The Stranded by Sarah Daniels is a dystopian novel set on the cruise ship, Arcadia. It's noted as being a mix of Snowpiecer and Hunger Games. I agree with Snowpiecer but I disagree with Hunger Games. The Arcadia floats on the out skirts of what is now the Federated States. The luxury cruise ship has sat for over 40 years with each level of the ship becoming a makeshift community that goes from ticket holders to the rougher gangs below.

There is continual testing for a virus that swept through civilization and even though no virus has been indicated in decades, they keep everyone stranded using the excuse of potential dormancy. The goal for our MC, Esther, is to become a medic and finally make it to land but all of that changes when she's unwillingly dragged into the rebel cause.

There are multiple POVs that give insight into the Federation, rebellion and medic side of things which was pretty interesting. The gangs and overall rebel goal are also intriguing and I feel book two will show their future and answer additional questions some readers like me would have. I felt the majority of what occurred could've happened in a much shorter book as well.

The world building, history and plot ideas were captivating and kept me going to find out what the final climax would be.I actually feel this would make an exciting tv series. The characters, however, had something missing for me. I didn't connect with them or feel for their plights the way I normally would. Overall, I enjoyed the read but I didn't connect the way I had hoped.

Thank you Sourcebooksfire for the gifted digital copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All thoughts are my own. I recommend for those who enjoy dystopian reads to check out other reviews for this novel! True rating 2.5/5.

None of the refugees aboard the hundred year old, ocean going liner Arcadia have a terrific life. The ship was designed to hold only seven hundred passengers, and in the four decades since it's been moored off the coast of the Federated States, the population has bulked out well past that capacity. Resources are scarce even with regular shipments coming from the States, as the opportunity to stop becoming refugees is weighed, measured, and adjudicated against what seems to be a continually moving set of goalposts. The publicly known ones involve a viral threat, which may well be laying dormant within the populace, so they are regularly tested, vaccinated, poked, prodded.

Esther's family is doing well, however. She's in the top two slots of her medical training class, her sister is about to graduate off the ship for permanent citizenship on the mainland, and the future looks pretty bright. She and May will be the first people in the three generations who have occupied this vessel to leave it. She intends to keep her eyes on the prize and her nose clean … but events conspire against her.

First, there is an illegal leaflet drop that announces one of the other refugee ships has been cleared and shut down. Where are all of its people? No one knows. Can this be for real? Well, the Federated States personnel see that drop as nothing less than an act of terrorism, and they begin to lock down the ship under martial law. During this fracas, Esther is taken against her will into the lower decks where the criminal classes, the poor, and the gangs dwell, and forced to treat a toxic gunshot wound on am unknown man … he's masked and unrecognizable, but he calls her by name in a moment when he swims back up into lucidity. Who is he? Why does he know her? And although his people seem to let her go, will they let her live possessing whatever knowledge she has?

In fact, the young man she treated, Nik, is a high ranking member in the rebellion, a seditious group that seeks to throw off the yoke of Federated States oppression. He is tied to Esther's family through her sister May, who has been leading a double life as a rebel. The two of them hope to speed the process of rebellion along, unaware that doing so will throw their worlds out of a comfort zone and into danger.

Commander Hadley of the Federated States hates being aboard this ship. He was given the role as a booby prize, a reprimand for poor duty. And he longs to get away from this rotten vessel and its worthless inhabitants. To this point, he's been applying a heavy hand to maintain order, but he's fast discovering that if he can ease his hold and allow a little anarchy to intrude, then he might be able to clear the vessel all the faster. That would mean all the inhabitants relocated into forced labor prison camps, the ship destroyed, and a reinstatement back into useful service. If terrorism and rebellion flourish, then maybe he can cut down his sentence by a couple of years. And if the terrorists and rebels won't do it themselves, then maybe he can work some shadow ops to make it look like the situation is getting out of hand …

All the while, Esther's life is being throw into disarray. Her boyfriend and fiancé Alex has found her talking to suspicious persons, her sister is getting angrier as she approaches her inevitable departure, her teacher has her under a microscope, and due to that leaflet drop and subsequent illegal medical operation, the stable world she has known is coming apart at the seams. Will she be able to adapt to her new world, or does Esther stand to lose everything she's strived for? And even if she does her best, how will Esther cope with changes being forced upon the ship and all its occupants? Sarah Daniels' The Stranded grapples with xenophobia and coming of age narratives while spinning a dystopian YA science fiction novel set in the cramped and overpopulated close quarters of an ocean going anthill.

