When is a dystopia not a dystopia?

Find myself baffled by this list of SF books that aren't set in 'bleak dystopias.' I enjoyed "Ninefox Gambit," but in what sense is it not set in a horrific wasteland full of human rights violations?

And the Empire of Ancilliary Justice is not actually one I'd be queuing up to live in, what with the constant surveillance, the tyrannical and fractured government, and, oh yes, a military that recruits its grunts by murdering conquered people and turning their bodies into AI controlled drones. I mean, I love tea, but...

(I suspect what they actually mean is 'SF that's not grimdark!', but even then, I'm confused by the inclusion of Ninefox Gambit...)