yvo_about_books's review against another edition
3.75
Finished reading: November 3rd 2023
“To think our young people are capable of what we saw chills the blood for a very long time.”
It's true that I don't tend to read a lot of proper horror titles, but I saw Fantasticland mentioned and I couldn't resist adding it to my TBR. I have a weak spot for an amusement park setting, and there was just something about this premise that sounded both terrifying and absolutely fascinating. I have to say this before I continue though: this book isn't for everyone and you definitely have to suspend your disbelief to be able to get a positive reading experience. If you are able to do that, make sure to brace yourself for a extremely twisted ride! Seriously, this basically reads like Lord Of The Flies on acid, but set in an amusement park after a hurricane hits. I wasn't expecting the non fiction vibe of this story though; Fantasticland is written in a way that makes you feel like you are reading the result of an investigation by a journalist. This journalist helps narrate the story, although the plot mainly consists in first-person accounts of people present at the park. The interviews are presented in a way that slowly reveals just how bad things got before they were finally rescued... And boy, things get properly twisted and graphic long before that final page. Torture, mutilation and even cannibalism; nothing is too much in this story. What I did find a bit lacking was the explanation of how things escalated so quickly after the hurricane hit... I was expecting something more elaborated, or at least more of an answer to that question. That said, I can't deny that this was a perfect Halloween read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Gore, Child death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Death, Stalking, Violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Cannibalism, Abandonment, Bullying, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, War, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, and Torture
simbareadss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
An interview or documentary style horror about a large group of mostly young people left in an amusement park after a natural disaster. Very Lord of the Flies.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Death, Murder, and Body horror
Minor: Cannibalism
anastashamarie's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
❗ I ended up liking this one a lot. Big Lord of the Flies vibes. Overall I would recommend to anyone who likes horror/thriller without paranormal elements.
🎢 Good stuff:
The structure, with each chapter as an interview, makes it a good one to read as you have time; easily digestible. It was spot-on for how cliquey amusement park employees are (I said what I said) and for how leadership can really set the tone for people. I liked that the multiple POVs were embraced to show all the different sides of the story, which also allowed for some ambiguity for how the events happened.
🏴☠️ My only genuine complaints are these:
1) I don't think the interviews needed to be chronological, and I personally would rearrange some of the later chapters for pacing purposes. Maybe if I had spaced out my reading, I might not have felt this so strongly, but I finished it in two sittings and just felt like the falling action hit fast after the climax at the Council.
2) This gets so, so close to a strong conclusion, but didn't seem brave enough to make that leap. It decidedly didn't ruin the book at all, just kept it from a perfect rating...but that's all I can say without giving major spoilers.
🏹 Other consideration:
• The explorations of the mental health and family systems impacts are sort of lacking here. There's one character who goes to therapy (yay!), But there were quite a few places where there could have been more depth--missed opportunities if you ask me.
• This story leaves a lot unanswered. This is separate than my complaint about the conclusion lacking, because I didn't mind the lack of answers...we often don't ever get the whole story when IRL bad things happen, having to sit in ambiguity. What bothered me, and what I alluded to above, was that the author started to make a strong point about human nature but backed off before really doing it.
• There does have to be a suspension of disbelief to really get into this. Despite the real world setting, there are quite a few plot holes if we try to think of it too much in the real-world in which we function.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Murder, Gun violence, Violence, Death, Blood, Abandonment, and Confinement
Moderate: Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, and Cursing
Minor: Drug use, Rape, War, Cannibalism, and Alcohol
swalk's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
medium-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
4.25
A compelling tale laying out the events that occur at a theme park, whose staff get flooded-in and the factions that come out of the utter chaos. Each chapter is a new interview with someone who lived with the carnage that came from the remnants of Fantasticland, after hurricane Sadie blew through and trapped people there for weeks. Things soon escalated out of all proportion leading to tribal warfare, death, destruction and even cannibalism if you believe the rumours.
