Book One - Nadia Aguiar-The Lost Island of Tamarind

Review
Stranded on a lost island, a teen faces nail-biting adventures searching for her missing parents in this fantasy cliffhanger. Maya has lived her 13 years aboard the Pamela Jane sailing through the Caribbean with her marine biologist parents, her brother Simon and baby sister. Until recently Maya loved life at sea, but now all she wants is to live with her grandmother in Bermuda, go to school and have friends. During a freak storm, Maya's parents are washed overboard while winds propel the Pamela Jane to Tamarind, an unknown island populated by fantastical plants and creatures. In breathtaking succession, Maya and Simon encounter carnivorous vines, flying fish, treacherous pirates, a mad zoologist, giant turtles, warring soldiers, a tribe living in treetops, a mysterious lady riding a jaguar, singing mermaids, giants and a glowing substance called ophalla. As she bounces from one adventure to the next, Maya forgets all about having a normal life and longs just to have her family reunited. Spunky kids, perilous pursuits and marine mystery make for a smashing good read. (Fantasy. 10-14)

Book Description
The first in a magical trilogy about the mysterious island of Tamarind. Narnia meets Neverland for a new generation.
Praise for The Lost Island of Tamarind:

"Aguiar’s exciting debut novel is a cross between Peter Pan and Lost. Readers will be drawn into this dangerous, magical world where anything is possible and nothing can be fully explained...Young people will be transported to a world so different from the one they currently inhabit, following along as Maya and Simon escape their adversaries and struggle to survive in this hostile land.

Published 1-Jan 2009 as Puffin Paper back.

I give this book four out of five..