I had a difficult time getting into this long novel. I fear that's more me than the author. I don't want to post anything negative about the experience because the writing is more than confident, the characters well-drawn, and the plot will certainly appeal to a large audience. A group of survivors on an island? Much to mine there and Cronin does. Again, just not for me. Still recommended.

Let me start this review by saying I think a LOT of people will LOVE this book. I suspect it could end up as a favorite for many. For myself though, I was hoping to like it more. There were certainly aspects that I did like, but on the whole I was let down. I knew where it was going right from the beginning (not all of the specifics of course, but the general idea) because it was a composite of three common science-fiction stories. Another issue I had was that it felt like half the book was exposition; maybe more, since besides all of the exposition in the first two thirds, almost the entire last third was exposition. There problem was that there was so much that needed to be explained (plus there was a lot of unnecessary exposition). And yet the biggest and most glaring problem was never really addressed. The author could have simplified things drastically so there wouldn't need to be so much to explain. Or at least he could have trusted that we didn't need so much explained. (I'm reminded of how in the original Star Wars, the Force is explained in a line or two and everyone was OK with that, but then George foolishly added way more-- and stupid-- explanation in the prequels.) Then again, for people who aren't as familiar with the three kinds of stories he's blending, maybe it won't be a problem because it'll all be new and interesting to them-- again, I'm not saying the book is bad, just that I wasn't a fan.

I knew as soon as I saw this book I’d enjoy it, I don’t ever doubt that I’ll enjoy a book by Justin Cronin. The Ferryman, was such an interesting concept and I was wrapped up in the story right from the start. The atmosphere and characters were excellent and I was completely taken with the writing. What can I say, I’m a huge fan of Cronin’s books and this was one of my favorite reads of 2022.

People who know me, know that I review mostly science fiction, and while it may not be apparent from the beginning, Justin Cronin’s new stand-alone novel is definitely science fiction. That said, Cronin’s fame rests not in SF fandom, but as author of the 2010 best-selling post-apocalyptic The Passage. So you know, I have not read The Passage trilogy or seen its television adaptation – and Cronin is a new writer to me.

The story opens in a seemingly normal world, on the small fictional island-state of Prospera, whose culture is vaguely contemporary upper-class American. Cynthia is committing suicide by drowning herself, recalling her and her husband Malcolm’s adoption of a teenager named Proctor. After this prolog, Proctor becomes the middle-aged first-person narrator of the story. At the onset, there are some things not right about this setting – everyone has a monitor installed in their arm that shows their health as a percentage of optimal. When it gets down to 10%, usually in old age, the person voluntarily or involuntarily retires to another island called the Annex, where they are recycled into new children to be adopted by other Prosperans. Proctor is a Ferryman, whose job is to escort the retirees to the Annex. And yet, in spite of these profound differences, everyone behaves just like in our own world. This is obviously some sort of synthetic world, although the reality behind it remains a mystery to the reader. Even the era in which the synthetic world exists is technologically inconsistent – there are observation drones, and yet Proctor checks the time on his wristwatch. No cell phones, no internet.

Proctor is assigned to escort his widower father Malcolm to the Annex. At the last moment, Malcolm makes a break for it, and whispers a secret to Proctor. Things get complicated from there, and I’m going to stop telling the story, for the sake of both plot spoilers, and world-building spoilers. At approximately 75% of the novel’s length, there is a big reveal info-dump. Anyone who is “shocked” at that point, seriously needs to read more science fiction. Unlike most genre SF, there is a great deal more character and relationship development, which seems consistent with best-seller audiences. At the same time, I have some quibbles with the science, although it is difficult to discuss them without spoilers. Suffice it to say, I think this novel assumes a theory of mind for which there is no scientific evidence. I expect this novel will sell very well, given Cronin’s past works, and introduce new readers to concepts which have long been tropes within the science fiction genre.

I read an advance Digital Review Copy of The Ferryman in an ebook format, which I received from Ballantine Books (an imprint of Random House) through netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review on social media platforms and on my book review blog. This new title is tentatively scheduled for release on 2 May 2023.

