Think Survivor but with whiny, irritating teens and armed madmen seemingly plucked straight out of the film Deliverance. Which was in my head long before I read the authors note admitting to channeling the film for the plot idea.

Whether that’s a good thing or not, I am still undecided.

A newly married couple, who with every passing page seem more ill-suited to one another, embark on their first family trip together. That’s right, he comes complete with two children that I regularly wanted to maim myself, never mind the killer(s) intent. But I digress.

On the hunt for Australian wildlife, they make the wildly poor decision to get on a boat with three random men with questionable hygiene to see all that a remote island has to offer.

You know what it has to offer? Catastrophe that’s what.

Once let loose to explore on their own, they have a tragic accident that results in a choice that unleashes the wrath of these strange Islanders upon them.

Now you might think from my tone that I didn’t think much of this book, and you would be wrong. Equivalent of a made for television movie, all the action, depth of character and plot development will just skim the surface. And that is just fine for a few hours of pure, mindless entertainment.

Heather and Tom are recently married and travelling to Australia with Tom's children from his first marriage (he's a widower). The kids desperately want to see everything the country has to offer. They find a remote island which does not allow visitors, but they buy their way in. Then the accident happens and their dream vacation turns into a nightmare. With twists you will not see coming, this book is a must read, absolutely unputdownable!

#TheIsland #NetGalley

Wow! 4.5 ⭐️ Rounded up to 5. I love the "vacation gone wrong" trope, but there are so many of those lately that I wasn't sure what to expect - I certainly wasn't expecting what McKinty delivered here. This is an anxiety-inducing roller coaster ride of a story, with a touch of horror (not usually my thing, but fully enjoyed it here). A smaller subplot as well as a twist I wasn't expecting jumped out which was a pleasant surprise, all smaller details tied together later and the character development was impressive. The book manages to be both character and plot driven and expertly manages both. I look forward to reading anything and everything that this author comes up with in the future!

What It's About: A family vacation to Australia turns into nightmare when the Baxters decided to take their adventure to the next level by going to the remote Dutch island, which is off limits to outsiders.


My thoughts: If you're looking for an action-packed, suspense-filled and a one sitting kind of book, you may want to check this out! Just imagine you are on a remote island, with limited or no cell service, and soon after you found out the inhabitants on the island is not who they appear to be. Yup. Buckle up my friends! You are about to embark on a wild and bat-crap crazy ride!

The plot was straightforward with some twists here and there, and it did keep me invested in the story. The characters are forced to make tough choices because at the end of the day, it is all about survival. However, I wish there was more depth in the characters. I couldn't connect with any of them. It was just go go go throughout the book, which is good if you want that kind of story.

In a nutshell, read this book if you want an entertaining, thrilling and a very plot driven story!

Pub. Date: May 17th, 2022

***Thank you Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for this gifted review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.***

I read this book as an ARC I received from Netgalley. I loved this thriller. It captivates you right from the start and draws you in instantly. The twist was definitely not predictable at all. Highly recommend.

Tom has a conference in Australia and has decided to bring his family along for a mini vacation. When they meet a local who offers to show them koalas on a private island they jump at the chance. While they're on the island a tragedy occurs and they suddenly find themselves fighting for survival and trying to escape the unimaginable.

What in the holy Deliverance did I just read?! Adrian McKinty has another hit on his hands! What a great thriller! As soon as I saw a book by the author of The Chain I knew I had to read it. This book did not disappoint! I've been in a reading slump lately and this pulled me right out of it.

Trigger Warning - Animal death and violence. Normally I would not recommend a book that has animal death in it, but this particular case fit the story and was necessary.

When Heather and her new husband and two teenage stepchildren visit a private island off the coast of Australia, they are hoping for a quick koala sighting to break up the monotony of a working vacation. On the island, an accident leaves Heather alone with and responsible for the kids, as they brave the harsh conditions and are hunted down by the island’s revenge-seeking residents.
Fans of Nick Cutter’s The Deep and The Troop will appreciate the action, and readers of psychological thrillers will be drawn in by the twists and slowly ratcheting tension. Heather’s journey from reluctant stepmom to a fierce protector of the children is believably written and adds emotional weight to the story.

