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A review by nina_reads_books
Enclave by Claire G. Coleman
3.0
Claire G. Coleman has written several books and I even own two of them but I this was the first one of hers I have read. Coleman writes and speaks extensively about the impacts of colonisation and her novels veer into dystopian and speculative fiction with a focus on Australian colonialism. In Enclave we are introduced to a dystopian vision of Australia where segregation and monitoring are the norm.
Twenty one year old Christine is unhappy but doesn’t know how to change her life. Her world is completely regimented but she has everything she could possibly need - a powerful family, unlimited money, black servants to provide everything they need at home. The staff are brought in on buses daily because Christine lives in Safetytown, safe within the walls of the enclave. And the all powerful Agency keeps them all safe. But safe from what?
I liked the initial world building as it took a while to slowly find out what Christine's world was really like. This gave the first half of the book an unsettling feeling as you know that things are off but you don’t really know what is going on. I also thought the queer representation was excellent and introduced trans and non-binary characters in ways that I would not have expected.
Towards the end the different characters and their relationships felt a little over simplified for me and almost felt more YA in delivery. The pacing was also a bit uneven for my taste. The set up and Christine's long journey to safety felt slow in comparison to the ending which moved a lot faster.
But the enclave was such an interesting concept especially as it was set in Australia. Themes of racism, homophobia and big brother surveillance were threaded through. This was an allegory for the evil of our modern world with a nod towards the experiences of First Nations people in Australia.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this. Dystopian novels are definitely my jam! Looking forward to reading both Terra Nullius and The Old Lie which are on my TBR shelf.
Thank you to @hachetteaus for my #gifted copy.
Twenty one year old Christine is unhappy but doesn’t know how to change her life. Her world is completely regimented but she has everything she could possibly need - a powerful family, unlimited money, black servants to provide everything they need at home. The staff are brought in on buses daily because Christine lives in Safetytown, safe within the walls of the enclave. And the all powerful Agency keeps them all safe. But safe from what?
I liked the initial world building as it took a while to slowly find out what Christine's world was really like. This gave the first half of the book an unsettling feeling as you know that things are off but you don’t really know what is going on. I also thought the queer representation was excellent and introduced trans and non-binary characters in ways that I would not have expected.
Towards the end the different characters and their relationships felt a little over simplified for me and almost felt more YA in delivery. The pacing was also a bit uneven for my taste. The set up and Christine's long journey to safety felt slow in comparison to the ending which moved a lot faster.
But the enclave was such an interesting concept especially as it was set in Australia. Themes of racism, homophobia and big brother surveillance were threaded through. This was an allegory for the evil of our modern world with a nod towards the experiences of First Nations people in Australia.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this. Dystopian novels are definitely my jam! Looking forward to reading both Terra Nullius and The Old Lie which are on my TBR shelf.
Thank you to @hachetteaus for my #gifted copy.