On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves Audiobook Review

On the Island audiobookAudiobook: On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves, published by the author, April 20, 2012

Book Info: Romance, Own Audiobook. Running time: 7 hrs, 3 mins. Read by: Heidi Baker. Also available in PB, 336 pages from Plume.

Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars, A perfect vacation read to tuck in your beach bag.

More Info:  Goodreads | Audible | Amazon

On the Island is a book I heard a lot of hype about last summer. The cover just screams beach read, doesn’t it? I finally picked it up when it was on super sale at Audible.  I can see why it’s such a popular book. There is something about being stuck on a deserted island that’s intriguing. Well, reading about it that is. As someone who doesn’t even want to go camping for a weekend it’s my worst nightmare to be lost on an island, but the story fascinated me all the same. Like another island mystery, LOST, I felt compelled to keep listening and see how it would all turn out.

Anna is a thirty-year-old teacher who was hired to tutor sixteen-year-old T.J. over the summer. He’s in remission from cancer and has a lot of ground to make up. They board a seaplane to join T.J.’s parents in the Maldives. The pilot has a heart attack and crashes the plane in the Indian Ocean, leaving Anna and T.J. on their own and fighting for survival.  They rely on each other to find food and shelter, and to fend off illness and vicious island creatures. Before long, the relationship is more man-woman than teacher-student, which brings on a whole new level of problem.

Anna and T.J. have to start from scratch to find a way to survive on the island. They have a few supplies from the plane that make it easier but it’s still pretty rough conditions. The island descriptions are vivid and I felt like I was right there with them. Some of the details were more than I wanted and I couldn’t imagine going through that situation.

The story is told in both Anna and T.J.’s POV, and I really appreciated getting both perspectives. Graves does a good job fleshing out the characters and making me care for them. When I started the book I wasn’t sure if I could buy into a relationship between the pair, but it did feel natural given the situation.

I listened to the audiobook of On the Island. The author published the audiobook herself and the narrator is Heidi Baker. The narration is not my favorite ever, but the story is so addictive that I zipped through it anyway. Sometimes it was hard to tell if T.J. or Anna was speaking, except in context, and ideally I would have preferred two narrators to make the voices more distinct. Baker has a bubbly voice and is a fast reader. I tend to like readers to read quicker rather than slower, though it wasn’t always the best choice for this book, which called for more tension and emotion. Listen to a sample to see if this audiobook is a fit for you.

On the Island is a good book to take on vacation, though it might make you nervous to read in-flight. It is easy to get lost in and has an easy, quick pace. I’ll definitely look out for more books by this author, in fact there’s an On the Island novella called Uncharted coming out this fall, as well as a new book called Covet. Hope to see this one on the big screen someday.

Ornament

9 thoughts on “On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves Audiobook Review

  1. VeganYANerds says:

    I have been meaning to read this for so long, I even bought the Kindle version, and yet I haven’t read it. I should get to it before summer is over!

    I defo agree that a relationship between them sounds very realistic for what the situation they find themselves in. And, I prefer a fast narrator to a slow one!

    1. Lucy says:

      I’m the same way about wanting to read island/beach reads during summer. Really curious to hear what you think of this one, Mandee. You’ll be able to knock it out quickly.

      And yes I agree with you, fast narrators are much preferred to slow readers! It’s personal preference though and some listeners prefer a more relaxed pace.

  2. Oh My! I think this is the first time really reading a review for this one. I’ve seen it & almost bought it a time or two.

    Crash. Deserted. Teacher-Student. I’m sure if she did a well enough job, I could swallow the connection. But….it makes this teacher a bit creeped out.

    1. Lucy says:

      I think that’s exactly why it took me so long to read this one, Amy! The author is successful in making you root for these two though. If it helps, they had barely met before their plane trip.

  3. BermudaOnion says:

    I’d never heard of a self published audio book. This sounds interesting but I might go for it in print.

    1. Lucy says:

      Audible ACX is a self-publishing platform for audiobooks. It’s kind of surprising, though that Penguin didn’t produce an audiobook when they picked up the rights to the book.

  4. I love the way you write your reviews! Really well written!

  5. squee1313 says:

    I don’t know if it makes me an old skeezy perv for wanting to read this book, but if it does then it looks like Im in good company. (That’s a joke, I swear). My library has neither the sound recording or the e-book version, so I guess I’ll put the paper version on my request list. I’d get an audible account, but its not like I need another excuse to spend money on books.

    1. Lucy says:

      Haha, yes you’re in good company because I found this book very addictive 😉

      I totally get you about Audible- they are always having member sales that are hard to resist so it’s a good and bad thing! But yes, get the book version and let me know what you think.

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