Wooooo, this was intense.

Deliverance but set in the Australian outback, a family's vacation goes horribly wrong after they pay some locals to take them to their family island to see some koalas.

Do "Americans behave badly in this book?" Yes, they kind of do, BUT the O'Neil family is like some inbred lawless community with zero moral compass and only operating under "an eye for an eye" protocol.

The vast majority of the book has the main family being chased around this island by the family who owns it, which could have been boring, but the author manages to keep it fresh, frightening, and interesting with all the hoops he throws in.

Billed as a psychological thriller, it bordered on modern day horror at times with a dark disturbing plot that is like one of these shocking kidnap story headlines you wake up and read. It kept me reading till the very end. I'm off to start a romance novel so I can wash this bloodshed out of my mouth.

WOW…

This book was an incredible thriller that constantly kept me on the edge of my seat. I wish I could read this for the first time again!

A family travels to Australia for a work conference. They set off on a day trip to an island that quickly became a pursuit of survival.

This novel is perfect for fans of No Exit by Taylor Adams.

This book kept my pulse racing and kept me eagerly devouring every page.

Fantastic novel and definitely one of my top books of the year so far!

This was twisty, fast paced, keeps on the edge of your seat with heart pumping action. With a slightly rough beginning, it picks up and then from that point it's non-stop. A little murder, a little mayhem, a little car chase, suspense, cat-and-mouse game, this book has it. Some of the content is very dark bordering on more of a horror than a thriller for me, which isn't a genre I typically like. It was written well and the progression of events was well done. Some of the content was actually too much for me and gave me anxiety while reading which some people love but it was a negative for me. I wish the aftermath of the event was longer or more explained because it did feel like we wont get to find out what happened.

I really wanted to love The Island. The premise was interesting enough, a cross between the last thing he told me and an episode of Criminal Minds I once saw (not telling which one, you’ll have to figure that out for yourself). The problem I had with this book was the foreshadowing. This should be done so that you don’t realize it’s happening, sadly there was a lot of telling not showing here.

I would recommend this to those who love a book unfolding with bits and pieces of the ending scattered throughout the story, definitely not for those who like to figure out the ending with the characters, not before them.

The Island is enjoyable enough. I didn’t hate it, but I also didn’t love it enough that it is going on my forever recommend shelf. Will I read it again? Nah. Will I recommend it to a friend? Probably to a couple folks. Which is why I give it a solid 3.5. (NetGalley won’t let me do halfsies 🙄)

Yikes, glad I finished that and my brain is safely off the island from hell! This is a fast paced, anxiety inducing, thrill read you don’t want to miss! I heard one of my favorite bookstagrammers, Jordy, call it a Die Hard/Deliverance mash up and I can’t improve on that. Of course you will have to suspend belief, of course there are some inconsistencies. But I highly recommend this story if you’re looking for some high octane fun!

Thank you Netgalley, Little Brown & Co, and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

WOW WOW WOW. This thriller was SO good. This is exactly what I'm looking for in a thriller: something that keeps my heart pounding with a plot so good I can't put it down.

In this story you're following a family who is being held captive on an island with no escape in sight. The stakes are SO high and it truly seems like an impossible situation. It kept my mind turning wondering "What would you do in this situation??" and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through.

I also loved the characters in this one and the dynamics between them. Plus the atmosphere of Australia in the summer heat and all its creepy creatures was a villain in itself! This is THE thriller of the summer!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me access to an ARC for an honest review.

I haven’t read any previous books by this author but I do have the Chain on my TBR. Although I didn’t like to as much as others, I still enjoyed it. It was a wild ride and kinda weird at times, but weird can be good! It just wasn’t my favorite read. Will still check out more by this author.

Holy crap! That was one helluva ride - made me think of many a horror/thriller movie I’ve seen in the past. A little Hills Have Eyes minus the inbreeding and radiation - but every bit as much cruelty and terror.

I was late to the bandwagon with The Chain but made sure to read it before THE ISLAND was published so I could finally understand all the hype. The Chain was incredibly disturbing, heart-pounding, and kept you on the edge of your seat, and let's just say The Island is the same way. Not only that, it's very atmospheric and you'll feel as if you're in the Australian climate.

Be forewarned, there is a lot of violence (graphic violence) and know ahead that there are pretty detailed descriptions of the deaths of dogs.

With all that said, if you've read The Chain, you will more than likely be glued to The Island. If you haven't, be prepared to have a new author you won't be able to put down!

4.5/5 stars
Thank you to Little, Brown, and Company and NetGalley for the eARC for my honest review.

I really enjoyed The Chain - Adrian McKinty's previous book and New York Times bestseller. I eagerly picked up his latest, The Island, anticipating another suspense filled read.

