Escape from the Island of Aquarius

A rescue mission leads Jay and Lila Cooper to a doomed South Sea island where nothing is as they expected. Instead of a primitive civilization, the Coopers encounter a busy colony with a mysterious leader claiming to be Adam MacKenzie, a missionary once presumed dead. To add to the confusion, someone seems to have pushed the island’s self-destruct button. Earthquakes and erosion are tearing the island apart and every moment is precious in the Coopers’ search for the truth.

The second installment of The Cooper Kids Adventure Series explores the dangers of trusting a false prophet, which gives the story an ominous tone. The Coopers meet Kelno, who is pretending to be Adam MacKenzie. When the Coopers try to leave the island, Kelno orders his men to kill all three of them. Lila watches Dr. Cooper and Jay fall into a deep ravine and she assumes they are dead. Likewise, Lila is thrown into a sacrificial pit as an offering to the Serpent God and her family believes she has died. As a result, Dr. Cooper and Lila both grapple with grief over a loved one’s death. Lila has the added stress of being in a situation where she thinks death is imminent. This causes the Coopers to question God. In the end, they realize that they “belong to Jesus. . . Our lives are His to preserve or to take.” 

One creepy aspect of Escape from the Island of Aquarius is the village leader, Kelno. He uses deception to control the villagers and is willing to kill anyone who goes against him. At first, Kelno pretends to be a follower of Christ, but in reality, he believes Jesus “is only a deception. . . There is no savior except yourself. . . You are all the God you need.” Kelno thinks he is a god and that he has “divine control over the forces” of the island. Even when Kelno faces the Serpent God he worships and death is at Kelno’s door, he still refuses to believe he isn’t in control.

Escape from the Island of Aquarius is an adventure with danger and surprises at every turn. The story has a lot of action packed into 157 pages which doesn’t allow the Coopers to be well-developed. However, unlike the first book in the series, Lila takes a more prominent role in Escape from the Island of Aquarius. As Lila faces death, she stays courageous. While she does not want to die, she finds peace in the fact that in death she will be reunited with her father and brother, who she presumes are dead. While readers will not necessarily relate to Lila’s conflict, her bravery and trust in God are inspiring.

Even though Escape from the Island of Aquarius is an engaging story that teaches biblical principles, the focus on being deceived by a false prophet may disturb some readers, especially because Kelno is willing to sacrifice Lila to the Serpent God. To control the villagers, Kelno encourages them to believe in a deadly, ancient curse. This allows Kelno to murder anyone who goes against his teachings. Although the Coopers discover the real reason behind the supernatural deaths, Kelno’s ruthlessness is frightening. 

If you’re looking for a series that teaches the importance of trusting God without delving into the deadly world of a false prophet, pick up Wild Thing by Dandi Daley MacKall.

Sexual Content 

• None

Violence 

• A ship finds a dead man floating on a raft. When the captain finds the man, he says the man was killed by “a curse. . . or a spirit. . . something dark, and although unkind.”
• A strange man, Dulaney, comes out of the jungle and tries to ask Dr. Cooper for help but is stopped. “Dr. Cooper moved in to help, but suddenly a huge man burst out of the jungle like an angry elephant, holding the thrashing, wriggling Dulaney around the waist and carrying him into the clearing.” 
• Kelno’s men brought Dulaney into the village and “they aimed their guns at Dulaney and surrounded the screaming man.” Dulaney screams that the island is doomed and then “the guards carried the struggling, screaming Dulaney away.”
• While in the forest at night, Lila hears a scream and then “something had her by the legs! She grappled, kicked, clawed at the branches and roots. She cried out, but her scream was swallowed up. . . Something heavy had her, pulling her, clamping onto her body. . .” Later, Lila finds out Dulaney was trying to grab her. Eventually, Dulaney dies of “the curse.” The scene is described over three pages. 
• The Coopers find a “sacrificial pit” that is “littered with dry, sun-bleached bones,” including human bones. Later, the Coopers discover that the villagers sometimes give “human sacrifice to pagan gods, just like the heathen nations in the Old Testament.”
• When the Coopers try to investigate the strange happenings on the island, guards appear “brandishing their weapons.” The guards put the Coopers in a hut under guard.
• While in the hut, Dr. Cooper screams. When a guard opens the door, “a knee came up in the guard’s face, and then BONG! A large metal pot struck the guard’s head. The big man sunk to the floor.”
• The Coopers try to escape from the island. While crossing a rickety bridge, Dr. Cooper sees Lila “being held by a huge thug, and even though she was struggling, he kept his big arms clamped around her.”
• Before Dr. Cooper and Jay get across, the villagers cut the bridge’s ropes. The bridge “dropped like a broken, writhing necklace into the chasm. Jay was gone. Dr. Cooper was gone.” 
• Some of the villagers prepare Lila to be sacrificed to Kudoc, “the Lord of All Nature, the Serpent God of the Underworld.” Then, “two big guards whipped some ropes around her, binding her legs and arms close to her body, and then, as a cheer went up from the natives. . .Lila was lowered by a rope into the Pit.”
• After Lila is thrown into the sacrificial pit, a huge snake appears. “The head itself was as big as a huge alligator’s head, supported on a long, leathery neck the size of a tree trunk. A slimy tongue whipped about in the air, and hot, steamy breath chugged out of the nostrils.” When the snake lunges at Lila, she grabs a piece of bone. Lila “held the bone up. The snake jammed the round end of the bone against the wall and the jagged end into his snout. A hiss of pain exploded from that deep, cotton-white mouth.” One of the natives suddenly appears and helps Lila get out of the Pit. The scene is described over two pages.
• When Dr. Cooper believes Lila is dead, he goes to confront Kelno. “Dr. Cooper shot across the village square and bounded up the cottage steps before either sentry could even realize what was happening. One thug managed to grab his rifle, but a powerful hand rammed into him and flung his whole body against the wall.” Dr. Cooper goes into the house and grabs Kelno. “An iron fist clamped onto Kelno’s collar so he could not move, and then there was an ominous click. Stuart Kelno was looking down the barrel of a cocked 357 Magnum, and right behind that barrel were the cold blue eyes of a very deadly, very angry, very unkillable enemy.” 
• When the island begins to break apart, Dr. Cooper leads some of the villagers to safety. Along the way, Kelno and his men begin shooting at the fleeing villagers. “Kelno’s ever-loyal henchmen were still firing at them. The helpless passengers could only huddle in the bottom of the boat and pray that the bullets would miss.” No one is injured. However, several of Kelno’s men fall to their death.
• Kelno tries to flee the island and ends up in the Pit with the “Great Serpent.” Kelno says, “I have revered you! I have led your people in worship and sacrificed to you. . . You cannot eat me!” When Kelno tries to climb out of the pit, “the Serpent made one quick, lightning-fast lunge and grabbed him by the heel. . . The Serpent threw its head back, and the big throat opened. Stuart Kelno was gone in a gulp.”

Drugs and Alcohol 

• None

Language 

• None

Supernatural

• On Aquarius, the leader warns his people about a curse that kills. He says the island’s “magic” can kill. “At any rate, we still encounter these forces from time to time, and one such manifestation is a terrible madness, an inescapable curse that sometimes besets people here. The native word is Mon-Kunda; it means the Madness Before Death. It has no known cause, no known cure, and is always fatal.”
• Kelno tells Dr. Cooper about the supernatural “forces” and “ancient traditions” of the island. Dr. Cooper says, “But surely a man of God like yourself would know there are only two sources of such things: supernatural occurrences are either from God or from Satan.”
• Kelno has his men wear red scarves to protect themselves from “the curse.” Dr. Cooper says the scarves are “part of his game. The scarves—‘protectors’. . . [are] like amulets, or trinkets, or good luck charms. It’s witchcraft, pure and simple.” 
• The Coopers witness some of the villagers firewalking. Dr. Cooper explains, “People under demonic power, walking on incredibly hot stones without being burned, and they think they’ll find salvation in that!”

Spiritual Content 

• Dr. Cooper and his two kids are Christians. Throughout the book there are many references to God and the characters pray. Since the book is Christian fiction, not all references are mentioned below.
• Dr. Cooper and his kids often pray. For example, while crossing a perilous bridge, Lila prays, “Lord, please don’t let me fall.” 
• When Lila believes her family has died, she prays, “Dear Lord, why? How could You let this happen? After all the faith we put in You, after we’ve trusted You and seen You protect us for so long, why? Why now?” 
• Dr. Cooper and his kids look for a missing missionary. Dr. Cooper says, “Missionaries are a special breed. When God calls them, they go, no matter where. Somebody has to spread the gospel to the loneliest place in the world.”
• When Kelno talks about “the curse,” Dr. Cooper asks, “Have you forgotten about the power of the cross? Have you forgotten the Lordship of Jesus Christ over any tricks of Satan? You don’t need to bow to this!”
• When Lila believes she is going to die, she prays, “Jesus, I’m ready to be with You. It will all be for the better anyway; I’ll be with Dad and Jay, and that’s what I want most of all. Just. . .please, don’t let it hurt too much.”
• Dr. Cooper thinks about killing Kelno, but when he confronts the villain, he can’t. Dr. Cooper says, “I gave both my children to the Lord the day they were born. Even my own life doesn’t belong to me. The Coopers belong to Jesus. . . Our lives are His to preserve or to take.”
• Kelno tells his followers that Jesus “is only a deception. . . There is no savior except yourself. . . You are all the God you need.”