Overall I really enjoyed the murder mystery element of this book, although I found the first 60% slow to read the last 40% was super fast paced as the plot was unraveled. I would have loved a few final chapters to explore the fall out of what happened on the island maybe with a 6 months on to see where they are now and what happened to them when they got off the island.

The perspective is written in the third person which took a little getting used to. Because of this I’d have loved perspectives from each of the characters and maybe an externally view from a production standpoint.

I have never read a thriller quite like this with the reality show setting and it made it really refreshing. With a varied cast of characters and a tense setting it is such a great debut by Louise Minchin.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

This is really pretty good! It's a cross between Big Brother, SAS Who Dares Win with a touch of And Then There Were None.

It's a bit confusing at the beginning when all the characters are introduced at once and throughout the book I did keep getting some of the male characters mixed up.

The story is good and quite exciting and there is a real tension and sense of fear when the storm moves in. I can see this book as a film, there are even bits where the characters hear noises or whatever, and instead of hurrying back to the safety of the warm Hall with everyone else, they decide to venture down dark passageways or up dark stairs.

I felt that the ending was a bit flat and also rushed although the twist was good.

I suppose when you take the time to think about it, there are a few flaws but when you are reading it, you are quite swept along by it all , so i will give it a 4 for readability and enjoyment.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC of Isolation Island.

I think when a ‘celebrity’ or well know name writes a book, you are always a bit wary of them branching out. However, I was not disappointed with this from Louise Minchin!

The atmosphere she created, with the monastery and the storm, together with a really eclectic mix of characters, made me want to keep reading.

Although it was a relatively short novel, I enjoyed every chapter, and was disappointed when it ended. A good debut from Louise, looking forward to the next!

I found this book a little slow to start but once I got a few chapters it oh my!!!! Was such a pleasure to read. It gripped me, kept me reading and I needed to know more. I struggled to put it down. Such an enjoyable thriller with twists along the way. If you ever want a gem of a book to read this is the one! Loved the characters and story line! I’m just sorry it took me a little time to get into it.

Ten celebrities travel to a remote Scottish island for a new reality show. But when a storm strands them there in complete isolation, it turns out that some of the contestants may have different reasons for being there ...

This was a really gripping and well written thriller! I read it in less than a day because I needed to know how it ended - and was completely satisfied by the final twists. Definitely one to pick up if you like an atmospheric murder mystery!

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

This was a very slow start and seemed to be so bizarre, a lonely isolated island, all clothes and personal objects to be disposed of so that they all wore the same clothes, cameras everywhere and o other prson to tell the things to do. The premise was good but I did not always feel that it delivered the best. In a way I felt that it was like Agatha Christie when 10 people come for dinner and one by one they all die. So instead of dinner this was an isolated island where all the competitors had a reason to be there. This was very much in line of the show " I am a celebrity get me out of here" which did make it plausible. I do have to say that it is full of twists and unsuspected information given by tthe competitors from the very start which did give it a lot of credence. It was certainly atmosperic and I shuddered at the idea of staying in a remote abbey on an isolated island knowing that one of my fellow celebrities was a killer.

I really enjoyed the story and was very quickly engaged form the start. Much seemed credible as the “celebs” made their way to the island – but trips and turns along the way had me surprised. Hidden cameras, danger lurking, and natural disasters kept everyone on their toes before and after someone dies. Yes, some bits were a little implausible, but did not to spoil the very good read! A good ending too…….. An excellent fiction start by the author and I await her next book eagerly. I was disappointed by the proof copy as it had line numbers in every line, making it hard to read – and not fair to Minchin!

A great debut fiction book by Louise Minchin. A take on the reality tv show but with a twist. A great thriller that kept me hooked and guessing right to the end.

