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Sidekick Super Review: The Island by Natasha Preston (2023)
- Aug 26
- 5 min read
Updated: Oct 24
Page Length: 336
Audiobook Length: ~8 hours
Grade Level: 7+
Goodreads Score: 3.5/5
Buy it here
Setting: Present Day, Jagged Island (a luxury private island)
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Horror, Slasher
Topics: Social Media Influencers, True Crime, Amusement Parks, Serial Killers
Plot: Paisley is a seventeen-year-old obsessed with murder and true crime. Her serial killer podcasts have earned her millions of followers, a brand-new BMW, and enough money to pay for her college tuition. Being a social media influencer has treated her well—especially since a billionaire has invited her, and six other famous teens, to the exclusive opening of his new amusement park on a private island. They get an all-expenses-paid trip to ride roller coasters, stay at a five-star resort, and eat Michelin-starred food, all in exchange for boosting the park’s publicity.
It seems too good to be true. But soon after their arrival, beauty guru Will goes missing, and Paisley’s true crime instincts start tingling. It turns out someone on the island has a vendetta—and is willing to kill to settle it. The creepy, gothic park transforms into a real-life nightmare as the teens scramble to escape the weekend alive. Paisley must piece together the clues to solve her deadliest and most terrifying mystery yet.
Themes: Trust and betrayal, survival, perception vs. reality
You might like this book if you like:
Serial killer documentaries and true crime podcasts
Scooby Doo (the live action one from 2002 with Freddie Prince Jr. where they investigate Spooky Island. This feels like a modern, teenage, horror version)
The Saw movies
Books by author Holly Jackson, like A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (a Netflix show now btw), or Five Survive.
Other books written by this author: The Cellar, The Haunting, The Fear, The Party
Teaching The Island As a Full-Class Unit
Content
Language: moderate language throughout
Sex: none, although the main character describes crushes she has, and witnesses some of the other characters canoodling
Violence/Scariness: includes scenes of blood, stabbing, violence, explosions, and murder—typical bloody slasher content.
Drinking/Smoking/Drugs: none
Class Novel-ability: Nope. This one wouldn’t be appropriate for teaching. It has too much scariness, violence, and strong language. It’s more of a “for fun” read than a classroom novel.
The Star Qualities
The ending delivers one of the most painful cliffhangers I've read in a long time. This is one of those books where you read the last sentence, and you're like THAT'S IT?! I really hope there is a sequel on the way, because I'm dying to know what happens next!
This book feels distinctly teenage-coded. I’ve never seen a generation of teens SO obsessed with serial killers and social media. Whenever I assigned analysis papers, two topics came up again and again: true crime and influencers. This story would’ve hit the sweet spot for so many of my students.
It’s a fast read. Like all murder mystery slasher horrors, it's nearly impossible to put down until you finish it. Its quick pacing and non-stop action keep you hooked until you’ve finally uncovered the mystery.
I think this book is a great pick for reluctant high school readers—it’s got all the right hooks: murder mystery, suspense, social media influencers, and serial killers. Plus, it's a quick read. Honestly, most of Natasha Preston’s books have that same fast-paced, addictive style. So if you're lucky enough to get a reluctant reader hooked, there are about ten more you can recommend right away to keep that spark for reading alive!
Book Talk Read Aloud Section
If you have the physical book, read the prologue (pages 1-5)
If you don't, read the prologue (pages1-5) in the kindle reading sample here.
"Reading Like a Writer" Mentor Text
First, I think teens are really going to relate to this passage. Second, it's packed with great stylistic moves—italics, one-word sentences, paragraph breaks, humor, and colons. Third, this section appears in the prologue (which I recommended for the book talk read-aloud and is also included in Amazon’s free reading sample), so it’s a win on multiple fronts!
This one is tantalizingly suspenseful—it might be just the thing to hook your students into reading the book! It’s packed with stylistic choices: vivid imagery, italics for internal dialogue, one-sentence paragraphs, rhetorical questions, short, urgent sentences, repetition, and an overall tense, uneasy tone.
The Island, p. 149
Here's another suspenseful passage packed with craft. It’s got dark humor, fast pacing, vivid imagery, one-sentence paragraphs, desperate internal monologue, repetition, and rich physical and sensory detail. A great example for helping students grasp the mood of the book—and pick up some cool writerly moves along the way.
Sentences for Combining and Imitation
Sentence sets for combining:
"I'm safe in my room, surrounded by my fluffy pens, posters of my favorite bands, and a photo of my dog, Bailey." (The Island, p. 108)
I am safe.
I am in my room.
I am surrounded by fluffy pens.
I am surrounded by posters of my favorite bands.
I am surrounded by a picture of my dog.
My dog's name is Bailey.
"Constructed from the stone with sharp points, two turrets, and carved gargoyle, the hotel is stunning. (p. 12)
The hotel is stunning.
It is constructed from stone.
It has two sharp points.
It has two turrets.
It has a carved gargoyle.
"I chew my long nails while pacing around the small, clinical room." (p. 150)
I chew my nails.
My nails are long.
I pace around the room.
The room is small.
The room is clinical.
"I watch, mesmerized by the fire, which seems to burn slowly at first but then spirals out of control." (p. 263)
I watch.
I am mesmerized by the fire.
The fire burns slowly at first.
Then the fire burns out of control.
Sentences for Imitation:
"In this house every room plays to the haunted theme--ghost and ghouls and fantasy--except this one. Here the monsters were human." (p. 204)
I know this is technically two sentences, but I really like the impact they have together. The tone is menacing and creepy. There’s a well-placed em dash with strong rhythm in the list it contains. Plus, there's a powerful juxtaposition between the make-believe horrors and the real, human ones.
"And that this was an opportunity that came once in a lifetime--and that I'd managed to get all on my own." (p. 16)
This one starts with the word “And.” Normally, that’s frowned upon—most students have it drilled into their heads that it’s “illegal.” But real writers use it all the time. I also like the use of the em dash and the honest tone. It feels like something teenagers can relate to and successfully imitate.
From the mainland, Jagged Island looked tiny, but as the boat speeds toward the rocky cliff, I see that it's much larger than I thought." (p. 7)
I like how this sentence shows what the narrator is seeing. It switches from past to present tense to highlight the narrator’s changing thoughts about the island’s size. The sentence moves from a distant view to a close-up in real time, following the narrator’s movement. It feels like a smoothly structured, comma-paced stream of consciousness. This sentence is a good model for students to practice writing real-time descriptions.
Used this book in your classroom? Tell us how in the comments!
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