Extreme pressure, perils and outright horrors fester when five friends enter a contest on a private island and find themselves in a gruesome fight for survival.
How hard can it be for a bunch of bright young things to solve a series of riddles and locate geocaches on an island? The prize seems to be theirs for the taking. But on arrival, abuzz with ideas about what they’ll spend the prize money on, the friends realise that there’s more to the competition than they’ve been led to believe. In fact, it’s not long before they’re trapped in a horrifying ‘hunt or be hunted’ situation as the story twists and turns in disturbing directions.
The author’s characterisation is exceptional (of particular note is the background story of brothers Ben and Will, whose pre-island home life was racked with horrors of its own), and the plot is genuine edge-of-your-seat stuff, suffused in an atmosphere of fear and distrust. This is a strong concept, excellently executed, and comes recommended for fans of survival-type reality TV shows – even the most reluctant of readers will find it hard to resist its page-turning pull. But be warned if you’re faint of heart - this gripping, gory psychological story pulls no punches when it comes to gore.
When reclusive millionaire Marcus Gold announces that he's going to be staging an Iron Teen competition on his private island in the Outer Hebrides, teenagers Ben, Lizzie, Will, Grady and Carmen sign up - the prize is one million pounds ... each. But when the competition begins, the group begin to regret their decision. Other teams are hunting their competitors and attacking them for body parts. Can the friends stick together under such extreme pressure to survive? When lives are at stake, you find out who you can really trust... A Red Eye horror novel for teens, this gripping YA thriller story is full of fast-paced action.
Bryony Pearce was born in 1976 and has two young children. She completed an English Literature degree at Corpus Christi College Cambridge in 1998 and was a winner of the SCBWI anthology 'Undiscovered Voices' in 2008. More information about Bryony can be found on her website www.bryonypearce.co.uk