A couple of these views are told through first person and a third point of view through third person. Under pressure of human rights groups, the Federated States agreed to supply provisions to the ships until the virus outbreak has been contained. This dystopic techno-thriller for young adults is part one of a duology and I am looking forward to finding out the fates of the Arcadia and her inhabitants in the final instalment. We have three alternating POVs: Sixteen year old Nik who is trying to help cause a rebellion: A act to liberate the Arcadia.

The Stranded | Sarah Daniels | 9780241507964 | NetGalley The Stranded | Sarah Daniels | 9780241507964 | NetGalley

I never felt that with this, because I didn't feel like I really knew anything about the world, or what led them to be in the current state. I would highly recommend having The Exiled on hand, like me as I will be diving straight into that book this week. This was everything I want in a YA book – a near-future dystopian world that challenges our current social and political standards, strong characters, high action, NO love triangles (I don't know who wrote the blurb but they clearly have not read the book), and fascinating sci-fi tech.I don’t read/ watch much dystopian so my comparisons are quite narrow, but this really did give me Hunger Games and Divergent vibes. The descriptions of where people resided with the haves and the have nots reminded me of the Titanic with the poor staying below deck. Being older now I tend to gravitate towards more adult books so I am pretty picky about what few YA books I read and this one just checks the boxes! Now I've never been on a cruise ship before, or any boat really, so I have absolutely no idea how I would feel if I was trapped on one for years.

The Stranded - Penguin Books UK The Stranded - Penguin Books UK

The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. 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. Told from multiple viewpoints of passengers on the ship, this novel takes off not like a cruise ship, but rather a rocket ship--blasting off at full speed. For 40 years many citizen have lived upon this ocean liner that has protected these citizens, these refugees from the virus that broke out across Europe, it plagued the world into an apocalyptic war.This fast-paced, action-packed, near-future thriller explores social and political issues that feel relevant today. That drew me in instantly with the familiarity of it but the plot line itself was something I haven’t read before.

The Stranded by Sarah Daniels | The StoryGraph The Stranded by Sarah Daniels | The StoryGraph

People in close proximity to rule breakers would be arrested while the actual rule breakers got away. The tension of Suzanne Collins meets the heartbreak of Malorie Blackman, with echoes of Station Eleven. Based on the Diamond Princess at the start of the Covid pandemic, this story explores what might have happened had the passengers not been allowed to leave - for decades. This was such an amazing debut and a great way to ease into sci-fi books for those who are hesitant with the genre.Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author. Formerly a luxury cruise ship, the Arcadia became a refuge for those fleeing Europe after a deadly virus was unleashed during biological warfare in this duology opener.