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archaicrobin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Heather is 24, a massage therapist, and suddenly a mom of two teenagers after marrying a man much older and more successful than her. The family travels to Australia for dad, Tom, to be a keynote speaker for some medical convention, and they decide to double the trip as a family vacation.
The kids are terrible and want to see koalas so they agree to follow some backwoods yokels to their “island” to see some koalas, but unsurprisingly this is a poor decisions and soon Heather is responsible for keeping the family alive as they’re hunted by said yokels.
This novel was boring and the characters were not only unlikeable but poorly crafted. They all make stupid decisions, the growth that occurs makes no sense and characters seem to change viewpoints at the flip of a coin. The twist was stupid and honestly didn’t make any sense, and the whole book was just jump scares and shock value. A couple gets eaten by ants? The main female character is threatened with rape and trivialized, the kids all have mental health issues that magically disappear after their experience, it’s all just poor writing and honestly, no man has the right to write about rape and threats of rape so trivially. Whenever rape is used for shock value I am 100% out.
If you’re looking for a good thriller, don’t bother with this one. There are way too many great thrillers out there that are actually worth spending your time on. If you want a good survival horror with a strong female lead, read Getaway by Zoje Stage and pass on this one. The fact The Island is getting a Hulu adaptation while good thrillers by female authors like Getaway, are being ignored is beyond infuriating.
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Body horror, Car accident, Gun violence, Gore, Death, Torture, Animal cruelty, Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
sasoif's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Child abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Death, Gun violence, Animal death, Body horror, Car accident, Death of parent, Gore, and Blood
mariarose0523's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Slow character intro at the beginning, but once the family hits The Island, you will not be able to put it down.
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Animal death, Gore, and Torture
Minor: Rape
sunshinemilk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
That being said, I find it really fucking weird that the author took the time to write a tribute to the true keepers of Australia - The Aboriginal people - only to then create characters out of thin air that were incredibly racist towards Aboriginal people.
This reminded me a little of the move You’re Next where there’s one young lady that has hidden talents due to their childhood and the baddies underestimate them. I’m not gonna lie..I’m a sucker for that trope! Especially when it involves a woman.
The book carried on a bit and honestly this could have been a four star read for me but it really fell short.
Graphic: Gore, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Car accident, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, and Fatphobia
Minor: Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, and Murder
evelynritzi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Murder, and Violence
edini's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic relationship, Gore, Blood, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Violence, Pedophilia, and Torture
Minor: Animal death
laurenlarkineramo's review against another edition
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Car accident, and Gore
lindsaybarrows's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Animal death, Grief, Car accident, Death, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Body horror, and Gun violence
Moderate: Rape and Genocide
kendyle's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Violence, Gore, Misogyny, Death, Physical abuse, and Torture
megwilli's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Violence, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Torture
Moderate: Sexual assault