How are you?
In this Book Review Monday, I am going to be reviewing Passenger by Alexandra Bracken. I picked Passenger up for my birthday book shopping and only just got round to reading it, however, I am glad I got to it now as the sequel Wayfarer had just been released when I read it. My review will be in the usual style: Non-Spoiler section, cover, plot and opinions.
Passenger by Alexandra Bracken- Contains Spoilers
Non-Spoiler Thoughts
I gave Passenger 3.5 or 4/5 stars. I couldn't decided which it was so it sits in the middle. I really enjoyed it, but I found some problems with it. I am definitely going to pick up Alexandra Bracken's other series soon.
Cover Chat
I really love the covers for the Passenger duology! They are so pretty! It's so cool how the bottle has a city in it and then the reflection has a boat!!
Plot
Passage, n.
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.
In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.
Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.
Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.
As always, this synopsis is taken from Goodreads and the rating on Goodreads is 3.88/5 stars.
Opinions
As I said in my non-spoiler section, I had mixed feelings about Passenger. My main problem with the book is that the pacing felt really off. At certain points, I would feel my interest in this book dipping and then something really exciting would happen. I understand that authors can't keep the pace the same all the time, but the pacing in this book wasn't the best.
One of my favourite things about this book was how Alexandra Bracken addressed racism. Nicholas is a black character living in a time when slavery was still a thing. She talked about how even in the 21st century, we still live with lots of racism. I was so glad that she addressed this as we never get to discuss racism and how it shouldn't exist.
The ending was a really good and I didn't see it coming. I really like it when the plot shocks me. I also really enjoyed how complex Sophia was. Alexandra Bracken did a really good job of showing how people are neither good nor bad. It was nice reading about complex characters that aren't just 2D.
So that concludes my review of Passenger by Alexandra Bracken, my review of Wayfarer will be coming next Monday. Let me know what you thought of Passenger.
Love,
Carenza x
