The Island (Us Book 1)

This book was absolutely amazing and I’m mad at myself that it took me so long to actually get to it. Briar Prescott is one of my top authors and when this book came out, I was disappointed I wasn’t able to grab it immediately. It might be 6 months later, but I finally picked up and then, I couldn’t put it down. The chemistry between these characters is amazing and the story pacing was perfect. I liked that the book is broken into 3 parts but the minor time jumps are solely during the childhood years. The plot and character developments are equally fantastic. I really can’t gush about this book enough. Adrien and Dylan start off as neighbors but around the age of 11 become best friends. Briar does a fantastic job of really building the importance of not only the friendship of the MMCs but the relationship of Adrien’s family to Dylan. Dylan is a lonely soul and Adrien’s introduction into his life, along with Adrien’s large family does a lot to fill so many emotional gaps for Dylan. However, by the age of 15, his feelings for Adrien are starting to change and for the next several years, he will spend his time silently pining for his best friend. When Adrien gets engaged, Dylan decides to give his friend a sort bachelor party. Just the two of them taking a trip to Fiji. This is where everything goes off the rails and the course of their lives and relationships will change forever. This book gave me one of the biggest hangovers I’ve had. I wanted so much more of these two…

This book was EVERYTHING. Hands down one of my top books of 2025. Dylan and Adrian are one of my favorite couple of all time. If you do anything this year or next it should be to make sure you read this book. When I tell you that this book is filled with yearning and aching I am not lying. This book gave me all the feels and I constantly was screaming at Briar about how could she do this. How could she keep these two apart for so long. Then the island happened and OH MY GOODNESS. Forced proximity happened and survival happened and then ALL THE FEELINGS. I am not great with words. I am good with vibes and feelings and this book has it all. Watching Dylan love Adrian for YEARS and watching Adrian have no idea…. LIKE YEARNING, ACHING, WANTING. Then these two are now forced together for a LONG time an we get to see them together. Well they are just trying to survive but they have each other. This book also felt like a thriller to me. Watching them try to survive had me on the edge of my seat. I don’t want to give too much away if you haven’t read it but their love is everything. At the end of the day they are meant for each other and watching them be so attached to each other was beautiful. YOU HAVE TO READ THE ISLAND. Then come yap to me about it.