The Island

'This is one of the most touching, gripping and inspiring books that I have ever read. Hislop seamlessly weaves an accurate history of a Greek island with a forbidden love story' Real Reader Review, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ INSPIRED BY TRUTH, THE STORY THAT HAS CAPTIVATED THE WORLD. This was not the start of a short trip to deliver supplies. It was the beginning of a one-way journey to start a new life. Life on a leper colony. Life on Spinalonga. Fifty years later, making a life-changing journey of her own, Alexis Fielding feels the pull of the abandoned island. A distant shadow off the coast of Crete, she knows it holds the secrets of her mother's past, buried for so long but surely not forgotten . . . Discover for yourself why 10 million readers and critics worldwide love Victoria Hislop's books . . . 'Passionately engaged with its subject . . . meticulously researched' The Sunday Times 'Hislop carefully evokes the lives of Cretans between the wars and during German occupation, but most commendable is her compassionate portrayal of the outcasts' Guardian 'A page-turning tale that reminds us that love and life continue in even the most extraordinary of circumstances' Sunday Express 'The story of life on Spinalonga, the lepers' island, is gripping and carries real emotional impact. Victoria Hislop . . . brings dignity and tenderness to her novel about lives blighted by leprosy' Telegraph 'Vivid, moving and absorbing' Observer 'A deeply moving, captivating, humane and beautiful story of enduring love, and life' Real Reader Review, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'The most powerful and gripping story I've ever read!' Real Reader Review, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'An intriguing and unusual story that keeps you turning the pages . . . The descriptions of Crete are beautiful, and you can just imagine yourself there with the blue sea and sun shining. It is a triumph in many ways, and a part of history I was unaware of' Real Reader Review, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'Victoria Hislop has created a collection of wholly believable characters woven around the factual history of Spinalonga . . . A gripping and moving tale' Real Reader Review, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ *Victoria Hislop's most recent novel, THE FIGURINE, is out now.*

Victoria Hislop is the multi-million copy bestselling author of ten books, including The Island, The Return, The Thread, The Sunrise, Those Who are Loved, The Last Dance and Other Stories, Cartes Postales from Greece and One August Night. Victoria's most recent novel, The Figurine, topped the UK TCM as the biggest selling single edition in the country for two consecutive weeks in 2024. Her books have been translated into forty languages and Victoria was executive producer on the adaptations of three of her novels for Greek television. Victoria divides her time between England and Greece and in 2020 was granted honorary citizenship by the President of Greece. She is Vice President of the British School at Athens, is on the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles and also on the Advisory Board for the Parthenon Project. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and holds Honorary Doctorates from the Universities of Patra and Sheffield. In 2025, she was awarded the Byron Medal for Philhellenism at the Athens Academy and became the first woman to become an honorary member of the Society of Greek Writers.