Passenger (Passenger, Book 1)

By Alexandra Bracken

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Darkest Minds trilogy and Lore.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Pulled back through time to 1776 in the midst of a fierce sea battle, she has travelled not only miles, but years from home.

With the arrival of this unusual passenger on his ship, privateer Nicholas Carter has to confront a past that he can't escape and the powerful Ironwood family who won't let him go without a fight. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value; one they believe only Etta can find.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by an enigmatic traveller. 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 from Nicholas, and her way home, forever.

Instant #1 New York Times bestseller Passenger is the compelling first book in the page-turning two-book series by Alexandra Bracken, author of the perennial bestseller Lore, and the Darkest Minds series, and takes readers on a journey that can change time - and the world as we know it.

MORE PRAISE:

'Aptly titled. I was truly transported through this novel, a willing passenger pulled through its pages alongside riveting, romantic characters and an immense world with no end in sight ... I can't wait to voyage through the next volume.' -- Victoria Aveyard, New York Times bestselling author of Red Queen

'An ambitious and exquisite symphony of adventure, romance, and dynamic characters, Passenger grabs you by the heart from its opening notes and doesn't let go until its knockout, blockbuster finale.' -Sarah J. Maas, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Australia
• Release date: Feb 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781460706886

Alexandra Bracken

Alexandra Bracken is the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Passenger series and the Darkest Minds series. Born and raised in Arizona, she moved east to study history and English at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. After working in publishing for several years, Alex now writes full-time and can be found hard at work on her next novel in a charming little home that's perpetually overflowing with books. alexandrabracken.com @alexbracken instagram.com/alexbracken facebook.com/officialalexandrabracken

Reviews for Passenger (Passenger, Book 1)

[ltl1red · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved this book and can't wait for the next one in series!

[leahlo89 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Just wasn't for me. Soooooooooo boring.

[velmeran · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received a galley of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.Passenger is an exciting ride through time. With interweaving plots and characters you love and love to hate, this story keeps you reading even when you should be doing something else. I would tell you more, but trust me, you don't want spoilers on this ride!

[beammey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I did like this book, don't get me wrong, but for me I think parts were just too long and drawn out and just didn't do it for me. Overall, I thought it was okay though and I am invested and interested in the characters enough to want to know what will happen to them in the next book. The cover is absolutely gorgeous and there were some twists that I appreciated. 4 out of 5 stars. I would recommend this book.

[tiffy_reads · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. You are immediately dragged right into an adventure that consists of time travel, romance, betrayal, lies and murder. So smoothly written that I didn't want to put the book down. Alexandra Bracken did a superb job with this novel and I can't wait to read the sequel.

[bell7_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Just days away from her debut as a violinist, Etta Spencer is suddenly shoved into a world of time travel and intrigue. She meets a young man, Nicholas Carter, who is a member of the Ironwood clan, a traveler family that controls much; she herself is one of the Lindens, and her mother has hidden something that only she can find. She and Nicholas race against the clock to find it, but each have their own agenda and neither know if they can save her mother in time.I enjoyed this fast-paced adventure story. Since Etta doesn't know the history of the travelers or how she can move between times, she - and the reader - are given explanations throughout the text. There's the requisite love story, of course, and I could have done with less angst on that angle. I did like how traveling between times with other characters was a way of discovering what rights a black man or a woman had in different places and times, though a few moments felt downright preachy. The ending leaves no question that there will be a sequel.

[eire2011 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was an amazing book that I couldn't put down. Full of adventure, time travel, the power of love and friendship, I found myself staying up late a few times because I couldn't wait to see what happened next.
This book does end on a cliff hanger but knowing another book will be out makes it a bit better. It's just too bad I have to wait a year!!
I can't wait to see how Etta and Nicholas will fair and hopefully find their way back to each other!!

[jdifelice-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the adventure and mystery involved and the concept of time travel always gets me :) The way the novel weaves historical places and events with time travel is so good, and I liked the fact that the author addressed the fact that the views the MC had were far different from what people thought in different time periods. I also like that because Etta from from 2015, she was outraged at the unfairness and horrible way some people were treated in history :) I really enjoyed Etta and Nicholas, and even though the romance in the novel got a bit heavy at points, it wasn't overwhelming or taking over the plot. The romance did not drive the plot forward, the MC's determination did. A really great read, and I cannot wait to get my grabby hands on the next book! Too bad I have to wait a while.

