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Iris Blackwood and the Curse of Hemlock Island

by Chad Prevost

1.0
Reviewed April 17, 2026

Ivy found *Iris Blackwood and the Curse of Hemlock Island* to be a disappointment, giving it her lowest rating yet at 1 out of 5 stars. The choose-your-own-adventure format left her feeling bored and confused after just a few paths, and she struggled to connect with a story where she couldn't meet all the characters. While fans of interactive mystery books might feel differently, Ivy much prefers a traditional front-to-back read and wouldn't recommend this one.

Ivy's Review

Iris Blackwood and the Curse of Hemlock Island by Chad Prevost follows Iris Blackwood, a twelve-year-old girl who lives on Saint Hyde Island off the Georgia coast. The story starts with her in a box floating in a river, thrown in by someone who doesn't want her on the island. From there, you'll probably get a better summary on the internet, as I followed around three paths before getting bored and confused.

This book got my lowest rating so far, 1 out of 5, because first of all, I do not like choose-your-own-adventure books. I like read-front-to-back-books. Second, the few choose-your-own-adventure books had very different twists, but had the same characters in each. For example, if you search up the characters in this book, I can guarantee I didn't meet them all. All the characters I know are Iris, Theo, and Esmay. I had high hopes for this book after reading Casting April, but Iris Blackwood and the Curse of Hemlock Island was very disappointing.

If you like choose-your-own-adventure mystery books, you might like this one. I don't know. It's not great.

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