The premise was good and took inspiration from an event in McKinty's own life.
"While I was driving in rural Australia on a very isolated island inhabited by one large extended family, a woman wearing a hearing aid pulled out of a blind road on her bicycle and I swerved to miss her. I half jokingly told my wife, Leah, that if - God forbid - we had hit her we wouldn't have got off that island alive."

McKinty's characters - Tom, his teen children Owen and Olivia and his second wife Heather do hit the bicyclist. They make some bad decisions and suddenly they're fighting for their lives. Cue the Deliverance movie sound track.

McKinty has created some godawful, depraved characters in the island folks. They are a law unto their selves and they want retribution from Tom and his family for the death of the cyclist. The narrative is experienced from Heather's viewpoint. Heather is a good lead and given some background. But there's not a lot of depth. It's all about the action.

Initially I was caught up in the tension, the danger, the next twist of trouble in the family's attempts to escape the islanders. But about midway, it became more than a little unbelievable. Now, I'm all for suspending belief in a suspense novel. But it all became too much. Heather is now a kick butt warrior, the snotty stepkids are as well. Cue Bruce Willis. There's more 'grain of salt' plot lines, skill sets and more, but I don't want to provide spoilers. The plot is busy and by the end felt almost repetitive as the close calls and near misses just keep on coming. McKinty has also included First Nations folklore, customs and history. The relationship between Heather and the kids is often explored, but didn't really work either for me. It felt like an inserted element ticked off on a check list.

The prose are short and staccato. I became annoyed with one word pronouncements. Water. Sky. Sun. etc.

The Island felt and read like a movie script. Which is kinda true, as Hulu has picked this up as a series.

So, bottom line - implausible, but somehow gripping. I had to see what happened in the end. I'm in the minority on my three star rating. That being said, I will still pick McKinty's next book.

The most accurate word for The Island by Adrian Mckinty is intense. Every single page crackles with intensity. The imagery at times can be brutal but this is a story that is impossible to put down. I can’t imagine that this won’t be made into a movie. Heather is a kick ass heroine. I highly recommend this one!

While I found the premise of The Island to be appealing, I am not sure what I just read. The characters were strange and a lot was overdone and at times. It is a book filled with action, tension, and suspense and there is a lot of violence. I had to suspend my disbelief during certain parts of the book and I got some LOST vibes while reading. Not sure I could recommend.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Genre: thriller, mystery, suspense, crime fiction
TW: death of animals

I enjoyed this! The beginning started off a little weird to me but then it really picked up! It was jam packed full of action pretty much the entire book. This book does a great job of allowing you to get attached to characters and rooting for them 100%. Im rating a 3.5 because I did feel that there was almost tooooo much action? I kept waiting for it to all come together and then there would be more action. It just kind of dragged on IMO. All in all, I’d definitely recommend if you’re looking for a suspenseful action book! Thank you to #netgalley #thechase #theisland #adrianmckinty for the eARC! This book released yesterday so go snag it if it peaks your interest!!

4.5 stars!
Heather has recently married Tom and become a stepmom to 2 surly teenagers who want nothing to do with her after the death of her mother. Tom gets called to attend a conference in Australia, and the whole family tags along as a bonding experience. Their travels lead them to Dutch Island, a remote location off the coast of the mainland. WHen things take a turn for the worst, Heather and the kids become trapped. They have no one to rely on but each other as they try to escape.

Heather was so cool. I just loved her resilience and grit. Her character totally made the story. She was so resourceful and her wit surprised me many times. I think she was way too good for Tom. The setting was executed perfectly, Dutch Island came to life for me in my mind. Everything about this book was cinematic and it doesn’t surprise me that it has been picked up already for a TV series. The dialogue, the setting, the action will all make for a great show. The family that lives on the island were excellent antagonists. They gave me the heebie jeebies and the cast of villains were totally unpredictable. Thanks to @netgalley and @littlebrown for one of the most entertaining reads I’ve had in a while.

What did I just read?

The Island, is absolutely mind blowing! Thrilling, suspenseful, scary, twisted..... is that enough adjectives for you?

The Island fed my dark soul. Its beyond disturbing and I will most likely have nightmares for a week This will be my go to book for one of the most traumatic books I have ever read. This is one of those books that will have you peering over your shoulder long after concluding.

I know a lot of you say how much you love thrillers and the darker the better.... proceed with caution on this one and don't say I didn't warn you.

I am completely and totally obsessed with Adrian McKinty, and I can not wait to see what the future holds for this fan-freaking-tastic author.

Adrian McKinty has a style that keeps the reader on the edge of your toes, and most recently, The Chain was a read straight through in one sitting. Again, once I picked up The Island, I couldn’t put it down. There’s so much real dialogue you can relate to, thoughts the characters have that you may never admit to thinking yourself but have. Adrian has taken his latest two books straight into thriller territory. His novels take you beyond the story and into directions I’ve never read in a book before, and it’s what keeps me picking his books up and reading them over and over. After reading The Chain and The Island, I can’t wait to read what he comes up with next.

