Set in the not-too-distant future, Dreamland follows Chance, a teenage girl who lives with her mother in Margate, having been sent away from London by the council some time before for a monetary incentive. Increasingly the town is becoming run down and half abandoned as everyone who can afford to leave does so due to the threat of rising sea levels, unemployment and growing crime levels.

As a dystopian fiction novel it's very effective. There's a growing sense of claustrophobia and threat throughout the novel. The characters are vivid and really come to life on the page. But aside from the novel's entertainment value, it has a very strong political message (although it doesn't beat you around the head with it) that I think is quite timely - it's certainly something to think on. Sometimes you read dystopian literature and think "that couldn't happen" - but the real-world, familiar setting of Dreamland really makes you wonder, is that really true?

A novel for the times we live in. Elegant and lyrical, but also by turn brutal and unflinching, Dreamland follows a girl growing up and being forced to fend for herself in a bleak seaside town under attack by both nature and the authorities.

Set in the not-so-distant future, Dreamland is a world where the milk of human kindness is in short supply, where greed and self-interest drive society and some people get left behind in the vicious wake. Rankin-Gee reveals Chase's story gradually, drip-feeding the horrors to us and keeping us invested in Chase's life. The good in her bleak world is rare, like diamonds in dirt, small and unpolished. The little love and support she finds is precious and sustaining, but ultimately not enough.

There are echoes of John Christopher's The Death of Grass and Tim Pears' Landed as Chase battles to find a safe harbour amid a turbulent environment where she doesn't fit in, but this is nevertheless an original and interesting take on the future. If I had a criticism, it would be the open-ended final chapter, but perhaps that's my issue and not another reader's take; I would have preferred something more conclusive - whether hopeful or hopeless - but don't let that stop you reading what is a well-constructed and beautifully written book.

A love story. A tragedy. A warning. The story of one girl and an entire society. At the same time, terrifying and hopeful. Dreamland takes the familiar and twists it a couple of degrees to show a disturbing and disturbingly credible picture of our possible future. What will happen if we keep ignoring climate change, allow inequalities to widen, allow eugenics to creep into the mainstream and build walls?

Through the eyes of a girl called Chance, the most unlucky luckiest, most vulnerable toughest of heroines, Dreamland presents
a compelling and unsettling vision of what our society could look like if climate change and right wing ideologies are allowed to unroll to their worst conclusions. The world was so real and so engrossing that I would look up from the page and feel that I was still there. I took Chance to my heart and feel like she will stay there.

The writing is fabulous. This is proper literary fiction, full of earthiness, class and depth, without pretension or trickery. This book is really good.

Dreamland is up there with the bleakest books I've read to the point of almost being overwhelming. It imagines a not too distant future where patterns relocating people living in London council houses and climate change merge together with catastrophic consequences. The dread and horror is unrelenting, while also hitting a little too close to home.

What kept me going was Chance, the main character of the book. The book is filled with complicated, difficult to like people but Chance loves all of them in her own way. She has this desperate desire to trust and to help, even when it's clear that she shouldn't. Nobody thanks for it and it ends up hurting her in many different ways, each more heartbreaking than the last. But her perseverance and loving heart is properly inspiring.

The storyline was unpredictable in a fantastic way. There were quite a few developments that I didn't see coming but most don't hit as big twist moments, instead you're subtly given information that allows you to build your own picture.

There's a note at the end of the book that talks about which elements were inspired by real events and it makes for damning reading. It's not a hopeful book and it's certainly not easy to read in these times but it definitely has a message that's worth hearing.

Dreamland is a novel about inequality, family, and the way society could go, set in a near-future Margate. Chance, her brother, and her mum move to Margate after being offered money to leave London, where they were living in a series of temporary accommodation. The sea is meant to be a fresh start for them, but the waters are rising, and the new politicians have found some new ways to deal with run-down areas.

Rosa Rankin-Gee takes the reality of the present and pushes a few threads towards further extremes to build the backdrop of this novel, in which local areas must fend for themselves and there's no help from central government (with an author's note at the end highlighting the current policies that make this vision of the future not so far fetched). What we see is a grim existence, in which Chance and others in Margate have to adapt to things like blackouts and huge waves and flooding whilst newly powerful politicians plot what to do with deprived areas. The everyday reality might seem shocking, but the wider decisions that got places there is not.

