The Castaways: Escape far away with the most gripping, twisty crime thriller book for 2021

Book was as described.

The Castaways starts off really strong. It's suspenseful. There are twists and turns I didn't see coming. It's told from dual POVs and dual timelines. For the most part I think that served the story pretty well. Things started to stall in the middle for me a little. But then really picked back up at the end. I loved the setting and the idea of Lost like story. It was a fun read.

Castaways was my first Lucy Clark read. How fun, it kept me guessing through a great story with a skillfully executed double narration of "now" and "then." Not all authors can use this method properly, but Lucy is a masterful weaver. The story itself if good, and there is plenty going on to keep it moving. I promptly bought two more of her books.

.... this story turned out to be. My rating is closer to a 2.5, than a 3. Started off good, had my attention, and somewhere along the way I stopped caring about the characters, the situations, and the outcome. I had to make myself finish the last third of the book. The scenarios the characters found themselves in was a little too neat and a little too unrealistic. While I kinda understood where the author was going with the ending, it just left me flat and happy the story was over. I enjoy the author and have enjoyed previous books, but I will look at the next one very carefully.

The Castaways by Lucy Clarke is a highly recommended mystery and survival tale. Sisters Lori and Erin are taking a vacation on one of the small remote islands by Fiji. While on Fiji the night before they are to fly out to their final vacation destination, they have an argument. Erin stomps off in anger and misses the flight the next morning. The small plane disappears and her sister Lori is gone. Two years later the pilot of the downed plane shows up ill, on Fiji. Erin, who works as a journalist in the UK, returns to Fiji to talk to the pilot and find out what happened, how he survived, and what happened to the passengers. In a reply he uses the word "we" which gives Erin hope that Lori may be alive. Two years ago, Lori did survive the crash landing on a small uninhabited island. Other survivors included the pilot, two male passengers, and a baby. While present day chapters follow Erin's investigation and search for Lori, alternate chapters follow the first 31 days for the castaways on the island through Lori's point-of-view. From each of their viewpoints, the bond between the sisters is clear and they are both mourning their loss but in vastly different circumstances. This is a well-written, fast-paced investigative mystery mixed with a survival story. The story and experiences as told by each each sister are intensely different but both are compelling. Erin is in denial, consumed by the mystery, and mourning her loss while Lori misses her sister but is struggling to survive while caring for a baby. The overwhelming question is did Lori survive, if so, where is she, and can Erin find her sister or find closure. The Castaways is a great choice for those who enjoy survival stories tempered by an overarching present day mystery. Thanks to Grove/Atlantic for providing me with an advance reader's copy via . My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

Loved this book. I liked how it went from past happenings to the current investigation. I have read other books by this author and enjoyed them all. This was by far my favorite.

A real page turner for sure!! So very well written!

Two years ago, sisters Lori and Erin were on their way to a vacation in Fiji when they were separated by disaster. The night before their flight, the sisters got into a heated argument that led to Erin missing the flight, leaving Lori to fly solo. Tragically, the flight never landed in mainland Fiji, and the plane along with its passengers and crew seemingly disappeared without a trace. As time dragged on with no evidence of a plane crash, public interest waned and the case grew cold. But when the pilot of the missing plane suddenly turns up alive in Fiji, things heat up again, and Erin finally travels to Fiji, determined to find out what really happened to her sister. Lucy Clarke has a real knack for writing a gripping destination thriller with far-flung locales that pull you right in. I loved the dual timeline, dual POV structure, which is written so descriptively that I felt like I was buckled in right next to Lori as the plane lurched toward its final destination. It was also so interesting to ride along with Erin as she kept digging deeper, refusing to accept that there might never be an answer as to what happened to the flight and her sister. As I was reading, I kept thinking that this would make for a great screen adaptation, and I guess other people must have agreed with me, because it turns out there’s already an adaptation out there!