[hunybadger · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Meh. Held promise but there were so many impossibilities, so many things left unexplained. I just couldn't get behind this one.

Kudos for making this YA NOT dystopian and in current day. Also props for a main female character who seemed real.

[sobieckj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken was great. It's definitely 15+ in my mind (sexual content, but more implied than explicit; some violence, but also not too explicit). There's time travel, adventure, an interracial and inter-historical-period romance that is beautifully and sensitively done, likable characters, real-world issues despite the fantasy elements, girl power, and great descriptions of time and place. If you like audiobooks, the reader was great. If you don't like audiobooks, the writing is pretty darn good, and Bracken sure knows her history--especially Revolutionary America. (I think her having attended William & Mary has something to do with that.)

[urph818 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book, although it was a little slow at the beginning. I loved the characters, especially Etta, a fighter, a violin prodigy who never gives up during her time travels, and of course Nick, an African American character, who saves Etta after a sea battle between two sailing vessels. Nick and Etta are the love interest in this well written book. I certainly look forward to the next book in the Series. Jack Murphy

[anacskie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another great YA series. There's a part in the book that seems so dragging/boring/slow paced for me. But some parts were interesting enough that it motivated me to finished it. Definitely a different take in time traveling. I've already pre-ordered the next book. I can't wait to see what happen to the characters next.

[venarain-354758 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

How does a book built on such an interesting premise turn out so boring?? The exposition is down right painful, everything happening 'suddenly' or 'instinctively'. The level of adjective and adverb usage is boardline hilarious. And yet, I actually want to know what happens next - which is probably why I find it so annoying to slog through the endless explanations, drawn out back stories and inner monologues. Just tell the dang story - we'll figure it out, I promise.

[completely_melanie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Adventure, Romance, Pirates, Time travelers, yep this book has it all! It was such a good book and I can't wait to read the next in the series!

[oddandbookish · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I first started reading this I was thoroughly confused. I had so many questions in the first 100 pages about what was going on. About halfway through, things started making more sense. The middle felt a bit rushed but also a bit slow at the same time (I know that doesn’t make much sense but it’s how I felt). But the ending was pretty good and is probably why I will end up reading its sequel. Overall, I don’t quite know how to feel about this book. It was good but also overly wordy and confusing.

[mhanover10 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really like time travel books and this one did not disappoint. I've read so many different versions of what time travelers can do or what happens to them when they travel. This time only certain people can time travel and when they do, they can't pick where they are going but they stay on the same day, just at another time. They also can also call for the "time door" when they need it. They also can't go back to where they have already been. The door will throw them back and not allow them through. There are also guardians. This is also a great romance and suspenseful. Can't wait to read the next one in the series.

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I just finished Alexandra Bracken’s Passenger. Henrietta “Etta” Spencer is getting ready to give a concert (she is a violinist) at The Met in New York. As she starts her piece she hears what she calls feedback (an awful noise). Etta runs off stage and there is Sophia. Sophia states she hears the noise and drags Etta off to find it. Alice (we are never given her last name) tries to intervene (she has been Etta’s violin instructor since Etta was five), but Sophia pushes Etta through something! A while later Etta wakes up on a ship in the middle of the sea and it is 1776. How did she get on this ship and in this year? Etta is disoriented and runs out onto the ship’s deck into the middle of a fight.Nicholas Carter is a pirate (technically a legal privateer). He has orders to take the ship Ardent and get the two female passengers on board to New York to Cyrus Ironwood. Cyrus is the head of the Ironwood clan and he wants Etta to obtain an object that her mother, Rose has hidden. Etta has inherited the ability to travel through special passages in time. Etta knows nothing about time travel or the object the Ironwoods are seeking. Nicholas will go with her to keep her safe and help her navigate through the different years (without causing too many time ripples or changing history). Can they find the object Cyrus desires? If they do find it, should they give it to him? Why was this object hidden? Will Etta ever be able to get home? You will have to read Passenger to find out!I found Passenger to be a difficult novel to read. Things are not explained in the novel. We are thrust into this world without any information. We finally get some information in the last three quarters of the novel (way too late). I also found the novel to be unnecessarily long. We have pages full of thoughts and descriptions that are not needed (you can just skip over them). I feel the novel needs a major editing (just my personal opinion) and rewriting. The characters are not very appealing (or likeable). Etta gets more interesting towards the end of the book (but by then most people have already quit reading). Passenger has potential. It has an interesting concept on time travel (and the object they are searching for), but I found the outcome disappointing. I give Passenger 2.75 out of 5 stars. The one thing that really turned me off was the ending. I kept reading the book to see how it would end. Instead of a decent ending, we are given a cliffhanger (spoiler ahead--nothing is resolved). Passenger is overall a very frustrating book.I received a complimentary copy of Passenger from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[pennma05-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I had seen a lot of mixed reviews about this book but decided to read it anyways when it was chosen as the first book for The Revolving Shelf book club. Plus that cover… gorgeous! Anyways. The book started out pretty slow. I mean, really slow. I ended up setting the book down for a couple weeks to read something else. But I decided to give it another chance and once I got past the halfway point, it started to get better. The action started picking up. The concept of the story was really intriguing but the first half was a little slow in sorting out the details.

