I so wanted to like this book. I usually like dystopian books, but this one just left me confused and bored.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The views and opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

About a year ago, I read Mackintosh's debut, The Water Cure, and was impressed enough with her storytelling and writing to grab this one up as soon as it became available.

As with that debut, Mackintosh drops readers straight into a dystopian world where women are once again the target of manipulation while being made to believe that what's being done is for their benefit. Once again, Mackintosh raises a lot of questions - why was the lottery instituted, why are the blue ticket girls sent off to make their own way to the city with almost no assistance and no transportation, how does the machine determine who should get white tickets and who should get blue, and, if this is such a great plan, why do the blue ticket women require regular visits with a doctor?

As with The Water Cure, Mackintosh left a lot of my questions unanswered; but this time, knowing that she had done that in her previous book, I was surprised by it and it didn't bother me so much. I did get enough answers to make the story feel whole and to understand the choices that Calla made and why she spent so much of the book feeling so angry and questioning her own motives.


There were some plot pieces I felt might have been left out, although they certainly underscored the risk that Calla was taking and the fear underlying her choice. A lot of time is spent in Calla's head which is often filled with quite violent thoughts. That might have been toned down but as the book developed I did begin to understand why she might feel that way.

There is certainly an strong sense of The Handmaid's Tale here but Mackintosh takes that and makes it her own. It's a short book and a fast read, thanks it part to it's somewhat unique style and because Calla's journey is so compelling. Mackintosh has certainly found her niche and I look forward to reading more of her work.

I just couldn't get into this book. It was written in a way that really couldn’t keep me interested. Sucks because I was really looking forward to it based on the synopsis.

Dystopian novel similar to The Handmaid's Tale. Tickets are assigned to women at their first period to determine if they will be a wife and mother or not. Calla decided she did not like her role, and so she decided to change it. I wanted to like this book, but the structure was awkward and there was not much development to create this dystopian world and answer why women are in this predicament. There is not much character interaction either, with most of the narrative driven by Calla's thoughts. The description got me interested, and I think it has a lot of potential, but it just doesn't seem fully fleshed out.

The comparison to 1984 and Handmaids Tale by reviewers is apt. Some have made note that the writing style of short paragraphs and stream of consciousness type of writing feels disconcerting and disjointed. I did initially, find myself easily putting the book down and not really engaged in it. I find that more of the product of our current living with the Covid pandemic mindset right now; that of being socially isolated and disconnected from real live interactions. I call it Covid brain: where it is hard to mentally focus on anything too deep. While I agree with another reviewer that it was hard to fathom how Calla thought everything would play out since she had obviously no plan, I ultimately enjoyed the author’s writing style.

Ultimately, I wasn't able to really sink my teeth into the writing style of this book and did not end up finishing it.

Imagine a world in which your future was determined for you at an early age, a world in which your path was plotted by a lottery ruled by a machine.

That’s the world of Sophie Mackintosh’s new book "Blue Ticket." This dystopian vision from the author of 2018’s acclaimed “The Water Cure” is a bleak and unrelenting glimpse at a world in which reproductive agency is disallowed. This is a place where a woman’s possibilities for motherhood are determined at the time of their first menstruation – and there is no appeal.

It’s a provocative and challenging book, one that offers a particular perspective of the slippery slope that is institutional control of bodily autonomy. It is tense and thrilling, combining in-depth character study with just the right amount of background. And while the setting is a speculative future, the woman on the run narrative is one that transcends its genre framework.

In an indeterminate future, the life paths of all women are determined via an opaque lottery process. At the time of her first period, a woman is expected to report to the nearest station so that she may learn what sort of life she is to have. A white ticket means a life of marriage and children. A blue ticket means a life of career aspirations and individual freedoms. Wife and mother or career woman – the choice is made for you … and all decisions are final.

When Calla’s time came for the lottery, she got a blue ticket. And in the years that immediately followed, she embraced the perceived freedoms that came with that ticket. She worked at her job and partied hard after hours, living the life that was chosen for her.

However, feelings begin to stir within her. Feelings that can only be called maternal. Unfamiliar urges, a desire to become to mother – it all comes bubbling up. All of those around her – her fellow blue tickets, her current gentleman friend, her government-assigned doctor – would view her feelings as unsavory, even if they weren’t illegal.

