Rosa Rankin-Gee

Post-apocalyptic fiction set in Margate, mostly Arlington. I really enjoy knowing the areas described. The teenagers in the story without money, hanging out, and looking after each other. The story is modern; a teenage mother, gay sex, drug use, the sense of feeling invincible, coping with death, trust and love. A memorable tale worthy of a re-read. To being with I wondered about the grammatical errors, whether they were part of the story, with the colloquial speech? But overall I was surprised how much I enjoyed the book.… (mehr)

Set in a partly plausible near future run down British seaside resort (Margate), this is a story of growing up in a bleak environment, first love and unintentional betrayal. But this near future is not plausible as it ignores too much technology, especially communication, and this suspension of disbelief asks too much, making the book feel part political allegory (although well constructed upon current reality).
However, if you can accept the implausibility, this is an engaging story of growing up in a deprived town. It has an open, possibly too optimistic ending for the overall tone of the book, but it has a good narrative and is well written. A depressing story told with beautiful language.

I think Station Eleven and Louise Welsh’ Plague Times’ trilogy are both better stories of potential futures, but Dreamland is a better exploration of a probable future that you could imagine (ignoring lack of realism over the internet, phones, TVs, radio).… (mehr)