One of my favorite science fiction conceits is the generation ship. Typically, narratives around this concept take the form of several generations following launch (and possibly a disaster or two) where people have come to assume the ship is the entire world, possibly forgetting they are on a traveling vessel at all. Cultures fracture into sects, often based on deck locations, and bizarre politics mingle with adventure stories in the finite boundaries of what amounts to little more than a pressure cooker.

While no one aboard the Arcadia has forgotten they are on a ship, Sarah Daniels nevertheless plays with the generation ship concepts in The Stranded. The author mates these with a dystopian world view, which holds a dark mirror up to the situation in our own world where war, disease, poverty, and other socioeconomic and political factors have rendered vast numbers of refugees displaced from their home nations to camp along the borders of the new countries they wish to call home. Too often, such people are lumped together, their individuality and humanity stripped away in order to more easily consider what is to be done. Refugee camps, asylum seekers, and other categories are somewhat easier to make wait because we can erase the human issues, looking at faceless groups instead of impoverished individuals.

The occupants of the Arcadia, the Oceania, and the other ships in the book have fled Europe following some devastating wars. The Federated States were not involved in these and therefore feel no real compunction to take these displaced persons into their populations. But they don't want those ships to go to The Enemy, either. So they've made these floating camps dependent upon the throttled resource offerings and made them wait, and wait, and wait. However, the author keeps us from dehumanizing these people by presenting us with characters worth our emotional investment. Some are generally good people in a bad situation, others are greedy people trying to claim dominance through whatever means they can. As with any group, there are good apples, bad ones, those who tow the party line, and those who buck it. Unfortunately, the party line here—the hardest workers will be rewarded—is one big lie for all but a handful.

Esther's journey is one of discovery, about the lie she's been living as well as the lies she's been told both by the authorities she trusts and the family she holds beyond reproach. She undergoes the classic maiden's journey, a coming to knowledge and an application of that knowledge. The stakes start out seemingly small, but recontextualization reveals how big they are.

Daniels' writing style is clean and compelling. The opening half of the book includes some action, some character, some worldbuilding, and some intrigue in good proportion to one another. Though the cast of characters is surprisingly large, we only have three points of view throughout the book. Esther gets the biggest chunk of the prose. Nik gets the second largest chunk, and the antagonist Hadley gets the final portions. This keeps us moving between three distinct social classes, the well-to-do ship occupants, the lower end ship occupants, and the oppressive Federated States occupiers who want everyone killed.

Structurally speaking, the book is divided into two major sections. The narrative could easily support three such divisions. Chapters present a first person viewpoint for Esther and Nik, and a limited third person view for Hadley's sequences. The plot takes place over several days, some of which can be handled by a simple chapter break. Larger breaks in time include a "message from the Captain" recording the date, the news of the day, the number of reported Virus cases, and the number of days at sea—which is nearly 16000 as the book opens.

The author demonstrates an ease with establishing a modest scope and scale and then expanding upon it as the narrative flows. This effectively mirrors the way a young person's perspectives open during those sensitive coming of age moments. From the start we see Esther, Nik, and Hadley's worlds as a conglomeration of stereotypes, rumor, and rumor control. As the narrative progresses, we watch the first two's worlds open up and the latter's worldview narrow in.

As antagonists go, Hadley is a pretty unforgiveable one. We can understand him to a degree, but we are never encouraged to sympathize with his perspective. He's gone past the point of sympathy, into a near mania when we meet him. In that way, he's perhaps a tad more one-dimensional than some readers will prefer. However, as unforgivable, irredeemable pricks go, he's certainly an effectively drawn one.

