Island Life

Rating:
Summary: Terror in the Scottish fog
Review: A group of archaeology students unearth a long buried secret on a tiny Scottish Island. Meikle's second novel sends chills down the spine as the islanders succumb, one by one, to the ancient evil that has been awakened. The story has the feel of a Lovecraft tale, and Meikle holds your attention as the plot unfolds.

Meikle has a horror trilogy in the works, and needless to say my advance order has been submitted.

Rating:
Summary: Great Entertainment
Review: by David Wilbanks

William Meikle is a talented storyteller who'll keep you turning pages, with ISLAND LIFE's rousing narrative, in order to find out what happens next to his sympathetic characters. And he is equally skilled at producing smiles or dread in a reader (be wary halfway through this book if you're afraid of heights!).

The story takes place on a foggy Scottish island where ancient evil erupts into the inhabitants slow-paced lives. Murders and disappearances perplex the characters who find out to their horror that they're dealing with terrible creatures and powers beyond imagining.

Any novel that contains short chapters from the dog's point of view earns extra points with me. If this type of story sounds appealing, grab it. You're in capable hands.

Rating:
Summary: Meikle's Island Life
Review: Do not let the pink cover fool you. This book is frightening and it can have you conjuring up all sorts of images in your head.

Island Life by William Meikle is a Scottish tale of terror that hooks the reader from the very beginning and reels them in further with each ensuing chapter.

Follow the local inhabitants of a small island off the coast of Scotland through their worst nightmares as an ancient evil is awakened and it wants revenge.

Meikle masterfully tells his tale of ancient religion, current folklore and a modern horror, which is hard to tear yourself away from.

The story revolves around Duncun who has returned to the island to continue his research from the previous year. A budding romance between Duncan and the local pub owners daughter Meg could be in jeopardy if the horror that the old Lighthouse keeper Tom believes in is true.

What kind of animal has been killing off John's sheep? And what have the archeology students uncovered in their dig up by the old mansion? Learn all the dark secrets that lie beneath that mysterious mound and why Tom was against that dig in the first place.

There truly are more monsters in Scotland than just those in Loch Ness. Meikle's monsters are not something one would wish to go hunting especially if all you were armed with was a camera. One would certainly want more protection than that, much more. Meikle's descriptions of these unholy beings from another time bring up images of aliens, Golum and the Creature from the Black Lagoon (some of which he even uses as comparison within the book itself).

Americans may find some of the terms and phrases to be unknown to them, but this reviewer felt they added more to the realism of the setting of a Scottish Island and welcomed the unfamiliar terms.

Be forewarned as your imagination grips you and you are swept out to sea in the terrifying tale of ancient and unspeakable evil.

Rating:
Summary: A new definition of "Occupational Hazard"
Review: Imagine if you will a remote and idyllic Scottish Island in the midst of summer. Drawn here by commitment to a chosen profession you are quickly captivated by the local charm and indigenous beauty of both isle and natives alike. Eventually stranded not only by the weather but "something" else, your senses start to explore the boundary between reality and insanity. Watch that lighthouse up ahead. Next stop, William Meikles imagination.

Fortunately, that can be a very disturbing place indeed and with "Island Life" he captures the splendour and serenity of offshore Scotland and paints a tranquil picture of residential life before weaving in the discordant tones of the bizarre. He tells the story through the varied eyes of his characters, rendering a different perspective of the main events of the book. As always the plot is enthralling and resplendent with the characters appealing and realistic. That's one of the things about Meikle, he doesn't just write about any old Tom, Dick or Harry.

So, if you want to understand the pitfalls of a publican's life or the true perils of coastal navigation then grab a copy of "Island Life" and enjoy a long and treacherous climb up the cliff face of sanity.

Rating:
Summary: Terror on an Island
Review: Island life has never been so horrifying. Closed off from the world, the residents of this tiny Hebridean island are left alone with an ancient evil that is determined to catch them one by one... Island Life has a great feeling of intimacy which makes the horror very personal. A fun read for those who like their fiction with shivers.

Rating:
Summary: Terror on an Island
Review: Island Life was first brought to my attention when the author joined my writers site. He was a little shy around us, since most are romance writers, and thought we might not appreciate horror. Well, I am here to information him that those romance writers love horror, and I am thrilled to discover Island Life and cannot wait to read more by this author.

Being Scots, naturally the setting drew me. He captures the quaintness, quirkiness of the Scottish Isle, the dry humour, the wit, the slower pace. But into this tranquil setting, he weave a nightmarish tale of things that go bump in the fog.

I love horror, Robert MacCammon's 'Swan Song' being my all time favourite, because MacCammon understood there was a difference between true horror and the cheap, slock gore. This author shows he has that fine Hitchcockian/Serling feel for atmosphere and how what you cannot see is more fearful that what you do, and that sometimes the most nightmarish things in life is our own fears.

Rating:
Summary: A spellbinding trip into the fog where things go bump!!
Review: Island Life was first brought to my attention when the author joined my writers site. He was a little shy around us, since most are romance writers, and thought we might not appreciate horror. Well, I am here to information him that those romance writers love horror, and I am thrilled to discover Island Life and cannot wait to read more by this author.

Being Scots, naturally the setting drew me. He captures the quaintness, quirkiness of the Scottish Isle, the dry humour, the wit, the slower pace. But into this tranquil setting, he weave a nightmarish tale of things that go bump in the fog.

I love horror, Robert MacCammon's 'Swan Song' being my all time favourite, because MacCammon understood there was a difference between true horror and the cheap, slock gore. This author shows he has that fine Hitchcockian/Serling feel for atmosphere and how what you cannot see is more fearful that what you do, and that sometimes the most nightmarish things in life is our own fears.

Rating:
Summary: An Island of Terror
Review: When was the last time you listened to that little queasy feeling in the pit your stomach that told you not to go digging into places you really knew nothing about? The off-islanders in William Meikle's book, woven around a small, sparsely populated island in the Scottish Outer Hebrides, would have none of it. They paid little attention to the "ravings" of the old light-house keeper. He tried to warn them and the Islanders too, but no one would listen. His stories were old, whispered about centuries ago, when none would venture out into the black of night, but this was the 21st Century, and they were young, excited student archeologists from the mainland on their first dig. What was there to fear?

And the Islanders? Well that was just old Tom, part of the island's folklore that brought in the Tourist trade.

An "unholy mist" permeates the far end of the island. Unwittingly, as the young archeologists begin their excavation into a portentous knoll, they unleash the fury and devastation long imprisoned in the bowels of the mound bringing unimaginable horror to all within its grasp. As the mist slithers across this tiny island, engulfing all within its range, its dark shadows hide its carnivorous messengers of death and destruction, terrorizing even the most stalwart who ventured forth.

William Meikle's characters jump off the pages at you. You know them. They are your neighbors, your friends and you worry for their safety. Island Life will keep you turning the pages and holding your breath.

Reviewed by: Elena Dorothy Bowman, Author of: Sarah's Landing Series, The House On The Bluff, Time In A Rift