And then she gets pregnant.

Calla must go on the run, racing toward a supposed safe zone that may or may not actually exist. And along the way, she’s forced to rely on what her blue ticket life has taught her about the world, even as her utter ignorance regarding her burgeoning pregnancy leaves her vulnerable. It’s a hard and dangerous journey, one she can’t hope to complete on her own – but who (if anyone) can she trust? And just what is she willing to do to protect herself and her unborn child?

You might be tempted to view “Blue Ticket” through the nigh-ubiquitous lens of Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” – and make no mistake, there are definitely similarities in both substance and style – but the world that Mackintosh has created is very much its own thing. It’s a far more secular book, largely devoid of overt religious overtones and instead extrapolating out an ostensibly just bureaucratic system driven by a sterile misogyny.

Often, speculative fiction has a tendency to overexplain. There’s an understandable temptation toward info-dump exposition, but most of the time, it just serves as unnecessary handholding that pulls the reader away from the narrative. Mackintosh displays little interest in that sort of shepherding, opting instead to focus on the journey; we learn everything we need to know about this world through the eyes of the characters as they engage with it – the author is deliberate in making sure we get some understanding of what it means to feel you’re on the wrong side from BOTH sides. A little ambiguity never hurt anyone, and the truth is that it’s more fun when we get to fill in some of the margins with our own imaginations.

Mackintosh is also a propulsive storyteller. It’s easy to mine tension from a chase or a confrontation, but she turns routine doctor visits and phone calls into taut nail-biters. And she’s created someone fascinating in Calla; so much of the book’s power comes from our look inside her head as she struggles with the conflicts and consequences of her choice.

“Blue Ticket” is a thoughtful adventure, a voyage of principle and pathos. It has big thematic ideas, but wraps them in a complicated and thrilling narrative – an engaging combination. The most interesting speculative fiction is the kind that has something meaningful to say – and this book certainly qualifies.

Vet different and very, very good, Blue Ticket isn't for every reader, but for those who like a thoughtful and challenging read, this is an amazing book! It took me a little while to get into the story, but once I did, bam! I couldn't stop reading and Blue Ticket was so fascinating, thoughtful, surprising and all the other superlatives you give a great read. I loved it!

I've always been a fan of dystopian novels. 1984, The Handmaid's Tale, etc. When I read the synopsis of Blue Ticket, I knew it was a book I had to read.

When Calla bleeds for the first time, she is given a blue ticket along with 3 others of her group of 5 girls. She then immediately undergoes a procedure to keep her from getting pregnant and sent off to make her way to her new life in a city. Blue ticketed woman can choose how to live their lives except for that one little thing of ever having children.

I was very intrigued by this concept of having the choice of children taken away from you. Unfortunately, I did not like the style of the writing, or the characters.

The storyline ended up being very disturbing and Calla was so completely unlikeable doing what she did with no good plan whatsoever.

I read the author's previous book, The Water Cure, and liked that book even less so I guess this book was a step up. I wanted to give the author another chance to see if her writing grew on me. It didn't. At least, for me, the subject matter of this book was better than the first book. Sadly, I'm not sure I'll be picking up any other books from this author in the future.

*Thank you to NetGalley and DoubleDay Books for the advance copy.*

After reading the little summary of this book I was quite excited to read it. However, it was nothing like I'd expected and to me, it just fell short of what I had hoped it would be. The writing style was different than anything I had ever read before using only short paragraphs or sentences which made it very hard for me to stay engaged with the book. I often found myself reading only a few pages at a time before I'd want to go do something else. I also felt like I didn't connect at all to any of the characters. I just went through a rather traumatic loss a little over a month ago so maybe it was just the wrong time for me to be reading a book all about pregnant women. Even though I didn't enjoy the book, it was definitely nice to see a dystopian society unlike any I'd read about before. Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for the opportunity to read an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review.

A similar theme to The Handmaiden's Tale, well written and little more obvious themes for a younger or immature audience.
While the themes in this story need to be discussed, I thought this story was too obvious... for a younger audience, this may be ideal.
Recommended.

