READING: The Island by Lisa Henry

Publication date: February 26 2016
Published by: --
Genre: MM, Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Suspense, Dark, Violence
Rating: 

Shaw is in Fiji to sell a stolen painting to the crime boss, Vornis. It will be the deal of a lifetime, if Shaw can pull it off. But then Vornis parades his latest toy around in front of him—a captured DEA agent whose time is running out. It’s none of Shaw’s business, and it doesn’t matter that under any other circumstances Lee would be exactly Shaw’s type: he’s young, he’s hot, and he might even have a personality if they hadn’t beaten it out of him. Too bad there’s no way Lee is getting off the island. Too bad there’s nothing Shaw can do for him. And too bad there are some lines that even Shaw won’t cross. 

Keeping his hands off Lee proves harder than he thinks, but Shaw’s not stupid enough to fall for the tortured captive of a dangerous crime boss, is he? If he did, it wouldn’t be just his job he would be risking—it would be his life.

The Island came very, very highly recommended. As in "I've read it 3 times and I absolutely love it" and "I stayed up all night reading it, it blew my mind".
And I agree, the book is fantastic. However, it did not quite reach the perfection levels I was expecting, and that's OK. 

My main concern was that I was not utterly convinced by Shaw's sudden urge to save Lee and to hell with everything else, when he himself confessed to being witness to other gruesome crimes and not even blinking an eye. Why did he choose to save this particular person and what made him draw the line now, after 6 years of witnessing horrible things? Was it that this one was particularly terrible? I don't think so, I bet he had seen way worse. Was it that he fell in love with him? Nah, can't be that simplistic, I don't buy it. Probably it was there right in front of me (it was abundantly clear to my friends) but I just did not see it. 

I loved the fact that Henry chose Fiji as the main location and the expert way she wrapped all that darkeness and ugliness around something so stunning. I also really liked Lee's chapters and how his character was developed both on the island and back at home. I wanted to see him more as an individual than together with Shaw, away from any sexual tension, which to be honest, made me cringe at times (except for the ending). It just felt wrong and off to me in the island, but I completely understand its purpose.

The Island is not a romance book for me. Yes, it has its HEA, but that doesn't mean anything. At the end of the day, it's about two very damaged people coming together under the worst circumstances, hoping against hope that something good could come from all this suffering and agony. It's an optimistic romance, a potential romance at best.