Narrated by estranged mother and daughter, over two time periods, The Island Escape sees Juno run away from her life to Greece to learn more about her long-lost father Niko. Juno falls in love with Island life and gets to know the infamous Zimiris family, her unknowing relatives, whilst Estelle’s relationship with Niko unfolds in the past. As the two narratives develop and intertwine the mystery deepens and the twists start.

The author does a good job at describing the island, and the talk of tavernas, beaches and swimming will make anyone want their own island escape. I liked the cast of characters, which set the tone of life and tension between the inhabitants of the island. However, where I struggled with the book was with the main characters themselves. They gave mother and daughter energy in the fact that I think they both came across as naive and pretty annoying. I didn’t quite buy in to the catalyst of the plot either, and felt quite sorry for Juno’s husband. I also managed to guess a couple of the twists relatively early on as well. I did enjoy the vibe of the book but having loved Jess Ryder’s last book (The Villa), I was just a bit disappointed.

When Juno arrives at the breathtaking Greek island of Inios, she has one purpose: to find the father she’s never met.
But he isn’t there, and nothing is as she expected. As whispers follow her every step, Juno is convinced something terrible happened all those years ago when her parents fell in love.
Desperate for answers, Juno knows she can’t leave the island until her family secret that has been hidden for decades is finally uncovered.

I enjoyed reading this story. It's steady paced and the writer's descriptions of the Greek island and its traditions are superb. The characters seem to be dimensional and likeable/hateable. An all-round good story and a great read.

apologies have reviewed wrong book and now can't remove star rating or delete entire review which is unfortunate because I'm just typing words now

Jess has hit her stride in the genre she sits in and im so glad she there to do so. her books are all clever and sharp shooting thrillers. she is just so good at getting that tension, the people development and plot points spot on.ive read a few of her previously and all have been in my mind great books.
the mystery was amped up in this one and i couldn't stop from guessing where it might be going even from the start. the scene setting was particular good in this book and added so much atmosphere to the book as well as real place i felt i myself could imagine.
i felt so sorry for Juno. all she wanted was to find her father but it seemed noone else wanted to, infact they barely simmered away from telling her to keep away from it all. and i got the feeling her naivety and willingness to do anything if it made her like was down to her past and her feeling of herself. this need for her dad, this need to belong, to not be rejected again i think often bought too much innocence to her thinking and so she lacked the presents of critical thinking most of us have. but she just wanted anyone and everyone to accept her so instead accepted everything!

I really enjoyed this thriller mystery and was totally invested in finding out what Estelle actually did. I could not have predicted the ending, there were plenty of curve balls thrown in along thr way - no one is quite what they seem!

Juno, abandoned by her father has had an errant upbringing by her mother (Estelle) who has a dark secret from her backpacking adventures that she does not want to reveal. As an adult, Juno has lost her way and, having found some old letters from her mother’s youth, decides to take herself off to the Greek island of Ionis, to find her long lost family.

The setting is to die for and I wanted to visit the island personally. Juno is able to infiltrate herself into her extended family’s business so that she can get to know them in secret and without needing to reveal her true identity. There are a lot of characters who have made bad decisions in this book and then have to live with the consequences.

Dark and delicious in the most glorious setting. A great holiday read!

This was a nice enough book, but it didn't feel terribly original and I'm not sure how Greek people will take to the characterisation of some of the protagonists. However I imagine it as an ideal beach read when the reader dosn't have to think too much about plot or characters but enjoy the descriptions of the scenery and island life.
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.
2.5 rounded up to 3

Juno has arrived on the Greek island of Inios looking for the father she never knew. However, certain people know answers to her questions but are determined to keep the secrets.
Will she suceed in finding him ?

I enjoyed Jess Ryder’s novel, The Villa, so this novel sparked my interest. Around forty years ago, Nico and Estelle left the Greek island of Ionis. Cut to the present day, and Juno has temporarily left her marriage and is on Ionis to attempt to find out what happened to her father. Her mother, Estelle, whom she hardly ever sees, leads a hippie, eclectic lifestyle in Portugal and warns her not to meddle, as it will not be safe, but Juno ignores her warnings. Juno has never met her father. All she has is a series of letters that Estelle sent to her parents, talking of her romance with Nico and him being the eldest son of a wealthy and powerful family of restaurant owners.

The main story is set in two timelines. Estelle backpacking on the Greek island where she meets Nico, and they fall in love. However, Nico’s family strongly disapprove of their relationship, and things start to go awry.
In the present day, Juno visits the island and gets a job posing as a wedding coordinator for the same business that belongs to her missing father’s family. She has to be careful not to reveal her true identity or intentions, but it soon becomes clear that she is in danger as secrets are uncovered.
This book had a really good premise, but was let down by execution. It’s too bogged down in detail, with lots of unnecessary scene setting. The characters are not likeable and not fleshed out. Plus the plot winds around not getting anywhere and ends with a bit of a whimper.
So an average 3 stars from me.
Sincere thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Random House and Jess Ryder for the much-appreciated ARC in exchange for an honest and open review.

