Rod Clark is an avid birdwatcher. Another bird enthusiast, Anna, from his online birding group, offers him a free one-week vacation on her island/nature preserve off the Scottish coast. Rod is over the moon with excitement. His wife, Penny, not so much. Her concern is saving their failing transportation business. A week away is the last thing she wants.

Penny reluctantly packs up their two boys and heads off with Rod. While he treks off into the woods and along the rocky shoreline, Penny struggles to keep their two hyperactive boys in line while working remotely. Anna appears to be a very understanding hostess. She puts up with the boys’ rather destructive antics while harboring unstable thoughts. But after the older boy goes missing, it becomes obvious that someone besides Anna is keeping dangerous secrets.

The Lost Boy is a captivating thriller of revenge and suspense. I pretty much figured out the twist about a third of the way through the book, but I didn’t lose interest. I love the remote island setting and the way the characters are portrayed. The narration is omniscient, so you get to hear the inner thoughts of several people. This makes the book quite effective despite a fairly transparent plot line.

If you like the suspense and thriller genres, you may enjoy The Lost Boy. But I’d recommend not reading it on vacation in a remote area!

My Rating 4 stars, Grade B

Thank you NetGalley and Inkubator Books for an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my review.