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Cast Away
Not yet published
Expected 21 May 26How big must a man's folly be, that it can cost him the whole of his life? As big as a ship; as big as an island.
1704: Alexander Selkirk, navigator of a buccaneering ship in the South Pacific Ocean, is abandoned by his crew on a deserted island. An intelligent yet disagreeable man, he surely only has himself to blame for this ignominious fate. It is undoubtedly his unbending inability to compromise or to abate his arrogance that has led to his exile. And yet, in the unforgiving fact of such stark desertion, explanations and reasons why become mere inconsequential quibbles.
Selkirk must use his grit, tenacity and ingenuity to survive the harsh and unfamiliar landscape of the island. But logistical necessities are only superficial and trials abound. As time stretches on – warped, flexing, immeasurable – the mental toll of isolation takes Selkirk to the brink of sanity, distorting his perception of reality. Now that he has only himself, who is this man who has never truly belonged?
In Cast Away, Francesca de Tores reimagines in mesmeric detail and sparkling prose the real-life years Alexander Selkirk spent as a castaway on a desert island, the inspiration for the classic novel Robinson Crusoe. Ousted from society, left in the company of only a goat and a cat, his story asks us who we are – and who we become – when no one is around.
1704: Alexander Selkirk, navigator of a buccaneering ship in the South Pacific Ocean, is abandoned by his crew on a deserted island. An intelligent yet disagreeable man, he surely only has himself to blame for this ignominious fate. It is undoubtedly his unbending inability to compromise or to abate his arrogance that has led to his exile. And yet, in the unforgiving fact of such stark desertion, explanations and reasons why become mere inconsequential quibbles.
Selkirk must use his grit, tenacity and ingenuity to survive the harsh and unfamiliar landscape of the island. But logistical necessities are only superficial and trials abound. As time stretches on – warped, flexing, immeasurable – the mental toll of isolation takes Selkirk to the brink of sanity, distorting his perception of reality. Now that he has only himself, who is this man who has never truly belonged?
In Cast Away, Francesca de Tores reimagines in mesmeric detail and sparkling prose the real-life years Alexander Selkirk spent as a castaway on a desert island, the inspiration for the classic novel Robinson Crusoe. Ousted from society, left in the company of only a goat and a cat, his story asks us who we are – and who we become – when no one is around.
352 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication May 21, 2026
3 people want to read
About the author
Francesca de Tores
3 books81 followersFrancesca is an author and academic.
As Francesca de Tores, she writes historical fiction. Her latest novel is Saltblood (Bloomsbury), based on the true story of Mary Read, a historical figure from piracy’s Golden Age. Saltblood was a Sunday Times top-twenty bestseller, and won the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize.
As Francesca Haig, she is the author of four novels. The most recent, The Cookbook of Common Prayer, was published in 2021. Her post-apocalyptic Fire Sermon trilogy is published in more than 20 languages. The first novel, The Fire Sermon, was published in 2015, followed by The Map of Bones in 2016, and concluding with The Forever Ship in 2017.
Francesca grew up in lutruwita/Tasmania, gained her PhD from the University of Melbourne, and was a senior lecturer and a Visiting Writing Fellow at the University of Chester. Her poetry has been published in literary journals and anthologies in both Australia and England, and a collection of poetry, Bodies of Water, was published in 2006. In 2010 she was awarded a Hawthornden Fellowship. She lives in naarm/Melbourne, on the unceded land of the Wurundjeri and Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin nation.
As Francesca de Tores, she writes historical fiction. Her latest novel is Saltblood (Bloomsbury), based on the true story of Mary Read, a historical figure from piracy’s Golden Age. Saltblood was a Sunday Times top-twenty bestseller, and won the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize.
As Francesca Haig, she is the author of four novels. The most recent, The Cookbook of Common Prayer, was published in 2021. Her post-apocalyptic Fire Sermon trilogy is published in more than 20 languages. The first novel, The Fire Sermon, was published in 2015, followed by The Map of Bones in 2016, and concluding with The Forever Ship in 2017.
Francesca grew up in lutruwita/Tasmania, gained her PhD from the University of Melbourne, and was a senior lecturer and a Visiting Writing Fellow at the University of Chester. Her poetry has been published in literary journals and anthologies in both Australia and England, and a collection of poetry, Bodies of Water, was published in 2006. In 2010 she was awarded a Hawthornden Fellowship. She lives in naarm/Melbourne, on the unceded land of the Wurundjeri and Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin nation.
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January 8, 2026ARC received with enormous gratitude, zero chill.
Cast Away by Francesca de Tores landed in my hands courtesy of the publisher, and I genuinely don’t know how I’m meant to behave normally about this.
In 2024, Saltblood was my book of the year - out of well over 200 reads - and I have been slightly feral about her writing ever since. I read five pages of this last night. Five. And it’s already fire. Razor-sharp, atmospheric, and humming with menace and intelligence.
This is not a review yet - just a marker planted firmly in the ground (or sea, ha!).
I will be back. Very soon.
Cast Away by Francesca de Tores landed in my hands courtesy of the publisher, and I genuinely don’t know how I’m meant to behave normally about this.
In 2024, Saltblood was my book of the year - out of well over 200 reads - and I have been slightly feral about her writing ever since. I read five pages of this last night. Five. And it’s already fire. Razor-sharp, atmospheric, and humming with menace and intelligence.
This is not a review yet - just a marker planted firmly in the ground (or sea, ha!).
I will be back. Very soon.
Displaying 1 of 1 review