We see everything through Chance's perspective, from her dealing with what happens to her brother and when his business partner Kole comes on the scene to her sudden connection to Franky, a girl who seems linked to the outsiders from London who try and offer help to the community. The narrative covers quite a few years, sometimes moving at a fast pace and sometimes a slower one, and you can't help being drawn into the characters' lives and becoming frustrated and angry at what happens. As with other 'dystopian' type books, there's a point later in the novel when Chance reads about the plans the government used and it becomes clear that policies are not accidental, but part of horrific larger strategies, and this serves as a good reminder that this isn't a near-future based on 'chance', but on choices.

An up-to-date (there's references to the pandemic) near-future novel about the housing crisis, social welfare, and climate change that feels very immediate, Dreamland shows where division and individualistic thinking can get society, whilst at the same time showing a protagonist just trying to survive. There are moments of hope, a pivotal love story that hinges on class and privilege, and a sense of being able to fight, but this is also a grim vision of a future to be avoided at all costs.

* spoiler alert ** This book is brutal.
Set in what could be a future not so far in the future,it starts with a struggling mother and her two kids relocating to Margate.
From there it's a downward spiral,drugs,men,drink... and that's before the massive climate change and collapse of government.
Chance,so young,but feeling so old,powers through it all,casually revealing more and more misery.
My heart really felt for her and Davey...
Brutal and bold.
I'll be thinking about this for a while

I was tempted at various times to give up on this book but ultimately was pleased to complete it. I found the style very difficult for quite a portion of the book, with the very short sentences, some of which I had to re-read and still wasn't sure of the meaning. I also did not understand why Blue being Chance's child was so considered so unacceptable as it felt like something from a bygone era. The same is true with the fact of Chance having a relationshop with a woman. Perhaps this is because I felt it was set in a near future following on from our present. And for me the very last sentence didn't work, after the detail of their arduous ascent to the top of the wall.. I did however, feel the sense of family and love and community, alongside a sense of helplessness and futility. In some ways I wish that the author's note was a prelude to the book as I found it very interesting and thought provoking and would have set the context before reading it.

Dreamland is set in the near future, a dystopian novel that highlights some very real potential threats to the UK and its seaside towns. Chance is our main character, from a poor family suffering in London who are given the seemingly optimistic opportunity to move to Margate and start a new life. The realities of this move drag Chance's family into a situation that is just as bad as before, but with some added drama too. A content warning for sustained drug use, domestic abuse, suicide and death is definitely needed! They are handled well, but run graphically through the book - so just be aware! :)

This book definitely earns the title of a rollercoaster and not even a rusted one from Dreamland. My heart was broken by multiple characters, multiple times, and Rankin-Gee's characters all have intricate layers that lay under their initially tough exteriors. Chance, our protagonist, goes through such a journey and it's both full of hope and filled with despair. She is such a complex character, who has to adapt so much.

The ongoing dark cloud for Margate in Dreamland is the ever-rising tide and erratic weather - a major threat to the town and those left living there. Due to global warming and climate change, this is affecting the entire planet, and Rankin-Gee gives nods to how other countries are also trying to tackle this issue. The ways the UK government (in the book...) decide to help is very believable with aid sent sporadically and an evacuation system based on personal merit and usefulness to society. Temporary fixes breed longer-term issues. Several aid charities start to focus on the area, and this is where we meet Franky.

Chance and Franky's relationship becomes an escape from the reality of Chance's situation, although this becomes fraught with questions and secrecy. Franky's link to the area is an interesting development, and her character is a well-utilised juxtaposition to Chance.

My only issue with this book was the ending point. Rankin-Gee weaves some beautiful writing into a story that is often harsh and aggressive, and although I can understand the open-ended imagination prompting ending, I am so invested in these characters that it's a little disappointing to not know a little more. However, I still gave Dreamland 5 stars because the rest of the book deserves it, and I can understand why the ending could be like it was. However, if you'd like to tell me what happens with a certain child, Rosa, please do!

