Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Fantasticland

Fantasticland was a unique reading experience for me, as I'd never encountered a book told entirely through interviews with survivors. The unconventional format, while intriguing, took me a while to get used to. The slow start made it difficult for me to fully engage with the story early on, but once the tension ramped up, I found myself hooked.

The multiple points of view added depth to the plot, but at the same time, the sheer number of characters made it hard to keep track of who belonged to which tribe. This often made the plot feel muddled and detached, which dampened the intensity of the survival story.

One aspect that I struggled with was the idea that the absence of internet or media access was enough to push the kids into acts of violence, torture, and even murder. I didn’t find this motive entirely convincing, and it didn’t seem like a strong enough catalyst to explain the extreme behavior the characters exhibited. The author seems to stress this point rather than focusing more on the failure of management authority and the fear of being trapped, which feel like more plausible reasons for the kids' descent into violence.

Overall, while the interview format and scattered character perspectives were disorienting at times, Fantasticland did manage to deliver a gripping survival tale once it found its stride. I suggest if you want to read this book, just go with the audiobook.

Content Warnings

kristiforkinglovesbooks's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

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chaoswizard's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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lizacorn's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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beanbag's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

To start off, I fully expected this book to have some supernatural elements to it. Why? I'm not sure. So when I began reading and the format became more "True Crime Documentary" I was a little disappointed. This caused me to take a big gap in reading, which I think influenced my view.

I will say, this book is not bad by any metric. The characters were very believable and well written even if some of the characters interviewed felt a little similar. Furthermore, each interview/chapter led into the next one very well. There was always some connection between interview, like putting together a puzzle. And the puzzle pieces kept getting darker and more serious each time, exploring another twisted aspect of the story. In that regard it was a very well executed format.

However that's where my problem lies. There really isnt much plot in the book. Now, do I view the book this way because I wasnt expecting a True Crime Documentary style? Possibly, and I'd be remiss to ignore my own biases. But I genuinely do believe there isn't much plot to be written about. The story consists of retellings of what happened in the park, however by the halfway mark you know pretty much everything. Each interview just adds another tragedy or tragic death but nothing substantial. There are exceptions, however,

mostly regarding the Council of Pieces. This event felt the most like a turning point, especially in terms of Brock and his ability to be seen as anything other than a monster

. But Besides that, there really isn't much.

The closest thing I can think of is the story of

Brock and how his brother's death in the tunnel possibly influenced his horrible actions as leader of the Pirates

, which I do think was executed very well. But in reality

there wasn't much regarding that story besides the initial death, the mention of his brother at the Council of Pieces, and then at the end during his interview

. Besides that, the story felt kind of meandering and I had trouble picking the book up and keeping the pages open, which is unfortunate.

Despite my critiques and whining, I did really enjoy this work and would heavily suggest it to anyone who likes True Crime, psychology, or horror in an amusement park.

Content Warnings

mblanke's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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