The Island

I was introduced to the work of S. Usher Evans when my husband bought me the first three books in her Razia series as a Christmas gift. So when I had a chance to support her Kickstarter for The Island, I jumped all over that. It was just the icing on the cake that I got a copy of the book ahead of time! So I took The Island with me to my son's doctor's appointment, figuring I'd get a good start on it while we waited.

We waited for two hours and a little more, and I finished the book because I could.not.stop.reading.it. The story of two warring countries, Rave/David versus Kylae/Goliath, pulled me right in. Theo is a pilot for Rave, and she's gunning for some Kylaens. When she learns that Prince Galian will be flying, she's gunning for him in particular. Galian wouldn't be flying at all, were it left up to him. He'd prefer to use his medical training , but joins the military at his father's strongly worded request. In the air battle, Theo does indeed shoot down the princeling's plane, but crashes her own in the process. So there they are, from two enemy nations, stranded on a deserted island...together. How would you like to be stuck on an island with someone who represents what you hate the most? Theo's none too crazy about it, to put it mildly. But she's injured, and Galian doesn't know a whole lot about survival, and neither of them has a way off the island since both planes went down, and it becomes clear fairly quickly that they're going to need to rely on each other if they make it out of this alive.

Action? Check. A battle with the deck stacked against one nation? Yep. Characters that make you laugh and cry and want to reach into the pages and shake them? Oh, yes. And maybe some romance, too, and some intrigue, and, oh, just go get a copy!

Yes, yes, yes. Mhm, *nods vigorously* because YES.

This book nails it!

This is a good romance. It's steamy. It's sexy. It's love-hate. Essentially, it's exactly all the give and take and OOH BABY, OOH BABY that you want in a love story. Galian and Theo start off on the wrong foot being sworn enemies just by their very birth, but there's an undeniable physical attraction they have to overcome... or do they? *raises eyebrows knowingly*

And that's where the fun in this story is. Their attraction to one another physically is enough to spark the need to at least tolerate one another (that and they're stranded on an island together, the ultimate romantic setup!) and from there, all the pieces start falling into place until ALL THE GLORIOUS ROMANTIC THINGS START TO HAPPEN! And shiver me timbers, is it good!!

Well done, Ms. Evans. Well done.

If I had one criticism to offer it would be that world around Galian and Theo struck me as a tad strange. They live in a non-existent world that is clearly Fantasy given the made up names and lands, but for the most part, it resembles our modern day society in every way. I kept forgetting no one would be riding horses or brandishing swords should Galian and Theo make it off the island and it threw me off a tad since the nature of their world's conflicts would have fit right at home in a more Game of Thrones type world.

But it's still a super yummy story and the way it ends has me on pins and needles waiting for the second installment. If you want Fantasy that isn't super intense to read and offers all the romantic feels, give The Island a try. It'll certainly rock your bookish hormones in all sorts of ways.

*more intense eyebrow raising*

4.5/5
I’m not going to lie when I looked at the back for this book I was not exactly enthused. I thought I was going to get a book filled with cliches but I was pleasantly wrong. Now dont get me wrong there were a few cliches and tropes but I didn’t really mind them that much. Im happy to report there is no love triangle!!

The dual POVs are a help and not a jarring hendrance like they can easily become. It was great to see into both of their minds, to see how similar and different they are. The culture of the Raven people is exquisite and I really loved the unique language and how much we learned about the people.

Theo was a refreshing character with her own personality. She wasn’t another Katniss. She wasnt the chosen one or born for it, she quite literally crash landed into it. The worldbuilding was incredible, you can almost taste the sea when you read it. They both has a unique journey to go through and though theyre not done with it, they grew emensly. PICK THIS BOOK UP! You wont regret it.