After the actual text (certainly in the ARC), Rankin-Gee has also included a list of resources and information about the very real versions of the events of the books. She highlights several of the existing government programmes designed to regenerate towns and to displace those from the cities. Nothing in Dreamland is as farfetched as we'd like it to be. I have family in Kent and live in Norfolk. I have seen coastal erosion and its effects first-hand, so seeing the potential impact of the climate change for these areas long-term does have a scary edge to it.

A five-star look into a future that is a little too believable, and beautiful characters who are trying so hard to just stay afloat.

Wow!

This book was a riveting rollercoaster and a real insight into a very real future we are possibly facing. This book brings together issues such as the poverty line, drug abuse, relocation, public funding issues, climate change and political extremism. Absolutely captivating this follows the story of Chance and JD as they leave London behind to be relocated to Margate. It follows their lives from childhood to adulthood and the struggles they face. There were times when the uncomfortable parallels to the world we live in truly came to light which only makes this novel all the more intense. A thought provoking read.

In a dystopian “near” future, the inequalities are reaching their paroxysm.

Paid to “relocate” to a desolated version of Margate, Chance and her family settle there as best as they could.

Amid a life of drugs, abuse and theft, Chance finally meets a girl her own age from London: Francesca aka Franky. Falling under her spell, Chance even introduces her to Davey, her best friend, and Blue, the sweet little boy that is the ray of sunshine of her family.

As their relationship evolves the world around them unravels, with rumors of extremism seeping through the government politics getting increasingly potent.

Climate change is bringing dangerous tides and waves that could well be sinking the coastal towns, and so called humanitarians start interfering in the community’s affairs;

A poignant, cleverly written book where Rosa Rankin-Gee is sounding the alarm. An eye-opening story showing us what could be the future if we do not act against inequalities, extremism and climate change. This book makes you appreciate what you have in life that you can easily take for granted.

Thank you Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for granting my request to read the advance e-copy.

Chance, her siblings and her mum are offered money to relocate from London to Kent. In a cycle of alcohol and sex, their lives spiral out of control at the same time as there are serious problems in the country. At the same time, Chance has what is seemingly a perfect relationship or is it?

I thought it took a while to get going plot wise. It seemed at first like it was going to be drifting along with the characters getting involved in one drunken or drug escapade after another but it really isn't like that at all. There is a serious message in this one that makes you think and forces you to be more aware about current government policies and what could happen combined with that and climate change. By the end of this book, I was really rooting for Chance to get out of the difficulty they were in. It's a pity that it ended when it did as I wanted to know if what they were trying to do at the end succeeded.

I would say this is a dystopian fiction book set in the not too distant future.

In the coastal resort of Margate, hotels lie empty and sun-faded ‘For Sale’ signs line the streets. The sea is higher – it’s higher everywhere – and those who can are moving inland. A young girl called Chance, however, is just arriving.

A very easy, light-hearted read. Perfect with a glass of wine, in the bath or cuddled up into a large chair with an open fire.

Set in the near future, the seas are rising and those who can afford to have abandoned the once popular coastal resort of Margate. But, with memories of happier times in the town and little other choice, Chance’s mother Jas takes up a cash offer to relocate there from London. For a while Chance and her brother JD live a chaotic but relatively cheerful life against a backdrop drugs, booze, casual sex and poverty. As things deteriorate on both a personal level and for those left in Margate in general, Chance finds happiness with Franky, a girl from across the ever-widening social divide.
That is, until the dark reality of the LandSave scheme kicks in and things get a whole lot worse.
Dreamland was inspired by actual and considered Government policies and paints a vivid and all too believable picture of what happens when social deprivation and climate change meet political extremism and ruthless self-preservation.
Often bleak and violent, there’s also a great deal of love – romantic, familial, between friends… and for Margate itself. It’s a striking novel of hope against the odds.

Out of London with a cash grant, Chance's family arrive in Margate. But the seaside isn't fun.

Civil instability, inequality, poverty, drugs. The numbing inevitability of it all.

Until Chance meets Franky. Two girls who couldn't be more different....

Well-written, but the characters are difficult to warm to, making you question why you continue reading