Science Fiction
The setup in Prized does a lot of work before the plot even gets moving: a wasteland, a baby sister to protect, then Sylum with its very odd rules around women and men. That kind of premise can tip into gimmick if it’s not handled carefully, but here it kept feeling like part of the world rather than a trick.
I also like when a book makes the social order itself feel unsettling, not just the obvious danger. Much more interesting than simple “good place / bad place” sorting.
I also like when a book makes the social order itself feel unsettling, not just the obvious danger. Much more interesting than simple “good place / bad place” sorting.
It’s the social logic that makes me side-eye a premise like this, rather than the big dystopian headline. A world can survive one strange rule. It gets interesting when that rule starts organising everyone’s behaviour, especially around sex, power and who gets to be “protected”.
Also, wasteland + baby sister is doing a lot of emotional heavy lifting before the setting has even had a chance to be weird. Which is usually a good sign, annoyingly.
Also, wasteland + baby sister is doing a lot of emotional heavy lifting before the setting has even had a chance to be weird. Which is usually a good sign, annoyingly.