The writing is so beautiful.
The characters were written so well and I was so invested in their story
A stunning beautiful book

This is the sequel to Victoria Hislop’s stunning boom The Island. The story features many of the previously introduced characters with Maria and Manolis being two of the main narrators throughout.

This story focuses on the aftermath of Maria’s release from Spinalonga and the tragedy that follows for the Petrakis family.

I aptly read this book just before going to Crete this summer! Victoria’s writing brings the setting and time to life with vibrant descriptions right down to the snow flurries over the winter period.

If you’ve not read The Island I’d highly recommend it, or equally The Sunrise. Both of these books were really well described and researched and although I don’t usually read historical fiction, both of these books have made me want to search for more information on the true stories after reading.

I actually got a bit confused with all the characters in this book. It flipped back and forth very quickly between them and ot was sometimes hard to keep up. Otherwise it was enjoyable and i want to go away to greece again

This is my first Victoria Hislop book, and I really enjoyed it. I will be reading more of her books in the future. The writing of this book was superb, and the story was very interesting. I liked the way Victoria described everything so vividly that it felt like I was in the story with all the characters.

The story is set in the past, in Greece, with Maria, Anna and their families. I enjoyed reading about Anna at the beginning of the novel, and then Maria throughout, as well as all the other characters. Manolis was my favourite character, and I liked him because he was so passionate and loving.

This is a lovely book, which transports you to another world and helps you to forget about real life for a while. Highly recommended!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

This book is the sequel to The Island which I read and loved . Starting this book I wondered would it live up to the first book which I utterly adored. Well I needn’t have worried as One August Night was a fabulous read. From the first page I was immersed into the book and the story. A wonderful read.

Victoria Hislop has delivered a superb sequel. It will grip the reader from the start. Strong characters and great story telling make this a must read

Please note that this book is not for me - I have read the book, However I had to DNF and because i do not like to give negative reviews I will not review this book fully - there is no specific reason for not liking this book. I found it a struggle to read and did not enjoy trying to force myself to read this book.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused and thank you for the opportunity to read this book

The main downside to reading One August Night was that I had read The Island (the previous book in this series) so long ago. I couldn't recall much about it except that I had enjoyed it enough to feel excited about reading One August Night. It was a shame that The Island was just a distant memory because, although this book could be read as a standalone, I feel it would have enhanced my reading experience even more to have remembered more about the original story.

That said, it was still an excellent read. Victoria Hislop is clearly a talented writer and her descriptions were excellent with a fantastic sense of place. Although it took me a while to settle in to the book at the start, I was surprised by how much I loved it by the end!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a free advance copy of The Island in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Island so I was really looking forward to reading this book. However, it did not live up to my expectations and it did not really feel like a sequel to The Island. I did not feel any real connection with the characters in this book and although I finished the book I was not compelled to pick this up at any opportunity.

One August Night is a sequel to the brilliant The Island.
I have loved Victoria's writing style for quite some time now, and had very high hopes for this book.
Although the book in its entirety was well written, I didn't really feel as though there was very much depth to this story. The characters, Anna and Manolis were great and had good, well structured personalities, but I found their story had little to offer throughout.
A well written book, but unfortunately for me, not quite as good as Victoria's previous novels.


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As a sequel to the bestselling The Island, this comes as an also ran. It does however take us on from the drama of The Island, The fated love affair between Manolis and Anna comes to a tragic end and we follow Manolis as he leaves his home to start new life on the Cretan mainland. Anna's sister Maria returns cured from Spinalonga as a cure is found for leprosy and she takes her niece Sofia into her home as her own. The magic of the first novel is missing but it is still a good read if rather clunky at times.
The appeal of the Greek lifestyle, their culture and colourful traditions add the extra dimension.

I’m conflicted about this book. I loved The Island and the thought of revisiting the story was so exciting to me - I couldn’t wait!

This didn’t grab me like the first book did and whilst i read it in two days and couldn’t put it down... it left me disappointed.

I enjoyed reading her afterward, that pushed it up to three stars for me.

This is the much anticipated sequel to The Island, unfortunately it didn’t grab me, maybe I should have re read the Island to get into the characters more and their storyline but none of them interested me and therefore I didn’t really care what happened. Such a shame as I was looking forward to a return to sunny Greece.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

The long awaited follow up to The Island, this didn't grab me as I thought it would. I found it a tough slog, considering it's a fairly short book. The second half of the book improved though and I found myself interested in how it would end.

I sort of wish I'd re-read The Island before embarking on the sequel as I'd read it so long ago. We meet up again with Maria, Anna, Manolis and Andreas. It's 25th August 1957 and the leper colony is closing at Spinalonga as a cure has been found. Anna is happy that her sister is cured but sick with worry at her return. She's now married to Andreas, wants for nothing and has a much longed for child.

At the celebrations for the homecomings in Plaka something happens which changes the lives of all concerned forever. As the story develops we learn more about Manolis as a person and I must say I warmed to him despite everything.

