Super grateful to David for sending me his debut horror novel to review! It’s a homage to 80s horror, lots of guts and gore, but BETTER. Because what puts me off 80s horror, despite the crazy stories & monsters, is the misogyny. The Forgotten Island is all of the 80s horror fun and none of the misogyny - what more could you want?!
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Our protagonist is Ana, a hilarious, foul-mouthed Scot who takes absolutely NO SHIT. After a tough year, she agrees to go on holiday with her sister after they drifted apart in an effort to renew their relationship, but their Thai paradise quickly becomes a nightmare as they get marooned on an island that houses terrors you wouldn’t want to dream of...
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I loved Ana and her sister Rachel. I did NOT love any of the male characters, and that’s okay. When I said there’s no misogyny, okay there is but it’s not brushed off or accepted as true or funny, it is dealt with in THE most brutal ways. If only I had a way of sending the next guy who told me I’d be prettier if I smiled into a Lovecraftian pit of horror.
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If you’ve followed David for any amount of time you’ll know that he’s a super funny guy, and his humour translates so well to his book! Yah it’s horror but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a few laughs along the way!
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ALSO: There is a dog and *spoiler alert* IT DOESN’T DIE. Isn’t that a refreshing first for a horror novel?
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I took off a star because admittedly, a lot of gore is not my favourite thing in the world, but this book doesn’t just rely on splatterpunk for its scares. It played on some of my worst fears, like things with tentacles and things on ceilings...But it is HELLA gruesome!