Islanders is interconnected short stories. They all felt a little uninteresting and isn't memorable. I enjoyed the setting, which is what made me want to give this a read in the first place. But unfortunately not one that I had strong feelings about.

Great summer read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me access this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

Such a good read! It had me in an emotional wreck at parts, and definitely made me stop and think. I loved the characters, and want to read it again already!

The islanders was a quick and easy read with relatable characters and an original storyline. Would definitely recommend.

Islanders by Cathy Thomas focuses on the stories of a group of people over two decades and how their lives intertwine.

A collection of short stories a group of people from Guernsey, following them over a twenty year period begining around 2000 and each told from a different POV.

Not my usual kind of read however I did enjoy it, I feel if I was slightly older than I am the nostalgia aspect of it would've brought the ratings up slightly.

Islanders with its alluring cover (which is the thing about this book that initially caught my eye) is a collection of short stories all set on the island of Guernsey. The reader is taken on a trip spanning twenty years. Each story is strong and engaging and features a group of intertwined people. Twelve characters, including Kat, Claire, Neil and Eva, share their thoughts, friendships, desires or regrets. Funny, authentic and gritty.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Little, Brown Book Group UK, Virago via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

This book consists of 12 short stories that sort of ‘overlap’ insofar as they all focus on the same group of people in growing up in Guernesey. The stories span 20 years and each is told from a different perspective.
To be honest I have never really been a short story fan, but something about this one piqued my interest and I actually really enjoyed it. I did feel that I engaged more with some stories than others, but when I look at the book as a whole, it was a good read.
The stories I felt were well written and that made for a nice smooth reading experience.
I would definitely recommend this book.
My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review.

I really wasn't sure with this one. I feel like the cover and blurb don't exactly match the actual content of the book. I preferred the second half a lot more than the first, but it still just wasn't enough for me. Following the characters when they were adults and all their different issues and drama they went through was definitely more enjoyable but most of the characters felt very one dimensional and pretty dull and a lot of the stories just fell flat.

The vivid cover of this book caught my eye, the writing within captivated me. I inhaled this book in a couple of hours, a really absorbing read.
Islanders is a collection of interlinked short stories set in Guernsey over a twenty year period. Each story is as strong and engaging as the previous. I know very little about Guernsey but the author writes with such detail, I could almost taste the fish and chips and feel the grimy nightclub floor under my feet. Grimly realistic written with beautiful tenderness, authenticity and emotion . Cathy Thomas is an author I will look out for now, her writing is incredible.
4.5- 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ah I have mixed feelings about this one. It's a collection of short stories all set around the same group of people from Guernsey. It follows them over a twenty year period, switching points of view through a variety of characters from teens to their parents. It's a very honest kind of book though the language was a bit crude for my taste at times. I didn't have a wild childhood, hard to relate.

I think the short story format worked well as it gave a breadth of experiences that were all united by the island. It did lack development and detail because of it but that's a comprise that has to be made with this style of book.

Overall, I have mixed feelings. Some of the stories were more engaging than others.

Comprising twelve stories set on Guernsey over two decades beginning in 2000, Cathy Thomas’ Islanders follows group of young people for whom ‘the rock’ is both home and a place to escape. It’s the perfect setting for a set of linked stories. Part of its appeal is spotting familiar characters as they cross each other’s paths over decades: some friends, others trying to turn their backs on a difficult past, all knowing far more about each other than is often comfortable.

Thomas has a sharp observational eye backed up by a pithy wit and a compassionate understanding. Guernsey has all the familiar features of small town life exaggerated by its island status. Everyone knows everyone else’s business, gossip is rife, boredom a feature of life with escapes made into partying and loyalties are fierce. Astute, shrewd, funny and dark, Islanders hangs together beautifully. It’s a collection that will stay with me for some time.

Set on the island of Guernsey over a period of twenty years, these closely linked stories reveal the desires, friendships, betrayals, regrets and heartaches of twelve intertwined people. Against a backdrop of picturesque cliffs and beaches, grimy clubs and pubs and chip shops, their stumbling attempts to connect with each other are depicted with wrenching pathos, wry humour and moving empathy. Read it in a day with barely any breaks, but the breaks that I took just meant that I was thinking about it and wanted to get back to it!

Islanders, by Cathy Thomas, is a wonderful short story collection. It’s stories are told across a 20 year period, beginning in 2000. Nearly all the stories are set in Guernsey, and for the few set elsewhere we are still following the lives of the inhabitants of the island. One of the things that makes these stories so special is that the same characters are woven throughout them. Though each story is distinct, we learn so much about different cast of characters as the years go by. This is a really special book.

There are twelve stories in total in Islanders, all of which are as good as each other. The way that Thomas tells the islanders’ stories is so beautiful, they feel so alive on the page. She writes with such authenticity, these characters feel so very real, so human. Their lives are messy, complicated, full of joys and sorrows. We are witness to many different types of relationship, that between friends, siblings, parents and children and lovers. All of this together makes for such a rich read.

I loved finding out more about the characters as the stories developed. In some cases we got to see them several times, like siblings Paul & Josie whose stories bookend Islanders, and Becky and Luc who each pop up several times. Whilst with others, such as Goody and Jen we only really meet once properly and yet their stories are just as good. Guernsey is as much as a character as it is the setting in Islanders. Thomas’ writing is so vivid you feel as though you are there with the characters.

This is an easy read, you become so easily absorbed into the stories, and yet it covers some heavy topics. There are stories containing drug and alcohol misuse, alcoholism, suicide, crippling loneliness, physical violence and feelings of repressed sexuality. Thomas handles these issues with great care and you come to really feel for the characters, which is especially impressive given these are short stories.

Overall an excellent read which I’d throughly recommend.

A really grwat collection of stories that were well written with good characterisation. They were all equally as good as each other, there wasn't a single one that drew my attention for being weaker than the rest

Islanders by Cathy Thomas is a series of short stories ,spanning 20 years, about life,growing up and living in Guernsey. The stories are different but linked by events and characters as time goes on.
The general view of Guernsey is that of an island of tax-avoiding rich people. This book shows the other side,the ordinary people,the feral kids ,the sink estate, the drug dealers, the frustrated and the lost. That said Cathy Thomas skilfully describes the realities of life pretty much anywhere for those growing up and living anywhere in Britain today. From the schoolgirl reluctantly meeting someone purely to lose her virginity, the well-meaning driving instructor whose kindness gets him beaten up to the woman who knows her best friend is having an affair with her husband,and many more, her characters struggle with modern life's expectations and let downs.

This is a clever and insightful book with character's fortunes changing, often unexpectedly, as they re-appear as a bit part character a few chapters.....and years,on from the one in which their own story is featured.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book,from the cover and the publisher's description I expected something entertaining but a bit lightweight . I was totally wrong about the lightweight part,it's,thankfully,not a catalogue of misery but it doesn't flinch from the darker side of life either.. Cathy Thomas really gets under the skin of her characters,whatever gender or age they are,and this is an outstanding piece of writing.
I read a lot of books,every now and again I unexpectedly stumble across something special This is one of those books.

Life on a small island isn't a bundle of fun if you're a teenager. Everyone knows you, and knows your business.

But those whose lives were intertwined grow older, move away, drift apart...until the passing of time brings everyone's orbits back into alignment. For better, or for worse.