Fell flat
As someone who works in the entertainment industry, I know a few people who were stuck at their jobs on cruise ships when Covid19 hit. A few of these people were stuck for months, moved into the guest cabins but not allowed out to socialise or go anywhere. Inspired by stories like these, Sarah Daniels paints a picture of 40 years having passed, with people still stuck aboard ships with a repressive regime, rampant gangs and a threat of an outside virus. It's a brilliant premise and I was excited to read more.
There's no doubt that this is a strong and interesting premise but perhaps because of my high expectations, I finished The Stranded feeling a little disappointed. Firstly, I felt the book could have been improved with a lot more world-building. What was presented was interesting, but it all felt a little flat. We know little about the virus which started everything off and I also struggled to picture the layout of the ship particularly well. I couldn't really understand how this ship was still in liveable condition after 40 years at sea and how the inhabitants were able to have technology or food. There is a brief explanation of the oppressive land regime giving them the essentials, but I didn't really get why this was done or what currency was used to barter anything. If this had been set maybe a few years after the world-ending event, I personally feel it would have felt a lot more realistic.
The chapters alternate perspective, from medical-student Esther, revolutionary Nik and Officer Hadley. The perspectives and narrative voices were all quite distinct, but I didn't really feel that I empathised much with these three or any of the other characters presented. In fact, the most interesting one was the evil character Hadley which confused matters a little. The bad characters all felt very stereotypical, making evil decisions for the sake of it which didn't make them feel real. The good characters also made some very confusing and odd decisions at times and Esther in particular I found to be very annoying.
The plot was also a bit too convenient, there's a 'good' character that gets shot multiple times with no real consequences and then if that happened to a side-character they would die instantly. New technology is randomly introduced to fix problems without any real backstory in how it was procured or why it would be on the ship in the first place. I also really didn't understand what the rebels plan was - the end plot in particular just seemed silly and I have no idea what would have happened next if the plan had gone ahead. The virus is very much side-lined which seemed a shame, especially with the virus count being included in the Captain's speech at the top of chapters which led me into thinking that the numbers may start to climb.
The Stranded is a duology with an abrupt, cliff-hanger ending but I'm not sure this first instalment has done enough to warrant me wanting to pick up the next one I'm afraid. There's a brilliant premise under there but it's covered by a convenient plot, flat characters and vague world building. Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House UK for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
