Castaways

They came to the deserted island to compete on a popular reality television show. Each one hoped to be the last to leave. Now they're just hoping to stay alive, because the island isn't deserted after all. Contestants are disappearing, but they aren't being eliminated by the game. They're being taken by the monstrous, half-human creatures that live deep in the jungle. The men will be slaughtered. The women will be kept alive as captives. Night is falling, the creatures are coming, and rescue is so far away... Deadite Press is proud to present Brian Keene's tribute to the late, great Richard Laymon! "Bloody, vile, violent and nasty. Castaways is a can't put down page turner." -House of Horrors "Much like Laymon, Keene provides all kinds of thrills here... But Brian Keene has his own voice, too, one just as good a the late great master, Richard Laymon." -SFRevu

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Published Sep 29, 2011

228 pages

Average rating: 7

4 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

nfmgirl
Mar 08, 2026
6/10 stars
I'm not sure what to say about this book. It wasn't a bad book, but it wasn't "great" either. It didn't capture me the way that I had hoped. Some books are too slow and leisurely. This book was just the opposite. It was too fast-paced, and therefore lacked any real suspense. It was simply brutal slaughter, lacking the psychological analysis that you would find in actual suspense novels, since these creatures lack a psychology that can really be explored too deeply. My biggest issue was that it lacked the "on the edge of my seat" terror and "creep factor" that I expect from a horror novel-- the fear that I seek. That's why I read horror. I want to be horrified, I want to be afraid to be alone for the night, jumping at every sound, checking the locks, and thinking about the merits of gun ownership. This book just didn't have that for me.

Additionally something about the writing-style just didn't engage me. I don't know what it was. The book just didn't grab me and bring me into the story. I never really connected with the characters. Perhaps that is one of the reasons I was never very engaged. They remained somewhat superficial, without any real depth. I just didn't really "care" about them.

I had high hopes for this story, and it fell short. I'm not giving up on Brian Keene, and will try another book or two by him to see if they are more what I'm looking for. But this book was just "okay".

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