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!

This book was, well, ok. It felt quite predictable and took quite a while to move away from a standard script of a celebrity game show. The twists and turns were not to unexpected and without too much drama. Having said that, the scene and character descriptions kept the book interesting and despite a long wait for any real ‘action’ I still enjoyed it enough to finish. A good start start for Louise and hopefully some food for thought for another. I will look out for it. I’d give it 3.5 if I could.

Ten celebrities, including a Hollywood superstar, all on an isolated island- what could possibly go wrong? Louise Minchin’s debut thriller is rather good. What could have been a formulaic novel is actually a well thought out clever plot twister. Minchin has produced a gripping tale with a decent plot and a few dead bodies thrown in for good measure. The originality with the prize for the contestant who wins is also original and the main protagonist, an investigative journalist called Lauren is a great character. A thrilling read and I am sure we will see Louise Minchin as a regular writer in crime thrillers after this.

I for one would not want to be a contestant on one of these reality tv shows, no matter that it takes place on a cool isolated island with an abandoned monastery. It did make for a fun and thrilling story though. It is always interesting when you take a group of several wildly different people, with dreams and goals of their own for if they win the prize and then set them up for unfair challenges which further divide them (like the saints and sinners sleeping quarters) and also raise one person higher than the rest and you are sure to get drama, even if everything is being recorded. Though the bodies don't start showing up until the storms hits and knocks out all power. People sure behave differently when they think they aren't being watched so they can get away with much more!

Since the point of view is from Lauren's perspective and her being a journalist albeit one with a mission of her own for one of the other contestants, it is easy to root for her and hope she can find justice for her friend. There are lots of suspects for the murders and it was fun to try and figure out the who and why and how. I will say I did not feel bad for the ones who ended up dead, except for the last one. And I do like how Lauren chooses not to go the easy way but is willing to put everything on the line to discover the truth.

A thrilling read though I wouldn't mind going to see the island, as long as there was power and no big storm on the way!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book!

I would like to thank Headline Publishing for providing a readable version of this book after I initially said it was impossible to read due to the numbers merged within the text.

Unfortunately, I did not enjoy the book as much as I had hoped. Here, I will explain why...

I have a Masters in Creative Writing and Louise Minchin has done MANY of the things we were told not to do within the first months of the MA. I won't list all (I paid my £7000 etc fees myself so do not willingly share all info for free) but one MAJOR thing I will share is that there is far too much telling and not enough showing and I do not feel it has been closely edited enough. SHOW me the character is angry. Don't tell me and then follow it up with a sentence of the character shouting.... I know that there's a chance more changes will have been made to this proof, but I doubt it would be enough. I am strongly considering using this story as an editing resource as my pen would love to cross out lines, edit words/paragraphs etc!

Furthermore, something else I spotted is that, initially, there's an abundance of colons, then none! I also feel that - whilst the concept is clever - Minchin has relied too heavily upon her I'm A Celebrity... appearance and it would've been more impressive without this as she already got paid a fee to appear there and is now using that to help to create this (amongst other research) and earn from this! Talking of which - I preferred the note at the end that Minchin wrote t0 the actual novel itself.

There are also threads that are not tied up and I also spotted 'who' was going to be guilty a long way before they were revealed. It's such a slow start and I took much longer to read this than with most books I read. There's a flurry of activity at the end and it all felt a bit rushed.

The writing style is amateurish and, whilst she may be a journalist who has written non-fiction previously, this novel seems a step too far.

I pondered between one and two stars... I have gone with one star as I think I need to be honest. I would like to apologise for my honesty and I am not sharing this on my blog or on other review sites as I don't want to be negative in other places. I felt it important to leave a review here as I was given the chance to read the book a second time - as explained at the start of this.

I was a bit worried about this as I do love Louise presenting the news and I hoped this wasn’t just a new moneymaker for little work.

I am pleased to say that I did really enjoy this - Louise is excellent at setting a scene and building up tension. It does get off to a slow start with nothing happening really until halfway through but I didn’t mind this at all as I was just enjoying myself.

I read this really quickly, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I did feel the ending was a bit flat but it’s not hampered my enjoyment to be honest. An excellent debut!

