Loved the chain and totally devoured this one too- a mystery and adventure on a backwards island off the coast of Australia, with a family who are, well, weird. Compulsive reading and will definitely be recommending this one far and wide!

Really loved this book, from the very beginning it got you hooked into the story , loved the characters and the way the story unfolded and there was lots of twists and turns were you couldn’t think how the book was going to finish. Loved the main character of the book and the way she handled everything and her life. Would really recommend this as a brilliant and very easy to get into book that is perfect for curling up and reading by the beach.

I really enjoyed The Chain by Adrian McKinty so I was very excited to read The Island. One thing that McKinty does well is write stories with a bit of a chase.

Heather is a 24 year old massage therapist who marries Tom, a doctor who is in his forties with two teenage children - Olivia and Owen. Their mother passed away a year previously.

The family visit Australia as Tom is giving a keynote speech at a conference. The children are a bit bored as they aren't seeing the beauty of Australia. They are invited over to a remote island with only around 27 inhabitants and all the one family, under the premise that they will be able to see native Australian animals in the wild.

Whilst there, an accident causes them to be held hostage and thus insues the chase to free themselves.

I will be honest and say that I did feel a little like it was very easy for the hostage takers to agree with Heather's demands or attempts to talk them out of harming them but I appreciate that the story would be very different were that not the case.

The vivid descriptions really put you in the scenes and you can feel the urgency from the family as they try to escape and get back over to the mainland. I really enjoyed Owen as a character and his diagnoses, I felt, were written very well.

Heather's character arc throughout the novel was definitely one of my favourite parts though!

This is my first book by this author. I was drawn in by the cover art work which works well to do so. Unfortunately I just didn't really get into the book at all. I found it difficult to relate to any of the characters. The storyline was fast paced but just didn't draw me in the way I had hoped for.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest opinion

Heather Baxter gains a husband and two stepchildren fairly swiftly and while it’s not everything she’s dreamed of, she’s hoping the family working holiday in the Australian Outback will help the four to bond. But when they make a rash decision to visit an island that is normally off limits to outside visitors, thing start to go awry. And by awry, we mean really, really badly. The quartet, well, most of them, want adventure and a chance to forget social media and being so absorbed on phones. But the moment they get off the island the family realises they probably should have strayed towards normality and stayed on the mainland. They meet the locals, most of whom aren’t happy that they’ve company and in fact, are more than quite willing to do whatever it takes to make them disappear… However, Heather shows there’s a lot more to her than meets her stepchildrens’ eyes (you’ll be very impressed with her bravery). Fast paced, you’ll want to read this in one sitting.

Having read and devoured 'The Chain' in what felt like seconds, I had extremely high hopes for 'The Island' (not that I was putting pressure on the book, or the author, to deliver....much). In my head I was wishing and praying to the book fairies that this book would be just as good, if not better, than its predecessor. Thankfully the fairies must have thought I was a good little bookworm, (either that or Adrian McKinty wasn't just a one hit wonder), because 'The Island' DID deliver in all its glory - I bloomin' loved it! I feel so bad saying that I enjoyed reading a book that has death at the forefront of its storyline, as though I was revelling in the fact that these characters were no longer breathing; please say that I am not the only one?

Anyway, my morals aside, Adrian McKinty certainly is NOT a one hit wonder! He most definitely knows how to hook his readers, leave them gasping for air, and putting such fear up them that, when they're so invested in a nitty gritty part of the storyline and their dog suddenly decides to bark, that they ever so nearly (but not quite) defecate ones underwear and jump as though they're on a trampoline. Speaking from experience with this one! I was HOOKED on what was happening with Heather and the children, hoping their truths would set them free, that I was ignoring the fact that a leaf blew across the other side of the carpark and my dog spotted it from their slumber on the sofa, so much so that they barked and nearly made me cack myself. Hell, I would go as far as saying that that is a compliment to the author. (Just for clarification, I mean their ability to hook their readers, not the fact that I was a wimp and jumped at a 'little' noise).

I wasn't quite sure what to make of Heather at first. She seemed quite up herself in all honesty, and it came across as though she was afraid to be true to herself in case it didn't match up to what Tom and his children wanted. I suppose walking into a 'ready made' family, so to speak, must be hard, especially dealing with three different levels of grief. Perhaps that may have been why Heather could have come across a bit guarded.

