Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
(Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads)Published by Disney-Hyperion on January 5th 2016
Genres: Action & Adventure, Fantasy & Magic, General, Love & Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 496
Format: ARC

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, his passenger, can find. In order to protect her, Nick 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.

So you all know that Historical stuff isn’t so much my thing… It’s rare that I’m all grabby hands about anything in that genre. That said, this is by Alexandra Bracken so I absolutely knew I had to have it. I was so stinking excited to get my hands on this that I braved the rush to get in line at BEA just to have it. Then it was just a waiting game to when I would allow myself to dive in.

I held off longer than I thought I would be able to, mostly because of the mean looks and comments from Erin and Meg but whatever.

This story you guys… it’s epic. The plotting, the pacing, the writing, the characters, the historical elements, the suspense, the time travel… the romance. It’s all amazing. I don’t want to dive into specifics because you will need to experience this as you turn the pages, but just know that I am waiting rather impatiently to get my hands on the second book because I need more of Etta and Nicholas in my life… PLUS ugh that cliffhanger. I’m not going to sugarcoat it or lie. It is rough, and you will die a little bit inside, but the ride makes it totally worth it.

I know you’re all like “tell me about the romance!!” and even if you’re not, whatever. You should be because it’s so amazingly well done here. Relationships in books are never easy, but imagine adding in the element of time travel and being from two completely different eras and you can’t even imagine the trials and tribulations that these two encounter. What Bracken has created between these two characters is beautiful though and I’m so excited for everyone to get to experience it.

I do have to admit though, that the story does not revolve around the relationship between Etta and Nicholas. They do have a reason to be working together and ultimately what brings them together is also the thing that could keep them apart forever. The time travel elements Bracken has created have been done incredibly well in this story… She explains why and how it happens and makes it work and it wasn’t confusing in the least, which can sometimes happen with time travel books.

I know I mentioned both Etta and Nicholas together… but I also have to mention them as separate characters because while I loved them together, I also truly loved them as individual characters. The dual narration really allowed me to get to know them and I love that Etta is strong and independent and opinionated and headstrong, but I also loved that Nicholas had plans for himself and knew what he wanted for his future (or thought he did) and he was protective and strong and every bit the gentleman that no one expected him to be.

If you don’t have this book on your ‘to be read list’ (WHAT?) get it there asap. You definitely don’t need to be a fan of time travel or history to find yourself engrossed in this epic journey that Alexandra Bracken has written. I can’t wait to see how she wraps up the story in Wayfarer and if anyone wanted to share an early copy with me I wouldn’t say no. I’m just saying.

Thank you to Disney for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

About Alexandra Bracken

I was born in Phoenix, Arizona and spent all of my life there up until college–I miss it all of the time, but primarily when I’m forced to deal with ice/snow/mass transit/or some combination of the three. I’m a middle child, which supposedly means I’m full of angsty feelings of neglect, but, in reality, it just means I’m always sandwiched between my older sister and younger brother in Christmas pictures. On a whole, I had a pretty typical childhood, with only one big exception: my dad was a big time Star Wars collector, which means I went to more antique shows, toy stores, and Star Wars conventions then you could ever imagine! No, really, I’m up to six conventions. I will now pause to let that soak in…
I recently graduated with a degree in History and English from The College of William & Mary in Virginia. (Four years in Colonial Williamsburg is enough to give anyone a sense of humor about life, trust me.) I began writing Brightly Woven there during my sophomore year as a birthday present to my dearest, darlingest friend Carlin… and finished six months AFTER that date. The number one question I get asked is how I wrote a novel while I was still in school. There are two answers to this: sacrificing a social life and a depressingly effective will to see even the most futile projects through. I signed with my agent on my 21st birthday, and sold it later that year. I spent a good portion of my senior year buried under edits, and the rest of that year trying to figure out what else I was going to do with my life.
After graduating, I left my colonial bonnets behind and moved to New York City, where I attended the Columbia Publishing Course and worked in publishing for five years. I now write full time.

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