“A SECRET BEACH.
A HOLIDAY OF A LIFETIME.
WISH YOU WERE HERE?

THINK AGAIN…

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.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to be sharing my review of The Castaways by Lucy Clarke. The Castaways will be published in paperback format on Thursday (that’s 8th July 2021) by HarperCollins and is also available in hardcover, audio and ebook. I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Castaways but that has in no way influenced my review.

Well, this book delivered a whole lot more than I was expecting! I’m a bit of a weirdo in that I’m fascinated by air disasters and regular readers of damppebbles may have noticed an increase in books with a plane crash, hijack or disappearance as the theme featuring strongly over the last month or so. I think an abundance of Sunday lunchtime ‘reality’ shows in my youth taught me that if you’re a castaway, you probably got to be one following the sinking of your boat (or the producers dropped you and a number of other overly attractive ‘survivors’ off earlier that morning 🤭). That is not the case in this gripping page-turner of a thriller, no siree. One uninhabited island and one small passenger plane en-route to an exclusive Fijian resort make for a compelling tale which hooked me instantly.

The blurb doesn’t give a lot away but this is a book about guilt, about the bond held between two sisters, it’s about perseverance, about obsession and about falling in love. It also has a deliciously dark vein running through its pages. After all, this is not the intended trip to paradise the characters originally set out for. The need to survive against all odds, the threat strangers can bring, the lies we tell and the secrets we keep all contribute to a fascinating and engaging storyline. I thoroughly enjoyed The Castaways and discovering more about sisters, Lori and Erin.

Lori, following her recent separation from her husband, books a holiday for her and Erin at an exclusive island resort in Fiji. The night before their flight from the mainland to the resort, they argue. The following day, Lori goes to board the plane but Erin doesn’t show. A nervous flyer, she boards anyway, casting a wary eye over her fellow travellers. Something doesn’t feel right, one or two of the other passengers are making her nervous, and rightly so. Partway to the island, the flight disappears leaving Erin distraught and full of guilt. It should have been both of them on that plane. Whatever happened to Lori, she went through it alone. Erin, a journalist, becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to her sister. Guilt pushes her on. But the trail gradually goes cold. Until two years later, when a survivor is found…

The Castaways has a cast of skilfully written characters and an atmospheric setting which I thoroughly enjoyed. I don’t want to say too much about this book as I feel, because of the brief blurb, that anything I do say could unintentionally be a spoiler. So I’ll keep the rest of this review short and sweet because I already feel as though what I’ve said could be bordering on spoiler territory (although the title of the book – The Castaways – does provide a little reassurance).

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. The Castaways is a compelling story told with confidence. I really loved the ending, it wasn’t at all what I was expecting but it felt strangely right following what had come before. All in all, a very readable, very entertaining tale which I recommend.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of The Castaways. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Castaways by Lucy Clarke was published in the UK by HarperCollins on 8th July 2021 and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | Book Depository | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop |

Lucy Clarke is the bestselling author of six psychological thrillers – THE SEA SISTERS, A SINGLE BREATH, THE BLUE/NO ESCAPE, LAST SEEN, YOU LET ME IN and THE CASTAWAYS. Her debut novel was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick, and her books have been sold in over 20 territories.

Lucy is a passionate traveller, beach hut dweller, and fresh air enthusiast. She’s married to a professional windsurfer and, together with their two young children, they spend their winters travelling and their summers at home on the south coast of England. Lucy writes from a beach hut, using the inspiration from the wild south coast to craft her stories.