David Miller - Shark Island



Mr Ripley's Review
A debut children's book by David Miller.
The story is inspired by the author's years living and working in Borneo and South Asia. Using the experiences he has had this gives this a more exotic feel to the story, enhancing the settings backdrops of tropical islands, landscapes, beaches and over grown jungles; building a real-life setting around the characters. David shows a world of diverse cultures - an aspect I loved about this book. When Hanna and Neds parents are kidnapped by pirates they find themselves in a predicament, how to escape the island and get help. The desperation to leave the island is quite gripping, giving it a more emotional feel when the children work out what to do next.
Throughout this action adventure there is a lot of highs and lows for the children to deal with; finding out what has happened to their parents is no easy task when no-one wants to help them and everyone is against them. I give this book four out of five.
It's an all-action gripping read with lots of plot features. The story transports the reader to a paradise island, making you live and breath a cracking adventure. Well worth a trek into its pages.

About the author:

David Miller was born in Norfolk. He has worked in advertising as a copywriter, and later as a creative director,
He has travelled widely all over the world,and has lived and worked in Malaysia and Singapore. Shark island was inspired by his experiences while visiting a small island off the coast of Malaysia.
David now writes full-time and lives in Hampshire with his wife, Su'en and his daughter,Hanna.



Synopsis


Hanna, Ned and their parents are on the holiday of a lifetime on the paradise island of Kaitan. But the idyll is shattered when pirates come in the night, burning their house and kidnapping their mother and father. The children are stranded, and don't even know if their parents are alive or dead . . . In this action-packed adventure, there is no one to help. Survival and escape are up to Hanna and Ned.


Published by Oxford Children's books May 2009

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