Wow! This book on audio is amazing! They went above and beyond in the cast and sound effects! You can hear wind blowing, dogs barking, bullets shot etc! I enjoyed the storyline and it fully kept my attention. I was rooting for the characters and wanted to know what was going to happen every step of the journey. They characters are bad ass and really know how to survive. The bad guys are just as equally bad! There are twists and turns as the characters use their survival skills on the island to survive and plan their escape. Really and enjoyable and entertaining listen! Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this audio book!

Tom, Heather, Olivia and Owen are traveling to Australia for Tom's work conference. While there, they decide to do some family sightseeing. They want to do it all, shop, dine, see the animals, maybe take in a winery tour...

One day they get the chance to go to a secluded island with the promise of seeing all sorts of animals natural to Australia, despite warnings that outsiders aren't welcome there...

As expected things go wrong and their lives are in danger. Can they stay alive long enough to make it off the island? Or will this be the last place they ever get to see...

Well that was an action-packed, made me stay up late and finish the next morning thriller! From the Prologue through the next-to-last chapter this was jam packed with anxiety-driven scenes. Whew...😂😂

I enjoyed The Chain too, so this is definitely an author I will read more of. I sincerely appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a review copy. All opinions expressed herein are mine and mine alone.

Oh my god what just happened! I've been looking forward to this book since reading McKinty's book The Chain, and he did not disappoint!

The book follows 24-year-old Heather, who is in Australia on a family trip with her new husband and her new stepchildren. Heather is having some trouble finding her place as a step mom to two preteens, Owen and Olivia, who have been complaining that they haven't seen any wildlife on their trip. When the American family is offered a chance to visit a remote Australian island, they think of it as an exciting opportunity to see nature.

Everything takes a turn when a horrible accident leaves them scrambling to back to the mainland alive. Their easy going vacation turns into a fight for their lives as they try to protect themselves from people and nature alike, all while Heather works to gain the trust of the stepchildren. This book is so action packed I couldn't tear myself away!

I really enjoyed this book! Fans of Karin Slaughter novels, The Last Thing He Told Me, and any adventure book will love this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for sharing this advanced reader's copy with me in return for my honest thoughts.

A working vacation for newly married Heather, Tom, and Tom’s 2 kids turns into a horrific nightmare! They arrived in Australia and came across a couple guys offering a ferry ride out to Dutch Island to see Koalas. All is good until an accident, which prevents them from leaving. This is an intense, quick read, but a bit predictable. Thank you Little Brown for a digital arc.

I just love the “vacation gone wrong” trope in thriller books and, WOW, did this one deliver on that! The Island is a book about a family that takes a vacation on a small island off the coast of Australia and has their vacation turn into a nightmare after a tragic car crash. This book will have your heart racing, your pulse pounding and you holding your breath throughout the story. This was an absolute roller coaster ride that does not let up! Loved this one!

✨Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC✨

A family vacation I would rather not use my vacation days for lol but really! McKinty is a successful writer and did not disappoint with this book either. It’s in your face suspense and an easy page turner.

This was one of those books you read…put your bookmark in…then decide that sleep isn’t important and read some more!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4685435661

Heather has no idea what marrying the recently widowed Tom will entail. His two children, Olivia and Owen are grieving and not overly impressed with their new stepmother. Tom has to attend a conference in Australia and sees it as an opportunity to bond as a family. The reality is much different. He is busy, the kids are bored, and Heather is trying her best to make her new life work.
A brief break in Tom's schedule has them setting out to hopefully see some koala bears. When they meet someone who lives on a private island, and for a price will ferry them to it, they grab the opportunity. They will have a short window to see a side of Australia very few tourists see. But things do not go as planned and an unfortunate accident and a bad decision turns their holiday into a nightmare.
Before this incident, I was pretty sure that Heather was in over her head and this marriage wouldn't last. But holy crazy island, she had quite a backstory before she met Tom, and turns out, she is a fierce adversary. As the story progressed, I was thinking that Ma, the island family matriarch(who BTW was some nasty piece of work)should just wave the white flag and let everyone leave. But this backwoods clan (that made me think of Deliverance), believed they had the upper hand. That isn't what happens anyway and if it did, we wouldn't get to read this twisted and terrifying tale. I am not going to risk giving anything away, but this was so hard to find a point to stop reading and do some adulting. So I pretty much just kept reading.