My thanks to Netgalley and Headline for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This thriller is the debut work by British television presenter Louise Minchin and has already attracted a slew of favourable reviews from fellow media personalities, so I approached it with some excitement, grateful for the free e-ARC that the publishers and NetGalley had gifted me. The book is a good blend of tried-and tested gothic elements (such as the remote island setting involving a sombre graveyard and howling winter winds) and new spins on the genre (such as reality TV show plot). I thought the two main characters – investigative journalist Lauren and her nemesis in the shape of Hollywood star Nate – were perhaps a little ‘overdone’ when it comes to characterisation, but the ancillary cast was entirely believable and the storyline, following the ruthlessly ambitious contestants whose quest for the top prize is only interrupted by murder – was well-constructed. What made the thriller even more readable were the insights, along the way, of how the UK T.V. industry works. Overall, an enjoyable read!

Eventually I did enjoy this book. A bit of a slow burner but after a while I couldn't put it down. Lots of plot twists. One of which I had worked out but the one at the end, wouldn't have guessed that in a million years.

Well worth a read if you like a bit of a thriller. At some points I couldn't read at night if I was on my own as my imagination runs riot.

Can't wait to read what Louise Minchin comes up with next!!

This is another gameshow thriller where 10 celebrities are on a Scottish Island with their dream prize up for grabs.

The author was on I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here so her experience of being on a show like that really helped to make this stand out from all the other game show thrillers out there!

It was maybe a little too descriptive at times and the ending was rushed. However, it was an enjoyable and easy read and a fantastic debut.

I've eaten breakfast for many years watching Louise on the BBC Breakfast sofa, and she was always one of my favourite presenters: genuine, sincere, unconfrontational and just jolly nice. It was sad to see her go, but she's obviously been using her time well to have a successful stab at writing a novel.

Although I enjoyed it, I can't quite give it five stars. I'm present-tense-narrative's biggest hater. I don't like it one little bit, so my heart did sink when I started reading. It wasn't necessary and didn’t work.

Despite the fact that you have to suspend your disbelief a little, and just a couple of other things you found yourself raising your eyebrows at, it's compelling and enjoyable.

Whether or not Lauren (main character) has a sequel or two in her, I do hope Minchin continues after this very worthy debut, as I'd love to read more of her (fiction) writing. And any author who remembers to thank her readers (without whom a book wouldn't even get off the starting blocks), has a special place in my author list.

My thanks to Headline and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Isolation Island’ written by Louise Minchin in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Investigative Journalist Lauren Brooks is invited to join nine celebrities to appear on reality TV show ‘Isolation Island’ taking place in a monastery on Eilean Manach, an isolated island in Scotland. She only agrees when she learns that famous Hollywood movie star Nate Stirling is also taking part and Lauren will be able to use it as an opportunity to get information to write an expose on him. But from day one she realises the production company are putting their lives at risk, especially when one of the contestants winds up dead.

‘Isolation Island’ has been written by an author that I know of from television programmes but this is the first book I’ve read by her. She’s written a thriller that’s quite good but I found the plot contrived and so far-fetched that although based on ‘I’m A Celebrity…’ I doubt it would have been allowed to happen, although it would definitely make the show more interesting. The plot was slow to get going and it wasn’t until mid-way that it started to get interesting and I was disappointed that the revealing of the killer’s identity was so rushed. But despite this, and it is solely by own opinion, it’s a good sound novel that a lot of readers will enjoy especially fans of reality television.

Good, current setting for a twisty thriller with celebrities arriving on an isolated island to compete in a reality TV series. Readable and lots of energy.

It should be the adventure of a lifetime with the overall winner securing a gift that only they could dream of. Ten celebrities from public life, sport, the arts and popular culture are participating in a survival reality show: living like the monks who used to inhabit a remote Scottish island – in the middle of winter. It’s gruelling stuff, but for one contestant – an investigative reporter – her reasons for being there aren’t just for the one-off prize… It’s not long before issues flare up, not just between contestants about their treatments or some of the tasks (daunting to say the least), but also as the weather increasingly makes it difficult for production to keep track of the participants, they’re realising what life is like on their own. And then secrets are revealed and not everyone will get out of it alive. A clever take on the survival show with well built characters on whom you’ll definitely have opinions.

