Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advance reader copy in exchange for a review. All opinions are of my own.
Inspired by a real life heiress, this book has an unforgettable story of survival. The author describes what is real and imagined in the book and this might be one you read before the book rather than after. You won’t have many spoilers in there as you already will know the crux of the story from the liner.
The problem with the book is that it takes so long to get to the basis of the book. The cruelty and the control established early on is just dragged out unnecessarily, and is just so depressing. This is not an uplifting book of feminine survival in older centuries. We are brow beaten by how awful life was for women back then and doesn’t feel empowering until the end.
It was about halfway when the story of survival starts and it’s over fairly quickly.
The end is really well done and I enjoyed seeing how her life turns and how she grows. It just took so long to get there and you had to get through so many sad pages to get there.
3* for the second half of the book. I suggest reading the first quarter, then flipping to the middle.

A really interesting historical fiction based on the true story of Marguerite de la Rocque, who along with her lover was marooned on an island off the shore of Canada in the 1500's. You learn of her life as a wealthy, aristocratic French girl, but when both her parents pass away, she is entrusted to a guardian, who seeks adventure and uses Marguerite's fortune and property to finance his travels. When he takes his charge to "New France" he becomes enraged when Marguerite falls in love with his secretary, and banishes them to a remote island. When Marguerite looses her lover, her young child, and finally her faithful servant, she is forced to come to terms with her own desire to live. She has amazing adventures, and lives to create a new life for herself.

While I loved the writing style, I had issues with the pacing and some of the plot points. This is a character-driven story, which was enjoyable at times. I really enjoyed watching Marguerite adapt to all of the changes in her life, whether that was moving houses or being marooned on an island. I do have more appreciation thanks to the author's note and the historical notes at the end, but without that context the story is not as enjoyable in my opinion.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I will start by saying historical fiction is not my usual genre so take my review in while knowing that. This was gorgeous, engrossing, and heartbreaking. I think it was SUPPOSED to be uplifting but I honestly just felt pretty sad. That being said, the emotions the author was able to draw from me within such a relatively short book really made this a memorable reading experience. If you're into HF, you'll love this.

I really think this will be a hit for historical fiction lovers. Goodman breathed fresh air to real story. I don't often read HF set in the 1500 hundreds, and that definitely made it very intriguing for me (and nope I do not want to live in that era). It's an emotional and heartbreaking read, but worth it.

I've seen this book everywhere and I have been dying to read it!

The cover is gorgeous, and Goodman's writing is impeccable. It is based off of a true story - which I loved right away since I'm a huge history nerd! I looked it up as I was reading and it made it even more meaningful!

The protagonist is left alone on an island and has to figure out what to do - it was heartbreaking and raw, but I loved every page.

If you love Jane Eyre or The Count of Monte Cristo, this gives immaculate vibes!

This relatively short novel packs a whole lot between its covers. From the frivolous lives of the privileged, to the striving of the underclass, to the machinations of those at court…we follow the lives of the innocent, the devout and the scheming cruel. This was an engrossing tale of well-written historical fiction.

This book is based on a real person and incident. In 16th century France, Marguerite, is orphaned at an early age. She and her wealth are then in the control her guardian, a seaman, adventurer and favorite of the king. When he decides to take her along on a voyage to settle New France she has no choice but to go. And he has all the power so, when he is displeased with her, he abandons her on a small island in the Saint Lawrence Bay. How will she survive?

I wanted to love Isola. It I just found it sad and depressing. I know it was supposed to have an uplifting messaging but it all felt tragic. Interesting story but it felt like a black cloud hung over the whole book.

For fans of SAM, buckle up! This book was not what I was expecting and it turned out so beautifully. Marguerite’s parents die when she’s young, and she is put under guardianship with her cousin, a world explorer. This book lives rent free in my mind - it is so well crafted, I was so surprised it was based off a real girl who got marooned on an island, and it was just the best surprise to open a novel like this after kind of some duds the past week.

This one….this one is so so good. I’m going to buy this one to sit on a shelf!

I had never heard of Marguerite de la Rocque and I’m so glad I read this account of her tale. This book reads like a true historical fiction, staying genuine to the times and her voice (or what I would think it would be like). The first half is not quite as compelling as the latter half, but stick with it. We are getting to know the characters and once she becomes stranded, it’s a fight for survival. Do yourself a favor and don’t look up her story until you finish the book!

“Our isle was both beautiful and strange.”

“Cast together, we might sing and laugh and kiss just as we pleased, and we enjoyed the paradox that bound us. Imprisoned; we were also free.”

Isola comes out 2/4.

Enjoyed this one very much, another fantastically written historical fiction from author Allegra Goodman. Never disappoints, highly recommend!

This life is more implausible than fiction tale begins in the 16th Century French countryside where young noble Marguerite’s future is dependent upon Roberval, a guardian who squanders her inheritance to fund his own overseas ventures. As her fortunes dwindle, in finance and fate, Marguerite finds support from her faithful nurse, Damienne, and the daughter of her tutor, but their influence is not enough to save Marguerite from Roberval’s whims and cruelty. Soon, both Marguerite and Damienne find themselves sailing to New France where forbidden love leads to misfortune and Marguerite, her lover, and her nurse are stranded on a small island off the coast of Canada. Against all odds, Marguerite learns to trust her strength and her resilience. She finds power in her desire to live but also in the bonds of friendship and love that she once took for granted. Based on a true story, Goodman uses what is known about Marguerite’s story to reflect on the transformative capacity of love, faith, and the balance between the will to survive and what it means to thrive.

