The Compound: A GMA Book Club Pick: A Novel (Unabridged)
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3.9 • 72 Ratings
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK
Nothing to lose. Everything to gain. Winner takes all.
“Every bit as addictive as your favorite guilty pleasure binge-watch, but with all the substance of a literary classic.”—Oprah Daily
“It’s fun to watch hot people do psychotic things in this novel. . . . Smart and provocative [and] so damn addictive.”—The New York Times Book Review
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, THE NEW YORKER, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, OPRAH DAILY, THE GLOBE AND MAIL, CHICAGO PUBLIC LIBRARY
Lily—a bored, beautiful twenty-something—wakes up on a remote desert compound, alongside nineteen other contestants competing on a massively popular reality show. To win, she must outlast her housemates to stay in the Compound the longest, while competing in challenges for luxury rewards like champagne and lipstick, plus communal necessities to outfit their new home, like food, appliances, and a front door.
Cameras are catching all her angles, good and bad, but Lily has no desire to leave: why would she, when the world outside is falling apart? As the competition intensifies, intimacy between the players deepens, and it becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish between desire and desperation. When the unseen producers raise the stakes, forcing contestants into upsetting, even dangerous situations, the line between playing the game and surviving it begins to blur. If Lily makes it to the end, she’ll receive prizes beyond her wildest dreams—but what will she have to do to win?
Addictive and prescient, The Compound is an explosive debut from a major new voice in fiction and will linger in your mind long after the game ends.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Contestants starring on a dystopian reality TV dating show must complete tasks to be rewarded increasingly impressive prizes in this nervy thriller. Ten women wake up in the mysterious compound and await the arrival of 10 men—who hopefully survive their journey on foot. The goal? Be the last one standing to win whatever their heart desires. Antihero narrator Lily is gorgeous and knows it. Unfailingly honest, she uses her looks to get ahead as the contestants are degraded, humiliated, and violated, with their every move watched by millions. We were completely hooked by the unsettling atmosphere as the tasks become increasingly bizarre and cruel and the contestants become more desperate. Narrator Lucy Boynton captures Lily’s passivity as she observes the hellish goings-on in the paradisiacal wilderness. This gripping literary satire offers fascinating commentary on excess, the cultural impact of reality television, and our own world’s harrowing effects on beauty standards and mental health.
Customer Reviews
Good Start… Abrupt ending
Huh??? Loved it until the end!
Anti-climatic finish
Lily is kind of an awful person and I kept waiting for her to redeem herself. The ending was so abrupt and anti-climatic! It was an interesting premise and there were parts that kept me going but over all when it ended I was so let down!
Loved it!
This book was interesting and unique. The narrator did a great job at telling the story which really help bring the characters to life. I am sad that it is over and would highly recommend it.