I just finished this book and boy what a ride this was! The action started pretty quickly and didn’t let up. The whole time I couldn’t help but think what would I do in Heather’s situation. I really enjoyed the location (an isolated island in Australia). The O’Neill clan creeped me out.

If you are looking for an edge of your seat, disturbing at times thriller, then this is it! Some parts towards the end got a little far fetched, but as long as you can suspend your disbelief just buckle in for the ride and enjoy!

This book is being adapted for the screen by Hulu and I’m really looking forward to it. I think it will make a great series!

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was quite the adventure! I have heard great things about this author so I jumped at the chance to read this book. I had hoped that this would be an exciting read and it most certainly was. It did take just a bit for things to really start happening but once the action started, it didn’t slow down until the very end. I am so glad that I decided to pick up this entertaining story.

Tom, Heather, Olivia, and Owen are in Australia so that Tom can attend a conference and the family can have a bit of a vacation. Tom and Heather were only recently married after Tom’s first wife died. The family decides to go to a private island in hopes of seeing some native wildlife. They have an accident while there and things get out of hand quickly. Soon, Heather is running from the group that runs the island and trying to keep her two stepchildren safe.

It did take me a little while to warm up to Heather, Owen, and Olivia but once I did, I was completely hooked. I wanted things to work out for them but I didn’t see how that could happen. It was actually great seeing Owen and Olivia come out of their shell and start working as a team along with Heather. There were plenty of twists and turns in the story to keep things very interesting. I was amazed by how resourceful Heather, Owen, and Olivia were and I enjoyed seeing them trying to figure out how to outsmart the people out to get them.

I would definitely recommend this book to others. I found this to be an incredibly exciting story that was next to impossible to set aside. I cannot wait to read more of Adrian McKinty’s work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Little, Brown and Company via NetGalley.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: TODAY! May 17, 2022
I was blown away by Adrian McKinty’s, “The Chain”, and it still has left its impression months later. His new novel, “The Island”, had impressive shoes to fill, and although it was entertaining, it didn’t stick to my skin the way “The Chain” did.
Heather Baxter grew up in an isolated commune on a small island near Seattle. When she meets and marries Tom, a widowed doctor twenty years her senior, she finally sees the possibility of a new life. Even if that new life includes Tom’s preteen son and daughter, Owen and Olivia. In hopes of cementing the family relationship, Tom takes Heather and his children to the Australian countryside, hoping that some international animals and scenery will help build some familial bonds. But the family gets more than they bargained for when they end up stranded on a secluded island, an island maintained by the dangerous O’Neill family. When Tom is killed, Heather must prove to the children (and to herself) that she is strong enough to save them all.
“The Island” is reminiscent of “Old” (the M. Night Shyamalan movie), and there are definitely a few horror movie throwbacks (“Wolf Creek”, “The Hills Have Eyes” to name a few) that this book pays homage to. The secluded island, the inbred and almost feral family left to maintain the nearly abandoned outback- it’s all something that’s been the stuff of Hollywood for years. Good thing for McKinty, this kind of stuff is right up my alley.
I found the writing in this novel a little strange. There were some odd phrases in conversation that just sounded ‘off’, and the deliberately short sentences at the beginning of most of the paragraphs were very descriptive but tended to err on the side of confusion for me. The story was told in the third person, from the perspective mostly of Heather, but when others took over, it was not always immediately relevant, and it took me a few sentences to realize the narrator had flipped. Heather started the novel off as a gold-digging trophy wife, but ended up as a respectable and likable character, and I was eager to root for her and the children.
Some of the actions Heather took throughout the novel were ridiculously unbelievable (again, Hollywood-ready) but I loved every minute of the action. From the dry, gritty Australian outback to the backwoods, inbred O’Neil family, McKinty doesn’t let up. “The Island” is a completely different ball game than “The Chain”, but it definitely deserves a chance at bat.

Finally, finally, FINALLY I have found a super gripping thriller!

I was on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading THE ISLAND! I was hooked from page one and I read all but the last hour in a day. This one is totally unputdownable.

I loved Heather and her growth as a character. At first I wasn’t sure about her because she often talked about how she was too young to be a stepmother, she wasn’t ready for kids, etc, but when it came down to it, her number one priority was making sure Olivia and Owen got off Dutch Island safely. She was smart and savvy and became someone the kids could rely on.

The family that lived on the island was super creepy and I can’t wait to see them on the big screen as this has been adapted for a Hulu series. They were some messed up Texas Chainsaw Massacre weirdos for real.

100% recommend this one for thriller lovers and be prepared to binge read it in one sitting!