I loved this book! Its setting is terrifying in how realistic it could be. I love the characters and the depths of their personalities. There were a few bits that had be worried a certain relationship would set sail and I would've absolutely hated it, but I'm so glad we didn't go down that route. We have crazy science and fighting for freedom from two angles. I don't know if there's a plan for a sequel but I would love to see more of the story, while also being totally content with it ending here.

TW: Violence, family death, police violence, injury

REVIEW: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

The Stranded is the story of a cruise ship that many years in the future has been made into a prison ship floating off the Coast of a war-torn and virus-torn USA. It follows two teenagers, Nik and Esther, as they and a rebel group on the ship try to free the passengers trapped on board.

I thought that this book had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, I don’t think it lived up to that potential as well as it could have.

First, three things I liked about this book.

I really liked the basic premise. It was a cool idea to have people trapped on a ship and to have to adapt to life constantly at sea on something that had once been extravagant, but wasn’t anymore.
There was a lot of action and a lot going on.
The writing itself was good and there were a lot of nice turns of phrase.

Second, three things I didn’t like about this book.

It was honestly confusing in places. I think there were parts where there wasn’t enough back story and there wasn’t enough that the reader had been told to actually understand what was going on. This includes the whole rebel plot that wasn’t actually made sense of until the very end.
The first 1/3 of the book was really, really slow and then it seemed like the rest of the book had to hurry to catch up.
The ending. It was a cliffhanger ending which left a lot of stuff unfinished and didn’t give the reader a sense of completion. It was also kind of unrealistic.

All in all this was a book with a lot of potential, but it wasn’t a book for me.

Great atmospheric read. Descriptive writing that makes you feel like you’re on the boat living the experience with the characters. You can feel the salt spray in your face and the harsh weather. Loved this dystopian read and will look for more by this author. So glad I got the chance to read an advanced copy, thank you NetGalley! Highly recommend, suspenseful page turner that draws you in, with multiple points of view and a different take on a dystopian situation for the world I hadn’t seen done before. Cool idea from a book point of view .

Welcome to the Arcadia, what was intended to be a luxury cruise, has ended up becoming home for both the ticketed as well as last minute stowaways. It’s the near distant future and the world is in a state of turmoil. Europe and the Federated States (what’s left of the United States) have been torn apart over a fast spreading virus that caused an apocalyptic world war.

For 40 years the passengers of the Arcadia have been without a real home. Stuck in limbo on a ship, just off the coast of the Federated States, they are reliant upon regular supply shipments and hope each year will be the one they can make landfall. No country wants them for fear that they carry the virus. Life on board rapidly becomes a world of haves and have-nots.

Told in alternating view points we learn about Hadley and his Coalies, a pseudo army, from the States on board to keep order. Nik’s point of view represents the small, but growing contingent of rebels who have had enough of Hadley’s martial law and are preparing to rise up and reclaim their ship. Finally, Esther, who is a bit oblivious of the tension on board. She just wants a chance at a normal life. She is one of the fortune few in a small program of students being trained as medics on the Arcadia, who have a chance to go to the Federated States for medical school.

Fast paced and full of interesting futuristic tech, The Stranded is the type of young adult dystopian fiction that will quickly gain an audience. This was a great debut novel and it set up to be the first in a series. Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Fire, and of course Sarah Daniels for the advanced copy of the book. The Stranded is out January 3, 2023. All opinions are my own.

I am conflicted on this one. It started out slowly, then grabbed me. A cruise ship stuffed with more passengers than it is designed for leaves England just before a pandemic wipes it out along with the rest of Europe. The ship sails to the Federated States (part of the former United States) where it is not allowed to land and sits rusting away for forty years. It’s now 2094 and we learn of a plan by some of the passengers to take over the ship and get it to safety. The plan is revealed slowly and the reader given a glimpse of the main characters in the rebellion so he/she knows more than the main character (Esther.) And we know that those she feels are against her are the very persons who are on her side. All exciting. Then we get down to the wire and the rebellion begins. But that’s where the story falls flat. Too ambiguous, too many inconsistencies. I felt cheated and ticked off that I’d wasted my time. I am assuming this was done purposely and a sequel is on the way but that doesn’t excuse the poor ending and I have no interest in reading any more about these characters. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an advance copy in return for an honest review.

What an action-packed novel! While rebellion against an oppressive force is not new, the tension and intertwining plot lines ensured this book cannot be put down until the end.
Nik, Ester and their allies do their best to support the rebellion cause. Stuck on a ship just outside the Federated States of America, they have never been on land. Their parents have never been on land. Decades have passed and hope seems all but lost that they will get the chance to join the Federated States. Crackdowns continues and stricter laws enacted as the security forces try to maintain control of a ship that’s headed for destruction.

The world building and multiple POVs enhanced this story as each character tries to stay alive under the crushing weight of the Federated States.

Don’t miss out on this one!

ARC kindly provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ooooh. From the moment I saw this premise I was desperate for an ARC and although it wasn't perfect I'm really glad I read it. I love a good pandemic book and this one is dramatized from the cruise ships who were stranded at the start of the pandemic - except this took it to the next level, a new society has formed on the boat after 40 years of being stranded off the coast of the USA.

The book took some risks, especially near the end, which I thought were cool for a YA novel. The characters were a bit frustrating at times, but in a very YA way. The romance was a bit annoying though.

Overall, not a perfect read but definitely worthwhile! 3 stars!

