I really enjoyed this book! The author did a fantastic job of recreating a journey many took and the hardships they endured to get to this new land. With modern technology, it is hard to imagine just how awful sea travel had to be for the women trying to settle in the US. I really liked reading this account through Alice's perspective.

Sixteen year old Alice craves adventure. And makes a wish for it. . She is delighted when she learns that her debt-ridden parents tell her that they’ll be sailing to Jamestown to regain their fortune, as she’s thrilled to escape England. Two weeks from arrival their ship is hit by an hurricane. They end up being separated from the other ships. Their ship is taking on water. They land on an uninhabited island sailors call the Isle of Devils. With little supplies, the castaways must rely on each other for survival. The men battle for control. It turns viscous. Alice is aware of who is causing the conflict. Will anyone listen to Alice much less believe her?

The author has written a story that is about survival on an island. (“Castaway on the Isle of Devils is an adventure tale based on the true fate of the Sea Venture, the shipwreck that inspired William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.”). The first chapter is not rotten normal. It is best read out loud to understand it. Chapter two goes to “normal” reading. At the end of the book is the author’s note which is informative and helped to understand the novel more. It’s a fascinating novel.

Beautifully written and extensively researched, CASTAWAY ON THE ISLE OF DEVILS is a
fascinating novel of the real-life voyage and shipwreck of the Sea Venture, the inspiration
for Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Sixteen-year-old Alice is spoiled and headstrong and
quarrels with her parents as they sail from England to the Jamestown colony in the New
World in 1609. She looks forward to the adventure of a new land, but a hurricane wrecks
their ship on the shores of the Isle of Devils (what is now modern-day Bermuda).
The survivors build a community on the island as they scheme to continue their journey to
Jamestown, but that community is rife with violence, jealousies, mutiny, and even murder.
Alice witnesses the depravity of men struggling to survive in a strange land.
Ultimately, the surviving passengers and crew of the Sea Venture make their way to
Jamestown, only to discover that the settlement has floundered and its colonists have
suffered harsh conditions and starvation. Throughout the novel, Alice shows determination
and resilience in the face of tragedy.
Carson-Williams has written a story that is emotionally resonant and inspiring, and she
brings historical events to life in a beautiful way.

Absolutely loved this book. I never wanted to put it down. I don't read many books about shipwrecks, but maybe I should now.

Let me first start off by saying WOW!

Castaway on the Isle of Devils really pulled me in, the only thing that held me back was by having to read it on my phone. If it weren’t for that tiny screen, I swear I would have finished this book in like two days!! I did not want to stop.

So many emotions ran through me while reading this book. Being a daughter and a mother myself, I really felt for both Alice and her mother. Their relationship being so bitter at first, only for them to grow emotionally and realize they need each other more than ever in order to survive in this new desolate land.

This story takes you through a time no one could ever imagine being in today. Shipwrecks, deserted islands, famine, natives in the New World, trying to survive in a strange world with only what surrounds you (which wasn’t much at the time). The settlers of Jamestown were brave in every way, and Elisabeth Carson-Williams captured their heroism from beginning to end. She kept this book historically accurate, while also making it captivating enough to not be boring history novel.