This was another book I had been keen to read for a long time so I was delighted to find I could order it in at my local library! I planned to take it on holiday but finished it in the couple of days before I left as I found it to be a much quicker read than expected.
Set on a remote Scottish island it tells the story of five children who are the only people left after a mysterious illness has killed everyone else. The story isn’t set in the immediate aftermath but sometime later by which time the children have established roles and routines. It’s told through the voice of 8 year old Rona and describes a chain of events that threaten the fragile life they have formed.
At times it reminded me of Room because of the child’s voice but obviously the story is very different. As well as reading about the children’s current situation we are able to piece together information about the last few days before the illness took hold and really sense the fear that permeated the island. That fear is a huge theme of the book as we learn of the rules the children have devised to try to keep themselves safe. Alongside that fear is a hope, hope that they will be rescued and that parents are not dead but simply elsewhere. This combination of fear and hope drives everything they do in their quest to survive.
I loved this book, it was the kind of book you don’t want to put down as you’re desperate to know how it ends despite the sense that it may not end as you hope. It’s a haunting, powerful and ultimately heartbreaking read.
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