There was just something about this debut that made it impossible to resist. Then again, I do have a weak spot for a thriller with a remote setting... Also, while it's true I don't like watching this type of reality TV, they are somehow always surprisingly fun to read about. Isolation Island is all about a celebrity survival show set on a remote Scottish island, and this alone has SO much potential. And I have to say that the plot definitely delivered for me!

Isolation Island takes place on a remote Scottish island, and when I say remote I mean completely abandoned and no soul in sight. This means that the ten contestants are 100% on their own once the show starts, because there will be no crew on the island. And before I forget: it is also the middle of winter, so not exactly the most comfortable place to be basically trapped on. Oh yes, the setting was without doubt the perfect backdrop for this story, and I loved the role its surroundings played in the plot. The island definitely added the perfect ominous vibe to it all!

This plot can actually roughly be divided into two halves. The first part is 100% reality TV focused, where we get to meet the ten celebrities that are part of the show as they arrive on the island. The introductions of so many characters slowed down the pace a little, and I admit it took me a little while to warm up to the story. Once the show started and the characters faced their first tasks, the pace improved and I started to enjoy myself. Like the contestants, you start wondering about the conditions of the island and if something more sinister might be going on... But the main focus is still on the TV show and the contestants.

The second part reads mostly like a murder mystery. As the premise of Isolation Island already reveals, someone ends up dead along the way... An accident or in fact a murder? This is the question the remaining contestants are all asking themselves, and our main character Lauren decides to investigate. She is an investigative journalist after all... As for the characters in general: I do think most of them were a bit underdeveloped and too much built on cliches, although I guess it was fun to see them pitted against each other. The story is told through Lauren's POV, who I had mixed thoughts about as she could be quite frustrating at times.

The story can get quite dark and tense at times, and there is for example focus on abuse, toxic relationships/friendships and addiction along with the already mentioned violence and murder. Not something I expected in Isolation Island, but it was interesting to see how everything was incorporated into the plot. The twists were effective, and I wasn't able to guess who was behind it all... The writing style took some time to used to though, but once I did it was really easy to keep turning the pages. Especially once things starting going south and the winter storm arrived!

If you like a good reality TV thriller with a remote setting and bad weather trope, I can definitely recommend picking up Isolation Island. True, the story feels slightly disjointed with the first half being mostly reality TV focused and the second mainly a murder mystery, but if you enjoy both subgenres this shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Isolation Island is a gripping page turner. I thoroughly enjoyed it. More from Louise Minchin please!

My thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for the danced copy to read and review.

Rating: 3.0/5

Louise Minchin becomes one of the latest television celebrities to try her hand at writing mystery fiction. Although probably best known for co-presenting BBC Breakfast for many years, her background in journalism should at least leave her better placed than many to have a decent stab at making the transition. As the inspiration for her first novel, the author has clearly drawn on her own experience of appearing on the reality show, "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here" in 2021, when it was held in a castle in North Wales, rather than its more usual Australian setting. The central protagonist, Lauren, an investigative journalist, gives the impression of being, at least in part, based on the author herself. The supporting cast has the familiar mix of "wannabes", "has-beens" and "never-weres" that tend to make up the dramatis personae of these kind of celebrity reality shows. As you will have noted from the official synopsis, it isn't long before the show goes off-script, when one of the participants winds up dead - but was it an accident, or is one of their number to blame?

On the whole, the story is quite engaging. The pace is generally good and the author mostly manages to avoid being unnecessarily melodramatic. Against that, it does feel a little clumsy at times and lacks the polished storytelling that the best fictional writers are able to produce. There are plot developments that seem a touch too convenient and the behaviour of some of the protagonists stretches credulity at times, which gives the impression that their dubious actions or reactions are merely an ungainly means of moving the storyline in the desired direction.

Overall, this is a decent enough read, but there have been recent offerings from other writers (Ruth Ware and Ruth Kelly, to name just two) who have presented similar subject matter in a more compelling fashion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.