Enchanted Island

I was certainly enchanted with Ellie O'Neil's latest book.
With maxed out credit cards, Maeve makes the decision to use her flatmate's emergency funds card for her botox treatment. Unfortunately her best friend/flatmate is not so understanding and gives her a treatment of 'tough love' and tells her to basically grow up and get on top of her finances. Trouble is, that Maeve who is an apprentice in a lawyers firm has lost her confidence tries to find it through fashion, beauty and the social media.
One of her bosses offers her a job on the small island of Hy Basil, it seems simple enough, she just has to get a signature from one of the inhabitants, so that they can build a bridge to the mainland. But things aren't quite what they seem and she soon realises it's not going to be so easy and there are some strange things going on as well.
I really loved this book, I enjoyed watching Maeve grow and not care about how she appeard to people, gradually gaining more confidence with in herself and how she looked/felt. At the start I was quite perplexed about why it was so important that the bridge go ahead but all is revealed early in the book.
Once again there is that magical realism but with a much darker undertone which kept me reading. For me it seemed the book was having a fun poke at society and all it's obsession with beauty, social media and generally keeping busy.
Add a little romance, a little suspense and a chance to suspend reality makes for a book in which to immerse yourself in total escapism.

4.5 Stars.
I really enjoyed this mystery/adventure/romance/supernatural gem of a book.

When we first meet Maeve she isn't the most appealing person in the world. She is extremely self centred and completely selfie obsessed! A total social media junkie and shopaholic, she uses her best friends credit card without permission to get botox injections... After her friend kicks her out of the apartment, she is forced to move back in with her mother. With the recession in Ireland putting everyone's job security at risk, trainee solicitor Maeve gets sent to the island of Hy Brasil to get a signature from an old resident to sell his house so that they can build a bridge to the mainland. If she gets the signature, her job will be secured. However as soon as she arrives in Hy Brasil everyone is hostile towards her, especially the older residents, and the man whose signature she desperately needs is completely avoiding her. How is she going to get the signature and secure her job? How come strange things are happening on the island? Will she ever get out of there?

What a pleasant surprise The Enchanted Island was! When I first started the story and was introduced to Maeve I was less than impressed. She was so self centred - I was afraid that I was going to be completely annoyed with her for the entire book! However it didn't take too long before she started to mature a bit, and I became totally team Maeve!

I adored all of the characters in this book, especially on the island. The cute gay couple, the surfer boys, the old woman with the beard, the evasive Sean... I couldn't get enough of these fabulous characters and interactions. Killian was nice, but I found his character was the least interesting... However I still liked him and I really enjoyed the romance!

I love the way Maeve grew as a person. Its amazing what a bit of silence and reflection can do for the soul. I really loved how she started to let go of her online life and actually lived in the moment while she was on the island. I could totally relate to her in that way. I have done two 10-day silent meditation courses, where I couldn't even speak or make eye contact with anyone, and no internet... I was reminded of this as Maeve began to let go of the outside world.

The star of the novel though, was the island itself. O'Neill did a fantastic job of creating a wonderful atmosphere there. The island was dark for one scene and beautiful and majestic the next. I loved how everyone had their own special relationship with the island and how the island itself seemed to have a life force. And the characters on the island were an absolute hoot!

Would I recommend it?

Absolutely! I thought it was such a sweet, clever and refreshing book! The Enchanted Island is for everyone who loves a good mystery, and a bit of magic.

Thanks to Ellie O'Neill via NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Enchanted Island is Ellie O’Neill’s captivating second novel about self discovery, modern day malaise, and magic.

When apprentice solictor Maeve O’Brien is sent to Hy Brasil, a tiny island off the coast of Ireland, to finalise a deal for a client, she’s determined to prove herself. Sure, she has made some mistakes, betraying her best friend and burying herself in debt among them, but she’s confident that this assignment will help her turn things around. All Maeve needs is a signature from Sean Fitzpatrick, so that the client’s plans to build a bridge between the mainland and the island can go ahead, but the landowner proves to be elusive, and most of the locals uniformly unhelpful.

Stuck on Hy Brasil, determined to complete her mission, Maeve is initially panicked at the thought of being on her own, but without the distractions of retail therapy and her busy city social life, she begins to reevaluate what she is looking for in life. O’Brien pokes fun at our modern day obsession with packaged beauty, social media and consumerism. I really liked the way in which Maeve changes through the novel, letting go of her shallow obsessions, and becoming a more confident, authentic person.

And while many of the locals, especially the elderly are distinctly unfriendly, Maeve makes some new friends including two stoner app developers, a charming gay couple and the handsome local schoolteacher, Killian. It’s not until she finally corners Sean Fitzpatrick though that she learns the secrets of Hy Brasil.

reluctantlycharmedAs in Reluctantly Charmed, O’Neill draws on the folklore of Ireland to add a touch of mysticism to this contemporary novel. Hy Brasil is an island of great, almost unspoiled, beauty, rumoured to offer you your heart’s desire, but there is an underlying atmosphere of menace that makes Maeve uneasy. The locals are secretive, bone chilling cries rent the night air, and a dark sort of energy seems to lurk unseen.

With an appealing mix of humour, intrigue and romance, this is an entertaining read. Well written, The Enchanted Island is an enchanting novel.