The Stranded is an intriguing character study and a slice of dystopian fiction with an unusual premise. The generation ship angle adds some cool material for the author to play with. The characters are effective and interesting. The stakes they face are appropriately personal and real, developing organically. The mix of action and intrigue is well done. The worldbuilding is certainly amenable to further works set in this place. I'd be interested in works that might explore some of the history as well as the present and future of this place whether or not they center on these characters or new ones. All told, a fun, fine read.
None of the refugees aboard the hundred year old, ocean going liner Arcadia have a terrific life. The ship was designed to hold only seven hundred passengers, and in the four decades since it's been moored off the coast of the Federated States, the population has bulked out well past that capacity. Resources are scarce even with regular shipments coming from the States, as the opportunity to stop becoming refugees is weighed, measured, and adjudicated against what seems to be a continually moving set of goalposts. The publicly known ones involve a viral threat, which may well be laying dormant within the populace, so they are regularly tested, vaccinated, poked, prodded.

Esther's family is doing well, however. She's in the top two slots of her medical training class, her sister is about to graduate off the ship for permanent citizenship on the mainland, and the future looks pretty bright. She and May will be the first people in the three generations who have occupied this vessel to leave it. She intends to keep her eyes on the prize and her nose clean … but events conspire against her.

First, there is an illegal leaflet drop that announces one of the other refugee ships has been cleared and shut down. Where are all of its people? No one knows. Can this be for real? Well, the Federated States personnel see that drop as nothing less than an act of terrorism, and they begin to lock down the ship under martial law. During this fracas, Esther is taken against her will into the lower decks where the criminal classes, the poor, and the gangs dwell, and forced to treat a toxic gunshot wound on am unknown man … he's masked and unrecognizable, but he calls her by name in a moment when he swims back up into lucidity. Who is he? Why does he know her? And although his people seem to let her go, will they let her live possessing whatever knowledge she has?

In fact, the young man she treated, Nik, is a high ranking member in the rebellion, a seditious group that seeks to throw off the yoke of Federated States oppression. He is tied to Esther's family through her sister May, who has been leading a double life as a rebel. The two of them hope to speed the process of rebellion along, unaware that doing so will throw their worlds out of a comfort zone and into danger.

Commander Hadley of the Federated States hates being aboard this ship. He was given the role as a booby prize, a reprimand for poor duty. And he longs to get away from this rotten vessel and its worthless inhabitants. To this point, he's been applying a heavy hand to maintain order, but he's fast discovering that if he can ease his hold and allow a little anarchy to intrude, then he might be able to clear the vessel all the faster. That would mean all the inhabitants relocated into forced labor prison camps, the ship destroyed, and a reinstatement back into useful service. If terrorism and rebellion flourish, then maybe he can cut down his sentence by a couple of years. And if the terrorists and rebels won't do it themselves, then maybe he can work some shadow ops to make it look like the situation is getting out of hand …

All the while, Esther's life is being throw into disarray. Her boyfriend and fiancé Alex has found her talking to suspicious persons, her sister is getting angrier as she approaches her inevitable departure, her teacher has her under a microscope, and due to that leaflet drop and subsequent illegal medical operation, the stable world she has known is coming apart at the seams. Will she be able to adapt to her new world, or does Esther stand to lose everything she's strived for? And even if she does her best, how will Esther cope with changes being forced upon the ship and all its occupants? Sarah Daniels' The Stranded grapples with xenophobia and coming of age narratives while spinning a dystopian YA science fiction novel set in the cramped and overpopulated close quarters of an ocean going anthill.

One of my favorite science fiction conceits is the generation ship. Typically, narratives around this concept take the form of several generations following launch (and possibly a disaster or two) where people have come to assume the ship is the entire world, possibly forgetting they are on a traveling vessel at all. Cultures fracture into sects, often based on deck locations, and bizarre politics mingle with adventure stories in the finite boundaries of what amounts to little more than a pressure cooker.

While no one aboard the Arcadia has forgotten they are on a ship, Sarah Daniels nevertheless plays with the generation ship concepts in The Stranded. The author mates these with a dystopian world view, which holds a dark mirror up to the situation in our own world where war, disease, poverty, and other socioeconomic and political factors have rendered vast numbers of refugees displaced from their home nations to camp along the borders of the new countries they wish to call home. Too often, such people are lumped together, their individuality and humanity stripped away in order to more easily consider what is to be done. Refugee camps, asylum seekers, and other categories are somewhat easier to make wait because we can erase the human issues, looking at faceless groups instead of impoverished individuals.

