The compound is set in the desert with all the amenities that you could want. Outside in the dystopian world war rages and everyone fights for a place in the compound; once inside every moment is tracked and filmed for viewers at home. Inside things reach boiling point with those who have little to return home to willing to do almost anything to stay....and that's when things become violent.

This was a very relevant and interesting take on the Love Island/reality TV popularity and asks the question what would someone do to escape their life. The novel was a little bit of a slow burner which took time to introduce the characters and their motivations until the final showdown. This was a really interesting take on consumerism and fame.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

Although I am not a huge fan of reality tv, I am a massive fan of reality tv based fiction and this one was very enjoyable.

I will admit it was initially a bit of a struggle to get past the first couple of chapters as Lily us insanely vacuous and looks obsessed at first but she definitely grew on me.

This was sold to me as sci-fi by some of the reviews and although there is a lot of mention of a war and how they only have 20 years left, it didn't feel very sci-fi. That being said... what war?! Why only 20 years?! Tell me everything! I could see this being an excellent start to a series where more World lore is uncovered.

Perfect for fans of reality tv or if you just like watching terrible people in isolation somehow devolve into worse people.

There are certainly echoes of Goulding’s "Lord of the Flies” here. However, instead of a group of boys being washed up onto a desert island, Rawle uses a reality show format. A group of beautiful girls wake up in a Compound. All they know is that they have been chosen as contestants for a “Love Island show”. How they got there no-one seems to know. While they wait for the boys to arrive, they quickly set about doing traditional female duties, like getting the trashed Compound into shape. Soon the boys arrive and quickly establish who will become the leaders.

As with all reality shows, the contestants are given a series of mindless tasks to complete in return for rewards. The only twist - Those who fail are voted off. As the number dwindles, order descends into chaos as one woman in particular wants to win at all costs. What becomes very apparent is how empty their ‘outside’ lives are. There is very little to return to. It is Jacintha and Sam who seem to stick to their morals while Lily and Tom don’t seem to have any to begin with.

This is a novel which challenges the concept of “reality shows” and the safety of them. While the viewing audience have a vested interest while it is on, they quickly move onto the next show, with no regard for participants. It also tackles the notion of brand endorsement, and the lengths influences will go to.

While it is brilliantly executed, I was left with a sour taste in my mouth. But perhaps that was the intention.

I highly recommend this read and thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication.

I love 'Love Island', so when I read the premise "a cross over between Lord Of The Flies and Love Island" I was super excited to read this.
Low and behold, this book did not disappoint. It was exactly what I expected: a dystopian form of reality TV - but in book form. Absolutely loved this read! Would recommend it to anyone who likes to swap the time they spend watching reality TV to reading it.

I went into this cold, only knowing that this is a mix of The Lord of the Flies and the Love Island, which was intriguing enough. I whizzed through it in 3 days and stayed awake late at night turning the pages. It happens so rarely these days - it’s an achievement in itself! I loved the compulsive side to the story - I was completely hooked.

It appears to be a very shallow book on the surface but i like the message it’s sending., and the more I think about it, the more metaphors I recognise now about the world we live in. If we have a void inside us, it won’t be filled with materialistic goods. We need connection and meaningful relationships to be content.

What was lacking for me is more context on the background of the setting - we didn’t get a lot in terms of the motivation for contestants, just vague war mentions and that it took a long time to save up money.

This one was great fun!

An impressive debut where I feel like The Hunger Games meets Love Island is accurate.

I’ve never actually watched Love Island, but I’ve experienced enough cultural osmosis to have a broad idea what it’s about.

There are a lot of characters and couples in this so it can be hard to keep track to start with until people start getting voted off.

I really liked how it’s set in an unclear future with just vague references to the outside world and “the wars” while the couples live in supposed safety in the compound.

A compulsive page-turner perfect for the summer.

I enjoyed the story and it was keeping you hooked in for most of it however I found the ending a touch disappointing as it didn't really do anything

I'm not a fan of these kind of reality shows on TV but I loved The Compound - a really original, dystopian take on the idea. Deliciously dark, with some brilliantly awful characters, this was a real page turner that I couldn't wait to get back to each night.

I really enjoyed this. The premise is excellent and I loved all the (awful!) characters. The plot was gripping and I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen.

I’ve already recommended this as a title for the bookshop as I know this is gonna be a hot summer read. Definitely comparable to Big Brother, and was a juicy page turner. I really enjoyed the relationship dynamics between some of the characters and liked the notion that there was nothing ‘special’ about our protagonist - an interesting touch. There is a lot left unsaid in this book, and maybe that was supposed to be the case, but I needed more is my only critique. I needed deeper unhingedness - there were flashes of this in the novel but then it backed off. This left the social commentary slightly flat.

