The Island

The Island is an example of the YA thriller genre. Immensely popular, thrillers are novels that focus on feelings of danger, suspense, and excitement. They tend to employ tropes such as red herrings, unreliable narrators, and cliffhangers to surprise and entertain their audiences. These stories are popular for their fast-paced storytelling and their convoluted plots that keep readers guessing until the end. While mystery novels tend to focus on a protagonist who solves a crime, such as a detective, thrillers often involve their main characters in a survival situation themselves. Preston playfully reminds readers of these genre expectations by having Paisley work as a true crime vlogger and podcaster. She is accustomed to seeing murders as puzzles to solve from the safety of her room but finds herself trapped on Jagged Island with a killer (or killers) and must try to solve the crimes before she herself becomes a victim. Having her in the midst of the danger, rather than just solving from afar, drastically increases the novel’s stakes and tension.

Though they are different genres, the thriller does have its roots in the mystery genre. Preston pays homage to many tropes from classic mysteries throughout The Island. One such homage is in the novel’s premise, where disparate characters are drawn together in an isolated locale thanks to an invitation from a reclusive billionaire. This trope is common in mysteries and detective fiction, and one of its strongest examples is Agatha Christie’s 1939 novel And Then There Were None. Christie is a master of Golden Age detective fiction, and her mystery follows 10 strangers trapped on an island as they are picked off one by one. Preston updates this premise for the modern age, using social media influencers as her main characters and having them cope with cell phone jammers and deleted CCTV footage. Her twist on classic ideas in The Island makes them relevant to a teenage audience.

Preston has become well-known for writing thrillers specifically geared toward a YA audience. The popularity of thrillers is on the rise among teenage readers, and many of the novels have dominated the best-seller lists. In an article for Publisher’s Weekly, author Diana Urban explores the genre, asking why young people are so drawn to these books. She argues that the novels are popular for several reasons, including the fact that they are “immersive […] like a puzzle you can solve yourself” (Urban, Diana. “Why YA Readers Love Murder.” Publisher’s Weekly). In an age of decreased attention spans, thrillers also keep readers glued to the page: “The need to find out how a mystery ends is a powerful motivator to keep reading, and thriller genre conventions […] keep readers hooked and turning pages” (Urban). These novels also allow teens to explore darker themes in a safe way, especially in YA books, which are specifically written with a younger audience in mind. In books like The Island, readers experience all the thrills with none of the actual danger.