Oh,Man,Oh,Man,Oh,Man,Oh,Man,Oh,Man........

Now that I've adequately hyperventilated for the moment. Don't even approach this book of The Island if you are not open to the prospect of the bizarre, the outlandish, the off-the-wall-and-into-Wonky World, and all things that shift your eyeballs from side to side. Seriously speaking..........

The Island peels away at all the good intentions of a family trip. Destination: Australia. Dr. Tom Baxter is scheduled to speak at an Orthopedic conference there. He's newly married to his second wife, Heather, a twenty-four year old massage therapist. Tom was a widower when she met him. Owen, twelve, and Olivia, fourteen, had been through so much after the death of their mother a year ago. They beg Tom to take them along. Heather is not so sure. Being a stepmother can paint you into a corner.

So the Baxter family leave the cool weather of Seattle bound for the Outback of Australia and all it has to offer. It's key here that this will be the family trip from Hell. As a side excursion, the Baxters find themselves on an island that can only be accessed on a ferry. The plan (What could possible go wrong, boys and girls?) is a quick photo op of koalas and native plants and then back in time for Tom's speech at the conference. Whiney kids have the loudest voices.

But a tragic accident occurs while the family is driving the dusty roads of this island. We'll meet the O'Neill family who have squattered there for eons. Ma is the head of this clan and a lovely piece of work. Extricating themselves from the hospitality of this group of wackos will be easier said than done. And the wheels will now turn at a furious pace.

The Island is strange. Strange to the point of doubting what you are reading. The Rationale Road has been left far behind in the rear view mirror. You are entering into an unsettling storyline which won't be for everyone. The Island is raw in its telling. And the action takes place in a rapid rollout. Be prepared for that. But if you enjoy high octane adventure and a rough and ragged intensity of a relentless head-for-the-hills bolt to the finish, then say no more. You've found it within these pages. Hats off to Adrian McKinty for this breathless abandonment of the normal world into all things WooWoo. WoW! Just WoW!

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Little, Brown and Company and to Adrian McKinty for the opportunity.

What a page turner.

Heather, a young massage therapist marries Tom who is a widower and a doctor. He has 2 children who are not welcoming to her. Tom accepts an invitation to speak at a conference in Australia and decides to take the family.

After touring Australia and arriving at their destination, they meet a Dutch couple. With this couple, they take a ferry to Dutch island because the kids want to see Koala's. While on the island, tragedy happens. The residents of the island, all one family, want Tom, Heather and the kids to pay. After Tom is taken by the family, Heather and the kids are on their own trying to escape the family.

The book is nonstop action, I stayed up way too late to see what happens next. Satisfying conclusion.

Wow, what a crazy ride. The suspense was great. It got a little cringy at times and a little more on the horror side vs the suspense side. Which is a little too much for me. Overall though, I really enjoyed reading this.

I could not get into this book. It was like “Deliverance” meets a bunch of people who make idiotic decisions. The plot was too outlandish and nutty.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58340727

I have just finished reading The Island, by Author Adrian McKinty

First, I would like to thank NetGalley, the Author and Little, Brown and Company for my advanced copy to read and review.

Strap on your seat belts, and get ready for this action-packed thriller, and be prepared to put everything thing else aside once you start reading this book!

You will want to read just one more page, and then one more page more, and then one more page more once you start.

It is like Deliverance, Die Hard and Annie Oakley all rolled up in one. You will not believe how this story progresses once it starts.

Heather Baxter a 24-year-old massage therapist from Seattle, has just married Tom a successful knee surgeon, who has two teenage children. They are all in Australia for a medical conference for Tom. Heather and Olivia, and Owen the teenagers are all along for some holiday time.

Well – I really will not say anything else at all, - just enjoy!

#TheChase #NetGalley

I LOVED this book. It kept me up reading at all hours of the night because I wanted to know what happens next. Great read! First time reading this author and I can't wait to pick up more of his books.