ARC Review--Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

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.

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

Alexandra Bracken’s Passenger is quite the tale of time-traveling filled with adventure, and yes, romance. This is my first Bracken book and I went in with a few reservations, but overall, Passenger was a pretty interesting read.

Etta is basically a prodigy. She was raised by her mother, had the best education, is extraordinarily talented with the violin where takes place in many competitions and will be having her debut in just a few short weeks. It’s when she goes to another performance just weeks before, that the chaos strikes.

She is suddenly transported back in time and off to meet the man in charge. Taking her and the girl who brought her, Sophia, is Nicholas. He’s a fairly young captain of the ship but dreams of running his own ship instead of one ruled by Ironwood, the family he’s regrettably apart of and who’s basically in charge.

The excitement truly begins when Etta is forced to find a magical object that will allow one to time travel back to any point with no rules, and as you’ll learn there are quite a few rules when it comes to time-traveling.

The book was a little hard for me to get into right away. Time-traveling books can be hit or miss especially when it comes to the explaining of said time-traveling. In Passenger however, it wasn’t too complicated, but a few details were a little muddy for me, but those were kind of explained as you went along but it kind of made it confusing in the beginning.

I just felt like the pacing was a little too slow at times. There was definitely a sense of excitement, as Etta is given a timeline as to when she must return the magical object to Ironwood. That definitely adds some tension and danger, it was just the way she went about doing her time-traveling jumps that dragged. Joining her on this journey is Nicholas. And right away, you know these two are meant for one another.

I must commend Bracken on the interracial romance though! It’s rare to see that these days and I must say I enjoyed it! Nicholas was quite the character. He comes off a bit cold and prickly in the beginning, but he grows on you and naturally you learn to see he is full of heart.

I’d say things started picking up for me around the halfway point, or there about. The excitement became greater as Etta and Nicholas hurry along on their quest being chased by other bad guys and such. And then that ending! Wow! Wasn’t expecting something like that! It’s kind of cliffhanger-y just so you know, but I would rate it as an exciting cliffhanger. One that leaves you jumping in your seat for the next book versus shouting profanities at the sky (not that I do that or anything!).

Overall, Passenger was a read that definitely amps up the excitement and enjoyment as you read further along. I will definitely want to continue this series, however long it ends up being because I am anxious to know what will happen to our characters!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars