The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami
Imagine being Imprisoned Because of a Dream...Terrifying
In The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami, Sara lands at LAX only to be detained by a federal agency that claims its algorithm has predicted she will harm her husband based on data pulled from her dreams. After buying a sleep-monitoring device following the birth of her twins, she unknowingly surrendered the privacy of her subconscious. Now she’s confined to a retention center with other women accused of crimes they haven’t committed, their releases delayed by shifting rules and opaque metrics.
Set in a near future that feels alarmingly close, the novel explores surveillance, racial profiling, and the corporate profit machine behind predictive justice. It’s eerie, anxiety-inducing, and sharply observant about how easily convenience turns into control. A was a gripping read, but after the last two books, I need a sweet and heartwarming palette cleanser.
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