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. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade, Yucca, and Good Books imprints, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in fiction—novels, novellas, political and medical thrillers, comedy, satire, historical fiction, romance, erotic and love stories, mystery, classic literature, folklore and mythology, literary classics including Shakespeare, Dumas, Wilde, Cather, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
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Mike Bockoven
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FantasticLand
by Mike Bockoven
Books Like FantasticLand
If you're looking for books similar to FantasticLand, here are some recommendations based on themes, tone, and narrative style.
The Road
Cormac McCarthy
A post-apocalyptic novel about a father and son surviving in a devastated world. The book explores human survival, moral choices, and the breakdown of social structures in extreme conditions. While less focused on group dynamics, it shares FantasticLand's exploration of human behavior under dire circumstances. The novel examines how people maintain humanity when traditional societal rules no longer apply.
Lord of the Flies
William Golding
A classic novel about a group of British schoolboys stranded on an uninhabited island who descend into savagery. The book explores the thin veneer of civilization and how quickly social structures can collapse when removed from societal constraints. It examines the inherent darkness within human nature and the struggle between rational behavior and primal instincts. The boys form competing groups and engage in increasingly violent conflicts, mirroring the tribal dynamics in FantasticLand.
Blindness
José Saramago
A novel about a society struck by a mysterious epidemic of blindness, causing social structures to rapidly disintegrate. The story explores how quickly human civilization can collapse when fundamental systems break down. Characters form groups and struggle for survival, reflecting the tribal dynamics in FantasticLand. The book offers a profound examination of human nature under extreme social stress.
The Hunger Games
Suzanne Collins
A dystopian novel about teenagers forced into a televised survival competition where they must fight each other. The story explores themes of social manipulation, survival, and the breakdown of social structures under extreme pressure. Participants form alliances and tribes, creating complex social dynamics similar to those in FantasticLand. The novel critically examines media, power, and human behavior in artificially constructed environments.
World War Z
Max Brooks
An oral history of a zombie apocalypse told through interviews with survivors. The book explores how different groups and societies respond to extreme global catastrophe. Like FantasticLand, it uses a documentary-style narrative to examine human behavior under crisis. Various social groups form unique survival strategies, revealing complex human dynamics during total societal breakdown.
Battle Royale
Koushun Takami
A dystopian novel where a totalitarian government forces a class of high school students to fight to the death on an isolated island. The story explores how quickly young people can turn violent when placed in extreme survival situations. Different groups form and compete for resources and dominance, creating complex social hierarchies under brutal conditions. The novel's intense examination of human behavior under extreme stress closely parallels the themes in FantasticLand.
Station Eleven
Emily St. John Mandel
A post-apocalyptic novel about survivors of a devastating pandemic rebuilding society. The story explores how human connections and cultural memory survive extreme disruption. Different groups form with unique social structures, similar to the tribal dynamics in FantasticLand. The novel examines how people create meaning and community in the aftermath of total societal collapse.
Ready Player One
Ernest Cline
A science fiction novel set in a virtual world where people escape reality through immersive online experiences. The story explores how digital identities and virtual environments can create complex social dynamics. While less violent, the book shares FantasticLand's interest in how technology and artificial environments shape human behavior. Characters form groups and compete in high-stakes virtual challenges.
Severance
Ling Ma
A post-apocalyptic novel blending social commentary with zombie narrative. The story follows office workers during a global pandemic, exploring how social structures and work culture collapse under extreme circumstances. Characters form groups and develop survival strategies, reflecting similar themes of social fragmentation found in FantasticLand. The book offers a satirical look at modern work culture and human adaptation.
The Maze Runner
James Dashner
A young adult novel about teenagers trapped in a mysterious maze who must work together to survive. The story explores group dynamics, survival strategies, and leadership under extreme conditions. Characters form tribes and develop complex social hierarchies, similar to the park employees in FantasticLand. The novel examines how young people adapt and create social structures in isolated, high-stress environments.
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