Love island meets big brother but make it dystopian. I like how the author kept what happened in the world a mystery, kept the action inside the house, an interesting character study about how capitalism is always the enemy

This book felt very unresolved and slow to me - I'm not sure if it's the writing style or the pacing, or what exactly it was, but I never got any kind of sense of urgency from it, or any sense of stakes. The wider world is hinted at (the war) but never fully developed, and the conclusion felt like it fell a bit flat to me.

couldn't stop reading this! love island but somehow even more tense and a bit dystopian. would've loved a bit more worldbuilding and info about the wider world but also not everything needs an answer! loved the analysis of the character archetypes. fun! but also v v unsettling

This was sold to me as Love Island meets Big Brother meets Survivor, and oh my gosh it didn't disappoint! In this story we follow Lily as she enters The Compound, a house in the middle of the desert where contestants enter with two goals; find love and stay as long as possible.

As soon as I started reading I felt like this was an episode of reality television; the descriptions of The Compound, how the game works, and the depth to Lily's character were all brilliant. The rules to the game were really well thought out; as a reader I'm quite often sceptical and have to suspend my disbelief, but this was all logical. This book would be great for those who read for escapism and the enjoyment factor, but also great for those who like to delve deeper into the characters motivations, and discussions that the author made a point of in this book. Rawle picked up on some of the main issues that these reality television shows have; with discussions on race, sexuality, and gender roles (which I massively appreciated).

There aren't many books that I would want to read twice, but this is one of them. It's clear that this book was planned out meticulously, and was then very well written. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes even a little bit of reality television.

A fun and gripping read for fans of reality TV. Set in a vaguely Dystopian future that is all too believable, 20 young people arrive at a compound in the desert to compete for prizes - things they could never attain in their miserable lives in the real world. Lily is the protagonist, desperate to make it to the end and a life of riches and simplicity. But along the way the inhabitants of the compound increasingly lose sight of their humanity and what is important. I enjoyed this book - it races along and is a lot of fun.

This dystopian love island was a bit like actual reality TV - addictive and voyeuristic.

It was enjoyable enough but the main character was unsympathetic for me and I'm not sure it will live long in the memory.

However I think the author has totally pulled off what she was going for and I think this will be very popular.

Reality television meets Lord of the flies. If you like reality shows this is the book for you.

Cameras watching every move and microphones listening into conversations. The contestants have to do group challenges as well as personal ones to get gifts that could become useful. Who will get eliminated and when, that is the question they all ask themselves.

Page turning book, but I felt that the ending was a little weak.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book.

I believe there are reality tv shows which take beautiful people to a tropical location and in big brother style, watch the fallout. I’ve never watched these shows although I did see a couple of the very early Big Brother shows, intrigued by the concept of people being knowingly manipulated. Compound is a dystopian tale based on similar themes. A group of females are enclosed in a desert compound and await the arrival of men, if that’s what the human condition has boiled down to, it’s a pretty sorry state of affairs, but Aisling Rawle has explored the odious side of reality tv, commercialism, shallow values and manipulation.

Overall I found the story interesting but didn’t quite buy into it, The location was so removed and remote from the outside world, it had limited context. But it’s well written and filled with sharp insight. Pacing is a little mixed and it’s a slow start. My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley fir a review copy.

I loved this. It did seem to start off slow but I soon got right into it. Wish it told us more about the outside world though. Thank you to the writer, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me the chance to read it.

Aisling Rawle’s debut, The Compound, is a gripping and unsettling exploration of reality television's darker facets. Set in a remote desert compound, the novel follows Lily, a young woman thrust into a high-stakes reality show where contestants vie for luxury rewards and survival. As the competition intensifies, the line between performance and reality blurs, revealing the psychological toll of constant surveillance and manipulation.​

Rawle masterfully critiques consumer culture and the commodification of human relationships. The narrative delves into the moral compromises contestants make for comfort and success, prompting readers to reflect on the ethical costs of entertainment. The character development, particularly Lily's transformation, is compelling, showcasing her resilience amid escalating challenges.​
People.com

While the novel's pacing is generally effective, some character arcs conclude abruptly, leaving certain narratives feeling incomplete. Nevertheless, the book's satirical edge and psychological depth make it a standout in dystopian fiction. Fans of Black Mirror and The Hunger Games will find The Compound both thought-provoking and disturbingly relevant.​
People.com
NetGalley

The Compound is a chilling debut that lingers long after the final page, challenging readers to consider the true cost of our obsession with spectacle.