This historical novel interested me because it was based on events in the early 20th century I had never heard of before. The characters were well developed and the author did a great job depicting the inhabitants of Apple island as well as the racist scientists and greedy politicians who disrupted their lives.

I found the first half of the novel to be a bit of a slog with sentences that were overly long and many descriptions of the physical island. But if you are a reader who loves books in which a place is one of the characters, you will enjoy the extreme details. I am glad I kept reading, though, because the second half moved more quickly and really highlighted the characters.

While I was not a huge fan of Harding's writing style, I am pleased that he wrote on this topic. I wanted to read more about the real history of Malaga Island, Maine after finishing the novel.