The Isle of Kin: A Speculative Mystery Novel

"A haunting look at the lengths people are willing to go to for self-preservation. Very highly recommended."—Readers' Favorite

Orwell’s dystopia meets Piranesi’s mystique in this captivating novel.

Visions of opals have long taunted August, a struggling workingman from the impoverished Mainland. Upon his father’s death, he discovers a rare opal—and a diary detailing his parents’ life on the fabled Isle of Kin.

To the outside world, plagued by poverty and death, the Isle of Kin is a paradise—a tantalizing utopia where wealth, beauty, and harmony reign. Its enigmatic inhabitants, the Kinsmen, have guarded their sacred land and prized black opal mines for centuries. No one enters; no one leaves.

The Island is August’s birthright, and he earns a coveted invitation to a life of prosperity, his one shot at a better future. And so what if he must remain there forever? Who would ever want to leave?

But as he settles among the Kinsmen, an eerie reality sets in. His neighbor’s eyes are full of fear. His beloved dreams of getting away. And buried in the mountain’s opal mine is a dark secret—the true cost of life in a utopia.