The Island
- Downloads：3039
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-07-22 09:51:44
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Adrian McKinty
- ISBN：1409189635
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
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。
After moving from a small country town to Seattle， Heather Baxter marries Tom， a widowed doctor with a young son and teenage daughter。 A working vacation overseas seems like the perfect way to bring the new family together， but once they’re deep in the Australian outback， the jet-lagged and exhausted kids are so over their new mom。
When they discover remote Dutch Island， off-limits to outside visitors， the family talks their way onto the ferry， taking a chance on an adventure far from the reach of iPhones and Instagram。
But as soon as they set foot on the island， which is run by a tightly knit clan of locals， everything feels wrong。 Then a shocking accident propels the Baxters from an unsettling situation into an absolute nightmare。
When Heather and the kids are separated from Tom， they are forced to escape alone， seconds ahead of their pursuers。
Now it’s up to Heather to save herself and the kids， even though they don’t trust her， the harsh bushland is filled with danger， and the locals want her dead。
Heather has been underestimated her entire life， but she knows that only she can bring her family home again and become the mother the children desperately need， even if it means doing the unthinkable to keep them all alive。
A terrible accident changed everything。
You don't know what you're capable of until they come for your family。
After moving from a small country town to Seattle， Heather Baxter marries Tom， a widowed doctor with a young son and teenage daughter。 A working vacation overseas seems like the perfect way to bring the new family together， but once they’re deep in the Australian outback， the jet-lagged and exhausted kids are so over their new mom。
When they discover remote Dutch Island， off-limits to outside visitors， the family talks their way onto the ferry， taking a chance on an adventure far from the reach of iPhones and Instagram。
But as soon as they set foot on the island， which is run by a tightly knit clan of locals， everything feels wrong。 Then a shocking accident propels the Baxters from an unsettling situation into an absolute nightmare。
When Heather and the kids are separated from Tom， they are forced to escape alone， seconds ahead of their pursuers。
Now it’s up to Heather to save herself and the kids， even though they don’t trust her， the harsh bushland is filled with danger， and the locals want her dead。
Heather has been underestimated her entire life， but she knows that only she can bring her family home again and become the mother the children desperately need， even if it means doing the unthinkable to keep them all alive。
Reviews
Jessi
，
Meh， predictable。
Jessica Carr
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I read this book in one day。 I love horror， but my least favorite sub-genre is backwoods or rural horror。 It usually has a family or group of young people travelling and either breaking down or getting in an accident in the middle of nowhere。 The they are preceded to be killed one by one。 The killers are usually inbred or are deformed in some way。 They usually pick the youngest girl to be raped and/or forced to be a breeder。 There is always an old， obese matriarch who all the younger relatives a I read this book in one day。 I love horror， but my least favorite sub-genre is backwoods or rural horror。 It usually has a family or group of young people travelling and either breaking down or getting in an accident in the middle of nowhere。 The they are preceded to be killed one by one。 The killers are usually inbred or are deformed in some way。 They usually pick the youngest girl to be raped and/or forced to be a breeder。 There is always an old， obese matriarch who all the younger relatives are afraid of。 And everybody is related to one another。 The Island follows this well worn template down to a tee。 From the creatively named "Ma" to Danny， the grieving widow， who immediately demands the fourteen year old Olivia as his recompense for his wife's death， these characters seem like they walked right out of Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Wrong Turn。 Heather is one of the more feisty and resourceful final girls I've seen in horror。 She's also one of the most proactive。 She takes the fight to them instead hiding and waiting for the killers to find her and the kids。 She picks them off one by one （she even kills the dogs！） and practically blows up the house。 She's like a female Rambo or John McClain from Die Hard。 The kids go from hating her to choosing her over their father's life in the span of a day。 I don't buy it。 In fact， I thought they would be angry at her for telling them that he was dead when he wasn't。 It seems that no matter the body count， authors feel the need to tack on a happy ending。 I didn't buy that either。 Fun， fast moving horror thriller， but not scary enough and very derivative of the genre。 。。。more
