The first time I picked this one up, I just couldn't get into it, but then I picked it back up and wondered why I waited. It’s been a while since I read a dystopian novel. Set in the future, the world has a virus that is preventing the Arcadia from making landfall. Chapters begin with how long the Arcadia has been at sea and how long since there was a positive test for this virus to keep reminding the reader, what is at stake. Did I mention the Arcadia is a luxury cruise ship at sea. The residents are lacking in so much and certain professions are promised a chance at making it to land.

This one is really action packed from the first chapter with both good and bad aboard the ship and I was not always able to determine which was which. There was heartache and hope as the war waged. It really drew me into their world and had me rooting for our young heroes and heroines. I can’t wait to see where this series is headed.

This was very good and I would read anything from this Author. I enjoyed the storyline and the characters very much.

Sadly, I had to DNF this book:(

I got about 50% through and it felt like such a chore. I liked the multi pov, except for the pov of the cop type character. I really thought this would give more of a divergent vibe and while the setting was really unique, it felt like the plot was really dragged on.

The premise of this book was very interesting, however, it did not meet my expectations. Perhaps because it is a cruise ship and I should know better because I am already terrified of cruises. It was an interesting read but not really my cup of tea. Others may love it though! Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC.

I tried to get into the story but it didn’t ended up working out . The writing style was hard too get into, and the characters didn't really mesh for me. The story seemed promising but it just ended up not being my thing.

Everything about the description drew me in and made me so excited to dive in. Unfortunately, this one missed the mark to me. I wanted more… tension I suppose. The first and last 5-10% were the most engaging but I don’t think it was enough for me to read one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am generally a fan of post-apocalyptic novels as well as an avid YA reader. I also find cruises fairly terrifying, so this book was right up my alley. This debut novel was ambitious and mostly kept my attention. I did think it was a bit drawn out and meandering at parts.

I was really excited for this one, but for some reason, it just fell short for me. The idea of a full society being stranded on a cruise ship fighting for survival seemed like a great concept. For me, the characters just didn't cut it. The main bad guy annoyed me. Arcadia is the ship, and no one is allowed off the ship. A faction of rebels is trying to liberate the Arcadia and our main character Esther finds herself right in the middle of the uprising. Can she survive and make it to land? Again an interesting concept, but the execution just wasn't there for me. 3.5 stars because I was able to finish it. Thank you, NetGalley, for the eARC.

The Stranded was a very interesting read! I enjoyed reading it, but do think it will be a while before I take a cruise.

This book is gripping and easy to follow. The world-building is good and expands as the novel progresses. I found some parts a little slow and lagging behind the plot, but there's room for growth as the series continues. I love a good villain who is not redeemable, and our heroine is one you can really get behind. Four stars.

Title: The Stranded
Author: Sarah Daniels
Release Date: January 3rd, 2023
Page Count: 450
Format: Netgalley
Start Date: December 26th, 2022
Finish Date: December 31st, 2022

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

Imagine being on a ship all your life because of a major pandemic that hit and the people in the reformed world think that if you join them that they will be at risk for the pandemic happening again. People are promised that they may be selected to join the island if they sign up for certain jobs and pass certain tests. This book is told in four points of view. Each point of view is just as important as the other. I feel like if it was only told in any of their perspectives that this story just wouldn't make as much sense. The book was intense. I'd love to read it again after a while if I'm being honest. I am curious to read other books by this author. She definitely has a wonderful writing style. Also, this cover is so wonderful! I bought a copy for myself and my mother and then wound up getting a copy from a book subscription box I was trying out. I'm hoping to find someone to give my extra copy a good home to.

The Stranded is the first in a YA Dystopian/Sci-fi/Thriller series that is marketed as The Hunger Games meets Station Eleven.

The book takes place on the Arcadia, a luxurious cruise ship that is now a safe haven/refugee camp for those who have been driven out of Europe due to an apocalyptic war. The Arcadia just happens to float right near the coastline of the Federated States, which is just a fractured and leftover piece of the US. The Arcadia has housed residents for over 40 years and these residents are never allowed to step foot on land. We meet one of our main characters name Esther and Esther is one to never step out of line and is always a law-abiding citizen. However, we have a contrast against Esther's character with another character named Nik who is just planning a rebellion and loves to go against authority. Then, there is Hadley, and he is our villain.

So, let's talk about teenage Kayla. My high school years were from 2009-2013 (it is a seriously ouch year of it being 2023 since that means I graduated 10 years ago) and do you all want to know what the hot genre was during those year? You guessed it, it was dystopian books. They were all the rage with The Hunger Games, The Selection, Delirium (still my fav one to date), Uglies (came out a few years before the boom of dystopian books), Matched, Divergent, Withered and so many other books. I was beyond obsessed with the genre and constantly devouring them when I was on the bus and whenever I finished my classwork. Because of my great love of dystopian novels back when I was a teenager, I was excited to see The Stranded with some hopes of the dystopian trend coming back and maybe with a different take on it compared to a decade or more ago.

The thing that The Stranded has going for it is that it has a good concept and plays apart with a virus and an apocalyptic war that has driven people out to seek refuge onto a ship, which makes the people feel secure and safe when in reality it probably is not no better than anything else/a good thing ends up becoming corrupt in the end with a different gain than what it was supposed to be.