I normally love dystopian novels, but this one was hard to like. I don’t feel that the reader gets enough sense of the world we’re in with the Calla to understand the ticket system or even what’s at stake. I like spare writing but this was too spare. I needed more details to enter this “other world.” I’m not posting a review online because I don’t like to leave negative reviews publicly. I did however mention on twitter and Instagram that I was reading it.

Blue Ticket is a deep and disturbing dystopian novel, yet an empowering and important one. Not an easy read, but it is compelling and thought-provoking, enticing you to push through to completion. When reading the summary, I was reminded of Divergent, where the population is divided into factions, and can later choose their final faction to stay, but Blue Ticket was far more advanced. I do love to read about women empowerment and defiance against all that is unfair or unjust, and for that reason, Blue Ticket screams and begs to be read.

Imagine not choosing if you will have children, but instead having the choice made for you? Some women would likely be thankful that they did not have to analyze and decide for themselves (no guilt? one less thing to decide in life? trust that the government knows what they are doing?) while others would push back against the loss of autonomy. Among those women who question the process many would think they are alone in their thoughts, keeping their despair to themselves, while the braver ones would push back against the system--but how?⁠
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It's difficult to not compare any near future novel dealing with reproductive rights to The Handmaid's Tale. Blue Ticket definitely has elements that are comparable with The Handmaid's Tale novel but I think it was a bit more aligned with the television series, specifically the end of season 2.⁠
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I knew I wanted to read this novel the second I saw it because I loved the author's previous novel, The Water Cure. Both novels exist in an otherworldly vagueness, almost a dreamlike state, where logic is questionable and violence is palpable. This is definitely not going to be loved by everyone, but will be embraced by readers who loved The Water Cure, The Grace Year, and Vox.

So, this one was a bit of a mixed bag for me. It was definitely more good than bad, and I am glad that I read it, but there were a few things that left me wanting a bit more. Let's break it down!
The Things I Loved:

► The whole concept was intriguing, and not all that farfetched. I mean look, we're going to be in a situation of overpopulation, it's just the facts. And we've all heard the current news out of China, making this a timely topic. Women basically being granted the ability to have children is terrifying- both for those who are expected to bear children, and for those who aren't allowed to.

►Calla's journey was intense and changed her so much as a person. To go from imagining your whole life as one thing (career, friends, having fun) to a completely different one (deciding to remove her birth control, conceive and bear a child, all while on the lam) is quite a transformation in itself. But the things she learns along the way and the people she meets on her journey change her more than she ever imagined possible.

►Speaking of the journey, it was pretty great! I love when a character has to go on the run, to survive no matter what obstacles lie in their path. This was that type of excursion for sure, but with the added pressure of a baby's welfare in the mix.

►I also really enjoyed the relationships that Calla formed along the way. The people she met added quite a lot to the story, which had a tendency to be solitary, considering Calla's circumstances.

What I Didn't:

►The world-building was lacking. When is this? Where is this? Why is this? No idea on any fronts. I suppose that could have been intentional, in the "it could happen anywhere" way, but I am too curious for that to appeal to me.

►I couldn't wrap my head around Calla's motivations. In the beginning of the book, Calla was into bar hopping and hooking up, and basically a lot of her own endeavors. That's totally fine, but I couldn't comprehend why she'd suddenly decide to give her whole life up to raise a child- one she'd never particularly wanted. It seemed very... on a whim, and that doesn't seem like the best reason to have a child under any circumstances, let alone a situation where both her life and the child's were now in danger. The father also had no idea it was possible for him to be a father, which seemed rather unfair of Calla. Then she's mad that he's not exactly tickled about being lied to and manipulated which... what now?

►Calla is kind of just unlikable. I mean, even after she removes her birth control, and gets pregnant knowing she's now in deep shit, she continues her reckless behavior. That bothered me extra, because if you're going to bring a child into the world, maybe don't set it up for failure by drinking and such? Like why go to all this trouble of skirting the law and running away just to not take care of your kid? So much of what she did was extremely selfish, and while that is how society set her up to be, she didn't have to continue it. Maybe if we knew more about her as a character she'd have been easier to connect to.

Bottom Line: Definitely a compelling premise and an interesting story, but could have been made better by more developed characters and world.

Wow, this story. I love how it explored motherhood and what it means, and the power of it.

