About the Book
Title: The Annihilation of Foreverland
Author: Tony Bertauski
Series: Foreverland #1
Genre: YA Sci Fi Dystopian
Pages: 318
Edition Read: Kindle eBook
Dates Read: June 10-16, 2024
Blurb: When kids awake on an island, they’re told there was an accident. Before they can go home, they will visit Foreverland, an alternate reality that will heal their minds.
Reed dreams of a girl that tells him to resist Foreverland. He doesn’t remember her name, but knows he once loved her. He’ll have to endure great suffering and trust his dream. And trust he’s not insane.
Danny Boy, the new arrival, meets Reed’s dream girl inside Foreverland. She’s stuck in the fantasy land that no kid can resist. Where every heart’s desire is satisfied. Why should anyone care how Foreverland works?
Review
I really enjoyed this one. I got it off of BookBub ages ago, mostly because I thought the title sounded interesting. Went in completely blind, not knowing what to expect.
And it’s fitting, since the boys on the island also have come there completely blind, as in they don’t remember anything of their previous life before waking up there. Part rehab, part science experiment, we see most of the story through Danny Boy’s eyes as the latest arrival. There are definitely some Lord of the Flies elements in this; the boys mostly have the run of the place (there are definitely some wannabe tyrants among them) and, while there are some adults there, they are all older men who don’t really step in unless there is a dire circumstance.
Oh, and these old men are called “investors” and each boy on the island is assigned one. As in there is an old guy who has invested in each one there. That’s not creepy at all.
Then there is Foreverland – which is NOT the island. Rather, Foreverland is a sort of virtual reality that the boys enter by having a needle stuck into their foreheads (they have permanent holes for this, which was such a weird and cool concept). They are all told that everything is being done to them for their benefit, which we know can’t be true. Danny Boy wants to find a way out, and for that, he needs Reed – the one boy who refuses to take the needle and is slowly being broken down by the investors to comply.
This was definitely a page turner, mostly just to see what weird, random thing would happen next. The main plot is about Danny trying to figure out a way off the island (and figure out who he really is) but there is also the final reveal of what the island is and what they are really doing there. I sort of saw it coming, but it was still satisfying when I found out I was right.
GoodReads rating: 4 stars
Categories: Books I've Read
Life With No Plot 
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