Supersize Island

by J.J. Walsh

Kill-crazy mercenaries, gargantuan monstrosities, and a "sixth sense" that may be a death wish in disguise. Augie Brunthouse's first day of work is not going well.

It all started with Chuck Vestiglio's exile and subsequent suicide on his private island, derisively dubbed "Supersize Island" by the press. Now the disgraced hamburger baron's unhinged son has vowed to silence the family's critics with a psychotic plot to grow beef better. Alas, his wildly illegal biotech experiments have gone wrong in a very BIG way. Somebody needs to look into it.

Enter Augie. He hasn't cared about anything since his erratic precognition failed to warn him about the cancer that killed his mother. So it's time for a fresh start - at Spiel Timmitel Corp. Augie doesn't know what STC does, or why they've sent him a gazillion recruitment flyers. But they're offering a huge salary and training in the Caribbean. Unfortunately, that training will turn out to be a shipwreck on Supersize Island. Cue the giant squirrel, parrot, and possum.

" Die Hard meets bizarro Jurassic Park ...A manic blend of laugh-out-loud comedy and heart-pounding action."
~Manhattan Book Review

"A satirical and utterly brilliant work of fiction with a cinematic feel."
~Reader's Favorite

"A hilarious, suspense-filled, unforgettable story!"
~San Francisco Book Review

Genres: Science Fiction

270 pages, Paperback

Published June 14, 2023

About the author

J.J. Walsh is a novelist and owner of San Francisco-based advertising agency, Iron Creative Communication. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, two boys, and their Labrador Retriever. So far, his comic book knowledge has not been called upon to save the world. But he is ready.

Reviews

[11Kates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this. It was bonkers and laugh out lout funny.

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite sure if it was laugh out loud , it did have its funny moments but they were far and in between. The story was a pretty good story. I really liked the main two characters. I found them to be a great team. It did have its surprise and sad moments. The ending is somewhat a cliffhanger…. So I’m hoping there will be a part 2 to it. Happy Reading:)

[Arnav · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Supersize Island" by J.J. Walsh is a hilarious and wildly imaginative adventure that combines humor, action, and an eccentric cast of characters into an unforgettable story. The book's satirical take on corporate culture, biotech experiments gone awry, and larger-than-life creatures creates a unique blend of genres that kept me thoroughly entertained.

What truly inspired me about the book was its ability to seamlessly merge laugh-out-loud comedy with heart-pounding action. Augie Brunthouse's journey from a mundane job to a chaotic island filled with bizarre monstrosities was both captivating and relatable in its absurdity. Augie's character development and his unique "sixth sense" added depth to the story, and his humorous observations and reactions to the outlandish situations he finds himself in had me chuckling throughout.

Author's writing style is sharp, witty, and cinematic, making the story come alive in vivid detail. The setup of the book, combining elements of "Die Hard" and "Jurassic Park" with a satirical twist, creates a fresh and engaging reading experience. The author's ability to create a world where the extraordinary becomes the norm is commendable and adds to the overall charm of the book.

"Supersize Island" falls into the action-adventure and satirical fiction genres, offering readers a rollercoaster ride of entertainment. I expected a blend of humor and adventure, and the book exceeded my expectations with its clever plot twists and hilarious dialogue.

In a literary landscape that often takes itself too seriously, "Supersize Island" stands out as a delightfully irreverent and entertaining read that will leave you eagerly turning the pages. It's a reminder that sometimes, the best stories are the ones that don't take themselves too seriously, and this book is a prime example of that.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the absolutely bonkers tale of Augie Brunthouse, who's been relentlessly scouted by the mysterious Spiel Timmitel Corp, and who finally decides to take them up on their offer after the day from hell: he's been fired, discovered his girlfriend is cheating on him, and subsequently booted from his apartment. Less than 24 hours later, he's on his way to Barbados where's he set to investigate the compound of Chuck Vestiglio--the Biff Tannen (read Donald Trump) inspired heir to a burger chain fortune and the novel's super villain. What Augie finds is nothing short of Jurassic Park 2.0: giant squirrels, opossums, frogs, angel fish and seals have taken over the island, and the humans seem unlikely to survive.

