Island of the Dolls (Book 4 of World’s Scariest Places)
Island of the Dolls
By Jeremy Bates
The Sexton’s musings (spoilers are likely):
A very good story that keeps you guessing along the way. I was able to guess a few of the secrets before they were revealed, but not all that far before. Things near the end just sort of start coming together. Bates’s explanation for the dolls on the island is very simple, though not as expected. Everyone assumes a sinister meaning lies behind the hundreds of dolls that encompass the island but in the end it bears a very simple, sweet reason. As for the characters…well…let us open those flood gates!
I’m going to start with those that did not piss me off. Pepper seemed like someone I could be friends with in real life. Friendly and flamboyant but also very knowledgeable and curious. The fact that he is wearing a purple ensemble endeared him to me but the fact that he could be a complete and total asshole based on his profession, and is not, made me happy. Unfortunately we don’t see too much of him as about halfway through he becomes ill and sleeps through most of the action. Rosa of course was a wonderful character that you wanted to survive to grow up. She was smart and brave. Standing up for what she saw as right. In the end she was also a very good judge of character as she latched on to Jack and Eliza who were the two people you really end up rooting for. Jack does have some baggage and he is wealthy but not silver spoon. He was not born into wealth but worked hard to build his own. He is not perfect and still does stupid things but in the end he comes out on the right side of the argument. As for Eliza she endured much as a child in Russia and was in the situation she was in trying to make her life better. However, being the girlfriend of a selfish, spoiled POS was probably not the answer or the escape that she was looking for.
This boyfriend is named Jesus and he is a worthless POS. Yes he’s rich, yes he’s good looking but he’s never have to endure strife in his endlessly privileged life. He makes it a point to make Jack feel small every chance he gets. Hell it was Jack that was invited to the island by Pepper but because Pita, Jacks fiancé and Jesus’s sister was invited by proxy he felt like he would take it upon himself to invite himself along. He also invited Nitro who had a problem with Jack. Meaning that the dude was constantly picking a fight with Jack. These two men needed to have their testicles removed and attached to their ears with a nail gun. Serious dislike! I mean good characters because I wanted to see them both dead but man did they crawl under my skin. I can’t stand assholes like them!
Then there’s the cunt-bag Pita! What a dumb fucking bitch! She is full of double standards, which is another trait I can’t handle. Honestly based on these two characters Jack and Pita, there is no way a marriage between the two of them was ever going to last. She is way too shallow and stupid. Where Jack actually can follow a train of thought and have an intelligent conversation. Her face needed a good kicking.
Then lastly we have Maria. Poor innocent, sweet Maria who’s story will make you cry and scream at the same time. It is just so tragic. What that little girl endures is criminal in so many ways. Every adult around her failed her miserably. I understand that this is the 1950’s but come the fuck on people! Use some common fucking sense! She lands firmly in the victim category in this one for me! My heart bled for her. Shit, it still does!
Closing thoughts:
Lots of action and moves very quickly. The chapters follow both the present with the documentary group on the island and it also follows Maria when she was young and explains that things that happened to her. It’s absolutely gut wrenching. The character are very well rounded. There is no debate who’s side you will fall on and who you would like to see become worm food. Luckily the worm food people are few in the present day story but during Maria’s story I just wanted someone, for the love of all that is good, to save her. Scoop her up and whisk her away! Don’t be surprised if you find some of her story hard to stomach. It’s incredibly upsetting and disturbing.
Not everything is straight forward in this one but luckily I was not disappointed in the outcome for the characters. Sometimes, as all readers of horror/thriller/sci-fi, the ending is not always one that satisfies. I like to refer to these endings as the Dreaded Epilogue of Doom! This one was the exact opposite of that. It ended quite satisfying. In fact it wrapped things up very nicely, into a pretty little package! Very tasty!
