Reviewing The Island House by Amanda Brittany

Reviewed by Mollie Mardel

Rating: 9.4/10 

02. 01. 2025

I picked up The Island House by Amanda Brittany after an extended reading lull, and it duly delivered a remedy: intense, immersive quality of gothic writing. Protagonist Alice’s dark and uncertain history, earmarked by peculiar parallels between her history and her craft, as a sculptor, makes the exposition of The Island House attractive to a reader searching for fiction that rebirths an addiction to turning pages. The considered insertion of Lewis Carroll's quotes throughout the book enhances the unorthodox unease present from the outset. As the plot progresses, Alice’s arrival at the titular island guesthouse instigates a chilling chain of events that will have you questioning each anomalous noise in your reality, and looking over your shoulder as you read—even before we, alongside our main character, start to discover the lifeless guests.

 Brittany boasts the subtle mastery of a dual timeline, providing an emotive and sympathetic insight into background characters that become prominent in Alice’s exploration of the truth. Whilst managing alternative perspectives was distracting at first, I eventually enjoyed the challenge of balancing present and past as it ensured that the book’s conclusion was justified and powerful in its impact. Multiple narrators naturally introduced an increased quantity of characters—names to learn, and influences to detect—that may incite a potential struggle for some readers. However, this is surmountable and if you can become well acquainted with the character’s motivations, and thus behaviours, you can guarantee that you will close The Island House with a hauntingly lasting impression.

 The observational ambience of the third person —a persisting stylistic quirk—required some reluctant adherence at the beginning. Still, once I had overlooked my preferences, I warmed to the tone. It eased into fluency when the focus shifted from introductory to progressive. As an author myself, I empathise with the struggle of having to construct a world before you’re able to interact with it, so perhaps I was more attuned to this effort, particularly within the prologue. I can only commend Brittany’s navigation of a tricky task for most authors.

 Bitterness, as a defining personality trait that manifests varyingly across several characters, is recognisable as a driving force in the book. It is eerily woven throughout Alice’s experiences before it dominates the work to an exceptional standard by the end.

For example, the critics of her deceased father’s literature wind up as synchronous guests at The Island House during Alice’s stay, consequently antagonising the limited and restricted group as they become trapped within hostile hospitality. The fate of these particular characters is both relieving and a shock and this distasteful blend of reactions is riveting for a reader. This coincidence alone sets a tortuous precedent for what is to come and a sinister promise that everything will fall into place.

 Perhaps overly critically, some embellishment could have been offered to The Island House’s otherwise vague title, to award the reader more intrigue at first glance: I feel the plot contributed so many wealthy elements that could have especially warranted titular representation. However, perhaps this was a conscious choice (see below).

   Brittany’s articulate manufacture of the plot intends to make The Island House very easy to spoil; a credit to how important every feature is in the culmination of the story. The impenetrable nature of every detail proves an absorbing journey for the reader, wherein they will find each paragraph to be satiated with value and relevance. 

 All this to say, the book carries incredible momentum—’unputdownable’ as has also been coined similarly by other reviewers. The hair-raising ending of The Island House is supported by the entirety of its pages, and an ominous serving of puppetry.

Have I convinced you to read The Island House by Amanda Brittany? Let me know in the comments if you'll be adding it to your TBR, or if you've already read it, what you thought.