Best book I have read in ages,after the first few chapters I couldn't put it down, full of suspense and twists and turns. I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through!

What happens when eight people decide to take on the challenge of a lifetime: living alone on a remote island for a year, fending for themselves as if the rest of the world has ended. How long will it take before the group falls apart? Who will be trustworthy and who will be out for blood? And what will happen when the simplest of conflicts turn life-threatiningly dangerous. Eight people, one island, tons of secrets and one goal uniting them all: survival.

"Maybe I'd been worried about nothing; I was starting to fit in after all...
What a fool I was."

The premise of this book thrilled me, as I do love a good locked-room mystery! This one especially sparked my interest because I studied psychology so to me it's always fascinating to see how easy people can turn on each other when push comes to shove. And even though this is "just a book" there's been plenty of experiments done in the past that confirm that stories like this are pretty realistic. The book did take me by surprise a little in the sense that I didn't expect to feel such adrenaline and tension while reading. That was definitely a good thing, though, because I enjoyed every second of this book and finished it in one afternoon.

I loved the way the author describes the island, and general surroundings and weather phenomenons. It really added a lot to the reading experience for me, cause it made it very easy to picture what Maddy was going through in my head.
Now, a bit about the characters. The protagonist, Maddy, is a bit of a socially awkward introvert but she is very resourceful and has an amazing survival instinct. I couldn't help but love her, even though at times I wanted to slap her and scream at her to stand up for herself more. The other characters all made me feel a variation of things: furious, exhausted, sympathetic, annoyed, ... and the gaslighting throughout the book was a bit of a trigger to me sometimes, so it was definitely a wild ride (but worth it). Another thing I always appreciate is character development, and thankfully there's a lot of it in this one. Not just in Maddy, but in all of the characters, which is a very intriguing (and a bit disturbing at times) thing to watch unfold.

"Bullies. You grow up thinking that's just playground stuff, but people never grow out of it. They like throwing their weight around, having control over people."

This was a thrilling, immersive and tense read that you won't be able to put down! If you like locked-room thrillers and/or survival stories: this is the one for you! And it really makes you think: what would you be willing to do to survive?
I would like to thank Avon Books UK, Sarah Goodwin and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Forgive, but don't forget. I always try to remember that. Because if someone can hurt you once, they can do it again.”

Overall rating: ★★★★

4.5⭐️
Gore score 2/5

It looks like it might be a debut. It’s a cracking read. I loved it, fast paced with lots going on. It is dark and gritty.

A reality tv programme with a group of 8 people living on an isolated uninhabited island off the coast of Scotland for a year. It reminded me of the tv program Castaway many moons ago, that involves many more people on a remote island Taransay.

From the prologue we already know that something has gone badly wrong.

We hear from the narrator a ‘survivor’ Maddy who relays the events.

Everything starts out ok, but as food supplies dwindle tempers fray and arguments break out with the camp sub dividing.

Although everything should have been filmed some team members have been able to switch off the cameras allowing their actions to go without judgement.

Niggling at the back of my mind is the question is Maddy the victim or the aggressor? The reader knows that she is a life long social mis fit and has mental health issues.

Even with those niggling doubts it’s easy from following Maddy’s narration to like her, to be behind her urging her on in such difficult circumstances. Maddy’s version of the truth made her look like a Saint, and I think some of her responses to her tormentors and the guilt that she felt was unrealistic. I would have liked a less sanitised Maddy to be honest.
It’s a really engrossing read and I highly recommend it.

This book is amazing- its such a great ride!
I thoroughly recommend it and really enjoyed it.

Maddy is a great narrator....her perspective is so different and caustic that it is hard to know whether to trust her or not and the fact that she is an unreliable narrator but at the same time very likeable and real is the heart of this story.

The writing is very vibrant and real...I can see that island...I can imagine the people...we have all met them in some form or another....it is very honest and genuine even with unimaginable events happening.

There is very little that can be said about it without spoilers and I think this book is best to go into knowing as little about it as possible but definitely read this - I could not put it down.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting premise, I immediately thought this sounded like Survivor meets Agatha Christie. eight people accept the challenge to live alone for a year,. Then something clearly goes very wrong. I really enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I was glued to my couch frantically turning the pages needing to know what happened next! I loved it! Its all about secrets, lies, and the art of survival. Thank you so much!

This is an entertaining read - the story cracks along at a great pace and even though the premise is quite far-fetched, the author makes the main character and the twists and turns of the plot interesting enough to make it a real page-turner.
Definitely a book for a long train journey or the beach, it’ll keep you gripped right to the end.

Amazing book I absolutely could not wait to the last page to find out what was going to happen. This is one of the best thrillers I’ve read all year.

When I first started this book, I was convinced I wasn't going to like it. It was a little slow to start but wow was it worth it. The slow building tension through the first 50%, the unreliable narrator and the callbacks throughhout made this so much fun to read. Maddy was a frustrating character to read but then again most thriller protaganists are. The premise of knowing that it was all going to go wrong but not knowig how or why kept me racing through the whole book in one sitting. The twist at the end I did not see coming at all and it was so worth it.

This was an incredibly solid debut and I would not hesitate to pick up another book by this author. when released.

A new author for me, but the blurb and description had me hooked - I was not disappointed! Well written, using time slips of past and present, with interesting relationships between the characters. As the story progressed, it became more tense and I was unable to stop reading.

This was, the best i can describe it, Lord of the Flies for adults! Some really tense moments, which i loved! Overall, I loved those!

A woman who is unhappy with her life decides to take part in a social experiment - along with seven strangers, she is sent to a remote island, whereupon they must attempt to form a society from scratch. They are armed with a small amount of bare essentials, and a camera to document their year. Things start out okay, then get worse, and then... well, it gets bad.

Wow, what a book! I recently had a long journey, and I read Stranded in that one sitting. I missed traffic jams, the beautiful views of the North Yorkshire hills, and who knows what else, because I was absorbed with this novel. It surprised me. I didn't know what to expect, but I didn't think I'd be sitting with my blood boiling at certain points, or my heart racing at others.

I have rarely felt so frustrated with fictional characters the way I did with some of the castaways, one in particular. He is so well-written, and believable as a self-entitled, angry, nasty man.

Goodwin really knows how to write a story. There are elements of death, gaslighting and mortal peril here, so tread carefully if that isn't for you. Otherwise, I would recommend this book to anyone..

The term "page-turner" is overused; I'm guilty of it myself, but in this case, I really couldn't put Stranded down.

Many thanks to Sarah Goodwin, NetGalley, and Avon Books for this copy.

I had never read a book by this author but read the blurb and thought it sounded right up my street. I was not disappointed! There was the perfect blend between flashbacks and current day without being too confusing and the relationship between the different characters was interesting and tension was built up as we got to know the characters more and their motives! I absolutely loved it and it kept me turning the pages. I struggled to put it down.

I will most definitely be looking out for more books by Sarah Goodwin in the future and would recommend this book wholeheartedly.

I loved this book and really couldn’t put it down. I didn’t really love any of the characters, though I could identify with Maddy when she was bullied and everyone sided with the bully. At this point my heart went out to her. There were some characters I truly despised.

I stayed up to the early hours of the morning reading this book and was desperate to find out how Maddie got off the island. A real change from what I normally read and I loved it

It seemed like a good way to get away from her past and the heartbreak of losing her parents, the bitter sweet feeling of losing those who whilst living you also suffocated you with their caring - a year on an uninhabited island, with 7 other strangers. With no contact with the outside world - a social experiment. How wrong could you be?

Unfortunately people are not always their best selves when not surrounded by society and without structure. Personalities clash, a pecking order becomes literal and those that have no moral compass can take control. Instilling their own version of law and order.

I really enjoyed the dark twists and turns of this book. And felt that I was almost stranded on the island with Maddy. Her character is well written, you can’t say you definitely like her as a person, or how she reacts to situations but you don’t like how she is treated and how she has to fight back to stay alive. In a time where television shows not that dissimilar to this are popular it is interesting to see how easily things could go wrong.

4.5 Stars!!!
This book doesn’t have the most original idea, as I have read several books that surround just a group of people who are strangers who come together to do a reality show, then everything goes wrong. although I’ve seen and read this plot before, this is the first one that I’ve read that has been executed really well! It has the perfect amount of mystery and thrilling elements, dropping hints from the present day before jumping back to the island, never revealing too much where you are spoiled and can easily guess the ending...

If you were asked to live alone in an island with eight more people for one whole year, with no connection to the outside world, would you do it? This is what this story is about.

Maddy gets an opportunity to be a part of a show, where she along with seven other people--Zoe, Gill, Maxine, Duncan, Andrew, Frank and Shaun along with two camera men to spend one whole year in a remote island. But soon, while on the island, things take a sour turn with friends becoming enemies and one would do anything to survive in the remote island...even if it involves killing them...

The plot sounded interesting and intriguing and sounds so much like I am watching an episode of Lost! Maddy's character actually grew into me--Maddy is socially awkward, introverted and into plants and botany with fair knowledge about the plants in the island and recently lost her parents who were very overprotective towards her. What was supposed to be a team work and developing friendships soon turned into sour and bitter enmity between the group, particularly towards Maddy who was soon casted out of the camp in the island. The descriptions and how the team members survive through eating plants, catching rabbits and eating fish all too well describe the life in an island so far from the outside world. There were twists and turns, with small portions dividing between the time spent on island and the interviewer doing a piece on how Maddy survived. Maddy certainly is an unreliable narrator with flaws so that makes this thriller more interesting and intriguing, I stayed up all night finishing the book, wondering what is going to happen next--quiet unputdownable and you would not be disappointed with the ending!

