Author: Bryony Pearce
Genre: YA Horror
Published by: Stripes Publishing
Publication date: 05/08/21
Pages: 352
My rating: ★★★★★
I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warning:
- Violence
- Death
- Blood/Gore
- Dismemberment
- Dissociative Identity Disorder
Synopsis from the back cover:
They thought the island was the end. It was only the beginning…
Grady is stuck working for evil millionaire Marcus Gold. And he wants out. When he and his workmates are sent in a “team-building exercise” in a remote castle, Grady sees an opportunity to escape his boss’s psychopathic grip.but it soon becomes clear that this is no ordinary exercise. As the castle doors slam shut and a series of deadly challenges between the team and freedom are revealed, Grady is going to have to fight for his life. And he’ll do whatever it takes to bring Gold down with him.
This review will contain spoilers for Savage Island.
Think things ended on Aikenhead? Think again. Cruel Castle is the incredible sequel to Savage Island! Cruel Castle starts where Savage Island finished. Grady’s first job before working for Gold is to kill Ben, the last surviving contestant. We then jump to Grady working for Gold, putting plans in place to expose Gold’s plans. When Gold’s son arrives and announces a work team-building trip in a castle, Grady realises events on Aikenhead are about to repeat itself and this might be his one chance to bring down Gold for good.
Where do I start? I hoped we would get a sequel to Savage Island, always wondered what happened after and I wasn’t disappointed. Plot twists are thrown our way from the start, of all the scenarios I thought of, what we got was definitely not what I expected. I loved every single second of it! I still hate Grady, he’s such a brilliant character, though. You find yourself questioning every little thing, every word, every action. Its confusing in the best kind of way. I loved following him, knowing he was locked in with a group consisting mostly of psychopaths, waiting to find out out what he would do next.
There’s a lot more on page blood, gore and violence in this one, its definitely not for the squeamish. Its brilliantly written and doesn’t hold back, the author does an incredible job of inducing fear and anxiety in readers, you never know what’s waiting around the next corner of room. Cruel Castle is one of the best horror books I’ve read in a long time. If you enjoyed Savage Island, you’ll love this one!
Cruel Castle is full of twists and turns from start to finish, you don’t want to sleep on this one.
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