3 out of 4 stars
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On first reading the basic premise of this novel, two friends waking up on a mysterious island and fighting to survive, I couldn’t wait to read it. It brought back memories of the TV show Lost, or novels such as Lord of the Flies, where people marooned on an island must show resilience and strength of character, in order to remain alive until they can be rescued.
There were a number of irritating aspects of the book which struck a nerve with me, and these included:
Despite waking up in an unknown location, with no memory of how they got there, or why, the two boys automatically discern that they are on an island. The only way it is possible to know this is by seeing the ocean 360 degrees all around them, which considering the fact that they travel through a massive jungle containing trees as big as skyscrapers and climbing massive hills and walking through the island for days, it seems unlikely that they could see the entirety of the island from their initial position on the beach.
There were also situations that the boys found themselves in which were never really explained, including how, or even why, they were put on the island in the first place.
Not to mention a few scenarios that were a little bit unrealistic, such as the source of the river, or the trip to the waterfall.
The ending was also a bit abrupt and didn’t really provide any decent answers to the overall story.
These issues niggled at me until I discovered that the author, Caleb J. Boyer, is actually only twelve years old. With this perspective in mind, Caleb did a fantastic job with this debut novel as it is a riveting page-turning adventure, perfect for young adults. It moves along at quite a brisk pace, keeping the reader engaged and invested in the story, eager to follow the boys throughout all their trials and tribulations.
All in all I would give Island Games: Mystery of the Four Quadrants by Caleb J Boyer 3 out of 4 stars for its fun and entertaining story which can be enjoyed by all manner of age groups, ranging from kids, to teens, and even adults. It reminds me of books such as The Hunger Games or The Maze Runner, and would appeal to fans of these type of gaming, survival or mystery stories.
There was also excellent use of proof-reading, since there were only a couple of spelling mistakes. However, personally I found a few annoying issues with some of the main details not being fully explained, such as the purpose behind those particular boys being on the island, and the abrupt ending.
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Island Games
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