So clearly, this book was satire, and it was hysterical. And I absolutely would have given it a 4-star rating. However, I had an issue with a style choice the author made. Initially I thought it was a printing error, but I contacted the author about it and was told it was an "avant garde" style choice to represent the one character's speech impediment. In the dialogue, S and E letters would have a superscript th attached to them, like this: "Bunch of nonsensthe." Especially choosing to use superscript made it visually jarring. There are ways to depict dialect, and while I very much respect that the author responded and explained the choice, this just didn't land right with me. It really negatively impacted my reading experience.

[Nelli Lakatos · Rating 5 out of 5]

“𝒯𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝒽𝒶𝒹 𝑔𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝓌𝒶𝓎 𝑜𝒻𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓇𝒶𝒾𝓁𝓈. ℬ𝓊𝓉 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑒𝓃𝒹, 𝒾𝓉 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝒸𝒶𝓂𝑒 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝒻.”

Supersize Island is the book that I’m never going to forget. The book that I immediately knew is going to be my new all time favorite read!

Augie Brunthouse has a nearly perfect intuition, nearly since it failed to warned him about the cancer that killed his mother. He hasn’t cared anything ever since and after he discovered that his girlfriend is cheated on him he wants a fresh start at Spiel Timmitel Corp.
He doesn’t know what STC does, or why they sent him on a secluded island.

Supersize Island was a lot of fun, Die Hard meets bizarro Jurassic Park is truly the best description and also it reminded me of the movie Journey 2: The Mysterious Island

It was so fun to read, full of adventure, a lot of plot twists and incredible ideas! The characters were amazing, I need more of Augie and Max! I couldn’t put this book down but in the same time I’m sad this awesome adventure ended for now.

Thank you so much @socialdeviants and @jjwalshbooks for sending me this wonderful book in exchange for my honest review. I truly had the best time with this story!

[Chrissi Deaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had my eye on this book for a while, it was one of the first I added to my TBR when I started tracking. The book promises lots of action, a crazy jurassic park type plot, giant squirrels and a lot of laughs. It delivered on most accounts. I didn't "not" love the book, but I also felt like I wanted more from it. At over 350 pages, and with such a crazy plot and promise of so many laughs and a ton of action... it fell short of the target for me. BUT! That being said, it was a good book. I did catch myself laughing at a few points. I definitely cringed a couple times (which is hard to get from a book for me). It had a lot of twists I wasn't expecting. And it was a cool plot. I don't know what I wanted more of, maybe the cover made me more excired for this one than it should have, maybe because I've been wanting to read it for a while i built it up in my head too much. But I just know by the time I was nearing the end of this book, I was WANTING it to end. Either way it was not a bad read, far from the worst and it was worth the couple dollars I spent on it.

[Dave Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goofy and amusing fun as Augie, a precognizant who has been beating himself up since he failed to sense his mother's health issues, decides he needs to change things up in his life and joins the mysterious research firm "Spiel Timmitel Corp". He doesn't have a clue what they do or what his job's actually about, but they're offering a supersize salary and are whisking him to a beautiful island in the Caribbean for his training. What could possibly go wrong?

Along the way he meets a few more awkward nerds, one of whom has perfect recall and another of whom is a human calculating machine. When they're inadvertently shipwrecked on what's known locally as Supersize Island, the also get to meet some tropical creatures. Some really, really enormous creatures. That are all hungry and are all convinced that the shipwrecked nerds are lunch. It's like a really twisted - and actually entertaining - Survivor. 'nuf said! I quite enjoyed this nutty book.

[Annalisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this story! It was so much fun. So creative. It'd probably make an incredible movie. Action packed. Great characters. I really liked Augie and Max and Clark. I enjoyed exploring the island from the safety of being a reader and all the cool animal creatures. It was a joy to read and I laughed a lot and smiled a lot. I hope there's another book. I will say I enjoyed the more emotional subplots that weaved through this story too. Some things were wrapped up super well and I was happy with that. I still have many questions. I hope there's more. I just really loved this. It was perfect for me. The whole book has a lot of action and a fast pace, but towards the end it somehow ramps up even more and is impossible to put down. This story will stay with me.

[PJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was absolutely hilarious. It was almost like reading a spoof of Jurassic Park but not quite. A super rich, off his rocker, King of Beef has all kinds of strange happenings occuring on his private island. Super size Island is armed to the teeth with ex-cons, guns, a missing scientist, and .......giant animals. Max, a genius who has a "photographic" memory and Augie who has a strange sixth sense begin working for a mysterious company and find themselves smack dab in the middle of carnage from all sides. This was so much fun to read.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to be honest...I saw an ad for this on Facebook, not once, but several times. And each time I thought "that looks like it might be good" and kept on scrolling. Finally, I ended up buying it and I really enjoyed it. I am not one for this genre (sci fi) as a rule, but I did like this book. And if he wrote a sequel, which it looks like he might, I would probably get it. It's kind of like Jurassic Park, but we aren't dealing with dinosaurs here! Think 12 foot squirrels for starters.

[David Beach Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ridiculous fun

Fun fast moving tongue-in-cheek adventure sorry. A less science more satire Jurassic Park. Who can't love a 10ft killer squirrel. Takes humorous jabs at many comic book tropes.
Only dislike was main characters excessive quilt tripping over his mom's death. Not that he should be a hard hearted jerk, just seemed a touch saccharine.
Good for readers who enjoy Carl Hiaasen would enjoy this book. It screams for a sequel.

[Rahul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quirky and offbeat adventure, 'Supersize Island' by J.J. Walsh is a captivating blend of mystery and humor. Augie's journey into the bizarre world of Chuck Vestiglio's island is filled with unexpected twists and peculiar characters.

[JoAnn Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good. Wasn’t sure what to expect but it actually caught and kept my attention. I enjoyed the characters as weird and odd as they were and the story kept moving. The way it ended leads me to believe there may be another and I would read it. Hope to see more of this group.

[Kristin m Simmons · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting And intriguing

Interesting and intriguing, I was a bit skeptical, but when I read it, I really started enjoying it, and it kept you on your toes and on the edge of your seat the entire time.

[Lina Pilato · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reminded me of Scalzi's Kaju Preservation Society, but much lighter on the science and heavier on the action movie vibe. Overall, entertaining, cover to cover.

[Henry Cosgrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goofy fun

Definitely not a Bond spy novel although supervillains are there along with the henchiest of henchmen. A nice break from serious novels. Has potential to be a fun series.

[Mah C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read. The author really nails the Everyman hero. Some really hilarious moments, and some great action sequences.

[Brian Clopper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I pick it gave off the same mad-scientist/dangerous-island vibe as my book, This Lemon Saves the World. It was a fun read, and I ordered his other book. I'd like to see more of Augie.

[Hana Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny, weird, and a lot of action. It's kind of like Jurassic Park, but the T-Rex is a Squirrel.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mondo-sized mayhem and a really fun plot. I had a ton of fun reading this book! I didn’t want to put it down!

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read..enough said..

[Kurt Marquart · Rating 4 out of 5]

A ridiculous romp through absurdity and cringeworthy adventure. I loved it.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This must have come from a very deranged mind.
I thoroughly enjoyed it though.

[Yoav · Rating 1 out of 5]

Probably one of the worst books I’ve ever read. Just because you can write a book doesn’t mean you should…

[Dozer Francis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Action, adventure, love story, man eating squirrel. This book has it all.

[Anthony Kozlowski · Rating 2 out of 5]

Begins with promise, but the writing and characterizations quickly become amateurish and a little cliché. The author is clearly having fun though. 2.2/5

[Kimberly · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise had so much potential, but the execution was awful!

[James Herrod · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished the book and really enjoyed it. Can’t wait for the sequel to see what’s up for our characters next. I can see this being a movie and can’t wait to see “holy crap f***” on the screen.

[Rebecca Cherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book more that I thought I would. Talked about it so much my husband and friends had ti read it.

[Melissa Kowalczyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! Quirky characters, outlandish action, and a bit of mystery thrown in. I am rooting for a sequel with my whole heart!!