I took an instant dislike to Tom, I'm not going to lie. He was such a jumped up, arrogant, -insert bad word here-. It was as though he thought that he was better than everyone else, that his word was law. Erm, no, how about looking further than your nose and seeing that, oh I don't know, other peoples opinions matter too? What a novel idea.....no pun intended.

What started off as such an uncertain tale, ended up becoming such an eye-opening, well rounded, cleverly written novel. It's not often that I read a book where I feel as though all the loose ends were tidied up, but in this instance that was exactly the case. I would be lying if I said that the storyline wasn't dark, because it really is, but I thought it added even more character to an already shady novel. I cannot wait to see what Adrian McKinty has up his sleeve for his next novel - one to watch indeed!!

I loved The Chain by Adrian McKinty so I was so excited to read this, The Island and it certainly lived up to my expectations! In this novel, the author builds a very tense tale and from start to finish, I was on the edge of my seat. The plot was full of twists many of which were unexpected. I thought Adrian McKinty's characterisation was excellent and I enjoyed the family drama and the relationships that developed throughout, especially between the main character, Heather a twenty-four-year-old massage therapist and her step-children, Owen, twelve, and Olivia, fourteen, after she marries forty-four-year-old Dr Tom Baxter. The Outback of Australia but mostly an island that is normally off-limits to visitors is the setting of this fast-paced, gritty novel. It's odd, raw, brutal, and it's also curiously satisfying.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Orion Publishing Group via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

This is a new author to me.

I thought the book started off well and then around halfway I lost interest and it all just seemed to get a bit too much so I skimmed towards the end.

I’m sure this book will appeal to a lot of readers but just don’t think this one was for me. I have heard amazing things about his other book The Chain and I would like to read that and some of his others.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #OrionPublishingGroup for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow such a fast paced thriller, was so excited to read this after The Chain so was so excited to be approved for it! Such a good setting on the Australian island and the drama kept happening right till the end I loved it!

‘Let’s go and see some koalas and local Australian wildlife on that island’ turns out the be the biggest mistake Heather and her partner make on their family holiday.
Out for a drive, they disappointingly don’t see much, and bump into some locals. For an extortionate price the locals suggest they visit their island for some site-seeing instead.
This leads to the next few terrifying days in their lives, and definitely a decision they come to regret.
This thriller is non-stop, and quite honestly pretty crazy in places, but wow it definitely is a page turner!!

He has done it again, another great mystery once you get stuck into it! Adrian McKinty is quickly becoming a favourite of mine!

A thrill ride of a story. I'm just short of the 5 stars because it really was too unbelievable in very many ways. However, suspend that and go with the story and you can't help but get caught up in the moment. 24 year old "step mum" not much older than her charges has to keep them alive when they get caught in a terrifying scenario and the dad/husband is murdered. Shows what people are capable of. Terrifying. #netgalley #theisland

A rip roaring drama if ever there was one! Set on a remote little island off the cost of Australia, widower Tom and his new, much younger wife Heather decide to cross on the ferry in order to entertain the two youngsters Olivia and Owen! They meet the O’Neill family who agree, at a cost, to allow them onto the island to see the kangaroos and koalas! An accident ensues and a member of the O’Neill family is killed! The chase is on! Under the instructions of Ma, the O’Neill matriarch, Tom and his family must not be allowed to escape! Heather comes into her own and, as a modern day Lara Croft, takes on the baddies and the action really begins! Much drama and knuckle biting action keeps the reader on tenterhooks right until the end! A great yarn!

3.5 stars

This was a very intense read!

When Tom's wife Heather and his children tag along with him on a work trip to Australia, they were hoping for a once in a lifetime family holiday. A ferry trip over to a mysterious Island turns out to be a huge mistake when an accident on the Island leads them into the dangerous clutches of the creepy family who live there.

Action-packed and very violent, The Island is a fast-paced thriller that, while asking you to suspend your belief some way, is an entertaining read.

f you are looking for a fast-paced action-packed thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat, then look no further than The Island. It is a wild ride of a book, crazy but entertaining and one that had me holding my breath for much of it.

