?Laila Lalami's extraordinary new novel is more than just a political warning the book is an
exploration of the psyche itself the strange ungovernable forces of fate and emotion that make
us human' RUMAAN ALAM author of Leave the World Behind What if every bit of data that exists
on you - from your digital footprint to the contents of your dreams - was used to determine how
much a threat you are to those around you? In a world without privacy what is the cost of
freedom? Sara is returning home from a conference abroad when agents from the Risk Assessment
Administration pull her aside at the airport and inform her that she will commit a crime. Using
data from her dreams their algorithm has determined that she presents an imminent risk to the
person she loves most and must now be transferred to a retention centre for twenty-one days to
lower her ?risk score'. But when Sara arrives at Madison to be observed alongside other
dangerous dreamers it soon becomes clear that getting home to her family is going to cost more
than just three weeks of good behaviour. And as every minor misdemeanour every slight
deviation from the rules adds time to her stay she begins to wonder if there might be more
here than first meets the eye. Then one day a new resident arrives disrupting the order
of the facility and setting off a chain of events that lead Sara on a collision course with the
companies that have deprived her of her freedom. The Dream Hotel is a gripping speculative
mystery about the seductive dangers of the technologies that are supposed to make our lives
easier. As terrifying as it is inventive it explores how much we can ever truly know those
around us - even with the most invasive surveillance systems in place.
