Tom, a widowed doctor from Seattle decides to take his new family with him on a working holiday to Australia. Tom's new, much younger wife Heather and kids Olivia and Owen don't get on so this seems a good way for them to spend quality time together before Tom's conference. The kids are keen to see koalas and the chance arises for the family to visit a small, private island off the coast of Victoria.
As soon as they set foot on the island, they are warned off. And then a freak accident sets in motion a series of events they could never have predicted. Who will leave the island alive?

I read this in one afternoon. I could not put it down. The tension! I'm still on the edge of my seat now, just writing this! Which reminds me of when I read another of this author's books, The Chain. It seems that fast paced, adrenaline packed thrillers are his specialty! And if that's your genre, this book is perfect for you.

A warning, there is a lot of gruesome death (and not just human) in this book as well as some torture. If I'd known that I probably wouldn't have read it but glad I did as the book generally was quite informative in a Bear Grylls kind of way!

This was scary! The Australian outback version of Deliverance, it was gruesome and terrifying!
The pace was fast and very tense. I liked it as a thriller but it was a bit too much action over substance for me. So much running around! I would have liked a bit more background information on the characters rather than the survivalist aspect which I'm not sure quite rang true at times. But that is just me!
Not my usual genre but I did enjoy it. Some scenes saw it veering into horror at times.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

Great story of love and survival. Tom was possibly more hateful than the O’Neill’s

Spoiler free review netgalley

An intense thriller that is wild from start to finish. A good read.

It was just supposed to be a family vacation. A terrible accident changed everything. You don’t know what you’re capable of until they come for your family.

Set in Australia, Heather Baxter, her husband Tim and two stepchildren are travelling from the U.S. to a surgical conference where Tim is the keynote speaker. Trying to placate the teens’ demands to see some native animals, they set out for a drive and come across some locals who offer to bring them to their private island. Heather’s friend jokingly warned her of the dangers of the outback but Heather quickly realises that there are more sinister forces at play here than the native animals.

I loved McKinty’s The Chain and I was really looking forward to seeing what he would do next. The Island does not disappoint! The author has a way of presenting the reader with truly terrifying scenarios and immersing us in the story as if we are there alongside the protagonists.

The action and drama is relentless; the reader is kept in a constant state of tension, fear and suspense just like Heather. This story focuses on the unravelling of family relationships (both the Baxter’s and the locals) which makes you think about what you would do if you found yourself in this situation. The humid, unrelenting environment heightens the tension throughout the story.

A fast-paced, completely engrossing story. The Island definitely gives me Wolf Creek vibes! It might make me think twice about driving around Oz! Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for the arc. The Island is out on May 17th.

4.75⭐️
I loved The Chain, so I was excited to read this book, although survival thrillers are not my usual type of read.

Heather and Tom are Americans newly married,visiting Australia where Tom has a conference to attend. They have Tom’s 2 older children with them.

After a disappointing trip to try and see some Australian wildlife they are approached by a rough looking pair who negotiate a deal to take them to a small private island called Dutch island reportedly full of animals. Things then go badly wrong….

Firstly that prologue is a great hook! , it’s Valentine’s Day, and there’s murder in the air! There’s plenty of tension and suspense.
It’s a fast paced and action packed. It felt very believable. It’s a real edge of the seat read!

The characters are well written we get to see them in different lights. Heather was definitely my favourite, and surprised me the most.

This action thriller doesn’t come with a highly trained special forces hero, just an everyday suburban young woman which made it more relatable to me. If you are a fan of action thrillers of any form I’m sure that you will love it. I certainly did.

100% page turner!
Book Review - The Island by Adrian McKinty
(There be no spoilers here!!)
The Island tells the tale of Dr. Tom Baxter, his two children and new young wife Heather, who take an impromptu trip to a local private Island off the coast of Australia. However, a terrible accident causes the family to make a couple of bad decisions with disastrous consequences...
The setting of 'The Island' is amazing, and the description McKinty uses, with the cloying heat made me keep reaching for the Evian! Both beautiful, desolate, claustrophobic and truly nightmarish at times. Alongside the amazing characters, I genuinely couldn't put this down.
(I started this book this morning, and I'd finished by late afternoon - bloody brilliant!)
Heather is a wonderful heroine - she's vulnerable, but also 'ard as nails, which I love. The step-children add a wonderful dynamic, and an extra layer to Heather, Tom and the other characters decision making.
I've loved reading this so much, I cannot recommend highly enough.
An easy, peasy 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 from me!
Thanks so much to netgalley & orionbooks for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review - I've loved it.

Wow! What a story! I was equally terrified and addicted to this fast paced thriller. Tom and his new wife Heather are in Australia with his children from his first marriage and manage to persuade some locals to let them visit Dutch Island as Olivia and Own are desperate to see some Koalas.
However, a tragic accident occurs and Heather and the children get separated from Tom and realise that the locals want revenge and are after them. Whilst they aren't Heather's biological children, her maternal and protective instincts kick in and will do anything to protect them and survive. I literally gasped out loud many times when I was reading this chilling thriller but couldn't put it down as I had to know how it ended!