The occupants of the Arcadia, the Oceania, and the other ships in the book have fled Europe following some devastating wars. The Federated States were not involved in these and therefore feel no real compunction to take these displaced persons into their populations. But they don't want those ships to go to The Enemy, either. So they've made these floating camps dependent upon the throttled resource offerings and made them wait, and wait, and wait. However, the author keeps us from dehumanizing these people by presenting us with characters worth our emotional investment. Some are generally good people in a bad situation, others are greedy people trying to claim dominance through whatever means they can. As with any group, there are good apples, bad ones, those who tow the party line, and those who buck it. Unfortunately, the party line here—the hardest workers will be rewarded—is one big lie for all but a handful.

Esther's journey is one of discovery, about the lie she's been living as well as the lies she's been told both by the authorities she trusts and the family she holds beyond reproach. She undergoes the classic maiden's journey, a coming to knowledge and an application of that knowledge. The stakes start out seemingly small, but recontextualization reveals how big they are.

Daniels' writing style is clean and compelling. The opening half of the book includes some action, some character, some worldbuilding, and some intrigue in good proportion to one another. Though the cast of characters is surprisingly large, we only have three points of view throughout the book. Esther gets the biggest chunk of the prose. Nik gets the second largest chunk, and the antagonist Hadley gets the final portions. This keeps us moving between three distinct social classes, the well-to-do ship occupants, the lower end ship occupants, and the oppressive Federated States occupiers who want everyone killed.

Structurally speaking, the book is divided into two major sections. The narrative could easily support three such divisions. Chapters present a first person viewpoint for Esther and Nik, and a limited third person view for Hadley's sequences. The plot takes place over several days, some of which can be handled by a simple chapter break. Larger breaks in time include a "message from the Captain" recording the date, the news of the day, the number of reported Virus cases, and the number of days at sea—which is nearly 16000 as the book opens.

The author demonstrates an ease with establishing a modest scope and scale and then expanding upon it as the narrative flows. This effectively mirrors the way a young person's perspectives open during those sensitive coming of age moments. From the start we see Esther, Nik, and Hadley's worlds as a conglomeration of stereotypes, rumor, and rumor control. As the narrative progresses, we watch the first two's worlds open up and the latter's worldview narrow in.

As antagonists go, Hadley is a pretty unforgiveable one. We can understand him to a degree, but we are never encouraged to sympathize with his perspective. He's gone past the point of sympathy, into a near mania when we meet him. In that way, he's perhaps a tad more one-dimensional than some readers will prefer. However, as unforgivable, irredeemable pricks go, he's certainly an effectively drawn one.

The Stranded is an intriguing character study and a slice of dystopian fiction with an unusual premise. The generation ship angle adds some cool material for the author to play with. The characters are effective and interesting. The stakes they face are appropriately personal and real, developing organically. The mix of action and intrigue is well done. The worldbuilding is certainly amenable to further works set in this place. I'd be interested in works that might explore some of the history as well as the present and future of this place whether or not they center on these characters or new ones. All told, a fun, fine read.

The year is 2094. It has been forty years since the countries of Europe annihilated one another with war and the use of biological weapons that let loose a deadly virus across the continet. As fighting broke out, the mega luxury cruise line ship, the Arcadia, set sail from Liverpool with both paying customers and non-paying occupants on board. Now Europe is uninhabitable and ships like the Arcadia are posted off the coast of North America. The new government, the Federated States, refuses to let those on board ashore for fear the passengers will bring the deadly virus ashore.

Sixteen year old Esther and her friend Alex are medical students. In the entirety of their lives neither of them have ever set foot on land but they have been promised off the ship by the government if they pass and complete their studies. Esther's older sister May is a military cadet with the same promise of freedom at the end of her training. Unbeknownst to May's family, she is part of a rebellion plotting an uprising to overtake the Arcadia. When May's handler, Nik gets shot by a poisonous bullet Esther is recruited to save his life. Now Esther finds herself a part of the rebel team. Can the passengers free themselves from their floating prison or will they remain stranded?

