My Little Island Life

My Little Island Life has me torn. It started out really well and I was quickly drawn into Kleio's world. I loved the writing and descriptions, however, it was a struggle throughout this one for me where Kleio is concerned.

I wholeheartedly understand that sometimes we make mistakes given the situations surrounding us, where age also plays a factor. Maybe it was the way Kleio came across, or maybe it was the lack of true insight into her and Danny's marriage, but I couldn't relate to her, or feel any sympathy for her, or her situation.

Her repeated “mistakes” and selfish attitude really irked and annoyed me. I kept trying to put myself in Kleio's shoes, but I couldn't. I know what an unhappy and toxic marriage is, as I was in one and was very young as well, but this didn't come off that way for me.

We know little to nothing about Danny, and his treatment of Kleio, other than vague references and mentions of his ignoring her and making belittling comments. His controlling nature comes across well, but that also had me torn. Betrayal is never easy to get over and staying together when love isn't there just feeds the monster, so some of his moments I sympathized with and could understand BUT didn't agree with.

Overall, I felt like the story lacked as we only saw snippets of Danny's behavior while getting a front row seat to Kleio's. I would have loved to get more about them as a couple and their situation as a whole and from both sides.

I understand where the author was trying to go with this one and after reading the Afterword realize how personal this is as well. I appreciate how hard it must have been to write this, and do not in any way discount her personal experiences, but maybe my headspace wasn't the right one for this story due to my own personal experiences.

I sincerely appreciate the author for trusting me with her story. While this may not have been a complete love for me, I definitely think there will be a lot who can relate to this and will love it.