Review of Island Games
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Vrinda Bansal 1
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- Latest Review: Island Games by Caleb J. Boyer
Review of Island Games
[Following is a volunteer review of "Island Games" by Caleb J. Boyer.]
The book Island Games opens with two young lads, Ryan and Matthew, waking up on a mysterious island, entirely clueless and perplexed as to how they got there. With a thousand different questions wrecking their nerves, they begin looking for supplies needed to make it through the night. As the tale progresses, the two boys explore their new surroundings, learning how the island is way more mystical and savage than they first expected. Embarking on this thrilling adventure for survival, Ryan and Matthew are supposed to make impossible decisions and order choices to stay alive. When the island throws grueling terrains, gigantic monsters, and utter hopelessness at our two protagonists, they realize how petty was the stuff they used to whine about in comparison to what they were facing now. With this spirit in them, they manage to retain their lives and bond or develop it even more despite their patience, level-headedness, optimism, valiance, and mindset tested at every point or not.
In several stories, the vague beginning makes it difficult for the reader to get through the book, and consequently, the reader loses interest. However, in this case, the mysterious premise of the story is what ignites the curiosity of the reader and hooks them to the book from the first page itself. The author Caleb J. Boyer has very intricately described the supernatural and extraordinary surroundings of the protagonists despite the poor expression. As a reader, I could sense that the writer was trying to convey a bigger message through little incidents along the way, which added to the value of the plot.
The writing style was not at all eloquent, considering the wordy sentences and forced conversations between the characters. Even though I could barely find an error or two whatsoever, I did not enjoy the composition as it felt naively immature. Besides, the little flashbacks the boys had of their previous lives could be curated in a better way, adding to their character development and backstory. More snippets of their memories should have been inculcated in the story to provide the reader with a better outline of the boys’ friendship. The cliffhanger ending of the story is a major disappointment to me as a reader personally, for it spoiled the entire buildup and left me quite unsatisfied with the ending of the book.
In my opinion, the negative aspects of the book outweigh its positive points by a large margin. However, the book is not disappointing, keeping in mind the age of the writer. Thus, regretfully, I can not grant this book more than 2 out of 4 stars.
Though the book description classifies the book under the YA category, I would personally recommend this book to pre-teens who are into action and adventure.
******
Island Games
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The book Island Games opens with two young lads, Ryan and Matthew, waking up on a mysterious island, entirely clueless and perplexed as to how they got there. With a thousand different questions wrecking their nerves, they begin looking for supplies needed to make it through the night. As the tale progresses, the two boys explore their new surroundings, learning how the island is way more mystical and savage than they first expected. Embarking on this thrilling adventure for survival, Ryan and Matthew are supposed to make impossible decisions and order choices to stay alive. When the island throws grueling terrains, gigantic monsters, and utter hopelessness at our two protagonists, they realize how petty was the stuff they used to whine about in comparison to what they were facing now. With this spirit in them, they manage to retain their lives and bond or develop it even more despite their patience, level-headedness, optimism, valiance, and mindset tested at every point or not.
In several stories, the vague beginning makes it difficult for the reader to get through the book, and consequently, the reader loses interest. However, in this case, the mysterious premise of the story is what ignites the curiosity of the reader and hooks them to the book from the first page itself. The author Caleb J. Boyer has very intricately described the supernatural and extraordinary surroundings of the protagonists despite the poor expression. As a reader, I could sense that the writer was trying to convey a bigger message through little incidents along the way, which added to the value of the plot.
The writing style was not at all eloquent, considering the wordy sentences and forced conversations between the characters. Even though I could barely find an error or two whatsoever, I did not enjoy the composition as it felt naively immature. Besides, the little flashbacks the boys had of their previous lives could be curated in a better way, adding to their character development and backstory. More snippets of their memories should have been inculcated in the story to provide the reader with a better outline of the boys’ friendship. The cliffhanger ending of the story is a major disappointment to me as a reader personally, for it spoiled the entire buildup and left me quite unsatisfied with the ending of the book.
In my opinion, the negative aspects of the book outweigh its positive points by a large margin. However, the book is not disappointing, keeping in mind the age of the writer. Thus, regretfully, I can not grant this book more than 2 out of 4 stars.
Though the book description classifies the book under the YA category, I would personally recommend this book to pre-teens who are into action and adventure.
******
Island Games
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Island Games by Caleb J. Boyer