Sarah Daniels has written and extremely exciting, unique, edge of your seat story. The chapters were short but action filled which made the book fast paced and move quickly. I don't recall any down time or lulls in the stories timeline. There are five main characters with three point of views. The inside of the Arcadia is describe in great detail, I could almost smell the mold and feel the moisture from the ocean's mist. The Stranded ending was satisfying enough it could be a stand alone novel and yet Daniels left enough unsaid to create a second installment.

Posted to the Following Locations:
Blog - Heather's Reading Nook: https://heathersreadingnook.blogspot.com

BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/reviews/1169297018?source=link_share

StoryGraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/user_reviews/heameljon

Decades after the spread of a virus in Europe, cruise ships still linger in the harbors. Filled with generations of people - forced to stay aboard, never touching ground.
A rebellion has been rising for years - a quiet tide, inching closer and closer.
Esther studied for years, beside her boyfriend Alex, to be become a medic; desperately hoping to gain entrance to med school in the Federated States. Following every rule only to be snatched from her home. Brought to the side of a young man shot, bleeding out and poison in his veins.
Esther can't go back - she finds herself consumed with terror of the Coalies. May, her sister, drags her in farther.
Creative world building, human rights - just very well done and had me obsessed.

Thank you to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for an electronic ARC of this novel.

Esther, a teenage medical cadet, is one of The Stranded, who grew up on an exile cruise ship that was left at sea during her grandparent's era when a virus broke out on land. Destined to be on a ship that's out to sea with no end in sight, Esther is relying on her high academic scores to lead her to medical school and to finally get off the ship. Her older sister, May, is also striving to get off the ship by entering the military. Nik, a part of the rebel forces who is working against the Federated States (a fractured United States), who has control over the ship, is working to overthrow the authority and lead the boat to freedom. Who is loyal to the Federated States and who is willing to risk themselves to overthrow their power?

The Stranded, by Sarah Daniels, has an interesting premise - it's kind of a mixture of Snowpiercer, Station Eleven, our own unfortunate time, and the Hunger Games. Ruthless people out for themselves, different warring factions, makes it an interesting read. It was entertaining but not super deep. It's part of a planned duology so I'm interested in seeing what happens.

I've been craving a YA Dystopian like the golden days of Dystopia. Stranded sounded like it would be like that. And it was a little bit. Can you imagine generations stuck on the Titanic? You know, (spoiler alert) if it hadn't sank. The whole premise reminded me of Scifi Dystopia like Across the Universe and The 100. But the more I read and thought about it, the more ridiculous the plot seemed. And then I started picturing that ridiculous Disney Channel show, Suite Life on Deck. And now I'm left with more questions than answers. You're close enough that you can see the land and make out the skyline? And you're still on a boat decades later??? Sounds fake but ok. I had to quite reading because I was irritating myself with questions. Maybe they get answered later in the book. I'm not sure I care enough to find out. Maybe I'll pick it up again if there's an audiobook.

I am very indifferent about this book, it wasn’t bad but it just wasn’t my cup of tea, I’m not a sea lover so maybe just the idea of being stranded on a cruise ship just trying to survive to get to land just kinda freaks me out, but like I said it wasn’t horrible just not my cup of tea.

Enjoyable dystopian adventure. I enjoyed the strength and weakness of the characters. Hated the bad guys and I rooted for the passengers of the Arcadia. Stuck on an ocean liner due to a virus that has killed most people on land. Esther and her family have been on the ship forever. Esther is studying to be a medic and the chance to get off the ship. Her older sister May is training as military and will also be getting off the ship. But conflicts are many and Coalies are there to torture and kill anyone that looks guilty of causing trouble. I felt the ending could lead into another series.