4/5 Very Good.

An American Family on a trip to Australia, trying to get over a tragedy. With Dad working a conference, Heather the new Step mom, finds herself trying to entertain two very modern kids.

Whilst taking a trip to an island not far from the mainland, the story then really ramps up as an event occurs that shakes both the family and the inhabitants of the island to its core…

Up until then the tension is palpable as you can feel McKinty drawing his plot, and when he unleashes it, A fiendish story plays out.

Deliverance, The Hunger Games, Lord of the Flies, Battle Royale et al, there are many influences in this chaotic and adrenaline pumping thriller from Adrian McKinty.

You have to completely suspends all belief, but hey it’s fiction, it’s supposed to take you on a journey and this really does.

It’s pure Hollywood Blockbuster, I have no doubts whatsoever it will be just that, and the book might just sell a few copies too.

Thoroughly enjoyable

WHAT a thrill! Visiting a private island off the coast of Australia, untouched by tourism, sounds ideal to Heather, her new husband Tom and her two new step kids. However, a tragic accident soon leads to a terrifying, harrowing experience that leaves them all changed for good.

I absolutely devoured this book, so gripped by each moment. I can't share much without giving away the twists, but I cannot recommend this thriller enough!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I loved The Chain and had such high hopes for The Island. I loved the premise, but sadly it just didn't work for me. I couldn't get into it and felt the writing didn't really flow and was a bit stunted.

another great book from a brilliant author if you enjoyed the chain then u will love this book aswell full of twists and turns with great characters

I absolutely loved The Chain by Adrian McKinty so was excited to come across this book.

Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book, I found the characters unlikeable and the dialogue was quite annoying in places.

I liked the premise of the book but it wasn't my cup of tea.

Nice again a stunning thriller from the author. A tension building psychological book that will have you on the edge of your seat. Well plotted to give the reader maximum thrills and chills as they follow the family in their bid for freedom. A dysfunctional family but one that come together in their hour of need to survive and escape their living nightmare.

This is very different to other Adrian McKinty that I have read and it is action-packed and a proper adventure-thriller. As usual, characters were well drawn but I just didn't like them. Its a book that I can see the appeal for many people, just wasn't for me.

Heather has married Tom and is now stepmother to his two children, living in Seattle.
Tom is speaking at a conference in Australia and takes the family with him for a holiday. they decide to explore and are invited onto Dutch Island to see the koalas.
An accident will change their lives for ever and Heather must find a strength she didn't know she had. She must save the children but at what cost and will they all survive the nightmare of the island.

I enjoyed The Chain but The Island was a difficult read and I struggled with the narrative. Other readers will.enjoy it, but the violence and the pointless action scenes were not to.my taste. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

4.5-5 stars

I loved the anxiety you got from this book pretty much from the first chapter! Straight away it was an engaging and original read. It’s also a book you don’t want to put down because there’s action from start to finish.
Another great book by Adrian McKinty.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for letting me read the ARC in exchange for an honest review

Having read and enjoyed The Chain so much, I had to read this book!

Married fast and not for particularly long, Heather is a newish stepmum to both Oliva and Owen, coming into the picture pretty soon after their mum’s death. Unsurprisingly, neither are taken by her. While on holiday in Australia, they talk their way, using money, onto a remote island, run by a very close community. When a shocking accident happens on the island involving the family, it doesn’t take long for the locals to notice the accident and turn. Separated from Tom (the dad) Heather fights with everything she has to protect the two children.

I thought this book was going to be very action-driven, and that was ok, I was all there for it, but Adrian thoroughly surprised me by pushing extremely complex characterisation alongside the action. The protagonist is brilliant, never doubted her, personality remained the same the whole way through. Other characters, however, taught me to listen to your gut and second guess everything. We had ‘selfish’ characters making massive sacrifices, ‘nice’ characters with secrets… all while watching the children learn to accept Heather into their lives.

There was a scene towards the end where the kids, mostly Owen, made a gut-wrenching decision that I didn’t find massively realistic had this not been fiction, but other than that, I could not fault this book. I actually learnt a lot while reading this! I hope if I ever end up on an island, the locals desperate to kill me, Heather is there.

I was hooked on this story from the start. A family is visiting Australia for the first time as the dad is a renowned knee specialist and is a keynote speaker. He brings with him his new wife (the previous wife died a year ago) and his 2 children. The story is told from the point of view of Heather who is the new wife. A trip out to see some wildlife leads to a chance encounter with some locals who are persuaded to let them visit their remote private island to view some koalas. Once there a terrible spate of events unfolds. The story is gripping and I read it in almost one sitting. There is a real sense of terror and Heather adopts some ingenious ideas to help the family survive.