Review of 'Left Behind' by Martine Kropkowski
Release date: Sept 30th, 2025
Publisher: Ultimo Press
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REVIEW
Left Behind by Martine Kropkowski is set on the wondrous World Heritage sand island of K’gari (Fraser Island) off the coast of south-eastern QLD. Our four main characters, two couples, Luke and Annabelle, Des and Julianni venture to the island for a week long camping trip with hopes to unwind and reconnect. There is tension between the married pair who have some unresolved issues. All the while there is an external storm brewing, that, in many ways, reflects their inner emotional turmoil.
The calm and lush descriptions of the island’s beauty is contrasted with the impending and resulting havoc a cyclone can create. I don’t think I have ever read such incredible descriptions that made me feel I was in the thick of such a bone shattering storm! The suspicious strangers, missing campers, worrisome wildlife also pulled me into the plot and put my head on spin cycle! I was intrigued by the twists, changing directions and speculations. We don’t quite know where things are going to go but the author provides hints that leave us with various possibilities.
There are some intriguing discussions and questions posed between the characters in Left Behind. One of which is about the meaning of life. Julianni asks Des his thoughts on the matter. ‘From what I gather, the meaning of life is what you make it.’ She feels it is a poor answer, but he continues with ‘the meaning of life to you might be different from the meaning of life to me but that doesn’t make either of us wrong.’
Julianni responds with, ‘Well, I, for one, think we’re here for a short time…We only get one go. Life is meant to be lived, chances to be taken. We look after all of this, and it looks after us.’
Then Annabelle joins the conversation when asked her opinion: ‘I think… we’re just here to help each other.’ ‘Maybe we’re just here to feel; to…experience; to observe. When we help each other, we feel good. There’s beauty in it…’
Julianni: ‘Beauty how?’
Annabelle: ‘I’m talking about joy, about…anticipation, sadness, grief. The urgency of a symphony. The awe of a shooting star. I think all of it is just…beauty.’
Julianni retorts: ‘I think it is dumb luck that we’re even here. A genuine freak of nature. I think there is no meaning. It’s all random…’
Luke joins the conversation goaded by Julianni: and his response is different again (proving Des’s point that each person can have a different opinion). ‘I think it’s to reproduce….We’re born, we mate, we ensure the survival of our species, we die. That’s it. The rest is incidental.’
These various viewpoints very much represent these characters and their actions. As the story unfolds, it is easy to line up their words/ beliefs with how they will react to each circumstance presented.
Julianni and Annabelle are quite different personalities. Julianni is someone who pushes the limits, lives in the moment (her stated beliefs show this, too). But Annabelle is cautious and fearful. Her experiences keep feeding the dread she feels as various incidents happen on the island. At some point, we wonder if her imagination has gone into overdrive or is she actually seeing the things she believes she sees. Does her fear of something create the illusion-- like sharks when she goes spearfishing in the water with her friend Julianni?
This novel has plenty of suspense and tension and forces us to question various perceptions. While Annabelle is left alone for a day to recover after not feeling well, her husband and two friends take off for a quick trip to a special location before they have to leave the island. When the cyclone threatens the island and everyone is asked to evacuate, Annabelle’s fears max out. Her husband and friends have not returned and Annabelle is left alone to wonder their fate. She becomes anxious and frantic imagining all sorts of possibilities. Have they become victims of a crime? (Possibly at the hands of a suspicious character she does not trust?) When she contacts the ranger station, they ask if the three may have left the island during an evacuation? But she cannot believe they would leave her behind. And before long we are on that wild ride with her of panic, desperation and fear. We can sympathise with her fierce determination to remain and find her friends and husband before leaving the island. But will she run out of time before the cyclone strikes? And if she does, how will she survive? We get to see how the mind copes with disaster and how our survival instincts kick in to gear.
There are some surprises and twists at the end that may leave readers scratching their heads or saying, ‘I understand!’ We never know if a crime has been committed, but we are provided with a detailed and atmospheric setting, complex characters with psychological and moral issues and lots of exquisite prose and symbolic language. The journey is fascinating and many will find the wild encounters on the island intriguing. The man vs nature battle of the wills is revealing. Along with discussions on how the world might end. The answers are focused more on the psychological effects of the mind rather than on the physical. That our existence is based more on our consciousness. Yes, there is a lot to ponder and imagine! How you feel at the end of the novel will be as varied as the characters’ views on the purpose of life. But it is without question—stunning, mesmerising, world-shaking prose. Complex and open-ended. 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Thanks to Ultimo Press for a review copy.