The book is set in a dystopian future, where the choice of motherhood is taken away from a woman. Meaning, once you menstruate for the first time you are entered into this lottery which determines your future. White ticket - you'll be able to become a mother. And blue ticket - you will never be able to have children.

The story is very one person centered, like a character study. It shows this woman, Calla and her battle with her pre-determined future. She has the blue ticket around her neck and she's given the freedom of living a free-for-all kind of life. She doesn't need to have a husband, she can have sexual partners, she can drink, smoke, do drugs, travel, enjoy anything she wants in life. Just not have children.

She battles the growing need inside her though and we watch her make this choice where the consequences are unknown. She gets herself pregnant, and the tension grows as we including the MC have no idea what happens when you go against the rules. With some help, she goes on the run. There's a hint of freedom behind the border of this country, she just needs to get herself and her unborn baby over the border.

The journey is painstakingly long, and ominous as it seems she's being watched by everyone. What we don't get, and I really wanted, was the world beyond Calla. There's a hint of evilness and anger from the people in this world, but it's not explained or shown much. Very reminescent of Atwood's Handmaid's Tale, but not as religious.

"I wondered if motherhood held such appeal for me because it was a masochism you couldn’t ever let go of."

It is also very psychological, as Calla has to understand what is happening to her, her giving up her body to this pregnancy, the changes that come with it all and in the end the absolute instinct and love to do what you need to do to protect this life. We go through all the stages of growing psychologically with the MC.

I'm sure that because I'm a mother I found this relatable and completely understood this growing into motherhood that Calla experienced. The complete loss of yourself, but also the self-destructive way she was living till she finally gives herself completely over to this unknown future and the baby.

"I didn’t know if I loved her from the first second, I was too afraid to make those sorts of value judgements, but I knew that I would die for her, and that was more important."

It really hit me hard in the end, and her final dream. There's so much more I could say about this book (how this compares infertility and the unfairness of it for all women) and the ideas explored I just don't want to spoil it for anyone. Hope you read it.

"Blue Ticket" is Sophie Mackintosh's first book following the success of "The Water Cure." Like that book, "Blue Ticket" is focused on women and their role in society. In this book, once a girl reaches puberty, she attends a lottery where she is given either a white or blue ticket that will have significant ramifications in her life. If she pulls a white ticket, that dictates that she will be married and have children. If she pulls a blue ticket, she cannot have children, but is able to have a career and independence. One's life is decided at that point and it cannot be changed or circumvented. Or can it? The main character Calla, a blue ticket holder wants to become pregnant and does so (through some unpleasant means), but what happens when she goes against society? She must go on the run. In the process she meets other women who have been touched by this or are struggling with their lot in society. This is a fast, engaging read looking at the themes of motherhood, free choice, and societal pressures.

Thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday for providing me this advance copy for review.

This book reads like a bleak, dystopian narrative. For fans of Handmaid's tale and Margaret Atwood in general, with hints of 1984 and Brave New World.

Happy publishing day!

I went into this book not knowing much about it and I was surprised with a quick and flowy read. I was absorbed in the story and needed to know what would become of Calla. Though the writing was easy to follow, it almost seemed to lack emotion even at times when it was supposed to be an emotional moment. This made it come off as robotic and not real.. not sure if that makes sense. I think that’s just my personal problem of wanting quotations when someone is speaking.

I do wish there was more world building as this isn’t much of a dystopian novel to me. The only aspect of dystopia was the blue and white tickets. There was no world building and everything else seemed relatively normal so I would’ve liked more background. Other than that, the concept of whether or not you get to be a mother reminded me a little bit of the Handmaiden’s Tale. The premise is interesting especially because everyone wants what they can’t have - regardless of which ticket they get and how they get it. It made me think what I would do in this situation or how I would feel getting a blue or white ticket. Overall, this was a solid 3 stars novel and I look forward to other novels from this author.

Thank you to netgalley and to the publisher for my advanced copy!

I think that maybe Sophie Mackintosh writes beautiful stories that somehow - I just can't enjoy. Blue Ticket is beautifully written, just as The Water Cure was - but I can't seem to get myself into it.

There is a haunting quality to Mackintosh's writing - it's lyrical, it almost floats. It's too soft for me but I see how and why she is successful and has legions of fans.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.