Tom is a medical doctor from Seattle who brings his new, much younger, wife, Heather and his two children to accompany him on a trip to Australia for a medical conference. His first wife died suddenly and Heather is struggling to adjust to life as a stepmother to two teenagers who are mourning the loss of their mother and clearly resent Heather. In an attempt to do some family bonding, the family set off on a day trip to look for koalas – when they meet two members of the O’Neill family, owners of Dutch Island, a private island with an apparent abundance of wildlife, and are offered the chance to take a ferry over there, they agree to do so. But when they are involved in an accident while driving around the island, they soon come to regret their decision to visit as they become involved in a game of cat and mouse as they fight for their survival.

McKinty vividly captures the island setting, the heat of the Australian summer and its vast array of creepy crawlies. The characters are intriguing, if at times infuriating and I loved the way Heather went from seemingly naive young new wife to veritable badass. The pace is relentless, the tension keeps building and it is a book that kept me turning the pages even when I was frankly a little terrified. This is the first book by McKinty that I have read, though I did buy The Chain last year having seen some great reviews and will now be pushing that up to TBR pile.

This story of very much of "The deliverance" mode where a group of people living in a community control everything with violence and threat.
A chance trip to an island sets off a chain of events that gets more and more grisly as time goes on.
It is very fast paced and you find yourself reading on and on to find out what happens in the end.
I did find it a bit preposterous that a woman and 2 children could survive such a situation on an island.
However I did find it a good read.

The Island is a tale of an American family - Tom, his teenage kids Owen and Olivia, and their young new stepmother Heather. Tom is in Melbourne Australia for a conference and is persuaded to go on a short trip to a small island to see some native wildlife. Something bad happens and the island's inhabitants turn very nasty indeed.

This is a story of revenge, survival and cunning, and is tense and exciting throughout. What I particularly loved is the similarity between Heather's isolated colony upbringing and the Australian aboriginal belief system, both based on respect for nature, which was written to great effect. This little bit of magic made the book charming and memorable despite the sometimes bloody events taking place. A very enjoyable read.

This is my second Adrian mckinty novel after reading the chain in 2020 and I have to say this was a very very good book.

I thought the cast of characters were very well developed and I really enjoyed the dynamic between Heather and her new family and how she had to adjust to them.

One thing I absolutely loved about this but was how tense the atmosphere got. It was clear from the get-go the feelings you were meant to experience and you got a really intense vibe all the way through this book and it only increased as the story went on.
I also love that this story did not worry about getting dark, and graphic.
When I read the chain I felt it had potential but could have gone darker this book I feel definitely went there and I'm very glad that it did.

My only criticism is that the ending wrapped up very quickly and some plot points were a bit predictable. One plot point I predicted very early on, however none of this impact is my enjoyment of the story.

After being persuaded not to give up writing, Adrian McKinty achieved great success with his last novel, THE CHAIN, success which his writing has always deserved. THE ISLAND should continue to bring him critical plaudits and commercial sales. Not as ‘high concept’ as The Chain, THE ISLAND is a fast-paced, incredibly tense thriller which grabs the reader by the throat and shakes until the heart-pounding ride is over.

American couple Heather and her much older husband, Tom, in Melbourne for his business, travel to an island just off the coast with Tom’s children, Olivia and Owen. There, following a terrible accident, the family is pursued and terrorised by the family to whom the island ‘belongs’. There are shades of Deliverance and Southern Comfort, Wolf Creek, even Mad Max in places, but all done in McKinty’s style which marries spare prose to occasional stream of consciousness sections, something I have loved about his writing going right back to DEAD I WELL MAY BE.

McKinty lived in St Kilda, Melbourne for several years and his knowledge of the area adds verisimilitude to the setting. The story is violent and the suspense almost unbearable, the tension maintained, intensified, right until the conclusion. It is a little difficult for me to predict, as I have loved almost everything that Adrian McKinty has written, but THE ISLAND will, I hope, continue to reach the wider audience that The Chain appealed to. And, just perhaps, some of that readership will go back and discover just how good the Michael Forsythe and Sean Duffy novels are.

With all the hype and from the description I expected a great deal from this book. Sadly I was disappointed. What had a promising beginning rapidly descended into a farcical tale which just became more and more improbable..