The Storm Keeper's Island

by Catherine Doyle

Paperback, 2018

Status

Available

Call number

823.92

Series

Storm Keeper (1)

Genres

All Topics

Fantasy

Fiction

Publication

Bloomsbury Childrens Books (2018)

Description

Fionn Boyle, terrified of the sea, must spend the summer with this older sister, Tara, and their grandfather on Arranmore, an island that has been known to make people disappear, and seems to be restless again.

User reviews

LibraryThing member bookwren

I was immediately attracted to this book because it is set in Ireland, on Arranmore Island in County Donegal and promised Irish mythology. Doyle delivers with realistic descriptions of the Irish countryside and retellings of old myths. I also think it's fun that she changed her main character,

Fionn Boyle is named after her grandparents that lived on Arranmore, and that her last name is Doyle, so close to Boyle. Fionn Boyle regrets having to leave Dublin and his loving, but mentally-disturbed mother to spend the summer on remote Arranmore Island with a grandfather he hardlly knows and his sister, Tara, who has turned into a terrible teen. Even the ferry crossing upsets Fionn as he's afraid of the sea. His father died at sea. Grandfather Malachy at first seems confusing with his talk of magic and his candles everywhere, and Fionn despairs of enjoying the summer. Yet Malachy knows something Fionn does not: that Fionn is stronger than he thinks and that Arranmore is his true home. Fionna and Malachy form a bond, helping each other. In the meantime, another family on the island thinks their son should be the next keeper of the island after Malachy. At odds, Fionn and Bartley race to find the sea cave that will answer the one question both want to ask. This is a fine middle-grade novel full of adventure, family and mystery. I look forward to reading the next book.

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LibraryThing member Inky_Fingers

Excellent book. Well written, imaginative, sympathetic characters, interesting new kind of magic (candles that capture weather!), and also connection to folklore. It reminds me strongly of Susan Cooper's 'The Dark is Rising', but not so much that it feels like a copy. It seems a shame that every

hero and heroine now days has to have parents with emotional problems. I don't think that makes a story particularly more "realistic".

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LibraryThing member acargile

Storm Keeper's Island is a 2020 Lone Star selection.

Fionn Boyle and his sister Tara arrive at Arranmore Island after their mom needs some help coping with life. Tara never told Fionn what to expect, so he finds a magical world he didn't expect. Four families protect this island, and Fionn's

grandfather is the storm keeper. One of the other families tries to take this honor (or curse) from the Boyle family. The thing is--the island chooses who will be the storm keeper. Many years ago an evil was defeated. The island must ensure that whoever becomes the next storm keeper, can fight the evil.

As soon as Fionn steps on the island, the island knows him. Fionn sees magical things happen and doesn't understand all the candles his grandfather makes. When his grandfather shows him that the candles often represents moments of the island's history and its inhabitants, Fionn learns about the island and its people. Bartley Beasley, Tara's boyfriend and the boy who wants to be the next Keeper, desires power. He and Tara try to find the Secret Cave where a wish can be granted. Fionn's annoyance with his sister shows how brothers and sisters can be with each other. Some assume Fionn is the next keeper, but he hates the sea and can't swim. His fear stems from his father's death where he drowned.

Honestly, not much happens in this novel. You learn the background of the island, you meet the main characters, see that the keeper is about to change, and you know evil wants to rise. It's really an introduction, so you'll have to read book two to see if something happens there.

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