This is a YA story in which the setting is on ship during a pandemic. This pandemic has put all of the world's population on large shipping vessels and they are stranded for forty years. The occupants of the ship have to follow the rules of the Federated States and be loyal citizens. These vessels are large and are considered so huge that they are divided into sections like a city and communities. This book is narrated by several characters in the book like: Esther, Nik, Hadley, and May. On this vessel the Arcadia there is a group of revolutionaries that are seeking to get drugs from the Federated States army for the wounded members of gangs and trying to find a way to get back on land and have freedom.
This story starts off slow and the reader has to follow the various narrations. The final 65% of the book things start to pick up and the lives are lost and the war between the members of the revolution against the army of the Federated States that once to keep control of the stranded.
I would like to thank Sourcebooks Fire publishers and Net galley for allowing me the opportunity to read this book. I'm looking forward to the second book in this series.

Where do I start? I really enjoyed the premise. I can see how this was inspired by the cruise ships that were quarantined at the beginning of the pandemic. While this was a very unique idea I fell that the author could have done more with this concept. Made this more of the focus and plot. Other than the setting there really wasn't much to do with the virus.

The characters needed to be developed better. I didn't really care about most of them. Hadley, as well as a few other characters, was an over the top Disney villain. I would have liked to see more shades of grey to his personality. Someone we can empathize with his dilemma's. Or maybe this book would have been better from just one persons POV. The story rotates between 3 central characters which may have contributed to not feeling like any of the characters were developed as well.

The pacing was slow even though the author was constantly throwing the next plotpoint at us. The last part of the book was more action packed and enjoyable.

I do not plan to continue on with this series. I think this is a young adult book that is best read by true young adults.

***Advanced copy obtained by Sourcebooks Fire via Netgalley***

I'll be the first to admit dystopian is not my go-to genre, but I'm so glad I took a chance on this one.

The cover drew me in and the story kept me there, a cruise ship full of passengers looking to have the luxury vacation of their lives, then.... the world changes overnight and that cruise ship is now a floating city that will keep "the exposed" away from land and keep everyone else safe.

Throughout the story we see glimpses of the best and worst of humanity, the best and worst of the world, and the best and worst of ourselves, putting myself into Esther's shoes, wondering what I would have done in her situation, this book plays with your brain in ways that I thoroughly enjoyed.

In something that is a blending of Divergent, The Hunger Games, and Station Eleven this book makes you want to know more about our characters and the Arcadia, who survives, where they go, and what happens next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an advance copy of this E-Book, I have voluntarily read and reviewed it and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I completely got Snowpiercer vibes from this book, but on a boat. In fact I actually pictured Chris Evans in this book. (as Nik of course, or at least an older Nik)

As familiar as this was to Snowpiercer, there were also some key differences as well. This seemed more desperate than the train and there was such a huge sense of urgency in this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!!

Landfall

Exciting and page turning, this story holds your attention throughout. It is a dystopian story about a nation after a deadly virus. Survivors are stuck on ships out in the ocean, while the Federation is on the land and very few leave the ships. People are born there and die there.

Rebels form a plan called Landfall to take back the ship and sail to freedom beyond the Federation lands. However, this plan goes terribly wrong.

The characters May, Nik, Alex, and Esther young people on different sides. The villain was Hadley the head of the Coalies a savage police force , The rebels were led by Enid, and the Gangs or below ship units were lead by Silas. The Captain even gets in on the action.
Some of the characters within the story and their adventures will live, some will perish, some will switch sides and at least on is a traitor.

If you want an action packed story this is the one for you. I recommend this story.

Thanks to Sarah Daniels for writing the story, to Sourcebooks Fire for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a copy to read and review.

Wow! This book was so interesting! I found myself binge reading this one because I wanted to know what happened next! I've read a lot of dystopian stories....and sometimes they feel a bit cookie-cutter when it comes to plot. The premise of this book was different enough that I really got into the story!

The Arcadia used to be a luxury cruise ship. But for 40 years it's been the home of refugees who aren't allowed to step onto the mainland. The POV alternates in this story between a girl struggling for the life she dreams of, a rebel and the villainous captain of the ship. Normally I really don't like POV changes, but for this story it works well. It adds dimension to the plot and expands the characters, rather than creating confusion.