The characters in the story were either good or they were bad. There wasn’t really any middle ground. I never really connected with Etta too well. I prefered Nicholas to her. At first, their connection seemed a little instalove-ish but I did end up liking their relationship. There were some really good revelations in the second half that started to connect the dots between things that happened in the first half. And then it ended on quite the cliffhanger! I will be really interested to visit this world again when the sequel comes out.

[jessicadelellis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I first started reading this I was thoroughly confused. I had so many questions in the first 100 pages about what was going on. About halfway through, things started making more sense. The middle felt a bit rushed but also a bit slow at the same time (I know that doesn’t make much sense but it’s how I felt). But the ending was pretty good and is probably why I will end up reading its sequel. Overall, I don’t quite know how to feel about this book. It was good but also overly wordy and confusing.

[evelynnygren · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was excellent! I don't think I've ever read a hard-core time-travel book before but even so, the execution, the accuracy of historical events, the detail—it blew me away. And on top of all that technical stuff, the romance, personal grudges, and long time-traveler family history was woven into the overall plot of the story seamlessly, I was stunned by how interested I was from the first page. I haven't been that captured by a book in quite a while.
A side note: I have wanted to read from Alexandra Bracken (mostly just The Darkest Minds series) for a while now. When I first heard of this book, I had a mild interest in it but never ended up reaching for it, so eventually it fell from my to-read list and then completely off my radar.
Fast forward to a little over a week ago, I found this book in a Half-Price and said to myself "Sure, why not?" and bought it. There have been few times where I have picked up a book at random and have dove straight into it, on the off chance that I'll find it interesting, and each time I have been wonderfully surprised.
Spur of the moment decisions have been my best ones so far, so I think I'm going to have to keep it up! (Also, can't wait to dive into the sequel soon!)

[nbmars · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This time travel book shares many tropes with others of its genre. There is a female inadvertently thrust into the role of time traveler with the handsome male as her guide, who must find some complicated gadget that could transform time traveling, and various and nefarious guardians and managers of the gift of time travel. There is, moreover, repeated speculation on whether time could or should be changed, and a raft of costume changes should the book ever be optioned to be a movie (The Red Ruby Trilogy by Kerstin Gier comes to mind). The main area in which this book/series differs is that the element of race is central, since one of those with the gift of travels is a young black man.The female who finds she has inherited the gift of time travel is 17-year-old Etta Spencer, who is thrust into the past by Sophia Ironwood, a member of the powerful Ironwood family that controls those with the ability. In particular, the Grandfather, Cyrus Ironwood, rules with an iron glove, and has called for Etta to be abducted. Nicolas Carter, 19, is the handsome half grandson of Cyrus who falls for Etta, and she for him. There are plenty of allusions to stealing moments of time and being together outside of time….The two go on a perilous treasure hunt to find The Secret Object everyone wants, and at each point they are found and chased by other time travelers. Then, just when they think they are on top of the situation, there is a wrinkle in the fabric of time….Evaluation: This book was too derivative and convoluted for me, and the plot never explained a number of the premises that stretched credulity even accepting the existence of time travel. Some aspects that didn’t make sense were the whole personality of Etta’s mom, the way everyone unquestioningly obeys the evil and tyrannical Cyrus, and why, given the whole length and breadth of time, Etta and Nicholas didn’t just drop off of Cyrus’s radar and live their lives.The book ends on a cliffhanger, but I doubt I will be back for future installments.