Prospera is a wonderful place to live, if you are one of the lucky, You start life as a teenager and move through your life until you get old. Then you retire yourself and come back again. Proctor is happy enough in his life, in spite of the dreams he is having. Things aren't completely as they seem in Prospera as there is a revolt underway. This book takes you through so many twists and turns. It is so beautifully written, you fall right into the story and become a part of Prospera. Wow, just wow!

As with all Justin Cronin books, "The Ferryman" packs a thrill ride of a science fiction dystopian driven with a powerful narrative. With the thrill of "The Matrix" meets "1984", readers will not be disappointed in this latest by Justin Cronin.

Set in a dystopian world of three islands known as Prospera, Annex, and Nursery Isle. The story is told by the main character Proctor Bennett. Proctor Bennett is the director for District Six of the Department of Social Contracts, Enforcement Division, a. k. a. “Ferryman” who accompany the elder citizens to the Nursery Isle where their memories are erased and a second chance to be reborn awaits.

As with Mr. Cronin's style events unfold that lead the main character on a path of awakening. Readers will be thrilled, lost, and brillantly awakened with questions that just serve towards the beautiful ending.

Highly recommend!

Wow! I can honestly say I was surprised how good this story was and I can't recommend it enough. Great characters, great story and uncontrollable ride. A must read,!!!

As a big fan of "The Passage" series, I had high hopes for this one, and I was not disappointed.

This book is engaging, fast-paced, and kept me wanting more. It is a story of humanity, adventure, and what it means to do better as a society.

There are intriguing concepts and constant twists that managed to be both grand and intimate.

This utopian/dystopian science fiction mystery with a literary flair must be one of the odder novels I've read in quite some time. Enjoyable, but decidedly odd.

Climate change has plunged our world into chaos. Except on Prospera, an isolated, completely self-contained archipelago somewhere in the middle of an ocean where certain chosen residents live very long, very happy lives. At life’s end, a Prosperan is returned to “the Nursery” for “reiteration,” or rebirth, to go on and live yet another long and perfect life with no memory of previous lives. Normal humans living in near poverty perform all the hard, distasteful work (housekeeping, gardening, garbage collection, sewer maintenance, etc.) needed to keep Prosperan lives perfect.

Proctor Bennet is a “ferryman,” responsible for shepherding those ready for reiteration back to the Nursery. It’s rewarding work and Proctor is good at it. And he’s married to a beautiful woman who is the daughter of the woman who heads Prospera’s government. Like all other Prosperans, he has a perfect life. Or does he? He seems melancholy. His health score is decreasing rapidly. And he has begun to dream. Prosperans are not supposed to dream. Has something gone wrong? Is Proctor about to do serious damage to this finely-tuned world? Must he be forcibly returned to the Nursery for early reiteration?

“The Ferryman” struck me as being perfect for fans of works like “Bladerunner,” “1984,” “Brave New World,” “We,” “The Handmaid’s Tale,” and “Fahrenheit 451” (although this story is quite different from those). Kudos to author Justin Cronin for his exceedingly creative imagination, masterful world-building, and finely crafted, gem-filled prose. He gives us well-drawn characters that are believable, have depth, and that readers can care about. Exploring themes such as climate change, societal inequality, duplicity amongst the powerful, and the rights of individuals to self-determination, he manages to draw more than one parallel between his fictional world and our own.

However, while I enjoyed the first two-thirds of "The Ferryman," I found the final third somewhat convoluted and confusing. Comparing that final third with what comes before, I’m not sure the novel hangs together all that well. Also, it seemed to me an overlong work that could stand some cutting.

All in all, I enjoyed “The Ferryman” but found it flawed; which is why I’m giving it 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with an electronic ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.

I always liked his books but this was a disappointment. I finished it too. This story started off so good and I definitely was interested but as it went on I lost interest except to see how the ended went. So I stuck it out and went all the way. Thank you for letting me read it.

I liked the mystery in this novel: the symbols, the visions and dreams that may be lost memories, and the things people said under stress which seemed like gibberish at the time. The characters were good, but not as well-rounded and likeable/despicable as they could have been.

I foresaw the main twist in this novel correctly and fairly early on, but fortunately there were more twists that I did not see coming. The first third of this novel was only moderately interesting despite the mysteries, but it really picked up after that. I finished it far later than I should have stayed up!

