes of materialism, loneliness, escapism, and performative culture were explored. Great for anyone who enjoyed UnREAL or "Fifteen Million Merits" (Black Mirror).

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for the free e-ARC! Out on June 24.