The Island by Victoria Hislop

[Tuesday evening book club]

This review was written by Beverley Hillsdon, a member of the Tuesday Evening Book Club.

"The Island" by Victoria Hislop, is set around a leper colony on an island off the coast of Crete, in a period which spans the Second World War. The story tells of the impact of the disease on four generations of Cretan women and their families. Although a gloomy subject, the descriptions of life in a Cretan village are lively and colourful, in stark contrast to the isolation of life on the island.

This is a fascinating book, although it sinks into melodrama towards the end.