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Passenger by Alexandra Bracken |
YA Time Travel

By 22:00:00 , , , ,


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.

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.

✱ Pages: 486 (hardcover)
✱ Publication date: 5 January 2016
✱ Series: Passenger #1
✱ Provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review



The most beautiful cover, ever. Also, I knew there would be time travel. Decision made!

Things I really enjoyed

The time travel aspect of Passenger intrigued me, and worked well enough to keep me from wondering about the specifics of it - scientific or otherwise. The plot managed to surprise me a good few times too, although it seemed a little bit on the slow side at first.

The other main character, Nicholas, has a good back story, and he is African-American, which admittedly seems to be a little rare for love interests in books so I was happy to see that. There were some other characters I really enjoyed reading about too.

Etta and Nicholas end up travelling through some pretty interesting cities and times, and the mission they set on during Passenger gets pretty intense.

Things that made me pause

Nicholas and Etta started to sound the same to me. Since they both narrated the story, I would have preferred their voices to have been more different, and distinctive.

I did find myself wondering about the romance too. I guess I just wasn't buying it? The friendship between the characters I could definitely get behind, but maybe the feelings just moved a bit fast for me? I'm hoping the second book will help out with that.

Despite some issues I had, I thoroughly enjoyed Passenger. It might have something to do with the mood I was in but I read this in one go - and stayed up until 4am to finish it. I'm really excited to see what happens in the next book!
Have you read Passenger yet? What do you think of time travel - do you read a lot of books about it?

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About the Author

Unprepared and anxious in the face of daily life (despite nearly a quarter century of life experience) Annika is a strange girl whose love of books, wine, and coffee knows no bounds. She also likes sloths, dragons, and pugs.

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