Gerry Iaboni
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A thriller that will change your thinking about going off the beaten path when your on vacation。
Julie Haydu
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Oh man this book was brutal！ Survival is stressful--so make sure you can stand the heat of being stuck on a terrifying ISLAND in the relentless Australian heat without any gear。 Luckily for her family， Heather has hidden warrior goddess talents but she is up against some real loonies。 Quite the wild ride to the very last page。
Mary Crawford
，
An adventure on an island in Australia - suspend all thoughts and go for the ride。 A strong female heroine who finally comes into her own。 This is a great action packed novel with James Bondesque murder and mayhem。 Survival， kids， thinking outside the box and some fun。
Colette
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Fun read。 Can’t wait to see the series now
David
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Half read half listened to this one。 Didn't really care for it early on but both the story and characters grew on me throughout。 A solid 3 stars。 Half read half listened to this one。 Didn't really care for it early on but both the story and characters grew on me throughout。 A solid 3 stars。 。。。more
Leanne
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My first time reading this author， and I'll definitely buy more of his books。 I really liked the fast pace and the twists and turns of this adventure/mystery。 My first time reading this author， and I'll definitely buy more of his books。 I really liked the fast pace and the twists and turns of this adventure/mystery。 。。。more
Paige
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This was intense！ A real page tuner， I found myself holding my breath a couple of times。
Katie Colson
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Vlog/Review: https://youtu。be/T-GHDED1KAYThis felt like a tamer version of Karin Slaughter。 And I mean that in the BEST way。What a ride。 Is it perfect？ No。 Is it thrilling？ Hell yes。 Vlog/Review: https://youtu。be/T-GHDED1KAYThis felt like a tamer version of Karin Slaughter。 And I mean that in the BEST way。What a ride。 Is it perfect？ No。 Is it thrilling？ Hell yes。 。。。more
Rachel Harchanko
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How many ways can you die？？？
Lynne
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It was okay 。。 nothing spectacular。 It took me a long time to get through but mainly because I am on vacation with my two year old granddaughter with little time to read。 Too much fun at StoryLand in New Hampshire ！
Lynne
，
An American family- surgeon Tom， his wife second and young Heather and two children from his first marriage， are on an extended vacation in Australia。 The usually family hostility where a young step mother is trying to impress her husband's children causes difficulties in their enjoyment of the holiday and gradually as the story progresses these chinks in the armour a the successful middle class family lead to sinsister and dangerous events。 which lead them stranded on an island inhabited by lae An American family- surgeon Tom， his wife second and young Heather and two children from his first marriage， are on an extended vacation in Australia。 The usually family hostility where a young step mother is trying to impress her husband's children causes difficulties in their enjoyment of the holiday and gradually as the story progresses these chinks in the armour a the successful middle class family lead to sinsister and dangerous events。 which lead them stranded on an island inhabited by laeless and violent people。。 Dutch Island， with its shark infested waters， infrequent contact with mainland， harsh relentless heat and dust， is quite a vivid creation of the author's and an air of menace is soon developed。。 In his desire to explore a remote and partly inaccessible area in order to experience authentic Australia and engage in the wildlife， arrogant Tom， by paying a huge sum of money to a stranger to ferry them to the island， exposes his own family and that of a Dutch couple who crossed the water with them to life threatening ordeals。 I am a long term fan of Adrian's books， particularly the Sean Duffy ones。 I loved The Chain as well and expected something more like that than what The Island turned out to be。 It is an amalgum of all the Austalian horror stories you may have encountered， complete with Deliverance style lawless characters。 Although for nthe most part， the writing style was polished enough to keep me reading， ity was more in the hope that the plot would change into something more surprising than the damp squib that was eventually delivered。 The main problem for me， I think， was that the charactyers were not convincing and not engaging。 I lost interest in them and ceased to care。 However， I am sure that most readers will enjoy this horror story more than I did because there are elements of surprise and some suspenseful moments。 。。。more
