This review is written with thanks to Pigeonhole for the opportunity to read and review The Castaways.

Blurb:

It should be like any other holiday.

Beautiful beaches.

Golden sunsets.

Nothing for miles.

You’ll never want to leave.

Until you can’t…

Gripping, twisty and full of sun-soaked atmosphere, THE CASTAWAYS will whisk you far away to the island – and never let you go.

Review:

I’ve noticed when writing this review that the blurb doesn’t give a lot away and this just adds to the tension that you find within the novel. The Castaways is written in a dual time frame – “then” and “now.” The “then” is narrated by Lori and the “now” by Erin and the alternation of the chapters allows Clarke to build in cliffhangers and leave readers wondering what we may be about to discover. There are lots of twists and turns along the way and I really wanted to know what would happen next at every stage.

Lori and Erin are sisters and it’s clear throughout the novel that there are secrets between them and questions about them to which we need to find the answers. They are really well developed and I am pleased that Clarke took some time to give readers some insight into their history. I didn’t find either of the sisters particularly likeable, but I could see how close they were and this is what made me want them to succeed. The other passengers on the island also have interesting back stories and I enjoyed learning how they came to be there too.

The description of the island is wonderful and whilst I definitely wouldn’t want to be stranded there, it seems beautiful and I enjoyed being transported there by Clarke’s writing.

The ending of The Castaways is not what I expected but in hindsight, I’m not sure that it could have been done differently and now I have finished the novel I am still thinking about the characters.

The Castaways is available from Amazon.