I'm not going to say much about the plot past the basics as I don't want to spoil anything. This story definitely kept my attention from start to finish. I kept finding myself contemplating what living on a ship for years and years would actually be like. I don't think I would like it! And I could definitely see the problems depicted in the book actually happening to people forced to live like that as refugees. Very interesting premise! This is the start of a series. I will definitely be reading more!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Sourcebooks Fire. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

The stranded was a fast-paced dystopian thriller that I wanted to like more than I did. I felt the characters were a little underdeveloped and the plot had great potential but just never made it there for me.
I wanted to know more about the virus that had changed this world, but there wasn't a lot about it. Perhaps in the next installment, as I see this is a duology or series.

I was not so sure about this book when I started it, but quickly got sucked into the plot as I kept reading past page 50 or so. I think it ended well with the opening for the sequel, but not in a major cliffhanger in my opinion.

This book was such a ride. You go between 3 different points of view to figure out what is happening on the ship. And while this isn't totally a genre I read often, i can say I am looking forward to the next installment.

“The Stranded”(Stranded #1 of 2) by Sarah Daniels ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: YA Dystopian Thriller. A refuge settlement on a ship in the Atlantic. Time: October 20, 2094-November 13, 2094. Days at Sea: 15,934-15,954.

Former luxury cruise ship Arcadia is home to the stranded. For 40 years, refugees have lived and died on it after being driven from Europe by the apocalyptic Sickness Wars. It’s divided into haves and have-nots, gangs and shelters. They can see the Federated States’ coastline (a piece of the fractured USA), but it doesn’t want them.

Trust no one. Violent events throw 4 young Arcadia residents together as long-laid plans move toward completion. Esther’s a medic studying for a place in a land university. She did what had to be done, and her actions left a trail of destruction. Nik is an impulsive rebel, working since childhood to liberate the Arcadia. May (Esther’s sister) is a military cadet, but where do her loyalties lie? Nik and May’s rash actions resulted in ship-wide chaos. Alex is Esther’s boyfriend and fellow medic. He wants Esther at any cost. Will he go too far to ensure Esther and his safety?

Author Daniels builds a chilling world aboard the rusting, molding Arcadia.(I really wish there were floor plans of the ship’s main decks.) She fills her book with young and old, secure and insecure, evil and innocence, life and death, double crossings and betrayals. She skillfully builds and builds the tension until readers are on edge for a showdown. She creates flawed characters trying to make sense of a world filled with cruel rules.

If you liked The Hunger Games series, you’ll want to read this book. Part 1 of a duology, it’s a gripping, dystopian vision that will haunt me until the sequel comes out, so it’s 5 stars from me! Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Fire, and author Sarah Daniels for this early ebook copy.

3.5 Stars

The Stranded is a plot-driven dystopian novel that moves quickly despite the main characters never being fully realized.

The story is told through three alternating points of view: medic trainee Esther, rebel Nik, and head of security Hadley. And though the story is told by this trio, they feel more like helpers to the plot rather than the characters driving it forward.

That’s not to say that The Stranded is bad.

People being forced to stay on a cruise ship because of a virus is something we witnessed during the Covid pandemic, and the depths to which author Sarah Daniels explores this aspect feel very real. Her descriptions of the boat and daily life on it are also excellent.

It’s clear from the ending that there’s at least a sequel to The Stranded in the works. I’m hopeful that in it, Daniels will fully realize her characters’ potential. The Stranded is not the best dystopian novel I’ve read, but it’s entertaining nonetheless. I recommend checking it out from the library prior to purchase.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Cruise ships sail out of ports full of passengers eagerly anticipating their vacations. While out to sea a virus hits worldwide cities, killing many. As the virus cloaks the globe, cruise ships are denied entry into all land ports and travel the seas looking for asylum. Skip ahead a few generations and these ships are still denied entry and have to survive on help from the countries they are anchored near. Many citizens aboard this ships have never left the boats.
What makes this story all so real is the fact that at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic this was the case with several cruise lines. Can you image never going home again and continuing your life and growing your family aboard a boat with limited supplies that is crumbling into the sea. The storyline reminds me of the show Snowpiercer with the different levels of hierarchy of passengers.
The book ends in a way that could open up to a series, one that I would be interested in reading!