Ronni Peterson
，
4。5 ⭐️
Amy Mitchell
，
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ this isn’t the kind of book I generally enjoy - lots of violence， blood， people surviving against crazy odds when I would’ve just curled up and died。 It sucked me in， though。 It takes place on an island off the coast of Australia。 It reminded me of The Most Dangerous Game。 It is a disturbing， but powerful book。 It made me want to learn more about the history of aboriginal people。
Keri
，
After reading “The Chain” by Adrian McKinty and LOVING it， I knew I’d want to check out “The Island” right away！ I will warn you that the first 30% of this book drags a bit but once you get to the action。。 oh man！ The rest of this book had me on the edge of my seat。 There are some gruesome parts and the story gives full on deliverance vibes but set in the Australian outback。 I definitely recommend this book if you are looking for a gritty thriller with plenty of heart pounding moments！I also lis After reading “The Chain” by Adrian McKinty and LOVING it， I knew I’d want to check out “The Island” right away！ I will warn you that the first 30% of this book drags a bit but once you get to the action。。 oh man！ The rest of this book had me on the edge of my seat。 There are some gruesome parts and the story gives full on deliverance vibes but set in the Australian outback。 I definitely recommend this book if you are looking for a gritty thriller with plenty of heart pounding moments！I also listened to the audiobook and thought it was great！ I loved the sound effects they added and the narrator did a great job with all of the accents。Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Ashley Gerber
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Absurd。
Carla
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Entertaining thriller， fun if a bit implausible。
Allison
，
Edge of my seat！！ This book was so， so good。 An American family travels to Australia。 Trying to appease everyone， the father of said family takes them to an island that is usually off-limits to non-natives。 Little does he know， this excursion will be the beginning of a series of events that lead the family down a treacherous， if not deadly， path。
Robin
，
This was very reminiscent of Texas Chainsaw Massacre or one of those other horror films 。。。 and I liked it！ There wasn’t a lot of blood and gore - a little more would have been good！ The story took an interesting turn towards the end and it didn’t feel contrived like most other books lately。
Mia Kagehiro
，
Loved this book！ Super fast read。 4。5
James Mcnally
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This is a good book the way a train wreck is a good event。 Does it appeal to some primal concept of excitement？ Yes。 Is it in any way redemptive or inspiring？ No。 It’s about as formulaic as anything I’ve ever read （and I’ve read a lot of Grisham）。 Calling it banal would be to place it on a literary spectrum on which it only narrowly deserves。 It’s Google-researching is clear。 The English language reflects — often in glaringly upsetting ways — British sensibilities。 And that’s only the mechanics This is a good book the way a train wreck is a good event。 Does it appeal to some primal concept of excitement？ Yes。 Is it in any way redemptive or inspiring？ No。 It’s about as formulaic as anything I’ve ever read （and I’ve read a lot of Grisham）。 Calling it banal would be to place it on a literary spectrum on which it only narrowly deserves。 It’s Google-researching is clear。 The English language reflects — often in glaringly upsetting ways — British sensibilities。 And that’s only the mechanics of it。 The plot arc stretches credulity to a snapping point。 The characters’ world views， skill sets， back stories， levels of comprehension and common sense and fortitude， etc。 vacillate to the point of confusion。 The good guys are people you want to smack or tell to shut the eff up and the bad guys’ conduct is absurdly patterned and stereotypical nonsense。 There is literally not a person in the damn thing you are really pulling for。 Again， it IS a page-turner but that’s only because human beings have not evolved fully enough to not be attracted to train wrecks。 。。。more
Jenn
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DNF 25%
Rt
，
Fun， scary page-Turner of a thriller。
Cassie
，