The thought of being stranded on a remote island in Scotland has its appeal, right up until you add in several strangers with egos and their own agendas, cameras and an absent production team that have your day-to-day life in their hands, giving you tasks to complete, or your time is done, and I am out. I may have watched the odd episode of I’m a celebrity usually for the gruesome tasks but even that after a while just became very meh. Isolation Island takes all that we see on these types of programmes and then ramps it up to an extreme that has you wondering why anyone would sign up for these types of programmes and put themselves out of their comfort zone.
From the start Louise Minchin sets the scene perfectly highlighting just how remote and inaccessible the island is and how it is very much left to the whim of the elements. The 10 “celebrities” are all there for one reason only, to try to win the one thing that is personal to them that will set their careers apart or put them back on track. Lauren Brooks has another reason for being there, she is determined to expose one of the other contestants and show the world his true character. Having been forced to shut down her original story she thinks that if she can get him on camera, it will be game over for him.
There is certainly quite a mix of characters, who on the face of it seem like a nice group but as time progresses and the reality of their situation sets in, their true characters show through, and secrets are revealed I am not sure that you would want to know some of them. Louise Minchin has done a good job creating the main players in the book, showing how public and private persona’s can be so different when the cameras stop rolling. What is slightly more worrying is what she puts them all through potentially in the name of entertainment. There is clearly a wicked mind lurking behind the person we saw on breakfast TV for years (proving my earlier observation).
The pacing and tension never let up, making this a definite page turner as you want to know what is going to the contestants and who if anyone will get off the island in one piece. One thing is certain, if this is Louise’s first journey into crime fiction, I am looking forward to what comes next

A bit of a slow start for me, but once the characters were introduced then things progressed. Very atmospheric and moved along at a cracking pace. Would recommend this to others.

Wow, was totally hooked on this book, and literally couldn't move from my sunbed once I was into it.

I had to know what would be happening next, and somehow didn't see the final reveals coming.

I am absolutely loving this new trend of thrillers et in remote locations combined with reality tv programmes.

The setting is this instance is a run down monastery on a remote Scottish Island and although the basic premise of the game is rather familiar feeling, it's a fabulously claustrophobic and tense book as things start to go wrong almost immediately.

You are never completely sure what will happen next, and I incredibly gripped by the action.

With a cast of characters that on the whole I warmed to, I really couldn't get my head around just what might be happening.

Thoroughly enjoyed every page of this and will definitely be looking out for more books from this author in the future.

Thank you to Headline and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Isolation Island is set on a remote Scottish island in the depths of winter, as a reality survival show is beginning with ten celebrities set to battle it out for a unique 'money can't buy' prize. It starts with a wobble and the celebrities start to wonder how safe they really are; but then the game kicks in and they are faced with a number of challenges whilst being filmed. But when a storm hits, the celebrities become even more isolated, and then one of them is discovered dead. It then becomes a frantic race to keep themselves alive until they are finally rescued, knowing that their is a murderer in their midst.

This book was a debut novel for Louise Minchin and I was really impressed with how quickly it had me gripped. The writing is excellent and I stayed up late on numerous occasions for 'just one more chapter'.
At first, I thought it would be tricky to get to know so many characters, but they were all so wonderfully unique and well written, that I actually got to grips with them pretty easily.

Isolation Island is a whirlwind of a book, with many twists and turns - some that I guessed, but plenty that I didn't. I can't wait to see what Louise Minchin writes next.

My thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for sending me this ARC in return for an honest review.

Louise Minchin is one of those authors you know you can rely on for a gripping read and this title is no exception, thoroughly recommend

Isolation Island is set on an abandoned island with an old monastery! The story is about 10 celebrities on a reality TV show and how they will survive on an isolated island, where they are given challenges to complete in order to provide them with food. Our main character is Lauren, an investigative journalist, who is hoping to catch and write about one of the celebrities, an American actor called Nate Stirling, This has all the elements of a locked mystery with lots of intrigue on the isolated island. How will the 10 get along with each other as they all have different characters and traits, will they come together or fail to become a cohesive group. They were plenty of nail biting moments and it is a page turner of a book. The story was very atmospheric and descriptive. The ending came as a complete surprise for me.