Finally a YA dystopian book that hooked me! It’s one of my favorite genres and I was all in on this one.
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Once a luxury cruise ship, it’s now home to a refuge camp, post war. It spends its days floating near the Federated states, which were once the United States. The occupants haven’t been able to make landfall for forty years.
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May and her sister Esther have spent their entire lies on the ship, where one follows the rules and one is looking for rebellion. This has some fantastic world building and I loved the multiple POVs. Shady government dealings, hi-tech weapons, the fall of the United States and all on the water really ups the tension. I really hope there’s a book two.
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Thank you randomhouse and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was so integrated with the description of this book but it felt like it fell flat. There were parts of the story that were slow and boring to me, and I skimmed parts to get to the good stuff. The action scenes were good and the character development was pretty good too. The scary thing is that the book is realistic as the premise is something that could have happened at the beginning of the COVID pandemic. I found holes in the story though - how do people survive for 15000 days at sea? I wanted to hear more about daily life and found myself curious about that instead of the drama that was unfolding with the characters. In the end, it did feel a bit rushed and kind of chaotic too. Somehow, I enjoyed it all and am happy that I got the chance to read it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this free ARC.

The Stranded is an original take on post-apocalyptic dystopia. With intrigue, action and suspense, it's perfect for those of us that enjoy a grittier story.

I thoroughly enjoyed it!

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from SOURCEBOOKS Fire and #NetGalley. Thank you to the publishers, NetGalley and the author for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Wow. This story has so many layers and well drawn characters.

I feel weird saying I enjoy a dystopian read, so maybe fascinating is the better way to explain it? Either adjective, I'm always intrigued by visions of the future. This one focuses on a cruise ship. Once a luxury vacation spot, it's now a floating refugee resident due to apocalyptic virus wars. The story focuses on three different stories of three individuals with different roles and perspectives on the current reality. I will say this was a creative premise, and I found I wanted to know more. There was some stuff about how they got to this point and the world in this time, and I just wanted more of that as it was a new spin on the not so distant future. I do anticipate there'll be more in this series, so I hope I'll get it then. I did really like that this was told from different vantage points as it was interesting to see how different situations played out. Thanks to NetGalley for the early look at this January 2023 release!

Station Eleven meets Covid meets teens. Interesting and kept fairly realistic-feeling. Short chapters, narrated by first person characters, give different viewpoints for the reader to string together. A little hard to piece together the setting and why everyone was stranded on a ship for a while, but I worked it out about q/3 of the way through. Te climax and ending felt rushed, and it felt very unresolved in the end. Left open for a sequel, I’m guessing. I’d read the sequel.

The setting of the book was really interesting. Held under Draconian government rule the inhabitants of the Arcadia live in a nightmare. The Arcadia was once a luxurious cruise ship... until it became a refugee camp after being driven from Europe by an apocalyptic war. Now it floats near the coastline of the Federated States - a leftover piece of a fractured USA. For forty years, residents of the Arcadia have been prohibited from making landfall. It is a world of extreme haves and have nots, gangs and make-shift shelters. Esther is a loyal citizen, working flat-out to have the rare chance to live a normal life as a medic on dry land. The story jumps from one character to the next. Ben is a rebel, planning something big to liberate the Arcadia once and for all. We follow Ester and Nik as they lead the forefront of the underground movement to rid the ship of their oppressors. Fast paced and well written, ending with an obvious nod to a sequel.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the opportunity to read this book! Unfortunately The Stranded just wasn't for me. I'm not sure if it was my attention span or if the pacing was just too slow, but I could never really get hooked into the story.

This one was not my usual style, but I am for it! This one was great and had me turning the pages! Awesome debut.

This is a great dystopian novel about a remnant of Earth's surviving population stranded on a ship for decades after a devastating outbreak on land. You have a society of different classes on the ship, as well as the ruling body of land-dwellers who control the fate of the ship dwellers. Those on the ship want to integrate with the survivors on land, but are repeatedly denied the opportunity due to the (unlikely) risk of contamination, The main characters are Nik and May (cadets of the rebellion, working behind the scenes to free those living on the Arcadia), and Esther and Alex (medics-in-training that don't want to jeopardize their educational pursuits). The characters push-and-pull on each other, and their individual choices have dramatic effects on each other and on the living situation of those on the ship. This is a great novel with a lot of moving parts, working together to reach an inevitable collision between the two sides. A fully engaging read that left me hanging because I just have to know what happens next!

Pacing in the first third was super slow and left me confused at times. Also, sorry to say, but Esther is unlikeable with her dithering and anxiety. Overall though, it is a decent book, best for those rainy days when it’s too much effort to get off the couch.

The Stranded is a crazily realistic story that transports you to a dystopian world with little hope for the future. In Stranded, we are introduced to the Arcadia - previously a large cruise from Europe. 40 years after a world war and deadly virus has decimated the Earth, the Arcadia is now packed with refugees and floating listlessly off the coast of what was previously the United States. The dwellers of the Arcadia are divided by class, with those who paid for first class seats still able to access the boats decks and what amenities are left quite easily, leaving the crew and the lower class dwellers "The 'Neaths" to scramble for food and space. The Ship has not been able to negotiate a landing for the refugees aboard and as the resources dwindle the ship dwellers are spinning toward mutiny

Esther is an Aracadian hoping to make it off the ship via her desire to study to become a doctor. She is unwittingly dragged into the ship rebellion. It's chaotic and exciting and the perfect Ya novel. If you like dystopia, new worlds and strong heroines, The Stranded is for you! . #sourcebooks

It was a full-speed ride from start to finish with almost no room to breathe. We were tossed from one POV to other POV from each characters and I enjoyed it a lot!
Reading The Stranded was a little confusing for first few chapters as I tried to figure out both the world building and the characters, but it got easier the longer I read, and before I realized I have finished it! It was intense and heartbreaking, and I like it a lot. My fav characters are probably Nikhil and May!
Overall, it was amazing suspense dystopian!