Review by Booklist Review
In Oliver's near-future dystopian thriller, wealth is tied to social status, with each individual's digital-brand credits gaining and losing value based on their social-media popularity. Those who can't entice followers subsist on a meager government stipend; among them is 16-year-old Emerson, whose attempt to start a channel to provide for her neglectful father and deaf little brother, Kester, was brutally cyberbullied. Emerson steals to survive, but when an accident causes the building she's robbing to burn down with someone inside, she's facing serious prison time. In her cell, she's visited by the Producer, a mysterious figure representing a new reality game show called Retribution Island, in which 50 teens facing imprisonment can win freedom, wealth, and fame. Sure there's a catch, Emerson agrees anyway. Once the teens are transported to a remote island, the true show is revealed: compete, gain followers, or die. Oliver boosts this high-concept premise with sharp commentary on social inequality and influencer culture as well as a quickly drawn but believable cast of characters, while keeping the grisly thrills coming with inventively horrific games.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this social media--centered riff on dystopian game shows, teens trapped in the criminal justice system are given the opportunity to win money and their own freedom by competing in the public eye for fame, followers, and survival. After being charged with theft, arson, and manslaughter, white teenager Emerson Ness is approached by a mysterious person known as the Producer, who offers her the chance to avoid prison time by competing on a show called Retribution Island along with 49 other contestants. When Emerson learns that the show's actual title is The Kill Factor, she quickly understands that it's more than just a clever name. Once the game begins, she and her fellow participants are forced to resort to lethal means to advance--and survive--and as contestants drop one by one, Emerson realizes that she must ingratiate herself to her viewers and rack up as many followers as possible if she hopes to get out of this alive. Oliver (the Loop trilogy) draws upon well-known tropes from dystopian classics like The Hunger Games, but scarcely elevates them which sometimes overshadows the narrative worldbuilding and didactic social commentary. Nevertheless, Oliver's thriller chops are sound, inspiring real scares via the gruesome trials characters are forced to endure in this visceral read. Ages 12--up. (Apr.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--In a world where a person's ability to pay bills and buy food is determined by their online "brand credits," desperation abounds for those with no beauty or online charisma. Emerson will do anything to keep her brilliant, Deaf younger brother Kester safe and fed since their father doesn't seem to care, but when a robbery at Emerson's school turns into her arrest for arson and manslaughter, their outlook is bleak. Enter the Producer, with an offer she literally can't refuse--join his game show along with 49 other contestants, competing in both physical challenges and popularity with viewers, or just go straight to prison. Losing means spending the rest of her life in solitary confinement. Win, though, and not only go free, but leave with enough brand credits to last a lifetime. From the first of six deadly games, it is clear that no one will be coming to save them, and the stakes are immense. Working together will only get them so far--there can only be one winner on Retribution Island. This fraught, high-octane thriller engages readers in psychological warfare from page one. No characters are safe, and there is little reprieve from the gruesome deaths and intensely suspenseful life-or-death situations. Beyond the surface, Oliver engages with elitism and the dehumanization social media and reality TV engender. VERDICT An absolute bloody blast and a fantastic choice for readers looking for the horror of Adam Cesare's Clown in a Cornfield and the deadly single-winner competition of The Hunger Games.--Allie Stevens
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Youthful offenders face a deadly reality show in a social media--driven future. Sixteen-year-old Emerson Ness doesn't know who lit a match while she carried out a robbery, but she was caught at the scene and faces arson and manslaughter charges. She's offered a spot on a reality game show promising fame and freedom to the winner--and life in solitary for everyone else. Desperate to provide for her younger brother, Kester, a deaf tech prodigy, Emerson caves and accepts. In this future world, class is literally stratified: The poor, like the Nesses, live in the Burrows beneath the elite Topsiders' homes, and riches are awarded based on one's social media follower count. The game show, Retribution Island, hinges not just on challenges but on popularity; Emerson knows her only hope is competing well enough to avoid public votes, especially since some of her fellow competitors are polished Topsiders, rather than Burrowers who committed crimes of desperation driven by inequalities in the system. The social commentary, openly discussed and integral to the plot, never gets in the way of the action or the story's flow. Once the show's true nature is revealed, the brutal action hits in viscerally grotesque sequences. Even the less sympathetic competitors are humanized, with the book highlighting traumas. Emerson reads white; names signal some ethnic diversity in the supporting cast, and a fat character is portrayed in a body-positive way. The ending screams for a sequel. Compulsively readable; stands out among other works with similar premises. (Dystopian. 12-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
