Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken | Book Review

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I've been orphaned by my time. The timeline has changed. My future is gone. Etta Spencer didn't know she was a traveler until the day she emerged both miles and years from her home. Now, robbed of the powerful object that was her only hope of saving her mother, Etta finds herself stranded once more, cut off from Nicholas—the eighteenth century privateer she loves—and her natural time. When Etta inadvertently stumbles into the heart of the Thorns, the renegade travelers who stole the astrolabe from her, she vows to finish what she started and destroy the astrolabe once and for all. Instead, she's blindsided by a bombshell revelation from their leader, Henry Hemlock: he is her father. Suddenly questioning everything she's been fighting for, Etta must choose a path, one that could transform her future. Still devastated by Etta's disappearance, Nicholas has enlisted the unlikely help of Sophia Ironwood and a cheeky mercenary-for-hire to track both her and the missing astrolabe down. But as the tremors of change to the timeline grow stronger and the stakes for recovering the astrolabe mount, they discover an ancient power far more frightening than the rival travelers currently locked in a battle for control. . . a power that threatens to eradicate the timeline altogether. From colonial Nassau to New York City, San Francisco to Roman Carthage, imperial Russia to the Vatican catacombs, New York Times #1 best-selling author Alexandra Bracken charts a gorgeously detailed, thrilling course through time in this stunning conclusion to the Passenger series.

Wayfarer is the final book in Alexandra Bracken’s time travel romantic duology. First, shout out to duologies – I feel like I’ve really accomplished something when I finish them. It’s just nice to have a story that neatly resolves after two books. Second, whoa this is one duology that is absolutely necessary. Believe you me, if you like time travel, historical fiction, and danger with a side of kissing, Passenger and Wayfarer are the books for you. Also, if I were you and I hadn’t already read Passenger, I would stop this reading this review right here and click on the link for my review of Passenger in the previous sentence. Then you can come back once you’ve read Passenger, because spoilers are kind of the worst.

You know how Passenger basically leaves off with what seems like Etta dying, Etta’s mother coming up out of nowhere, and Nicholas arriving too late? Well, Wayfarer picks up where we leave off. Except for the prologue – that has to do with Rose Linden’s past and we see a very brief glimpse of what happens to her parents. FYI, it is not very good at all. So, anyways, Etta is in San Francisco in the 1900s just after the earthquake.

On the plus side, we finally get to meet her dad and it is exactly whom you would think it is. Then there’s Nicholas who is back in the 1700s pretty much with Sophia, trying to get information on the astrolabe. Meanwhile, there is yet another character whom we all thought was dead but is totally not. And so, much of Wayfarer is a race throughout time to find the astrolabe and to stop Cyrus Ironwood from getting it and messing up basically everyone’s lives throughout history.

As you likely expected, Etta continues to develop as a character. We get to see her form bonds and a relationship with her dad. At the same time, she’s working through her feelings of betrayal by her mother. And then there is this whole overarching plan that involves Etta’s mom. Also, Etta is still grieving Rose. I liked how Wayfarer doubles down on Etta being loyal, brave and true. Ultimately, Bracken’s development of Etta won me over.

However, when it comes to Nicholas, I think that I like his parts and scenes best. He definitely has a more complex situation that Etta. Nicholas has spent much of his life being treated like a valet and second class citizen because of the color of his skin. He is not really treated as someone who is worthy of the Ironwood name despite having Ironwood blood. I just felt like his struggles seemed more intense. Also, also, can I say how much I love his bond with Etta even though the two pretty much spend the entire book apart but when they finally come back into each other’s lives it is perfect.

Wayfarer contains a continuation of Alexandra Bracken’s brilliant world building. The travelers move through time via passages. These passages are watched by guardians. Meanwhile, the travelers can have an impact on time and change events. However, if they stray too far, time has a solution for that. I am not normally huge on the mechanics of time travel because it tends to go over my head. However, I did really enjoy how this book portrays time travel. Also — the different time periods selected were so, so interesting.

So what should you expect when reading Wayfarer as compared to Passenger? I think that there’s a lot more action, but also less romance. This book feels just as thick as its predecessor. However, the chapters are a bit shorter and there are more blank pages. It is still a really long read though. There’s more travel to different places. Some of the side characters come into play and actually are much more developed and end up surprising us all in the end. There’s actually diversity in sexuality and race in this book. I can’t speak to how well it is handled because I am not marginalized, but there is some well deserved spotlight. In all, I loved Wayfarer as a follow up to Alexandra Bracken’s Passenger.

Other reviews of Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken:

• Rattle The Pages – “There isn’t a dull moment in this book“
• Forever Bound By Books – “The end of this book was PERFECT!“
• Caffeinated Book Reviewer – “a captivating tale and satisfying conclusion”

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April (Books&Wine)

April is in her 30s and created Good Books And Good Wine. She works for a non-profit. April always has a book on hand. In her free time she can be found binge watching The Office with her husband and toddler, spending way too much time on Pinterest or exploring her neighborhood.

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