FantasticLand

A Novel

By: Mike Bockoven

Narrated by: Angela Dawe, Luke Daniels

Length: 10 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Since the 1970s, FantasticLand has been the theme park where "Fun is Guaranteed!" But when a hurricane ravages the Florida coast and isolates the park, the employees find it anything but fun. Five weeks later, the authorities who rescue the survivors encounter a scene of horror. Photos soon emerge online of heads on spikes outside of rides and viscera and human bones littering the gift shops, breaking records for hits, views, likes, clicks, and shares. How could a group of survivors, mostly teenagers, commit such terrible acts?

Presented as a fact-finding investigation and a series of first-person interviews, FantasticLand pieces together the grisly series of events. Park policy was that the mostly college-aged employees surrender their electronic devices to preserve the authenticity of the FantasticLand experience. Cut off from the world and left on their own, the teenagers soon form rival tribes who viciously compete for food, medicine, social dominance, and even human flesh. This new social network divides the ravaged dreamland into territories ruled by the Pirates, the ShopGirls, the Freaks, and the Mole People. If meticulously curated online personas can replace private identities, what takes over when those constructs are lost?

FantasticLand is a modern take on Lord of the Flies meets Battle Royale that probes the consequences of a social civilization built online.

©2016 Mike Bockoven (P)2017 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

This book is why I rely on honest reviews!

I am not a a genre-prude. I read a LOT of different genres, but I tend to stay in my lane and only wander into another genre when it's slammed in my face. This book (by it's description) would not be one I would waste a credit on.

Boy Howdy, ;) would I have missed out.

(NO spoliers here).

I literally felt as if I was in the middle of a reality show (except is was actually real) . The writing is SO well done, I forgot I was me, I was just swept away to this place that doesn't exist with some wonderful, and horrible people (that also didn't exist, but I felt like it / they did), and I had SO many goosebumps.

The one thing I am sorry for is that the end didn't resolve as hard as I wanted it to. I wanted more story, but it was STILL very well done. (I hate it when a fantastic story ends, and I will be reading it again.)

The writing was compelling, the narration was SO real, and the story was SO much fun to ride along on.

If you buy this book, be ready to suspend belief just a little, and enjoy this amazing experience.

Thank you Mike Bockoven, Angela Dawe and Luke Daniels! This was the BEST gift!

The Best Audiobook I've Ever Heard

This is not hyperbole. This is by far the best audiobook I've ever had the pleasure of listening to.

The story itself was engaging, interesting, bizarre and yet very human. How could a bunch of teenagers become killers? This is how.

The writing was great. My only complaint is that I wish I could have spent more time with some of the characters. They are very distinct, and interesting to listen to.

That's another thing that makes this audiobook great--I've never heard such great voice acting in an audiobook! This book captured lighting in a bottle with these two voice actors working together. If they ever work together again, I will buy the book immediately! very distinct voices for different characters, without being hokey or over-the-top. i could also hear a good deal of emotion come through--as well as a numbness when needed.

This is an overall experience. I don't know how I would have felt reading the book itself, but this format made a book built around interviews come to life.

DO NOT miss out on this once in a lifetime audiobook!!!

Wow what a great listen. Could not turn it off!

Wow what a great listen. Could not turn it off! I listen to a lot of audio book. over 100 in 2020 and I have to say this one was great. Kinda a cross of World war Z and lord of the fly's. super original and stands on its own. This audio set a high bar for the rest of 2021.

Lord of the Flies meets Unsolved Mysteries

I really enjoyed this book. It takes a gruesome tale and weaves it into interviews that feel lifelike.
Each chapter makes you think about where you would stand, given the information provided (I personally liked the Circus).
The way the interviews are formatted was one of my favorite parts, knowing when to skip information and when to tease future information.
The voice acting is also really well done.

Awesome!

I really enjoyed Fantasticland. If you like the interview style of World War Z, this book is for you. The audiobook had multiple narrators who did a superb job of acting and changing their voices for the different characters. The hotel chapter/interview was terrifying!

What a unique story and preformance.

I almost gave up on this story but decided to let it get going and it would have been terrible to miss out. I was a bit put off by the idea that the story was just a collection of interviews but it was well put together and it really works.

Unexpected Masterpiece

I loved Battle Royale and hated Lord of the Flies but this story merged and modernized both of these stories and I loved it.

FANTASTIC!

This story truly lives up to its Fantastic title! Great book! Stellar writing and narration!

Better than expected

Loved it, but wish it had been more specific as to what happened. Too much guessing and thinking, lol , which may be the point of the book.

Very enjoyable listen. Scary without much gore.

Great story!

This was a great listen. The story of the length that people will go when law is suspended is amazing.