A truly original concept excellently executed, I enjoyed the structure of having each chapter from the viewpoint of a different resident and the way in which they were ordered to build the story chronologically. This is a really great horror/ gore novel and would be perfect for someone who is into zombie books.
The narrators were all great and I really appreciated the use of different voices for each interviewee, making it easy to imagine each character in the setting of the park .
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual violence, Body horror, Death, Sexual assault, Murder, Torture, Stalking, Physical abuse, and Abandonment
beth_waller97's review against another edition
adventurous
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
5.0
Man, I had to google whether this event was actually real because I was horrified. Luckily, it is just fiction. What an insane story, but so believable and you can actually imagine this happening in this day an age.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Blood, and Body horror
Minor: Gun violence, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Excrement
anne311's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Kidnapping, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Excrement, War, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Confinement, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Cannibalism
finleyfrogreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Body horror, Child death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Abandonment, Alcohol, Drug use, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Terminal illness, Confinement, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
archaicrobin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Last book of 2021 and it was Fantastic ! 😉 Fantasticland is a unique survival story in which a bunch of employees are stranded by a disastrous hurricane in a Disney-like amusement park with plenty of supplies and shelter, but absolutely no authority. The result? A Lord of the Flies inspired nightmare!
The story is told through different interviews of survivors from the park massacres and others involved in the tragedy that occurs at the park. This style of storytelling works so well for this book because you’re hearing it like first hand accounts. You have to piece the story together from different interviews just like you would if this had actually happened. I was recommend the audiobook, since each interview is voiced by a different person and it must add so much more to the story! Unfortunately my library only had the digital print version, but I might still check out the audiobook later down the road if I’m up for a reread.
Fantasticland is gruesome but it also has moments of dark humor and glimpses of the underlying themes of toxic masculinity, good vs. evil, and the dark truth of what humans are capable of when faced with survival and a complete lack of authority.
A lot of negative reviews I saw about this book were stating how unrealistic it all is, but honestly I don’t think it’s all that crazy. We see everyday the evil and hate that humanity is capable of, how is this any crazier? And that, that knowledge that, hey this isn’t really that unbelievable, is what makes this book so eerie.
Personally, I absolutely LOVED this and would highly recommend it to anyone that’s looking for a unique, fun take on survival horror! Was it perfect? Of course not, there’s a few typos and some things I would have liked resolution on but overall, the plot, the storytelling, the characters, the horrifying actions that occur, it’s all what make a great horror read and far out shadows any of the negatives in my opinion. Fantastic Land promised a fantastic time and it delivered.
The story is told through different interviews of survivors from the park massacres and others involved in the tragedy that occurs at the park. This style of storytelling works so well for this book because you’re hearing it like first hand accounts. You have to piece the story together from different interviews just like you would if this had actually happened. I was recommend the audiobook, since each interview is voiced by a different person and it must add so much more to the story! Unfortunately my library only had the digital print version, but I might still check out the audiobook later down the road if I’m up for a reread.
Fantasticland is gruesome but it also has moments of dark humor and glimpses of the underlying themes of toxic masculinity, good vs. evil, and the dark truth of what humans are capable of when faced with survival and a complete lack of authority.
A lot of negative reviews I saw about this book were stating how unrealistic it all is, but honestly I don’t think it’s all that crazy. We see everyday the evil and hate that humanity is capable of, how is this any crazier? And that, that knowledge that, hey this isn’t really that unbelievable, is what makes this book so eerie.
Personally, I absolutely LOVED this and would highly recommend it to anyone that’s looking for a unique, fun take on survival horror! Was it perfect? Of course not, there’s a few typos and some things I would have liked resolution on but overall, the plot, the storytelling, the characters, the horrifying actions that occur, it’s all what make a great horror read and far out shadows any of the negatives in my opinion. Fantastic Land promised a fantastic time and it delivered.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Cannibalism, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Violence, and War
More...