Remember that time last year when I read an absolutely wonderful YA timetravel novel? I loved it. I raved about it! And then I had to wait for the second installment to see what would become of my beloved characters and their quest to destroy the astrolabe and save all humanity from the treacherous clutches of the Ironwoods.
So twelve months later we receive the second (and final installment) of the Passenger duology - Wayfarer.
And I'm not sure about you, but I found Wayfarer to be totally unsatisfying.
Before everyone jumps ship and flips me the bird, please let me be clear; I love this duology. I really liked Wayfarer, but I did not love the book in the same way I loved Passenger.
Here's why:
These books should have been part of a trilogy. A duology is not enough pages to adequately tell this story and keep everyone excited. I think a trilogy would have offered a better story arc and all of the questions would have been answered.
Alex Bracken - why did you not make this a trilogy? I wish you had, but I digress.
Wayfarer begins where Passenger leaves off. Sophia and Nicholas have found themselves separated from Etta who has disappeared in a wrinkle and is now in an alternate timeline. While Nicholas and Sophia are determined to locate Etta and correct the timeline, Etta has found herself captured by the Thorns who are led by her father, Henry Hemlock. Like everyone else, the Thorns are searching the Astrolabe - a magical apparatus that can create new passages in the timeline. Armed with the knowledge that the Thorns are looking for same thing she is, Etta decides to work with her father to locate the astrolabe instead of looking for Nicholas! Meanwhile, sweet Nicholas is desperate to find Etta which leads him on his own journey through time.
Etta and Nicholas are apart for about 90% of the book - sorry folks. I believe that this will be the primary complaint from those who were fans of the first book in the duology because it's what made the dynamics of the first volume work! People want to see Nicholas and Etta chasing the astrolabe together! While each character is on their own journey and it all works out in the end, I really wanted to see them find eachother much sooner than they did. Authors take note, please do not have your main characters apart for the ENTIRE book, it's not cool.
So while I really wanted the romantc elements to be in the book I have to give credit for the historical story telling. The historical elements and creation of the alternate timeline was amazing. I really enjoyed those aspects of the story and I know that this part of the book is what the author is really passionate about. It's very well written, easy to follow and entertaining.
Character development was good - we see a lot of growth from Nicholas and Sophia. Not as much from Etta - she's still kind of a hot head. Another reason I wished we had a trilogy - I feel that there is so much more to be explored with these characters. Especially supporting characters like Rose, Henry, Li Min and the Belladonna. But I'll take what I can get, I suppose.
Despite the obvious holes in the plot and the unsatisfying relationship stuff, I will grant that the book was well written, offers a tidy ending that readers will appreciate but overall it was much weaker than the first novel.
Have you read this? If you're a fan of Passenger, did you think Wayfarer stood up to the hype?
Buy Wayfarer and Passenger on Amazon
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