A dream Australian vacation turns into a nightmare when a family ventures to a remote island， where they're soon fighting for their lives against a group of the island's violent inhabitants。The Island is going to translate very well into a TV series， because the book basically already reads like a screenplay。 On the positive side of that， it's intense， violent， exciting， propulsive， and features characters you can root for。 They aren't the meatiest characters， but there is an attempt at giving t A dream Australian vacation turns into a nightmare when a family ventures to a remote island， where they're soon fighting for their lives against a group of the island's violent inhabitants。The Island is going to translate very well into a TV series， because the book basically already reads like a screenplay。 On the positive side of that， it's intense， violent， exciting， propulsive， and features characters you can root for。 They aren't the meatiest characters， but there is an attempt at giving them interesting backstories。 Heather， the young mother at the center of the story， is a total badass in the vein of Sarah Connor from the Terminator movies。 The book is also pretty atmospheric， the harsh and isolated terrain of the Australian island providing a vivid backdrop for the action。 On the negative side， The Island is rife with things I would forgive in an action film or TV show but can't excuse as easily in a book: cheesy dialogue， several deus ex machina moments， and villains whose motives aren't really explored。 I was left with so many questions about the island's inhabitants！ They were fascinating， but their motivations were never really explained。 I also wasn't a fan of the animal harm。 All in all， I can see why everyone is loving this book right now -- it's a great summer read， and it will be a thoroughly entertaining TV show I'll definitely watch。 I'll continue to pick up Adrian McKinty's books， too -- they're always a good choice for when I want something exciting and entertaining but not too heavy or think-y。 。。。more
Cathie Schumaker
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Edge of the seat。 I stayed up way too late finishing this book。 I haven’t done that in a long time。
Colleen
，
4 stars！ Thank you Netgalley for the arc。 This book was so action packed and fast paced。 If you like totally outrageous action movies than this is the book for you。 After I suspended disbelief （in a major way） this was such a fun and wild ride。
Mike Nettleton
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A tragic accident sets an American Family on vacation in Australia on a collission course with a vengeful family on an isolated island。 It's a harrowing， knuckle-biting tale of a courageous and resourceful woman's attempt to protect her children from savagery and， ultimately death in the face of horrible odds。 A tragic accident sets an American Family on vacation in Australia on a collission course with a vengeful family on an isolated island。 It's a harrowing， knuckle-biting tale of a courageous and resourceful woman's attempt to protect her children from savagery and， ultimately death in the face of horrible odds。 。。。more
Emily Neerings
，
This is definitely the fastest paced thriller I’ve read in a long time， and it drew me in quickly。 The action starts very early on and the pace doesn’t slow down。 On a dream trip to Australia， Heather and her new， much older doctor husband Tom， and his two kids Olivia and Owen （who don’t like her） are trapped on a remote island and forced to fight for their lives。 If you can suspend belief about a few small details that are highly unlikely， and just enjoy the book for what it is—it’s super enjoy This is definitely the fastest paced thriller I’ve read in a long time， and it drew me in quickly。 The action starts very early on and the pace doesn’t slow down。 On a dream trip to Australia， Heather and her new， much older doctor husband Tom， and his two kids Olivia and Owen （who don’t like her） are trapped on a remote island and forced to fight for their lives。 If you can suspend belief about a few small details that are highly unlikely， and just enjoy the book for what it is—it’s super enjoyable！ I couldn’t put it down， because I had to know who， if anyone， would make it out alive。 I found myself growing to love Heather as the story explored her character， and resilience。 I also enjoyed getting to see her relationship with Olivia and Owen grow。 I also couldn’t finish this review without a nod to possibly my favorite character， Petra。 There were some nice sprinkles of justice sprinkled in with the tragedy…Is it a perfect book？ No。 But I enjoyed my experience on Dutch Island so much I’m giving it 5/5 stars！ 。。。more
Renée
，
This is not a premise I would typicallly choose and when I first started reading it， I wasn’t sure I liked it。 It has a Survivor （TV show） type feel to it and that kind of show has never piqued my interest。 It started off slightly slow （and somewhat confusing with the first few pages） but the action picks up pretty quickly by the time you reach double digit chapters。 I thought it was really well written， I enjoyed the story， and it ended up being a fast read for me。 So， four stars it is！
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Island
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Island&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Island&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0