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hotdogmother's review
3.0
Island Time is one of those books that lures you in by the cover that might be a little too cheerful to match the contents inside. I think it would be a good book for a reader looking for a beach read with quite a bit of family drama, and a decent amount of romance.
Sadly, I struggled to connect with this book, most likely because of the many points of view – I think nine in total? There are a lot of stories told here, interweaving the family narratives. It does it with mixed success and would have benefitted from being a bit shorter and clearer as to who is speaking, especially in the beginning. A header for who each chapter is about, plus maybe some dates/times, would go a long way to make things easier on the reader and alleviate many of my concerns.
My favorite thing here is the beach itself. In the afterword, the author mention she connected with a local Butchulla man (those native to Fraser Island, which is the basis for the fictional setting of Mun'dai island). It is evident in the writing and the respect with which she treats the island, community, and wildlife. Clark brings Australia to life in these pages!
My thanks to Net Galley, Georgia Clark, and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
CW: Divorce, alcoholism, cheating, mental health, miscarriage, animal death.
Sadly, I struggled to connect with this book, most likely because of the many points of view – I think nine in total? There are a lot of stories told here, interweaving the family narratives. It does it with mixed success and would have benefitted from being a bit shorter and clearer as to who is speaking, especially in the beginning. A header for who each chapter is about, plus maybe some dates/times, would go a long way to make things easier on the reader and alleviate many of my concerns.
My favorite thing here is the beach itself. In the afterword, the author mention she connected with a local Butchulla man (those native to Fraser Island, which is the basis for the fictional setting of Mun'dai island). It is evident in the writing and the respect with which she treats the island, community, and wildlife. Clark brings Australia to life in these pages!
My thanks to Net Galley, Georgia Clark, and Atria Books for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
CW: Divorce, alcoholism, cheating, mental health, miscarriage, animal death.
maddyvinnie's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
segallf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
belleofthebooks25's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
esheffert's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
wanderingbean's review
2.0
Island time is very different from Georgia Clark's other books and is a bit mismarketed. The cover and breezy description make it seem like a fun rom-com, when really it's a story of a bunch of awful people trapped on an island together for six week (think HBO's White Lotus).
The main character (Amelia) is so profoundly unlikable. She finds herself on the island with her family waiting for her boyfriend who seems like he might propose at any minute to show up. When a natural disaster happens, the boyfriend cannot come and Amelia learns there's more to her perfect boyfriend than she ever imagined. In the wake of their break up she throws herself at the island's caretaker (Lisse), sure that they are meant to be together forever. Amelia's behavior is unhinged throughout the book. She's meant to be lovable and trusting but so many of her actions come across as creepy (proposing after a few days, begging to have babies, etc.).
The more alarming aspect to me was the treatment of the indigenous character. I think there should be an agreement among white writers and editors that they need people from indigenous culture to read the book before it hits the market. There's all this stereotypical description of the one indigenous character that verges on a fetish. Jarrah has "burnished skin", he smells "earthy", he's associated with mysticism and tells the other characters folk tales from his culture 'round the camp fire. Even his back story is the stereotypical backstory everyone has heard a million times. It's really disappointing to see writers still treating indigenous characters in such a flat way.
The real heroes of the book are Glen, Randall and Lisse. The rest of the characters were just so darn unlikable.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book.
The main character (Amelia) is so profoundly unlikable. She finds herself on the island with her family waiting for her boyfriend who seems like he might propose at any minute to show up. When a natural disaster happens, the boyfriend cannot come and Amelia learns there's more to her perfect boyfriend than she ever imagined. In the wake of their break up she throws herself at the island's caretaker (Lisse), sure that they are meant to be together forever. Amelia's behavior is unhinged throughout the book. She's meant to be lovable and trusting but so many of her actions come across as creepy (proposing after a few days, begging to have babies, etc.).
The more alarming aspect to me was the treatment of the indigenous character. I think there should be an agreement among white writers and editors that they need people from indigenous culture to read the book before it hits the market. There's all this stereotypical description of the one indigenous character that verges on a fetish. Jarrah has "burnished skin", he smells "earthy", he's associated with mysticism and tells the other characters folk tales from his culture 'round the camp fire. Even his back story is the stereotypical backstory everyone has heard a million times. It's really disappointing to see writers still treating indigenous characters in such a flat way.
The real heroes of the book are Glen, Randall and Lisse. The rest of the characters were just so darn unlikable.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book.
amluttr's review
2.0
Thank you to Netgalley for an e-arc of this book.
To be honest, I couldn't follow the story. It felt like too many people we being thrown out for you to follow. The storyline seems very interesting but with the constant changing of points of view, it was very distracting. Sad to give this book a 2 out of 5
To be honest, I couldn't follow the story. It felt like too many people we being thrown out for you to follow. The storyline seems very interesting but with the constant changing of points of view, it was very distracting. Sad to give this book a 2 out of 5
bellashu's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bgrable92's review
4.0
I very much enjoyed this book! Charming characters, a very unique setting, and so many romantic moments. While I did find a few characters very unlikeable, overall they were mostly sweet and fun. A great summer read!