Oh my goodness, this is so well written. For anyone reluctant to read a book written by a celebrity, I can advise you to put your prejudice aside. Louise Minchin has created a cast of very believable celebrities and placed them in a game show on an isolated island in the manner of ‘ I’m a Celebrity’. I loved her protagonist, a tough female journalist with a sixth sense for danger and a clear sense of right and wrong. Tense and unpredictable.

Ten celebrities are marooned on a Scottish island far from the rest of civilisation. As part of a new reality games show, the idea is that the last man/woman standing walks away with the prize of their dreams. Obviously, as with all isolated islands, things tend to go awry!

Imagine I’m a Celebrity, crossed with Big Brother, married to The Traitors, with Christie’s Then There Were None thrown in for good measure, and you will get an idea of what the plot is like.

As a debut it’s ok, not compelling. A little amateurish at times, more like an exercise in writing, with everything thrown in.

One or two things didn’t quite add up - Frank and Kez? Nico brought in as last minute sub? No explanation given 🤷🏻‍♀️perhaps I missed it. Also time line a bit off now and then. The culprit was signposted very, very early on, no great surprise!

An interesting read, but the premise has been trotted out a lot and I think readers possibly expect more from a well established plot. Something different needed to shake things up!

I did like, but expected more.

2.5*

Thank you NetGalley and Headline.

I absolutely loved this book about 10 contestants taking place in a reality TV programme set on a remote Scottish island which was once a monastery. Our main character is Lauren, an investigative journalist who has only signed up because she believes the subject of her latest two year investigation will also be on the island. It appears early on that health and safety does not feature majorly on the production team’s agenda, when one contestant nearly gets killed soon after arriving on the island. Things take a turn for the worse when a major storm closes in the contestants. I thought I had it all worked out but at 65% my theory was blown apart. At this point I had to cover the page in order to read one line at a time for fear of spoiling what was about to happen. This book is exciting right up to the very last sentence and I highly recommend it. My top book for 2024.

This book kept me hooked from the first page! I devoured this book in a weekend and feel no guilt about that!
Amazingly written, wonderful twists and turns, and great characters.
Louise Minchin is up there for me now with the best thriller writers I have come across

Ten celebrities have agreed to take part in a gruelling reality survival show, spending two weeks completely alone on a remote Scottish island, in the depths of winter. With some careers on the rise, and others whose fame is fading, almost everyone has something to play for. Investigative journalist Lauren has her place but is intrigued into what Hollywood megastar Nate Stirling has to gain by taking part? With a production team that seems incapable of keeping them safe, a gathering storm and the unrelenting gaze of hidden cameras, the contestants are stretched to the limit as they try to outshine their fellow competitors and hide their darkest secrets. When a body is found, it's clear that the game has become a matter of life and death...

There have been a lot of locked-room, celebrity-type reality TV show scenario thrillers lately and I must admit it’s a synopsis that instantly hooks me in! Although it’s safe to say that it’s probably a good idea that our TV friendly shows in real life are a lot less dramatic!

This is a fast-paced read that I devoured in two days, each chapter making you want to know what happened next. There are a lot of characters but I found you soon got your head round who was who, being only told from Lauren’s POV also helped to ground this a you discover the facts as she does. The first half does an excellent job of setting the scene, with the second part ramping up the tension and intrigue as the ‘game’ takes a deadly turn.

Some elements are a little more drawn out than perhaps necessary but overall it’s a twisty, suspenseful thriller that I really enjoyed. The dramatic conclusion has less of a punch than I thought it would, but succeeds in being something completely out of the blue, nicely bringing everything together, with an added element of wonder about what happened afterwards. I wasn’t sure what to expect from Minchin for her debut title but am pleasantly surprised and this was a great read which I would recommend!