A cross between a reality contest TV show and an Agatha Christie tale produces this account of celebrities on a remote Scottish island. They signed up to gain a prize by winning ISOLATION ISLAND. Not everyone will last the course, but unexpectedly, some won’t be coming out alive.
The production team strands everyone for two weeks, during which they have to follow orders, elect a leader and provide their meals. This reality survival show is set in an abandoned monastery. Thus, contestants are made to wear hooded robes and are addressed as ‘novices’ and the leader as ‘abbot.’ The competitors include our protagonist, journalist Lauren Brooks, and a couple of athletes and actors, plus a pair of young video influencers. The age groups are varied and there’s disability representation, it just looks like a normal production. But events start to go wrong. There’s no camera team to call upon, just installed cameras and mic packs. Orders are given through a speaker, and outdoor challenges have to be completed to gain – well, food. This is Scotland, in winter. Nobody is loving it. A couple of near misses make Lauren wonder if they were really accidents or if someone is trying to pick off the cast.
Most readers will have watched some similar show, whether placing celebs in a jungle or taking trained survivalists to the limits of their skills. The original Big Brother house show is echoed by the complete isolation from the world and the way that everyone has to relate to the others while at the same time, watching the numbers dwindle.
Lauren doesn’t come across as a great journalist. She’s good at getting people to talk to her, but not at holding their secrets. She’s also single-mindedly in pursuit of a story about one person. I can see why she’s here, instead of in a major newspaper, bringing in developing news every day. Likewise, the Hollywood actor Nate Stirling needs a profile refresh, the athletes Jackson Powell and Kez Jones need some direction to move in after they leave sports, the influencers Taisie and Hollie wish to broaden their fan base, the soap actor Frank Stubbs is totally locked in one role, and so on. They each need to break out and show the world a new side.
The isolated monastery is atmospheric, imbued with menace and seemingly inescapable. Having taken the challenge, can Lauren solve the mystery? As the suspense builds and a storm brews, she leads us on a struggle for life or death. I was fascinated, and keen to see how the situation would be resolved.
Louise Minchin has been a presenter with the BBC and has represented Great Britain at the World Triathlon Championships. ISOLATION ISLAND is her first novel, bringing some of the grit, bleak humour and strong women from her work to the pages. She also knocks the shine off the 'behind the scenes' life, in more ways than one.
Ten celebrities have arrived to take part in a gruelling reality survival show: two weeks completely alone on a remote Scottish island, in the depths of winter. With some careers on the rise, and others whose star is fading, almost everyone has something to play for. But investigative journalist Lauren has one question - what does Hollywood megastar Nate Stirling have to gain by taking part?
With a production team that seems incapable of keeping them safe, a gathering storm and the unrelenting gaze of hidden cameras, the contestants are stretched to the limit as they try to outshine their fellow competitors and hide their darkest secrets.
But when a body is found, it's clear that the game has become a matter of life and death...
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