Overall, I really enjoyed reading thriller--an unputdownable twisty thriller and quiet an emotional one as well that will make you stay up all night!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Avon for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

I'm a highly picky reader, but I really enjoyed Stranded. It felt refreshingly real, with none of that compulsive quirkiness or reliance on plot twists to disguise utter lack of substance that plague so much of current fiction (although to be fair there are some last-minute "revelations" of the not-too-surprising kind). At first I was afraid I'd be getting a 400 page play-by-play of every little thing that went into Life on the Island ("and then we built a hut... and then we built a latrine... and then we dug a fire pit..."), which would have been tedious as hell, but thankfully things speed up a lot after the first hut-building effort. To my unending gratitude, the author also skips the romance. The novel is really all about survival and group dynamics, so if you're looking for a nice fluffy escapist read, keep looking. Life on this island is decidedly unromantic, gross and rough, and the company isn't too nice either.

While I didn't actually *like* any of the characters (they all stayed a little bit shadowy, except for Maddy, who was too whiny, passive and too full of self-pity for my liking), life on the island was so intense that it sucked me in completely -- even though I found the psychology a bit simplistic and the premise itself well on the road to ridiculous. Dump eight individuals on a remote island and leave them to their own devices without any means of contacting the mainland, or supplies, or any kind of medical supervision? For a whole year? For a TV SHOW? Or rather, a *proposed* TV show? Huh.
Also, no-one ever mentions Lord of the Flies?? I mean, if I were stuck on an island in the middle of nowhere with a host of questionable characters, that would literally be my first point of reference.

Still, logic notwithstanding, this was a pretty great read. There were two or three instances where I thought things dragged a bit, with redundant description and explanation and lots of rather lengthy assumption, and the whole business with the witch sadly felt a bit tacked on IMO, but that's just me being me again. The book is so absorbing that it doesn't really matter.

Oh my goodness. Such an easy addictive read.

Take 8 strangers and place them on an island for eleven months for a reality TV show.

It’s not long before the characters show their true colours, the isolation of Mandy arises. And she needs to do everything g she can to survive in the island not only alone, but from the other 7 in the group who have become vindictive towards here.

Without a doubt a page Turner. Just as you think it can’t get any better, you are on the edge of your seat holding your breath!

For a long time, I was fascinated with the premise of reality TV shows like Survivor, until I found that they were more about bitching, backstabbing and forming alliances than actual survival skills and team work. Apparently this is what viewers like to see – go figure! If you are like me, and those things bring back all the bad memories about high school and some workplaces, then you may find this book super stressful to read. If you were one of the popular group who ruled the courtyard and inspired fear in the lesser mortals, you may also find it stressful – eventually.

I love how Sarah Goodwin has run with the theme and explored it all in depth. And be assured, bitching, backstabbing and forming alliances aside, there is plenty of survival to be had in STRANDED. It’s all that reality TV promised but never delivered (perhaps because no ethics committee would ever approve it), and despite biting my nails to the quick I appreciated the mounting tension and breath-holding levels of anxiety some of the scenes induced.

In a nutshell, STRANDED explores what happens when you put eight strangers together on a secluded island and let them sort out their own pecking order. If it’s one thing that the TV version of Survivor has shown us, it may not necessarily be the cleverest who win points, but the ones who can get the majority votes, even if they rule with bullying and threats. Maddy, with her history of a sheltered childhood, overprotective parents and home schooling, was never going to be well equipped for this type of power game, so as soon as she calls out the head bully, her fate is sealed. And if you think that someone in the group would stick up for the underdog, then think again – because suddenly Maddy finds herself out in the cold, fighting for survival. And the wilderness is the least of her problems ...

STRANDED was one of those books that totally took me by surprise. I was lured by the wilderness setting and found myself with a gripping, adrenalin-fuelled and tense read that was hard to put down. At times, it was also immensely frustrating as the voice of reason was overruled, time and time again. Even though Maddy was perhaps ill equipped for negotiation and getting her point across, it was easy to see how anyone could easily end up in her position. And once the die was cast, there was no going back. “Wow, that escalated fast”, I kept thinking, not realising that much worse was yet to come.

STRANDED is a book that speaks to both our inner survival instinct as well as addressing the question: “If the world as we knew it ended tomorrow, how well equipped would you be to survive?” It also confronts the theme of herd mentality and how easily we fall for power rather than reason. It’s a LORD OF THE FLIES, adult version, and just as brutal. For those easily triggered, some scenes may turn your stomach and give you nightmares, but then the end-of-the-world scenario isn’t ever going to be pretty either, is it? I loved the background information about all those skills necessary for survival our ancestors knew but most of us have long un-learned: foraging, how to grow a crop in the wilderness, how to build a basic shelter and most of all, how to be part of the natural environment and work with it. It’s a clever, original and heart-pounding story that will keep me mulling over some of its themes for a long time to come.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Eight people are taken to a remote Scottish island to live for a year for a reality TV show. A great premise for an exciting story! The narrator is Maddy, who wants to escape from her unsatisfactory life after the death of her parents. Relationships quickly become fractured and Maddy finds herself an outsider, banished from the group. When the boat that is supposed to return them to the mainland fails to arrive, things get a whole lot worse! This is a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat to the end. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
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