Blog Tour: The Secret of Golden Island

The Secret of Golden Island is an absolute winner!  Exciting, empathetic and heart-warming, a story that took me on the most wonderful, unmissable adventure with two exceptional young children as they work together to discover an island’s secret.  

Yakov and Skylar first meet after a football match in which he scores the winning goal and she is suspended for fighting after a cruel comment from another.  During the match, Yakov enjoys a brief moment of feeling that he belongs before his thoughts quickly return to the family and friends who he has had to leave behind to escape the war at home.  Skylar’s beloved Grandpa has had a stroke and she longs for the times she has spent fishing and sailing with him, no longer feeling that she fits in with her family and friends.

These two meet again at Dead Man’s Beach where they have gone to seek solace after upsetting realisations and news.  Their shared pain and loneliness brings connection and they open up to each other, tentatively seeking the friendship each so desperately needs. They share with each other that they have come to the beach as they felt the island which overlooks it calling to them … and then they see someone on Golden Island putting up a sign:  ISLAND TO WIN! 

They each want to win the island to keep promises made and to keep hope alive, but how can two children possibly win an island whilst keeping it a secret from their families?    What lies will they need to tell?  What barriers will they have to overcome?  How far are they prepared to go to help those they love?

So begins the most thrilling adventure as Yakov and Skylar sail to the island to learn more about the owner’s competition to win the island and meet the other competitors who are equally determined to win the contest.  I absolutely loved this daring adventure as Yakow and Skylar work as a team to overcome difficult circumstances, as they find and follow clues to reveal the secret of the island and as they make painful and courageous decisions in dangerous situations. 

I absolutely loved the evocative description of the island with its hidden caves, wildlife and unspoilt habitat but with a hint of a secret past … a place capable of healing pain and one which deserves to be appreciated and cared for.  I really felt the healing power of the island as Yakov and Skylar enjoy its peace and beauty, as they face their fears through listening to its song and as they open themselves to trust and friendship.

Yakov and Skylar are incredibly likeable and sympathetic young children who find each other just as they need friendship, and what strength, courage and joy they find in that friendship.  They both feel loneliness, guilt and fear, but find connection, a sense of belonging and healing through their firm bond of friendship, and cathartic experience on the island.  

An exceptional, heartfelt and exciting adventure which glows with the warmth of friendship, resonates with a song of hope and flows with an appreciation of the natural environment.  Perfect summer adventuring for readers of 9+.

Thank you to Bethany Carter and Faber Children’s Books for inviting me to be part of this Blog Tour and for providing me with a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Do check out the other stops on the Blog Tour: