Title: Echo Island
Author: Jared C. Wilson
Publication: October 20, 2020
Publisher: B&H Kids
Genre: YA Fiction, Teens, Christian Fiction
Pages: 272
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
When four recent high school graduates return home from a weekend of camping, they expect to go back to life as usual. Instead, the boys discover empty streets, abandoned cars, and utter silence—everyone has disappeared.
As the friends attempt to solve the mystery, they stumble upon more questions than answers. Why won’t the electronics work? Where did the wind go? What do the notebooks full of gibberish mean? With each new discovery, they learn that nothing was ever quite what it seemed on Echo Island and that a deep secret is drawing them in—if only they would surrender to it.
Join Bradley, Jason, Archer, and Tim on this exploration into myth and mystery. Uncover exactly what happened on Echo Island and what these four friends’ story has to do with God, the meaning of life, and the nature of reality.
REVIEW:
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
I was eager to check out Jared C. Wilson’s novel Echo Island without much knowledge of the author and the book. All I knew is the description sounded interesting. So I dug right in.
At first glance I was really intrigued and need more information instantly. I had to understand what was coming. I will say I had an inkling early on what was really going on, but I won’t give it away to you. Wilson’s writing was interesting. He wrote in a way that made you want to know more about the main characters and slowly revealed more of their personality to you. I really loved a few of the main group of guys that made up main characters in this book, and I really disliked some of the others. Some of the supporting characters were also the same, either really likable or really dislikable. I found none fell in the middle. Love or hate. That was it.
I have to be honest and say I didn’t realize this novel was christian fiction until I neared the end. When the mystery was revealed and all was known, it finally clicked. As someone who doesn’t lean towards religious inspired books, I did enjoy this. There were a few minor factors that influenced my overall score downward. The cryptic messages from the man in the cabin were frustrating to me and in no way helpful to my understanding or enjoyment of this book. I also really disliked some of the behaviors shown by some of the characters and feel that people might act different in this given scenario if it were to occur.
Aside from the minor issues I had with Echo Island, I really did enjoy the novel and found the mystery to be one I really wanted to solve and kept me flipping pages. Even if you are not a typical christian fiction reader, check this book out. It’s subtle with the religious message and has a good mystery to be solved while reading.
STAR RATING: 3/5
Pick up your copy of Echo Island by Jason C. Wilson on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and check your local bookstore. Also make sure to add it to your To Reads list on Goodreads and leave feedback for the author when you are finished. You can find more from author Jared C. Wilson HERE.