That is all I can possibly say that The Stranded has going for it.

As I was reading this book, I felt like the pacing was all over the place and that it could not choose where it wanted to be and because of that it took me out of the story a lot, which when my mind wanders off a bit when reading a book, then that is not a good sign because that means I am really becoming disengaged a lot. For the characters, they felt pretty one dimensional and not flushed out well. They did feel pretty cookie cutter and did not find their voice to be unique and make the story what it could have been.

Overall, I struggled with this book and wish I could have liked it and it makes teenage Kayla a bit sad, but it is okay. I think Sarah Daniels has potential and could grow as a writer and I would give this author another shot with a future book to see if there was any growth.

3.5 stars

I was so excited for The Stranded because it kind of reminded me of Dead Silence meets The Hunger Games but in reality I was just a little bored. The characters lacked any true depth and instead just felt like archetypes against each other. I also did not realize this was going to be the start of a series and I'm really not interested in more from this.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

''Once a luxurious cruise ship, 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. Nik is a rebel, planning something big to liberate the Arcadia once and for all.

When events throw them both together, their lives, and the lives of everyone on the ship, will change forever ''


The author focused this work on three main characters – a rebel, a medical trainee, and the leader of the military police aboard the ship. This was a fun way to get a glimpse into the main three factions aboard the Arcadia. The characters were interesting, and their varied personalities and goals made for an enjoyable cast, but I felt that they were lacking in true development.

Some YA books can be enjoyed by all ages, but I’d only recommend this to those that really adore YA. It reads on the younger side, even though it has some darker content.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire for providing an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed this book and it kept my attention from start to finish. I'd definitely read more by this author in the future!

I could not finish enough of this book to be able to leave a comprehensive review, but I hope it finds its audience and I am grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

I was hooked as soon as I heard the intriguing concept of this book—a cruise ship turned refugee camp that has become its own micro-society. The dystopian setting shows a post-Civil-war US that is now split into two countries, which of course provokes thoughts about the state of our own divided nation. And the story also reflects themes of the handling of immigrants and refugees, all while catching the reader up in the action of a rebellion that does not go according to plan. The book is told from three points of view, a boy who is directly involved in the rebellion, a girl who is unknowingly swept up in the conflict, and a ship security officer who is bound and determined to crush anyone who even thinks of sowing discord and ruining his plans to finally make his way back to dry land. When I was finished reading, I was ready to pick up book two and find out what happens next! Looks like I’ll only have to wait until July?

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced review copy of “The Stranded” by Sarah Daniels. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

The setting for this book is a really cool idea and seemed well researched. Cruise ships freak me out (especially from the pandemic horrors) and I would never willingly get on one. But this story really intrigued me to have this dystopian setting on cruise ships stuck at sea.

That being said, it did seem like the characters shouldn’t have had as much knowledge of things since they’ve been on the boat for generations and not everyone gets an education. It pulled me out of the story a little every time I had to wonder if the characters would actually know about certain things.

There are a few different POVs. I kind of wish we didn’t have the antagonists POV. It reveals there’s a traitor and I would have liked to not have seen that coming and been as taken off guard as Ester. I liked Ester and Nick’s POVs but I really hope they aren’t going to end up in a romance in the next book. From reading the blurb it seems like that is the direction the book is going and I wish it wouldn’t. Can’t they just be friends? Plus Nick was in love with Ester’s sister.

The ending was a bit frustrating as Ester’s constant indecision causes a lot of problems. I think this was realistic as she’s just a kid but it was still frustrating to read. Her indecision is a big reason why she and Nick shouldn’t end up together since it has tragic consequences. I didn’t understand why Nick kept feeling obligated to protect Ester. One minor thing was how the characters have parents but don’t seem to care how their actions could endanger their parents. Ester has this very late afterthought about what’s happened to her parents when it was way too late to try and get to them. I know there’s kind of a stereotype of YA books killing off parents but this book treated the living parents kind of strange and like an afterthought.

I might pick up the second book. The first one set up some interesting things in the sequel. I’m just really really really not rooting for Ester and Nick to be a couple.

Also not every dystopian book needs to be compared to The Hunger Games. This had an interesting setting but did not give me Hunger Games vibes. Every dystopian book is not the Hunger Games.

3/5 stars

The premise of this story really intrigued me. I love dystopian fiction and the idea of a group of people forced into quarantine on a ship for literal generations was ingenious! I wish I loved this book the way I expected to, but even though the worldbuilding was fantastic, the characters were so wooden and the plot was so predictable that I just didn't care what happened. The villain was a revolting person, but he was still the best character in the book, in my opinion, because he had a compelling backstory and showed his teeth; everyone else simply felt like a pawn to further the story with no emotion to back up their motives and actions, and I felt I could see the events unfolding well in advance. I'm sad to say I don't have any interest in continuing the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy of this book.

I'm conflicted. I am an adult reading a dystopian young adult book, so I'm not the intended audience. I liked parts and will probably read the second in the duology to finish it I just didn't connect with the story as much as I was hoping I guess.