A survival tale based on true events and set in the 1530s and 40s, Goodman weaves this beautiful literary web with strands of lush prose, haunting scenes, and imagery so vivid and picturesque that you feel that you are actually with the heroine, Marguerite, as she survives and transcends her travails. Marguerite is ripped from her privileged life as a property-owning young lady and transported by her nefarious cousin/guardian from France to what becomes northeastern Canada, along with her maid and the guardian’s secretary, who becomes her lover. The guardian, seeking treasure, abandons all three on an island, where they must live off, and with, the land. Marguerite experiences life as a wife and mother during her two-year odyssey before she is rescued by fisherman and returns to France to make her way, once again. Such a gorgeous and satisfying read!

Thank you Random House and NetGalley for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book tells the incredible true story of Marguerite de la Rocque, a French orphan whose guardian brings her on a harrowing voyage to colonize Canada. While at sea, Marguerite begins a relationship with her guardian's secretary. Her guardian discovers the relationship and maroons Marguerite and her lover, as well as Marguerite's childhood maid, on a barren, desolate island.

The beginning of this book is rather slow - we're in 1500s France in a chateau in the country, learning about Marguerite's life as a young girl who is at the mercy of her guardian's whims. The writing is beautifully atmospheric and tender, but there's definitely a sense that the book's real action has yet to begin. Thankfully, things pick up pretty quickly, and much of the book focuses on Marguerite and her companions' attempts to survive on the island: their difficulties finding food, the terrible winters, the wild animals, and the unavoidable despair and fear. This is a deeply stirring story of the determination to live despite unimaginable difficulties, but it also doesn't shy away from the hopelessness that is inevitable in a situation like this. Marguerite has admirable firepower, and I was moved by her will and her fortitude, but I also appreciated that she got despondent on times. I got so angry at her guardian for his puritanical beliefs and emotional abuse, and it was invigorating when Marguerite fought against her patriarchal society. I wouldn't exactly call this is a fun read, but it's definitely an evocative and thoughtful read.

A transportive and well-researched saga perfect for fans of literary and historical fiction. Goodman digs deep with this one. Rooted in history, the narrative is so evocative that the reader feels placed within each scene. This is a society where women held no power -- combine that with battling nature and you have a gripping page turner. Ultimately, Marguerite learns to survive. A well-told tale of adventure and self discovery.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance e-galley; all opinions in my review are 100% my own.

The setting: 16th century. Marguerite, an orphaned, down-on-her-luck [destitute] French noblewoman, under the guardianship and control of her cousin Jean Francois de la Rocque de Roberval [who uses her inheritance to pay his debts]. Marguerite sets sail with Roberval--on his journey to the New World [for the King] having no other choice. Accompanied by her loyal servant/nurse Damienne, she meets Roberval's servant/secretary, Auguste, with whom she eventually falls in love.

Roberval, angered by their relationship, maroons the three of them on an unpopulated island in eastern Canada--with some provisions, but...

This is a tale of seafaring, betrayal, faith, love and loss, adventure, survival and resilience, religion, a Robinson Crusoe vibe, and so much more.

There's a backstory--to which there is a return [no spoiler] and much in between.

Although I plodded through Goodman's Sam [her novel before this one], I couldnt wait to return to reading Isola!

Two descriptions I liked:
"her skin was creased in little lines like an unpressed linen"
"i was so freighted I could barely move" {weight of dress]

Be sure to read the author's notes.

Based on a true [lesser known] character, I was captured from the start. 4.5 Recommend.

Based on a actual person, Isola is the story of a 16th-Century young woman who is born to a life of privilege but sees her fortunes change when she is orphaned and left at the mercy of a cruel guardian. She is forced to accompany her guardian on an expedition to New France, where she finds herself drawn to an employee of her guardian, despite the risks her attraction entails. Upon finding out about the love affair, her guardian punishes the pair by abandoning them to fend for themselves on a deserted island, forced to forage for food and shelter as the winter sets in.

I found this story riveting, from the beginning through the shipboard romance and the fight for survival against the elements. I truly felt that I was right there on the island, desperate to get through each day and hope for eventual rescue. So well told! Now I can't wait to read more about the actual person who inspired this story.

Isola is an interesting book which builds in intensity. Women have always been underestimated and struggled in a man’s world. This was no different for Marguerite, based on an historical figure. Parts of the book seemed long, but overall Isola is a wonderful and compelling book.

This book is absolutely incredible. It's a story that I am shocked to know is true. Allegra Goodman has breathed so much life into this main character, and all of the inspiration came from two brief mentions in the historical record. Goodman took these mentions and fashioned a fully formed young woman who goes through an absolute transformation. The main character, Marguerite, was of the 16th century but also timeless.

The writing, the development, the historical accuracy... this book was wonderful.