With The Passage trilogy, Justin Cronin cemented himself as a master of Dystopian Sci-Fi and his long-awaited follow-up, The Ferryman, does nothing to diminish his legacy. After finishing The Passage, I couldn’t wait for whatever Cronin did next and I was very excited when I got The Ferryman in my hot little hands. Although the new novel doesn’t have the same broad scope or length of that trilogy (yet), it still feels very epic and retains Cronin’s penchant for setting up a mystery and following through with satisfying answers. I’m not going to bore you with a synopsis because I’d probably accidentally give spoilers and because others have done a far better job than I could. What I will say is that, if you enjoyed The Passage, you will very likely enjoy The Ferryman, even though one has absolutely no connection to the other. True, The Ferryman isn’t an obvious trilogy, but the ending does leave the possibility of further exploration into the world that has been built here. Obviously, I can’t really go into detail on that without giving things away, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there were another sequel novel or two in the future. If there are, I will devour them, without a doubt. This is not to say that the ending isn’t satisfying, because it is. I just mean that there is potential for more exploration.

Usually, with my reviews, I try to write a few paragraphs detailing positives and negatives, but I don’t really have a lot of negatives to go through. The Ferryman is a great novel that is genuinely hard to put down and is well-written, painting a vivid picture of the world Cronin has created. One of Cronin’s strengths, in my opinion, is his knack for character development and this is on full-display here. The cast of The Ferryman are drawn exceedingly well and leave the reader wanting to spend more time with them by the time you turn the last page. The Ferryman comes highly recommended from this review and I am grateful to Mr. Cronin, Random House and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC. I greatly enjoyed it.

I was quite excited to read a new Justin Cronin novel, as the last one I read was a few years ago. What I was relieved to find was that this novel is quite a bit different from The Passage series. Sometimes authors fall into a popular style/topic and remain there. Not here though. At first, when I read the description, I joked that it was Logan's Run but better, but it turned out to be so much more.

I do have to admit that there were a few murky chapters where you just needed to read them through without trying to analyze what was actually going on, but as with many sci-fi novels, if you can create new worlds in your mind, this is prone to happen at times.

No worries though, it all clarifies in the end. In fact, there's one line in the book... that if you catch it... is a real "Ah-ha!" moment. Makes you think about things.

A nice chunky novel to immerse yourself into another world for a while.

The Ferryman is a mind-boggling ride! This is a story that is best going into blind, trusting the genius of Justin Cronin. Use caution when reading any lengthy reviews, they might spoil your travels with The Ferryman.

As I was introduced to Prospera, a rich utopian world, there was a familiarity as if I’d encountered this plot in previous books and movies. I was wrong, Cronin brilliantly builds a world with an intriguing plot and compelling characters. Once I was fully immersed into the story it was epic. The Ferryman is written beautifully, with descriptive passages that don’t intrude on the flow of the story.

I highly recommend this book, add The Ferryman to your 2023 reading list!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Pub Date: May 2, 2023

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin tells the story of Proctor Bennett who is a ferryman that assists retirees to the nursery to begin a new. This is a sci fi fantasy novel. I have not read this author before and my head is spinning. I will need to think about this for a bit. It was an interesting story and I did want to keep reading and see what happens. Thank you for allowing me to review this book.

Justin Cronin has once again designed a world that completely envelopes the reader. This particular world pulled my thoughts into the "Matrix" on several occasions. The story developed quickly and then spun out of control. I felt drawn to the characters and became involved in their personal stories. The ending most definitely leaves us ready for the next book in what will likely be another epic series by Cronin.

What am amazing story. Action, suspense, friendship, betrayal, it had it all. Plus, the reveals! Nothing is what it seems.

I was riveted to the plot. A big thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved it! That was incredible. The story builds and builds and no one knows what's going on until three quarters of the way through. It was very unexpected and I hope you don't accidentally get a peek when reading some of the reviews because it's thrilling leading up to it. Great author.

I got this book in advance from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book. Every time I thought I had a twist figured out, it twisted again.

At times it is very confusing, the swapping between "mental states" we'll call them can be confusing, but it's meant to be (Just keep reading, you'll see).

It kept me hooked till the very end.

It would be great if they turned this into a movie or series

First time reading this author and certainly won't be the last. Love the writing style and characters. Just when I thought I figured something out, I didn't. Thanks to Netgalley for an incredibly excellent read!!