Forty years ago Estelle and Nico fled the island of Inos. Now their daughter, Juno, is on the island trying to find the father she’d never met, and discover what had happened. As a young child she had been dragged around the hippy communes of the world by Estelle, before settling to a stable life with her grandparents while Estelle continued her wandering ways. Juno had had no information about her father “an unknown Italian waiter” until now, aged thirty-nine, when she has found a collection of letters and postcards which Estelle had sent to her parents during her time on the island, describing her romance with Nico, eldest son of a prominent family of restauranteurs. The family business has expanded a lot and Juno manages to get a job as their ‘Wedding -event organiser’, without telling them that she is Nico’s daughter and, therefore, also a member of their family. The phrase ‘opening a can of worms’ springs to mind.
This is, in theory, a murder-mystery-thriller, but, although I has features that fit with those three categories, it is more of a domestic drama, really. The plot is not very complicated, not very original, the characters are all a bit thin and there is little in the way of tension. I also have some niggles about the logistics. Readers looking for something to relax with rather than puzzle over will enjoy it, but I’m in the puzzle camp.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

I read The Villa last year and this book has a similar claustrophobic atmosphere. Told from the dual points of view of Juno and her mother and also dual timeline. Juno decides to go to the Greek Island where she was conceived in search of the father she has never met. There are many warnings against Juno staying and this adds to the tension. I didn’t expect the final twist. Good summer read.

This was a great thriller, with a captivating mystery and plenty of heart behind it. I was offered this book after reading Jess Ryder's previous book, The Villa. I actually liked this better even though I enjoyed The Villa quite a bit!

The setting was more interesting to me and felt more real somehow. Perhaps it's because the author, as she mentions in her acknowledgements, spent time in this particular world in Greece - she seems to have an affinity with it and describes it so well.

I have to admit, the title didn't get my attention by itself, but the description of "Mamma Mia with murder" certainly did! I would definitely agree that it fits that tagline well. A daughter searching for a lost father on a Greek island with a somewhat hippy mother. And it doesn't even take to the point where it all turns a bit darker to be interesting; the narrative had my attention throughout. There was always an underlying tension as Juno is warned by her mother, among others, to stay out of everything, but she forges ahead.

The book is well told through a first person narrative by Juno, the daughter, Estelle's postcards to her parents at home, which is how Estelle's story is unfolding for Juno (and gives a good unreliable narrator version - who tells their parents the real truth?!), and a third person narrative from Estelle's perspective that gives us as the reader a little extra insight.

This makes an excellent summer read to keep you on your toes and guessing throughout. There's not just one mystery to uncover, but a few, and some will definitely be surprises - I'm sure!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for a review copy of this book.

I went into this completely blind as I love not reading a blurb! I loved the mystery unfolding of what had actually happened all those years ago. I also enjoyed the link the letters had when transitioning between past and present day! A surprise all round!

Mamma Mia but with murder springs to mind when reading this book.
This book had great characters introduced to us early on and i didn't quite know who to trust. I enjoyed the flashbacks to the past and it kept me on my toes.
The ending is worth the wait and i really enjoyed this summer read. Thanks Netgalley

I enjoyed The Island Escape, it wasn't the thriller I was expecting but it was enjoyable and had a good ending. The island sounded beautiful!

I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was really good, however I didn’t find the characters that likeable and during the middle of the book it started to feel a bit flat, but the beginning and the end were fantastic. I definitely enjoy this authors writing style.

I enjoyed reading the Island Escape. It was a book with enough twists in the narrative to hold the reader's attention throughout. The descriptions of the Greek Island scenery made me want to visit. Next holiday here I come! Although I wasn't particularly fond of any of the characters they were well written and believable and carried the plot well. An enjoyable beach read
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own

This was a decent read but far from the gripping thriller I expected. The setup had all the makings of something juicy: an exotic island, secrets from the past, a mysterious disappearance but what followed felt more like a slow-moving drama with thriller elements sprinkled in as an afterthought.

The dual timelines tried to build suspense, and occasionally succeeded, but overall the tension never quite reached the level it needed to. As for the characters, they mostly fell flat. Their decisions often felt forced and I found myself more frustrated than invested.

On the bright side, the island setting was well done—lush, vivid, and the perfect backdrop There were a few twists that managed to surprise me and I appreciated the underlying themes of fractured friendships, betrayal, and tangled family secrets.

𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 : unreliable characters, secrets & lies, disappearance & cold case.

Thank you to Jess Ryder, Random House UK & NetGalley for my e-ARC copy.

𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙩𝙚 : 03 july 2025

Juno takes a break from her marriage and goes to search for her father on the Greek island of Ionis She has never met her father and the little she knows about him is from copies of letters and photos her mother kept when she was corresponding to him 40 years ago. Her Mother who she now rarely sees and lives in Portugal warns her not to go to the island as it is not safe. But Juno doesn’t listen and heads off regardless.
The story was set in two times lines. Estelle bag packing on the Greek island where she meets Niko and they fall in love. But things don’t run smoothly, and their relationship goes against his families’ principles.
Then we meet find Juno visiting the island and gets job as a wedding co-ordinator and her father’s family’s business. Being careful not to reveal or she really is. So, she can discover where her father is. But things don’t go to plan.
The island Escape by Jess Ryder is the fourth book I have read, and it would make a great beach read. This has an intriguing storyline, and I enjoyed the descriptions of the beautiful places on the island, it made me want to book a flight somewhere. But I didn’t think the characters were very likeable and thought that Juno was a bit annoying as she wasn’t taking any heed of anything anyone was saying. But I did think the ending was the most satisfying. 4 stars from me.

This was a suspense filled dramatic read, however I wouldn’t necessarily call it a thriller. There was so much going on all the way through that really kept me reading. The dual timelines really added depth to the story also.

I really enjoy the authors previous book The villa so was looking forward to this advanced copy.
The book starts off interesting setting the scene when Juno visits the island of Inois to find the father she has never met. I enjoyed the way the book went back and forth to different time lines from present to the 80s when Junes mum spent time in Inois.
I didn’t connect as much to the characters as I did in her previous book and felt the story fell flat in the middle.
The story then picks up towards the end with some enjoyable twists.
I did enjoy this book and look forward to reading more books by this author.