As ever the Greek setting is so easy to read about and its easy to find yourself back in the village and their lives. A story of families, feuding, love including forbidden love, friendships and growing up. I loved it.

25th August 1957. The island of Spinalonga closes its leper colony. And a moment of violence has devastating consequences. When time stops dead for Maria Petrakis and her sister, Anna, two families splinter apart and, for the people of Plaka, the closure of Spinalonga is forever coloured with tragedy. In the aftermath, the question of how to resume life looms large. Stigma and scandal need to be confronted and somehow, for those impacted, a future built from the ruins of the past.

It is always risky returning to a much loved book; readers want to know what happens next but can the author possibly live up to expectations? Well in this case, the answer is disappointingly no. I was not expecting this to be like 'The Island' for the simple reason that it is a sequel. However, I was expecting to get stuck into a new Hislop read. For me, this is where the main problem lies. This book is way too short for Hislop, Hislop is known for sumptuous reads that readers can get lost in and enjoy every word of intricate detail. This read is a fraction of the length I would expect from Hislop and as a result it loses all intricacy and detail. There is little dialogue between characters, instead Hislop explains what happens and explains very quickly which left the whole read feeling very rushed.

On a more positive note, it was a joy to be back in the stunning location of Greece and it is always fantastic to be reunited with beloved characters. I did enjoy the read and I like the direction Hislop has taken this in and reading a book set in Greece is always a win for me. It was enjoyable to be reunited with the characters but again the detail was missing and I would have loved to really get to know them again. Instead, this felt like reading a timeline of their lives.

'One August Night' picks up where a sensational story left off and delivers a disappointing sequel. The location is stunning and the characters feel like old friends but this is missing detail, intricacy and depth.

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline for an advance copy.

This is the sequel to The Island, but it also works as a stand alone story. It develops the later events of The Island by telling them from other characters points of view, as well as telling their on going story. It is another example of the quality writing one has come to expect from this author - well researched, convincing and absorbing - story telling at it's best.

This book took me straight back to being in Greece, both in a sleepy village and in a bigger city. The characters all lived for me and it fitted in well with The Island. However if I hadn't reread The Island recently I'm not sure I would have enjoyed it quite as much, as a sequel it works perfectly but I'm slightly less certain of it as a standalone. One thing for sure is that I still love Hislop's writing and I'll be first in the queue for any further books.

15 years ago my husband bought me The Island by Victoria Hislop for my birthday. It was the first historical fiction book I had read and it opened my eyes to the genre and the book itself became an instant favourite which I still continue to recommend. So as soon as I heard the author had written a sequel I was excited to read it.

The residents of Plaka have mixed emotions on hearing the news of Spinaloga's leper colony closing. However one August night what should have been joyous homecoming celebrations take a terrible turn and two families lives will be changed forever.

I have mixed emotions about this book. On one hand reading this as a sequel I was slightly disappointed that I did not feel the same range of emotions I did when I read The Island. That book is my favourite because it was a heartbreaking read with emotional twists and turns throughout. One August Night did not have the same pull and I did not feel anything for the characters involved. I did enjoy revisiting the characters of old but felt very little for them.

On the other hand if I look at the book as a standalone story and try to forget all about the book before I would definitely say I enjoyed it. The intertwining stories held my interest and as with all of the author's books the pages are steeped with Greek authenticity and charm. I think I had far too high expectations from the first book and so I would definitely read this again and savour it more the second time around. For those who have not read The Island then don't worry about reading this first but please do get to The Island at some point as it is a truly wonderful read.

The reason I love Victoria Hislop books and why she turned me onto historical fiction was because she writes fascinating fictional stories and characters based around true historical events. She has been awarded honorary Greek citizenship for promoting Greek history and culture and it is well deserved as every time I read one of her books I want to instantly book a holiday to Greece.

I loved Victoria Hislop’s The Island so when I received this sequel to review I was beyond excited! However, over all, One August Night left me slightly disappointed. It seemed short and the ending was decidedly rushed.
It is the story of Maria, Anna, Manolis and Andreas who all featured in The Island and it starts as the leprosy patients, including Maria, are released from Spinalonga , having been cured.
Anna is worried her sister will return and continue her relationship with Manolis who has now become Anna’s lover despite the fact she is married to Andreas and that they have a young child, Sophia.
On the night the rest of the cured patients are released there is a great celebration but something happens which will blight the two families for ever.
There is a big secret in the book which I’d actually guessed near the beginning although the exact truth of what happened is revealed in the last few pages.
It is a long time since I read The Island so I remembered very little about the characters. Fortunately this did not really detract from the book as it is possible to read it as a stand alone book.
I remember being very impressed with the first novel and thinking about it long after I’d finished reading. This one definitely did not have that effect. It was an enjoyable read that entertained me over a couple of days but no more than that.
If you are a fan of well researched historical romance and have read Victoria Hislop’s other books you will probably enjoy this, her latest offering.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.