Welcome to Blood Island, where the struggle for survival against the bloodthirsty undead is captured on camera for entertainment.
When Bloodwatch, the shadowy organisation behind the ever-watchful cameras, descends upon the island to shoot a new high-stakes reality show, Astrid finds herself thrust into the spotlight. The prize at stake? A coveted ticket off the island. Paired with Luke, a risk-taking outsider harbouring secrets of his own, Astrid discovers the perilous costs of winning the adoration of a legion of fans.
Caught in a deadly game where the undead and other contestants close in, Astrid must navigate her developing feelings for Luke and the treacherous terrain of reality TV, where there can be only one winner.
Escaping the past is impossible when the present threatens to devour you.
This isn’t going to be my normal style of review. Usually I chat about the book, what I liked, what was surprising, a few vibes. But sometimes, friends, sometimes a book makes you so angry the only thing you can do is loudly tell people how you would have done it better.
(Disclaimer: I stopped reading this at 12%. It's entirely possible my issues were dealt with after that, although based on the writing up to that point, I'm guessing not.)
There's a really good premise here. Zombies have risen, but - so far - only on one small island, which was immediately blockaded. There are still survivors on the island, who have to perform for the cameras in a form of reality show to earn vital supplies. Due to dropping viewing numbers, the TV producers are bringing on mainlanders to pair with islanders - involuntarily on the islanders' parts - to fight through a series of obstacles. The winning islander gets to leave.
And here's where my fury comes in, friends. The producer offhandedly mentions that the winner will be screened for infection. Which means there are ways to see who's infected and who isn't. Why is there anyone left on this island? What government isn't prioritising removing the healthy survivors and letting the zombies starve to death?
One small change. Say that the survivors are carrying the zombie virus, so they can't leave. Keep the producers on the other end of a zoom call, not physically on the island. Make the prize for the game something else - guaranteed supplies for a year, or solar panels to provide power to their home base, or weapons to fight off the zombies. Anything! A reason to keep these people on the island!
Going by the reviews online, some readers are loving the pace, the danger, the obstacles and romance. That's great! I'm pleased that people are enjoying it. If you can turn off your logic brain when you read, as I know many people can, this is a wonderful choice and I hope you love it. But if you, like me, read it thinking "Why don't they just take over a helicopter and fly away?" - let me know what you think of my solution.
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