Four girls meet at a boarding house in Ireland:

Josefa, daughter of a rich household has failed out of boarding school and found an expertise in being a pickpocket.

Violet left Croatia with her father, leaving her mother and brother behind, and then escaped to Dublin to get away from his abusiveness. Desperate to save up enough money to return to Croatia for her brother, Violet has perfected her innocent smile and her acting talent as she struggles to make a way for herself in the world.

Hinnah is an acrobat, having run away from her family in Karachi and joined a series of circuses. She can fold her body into a pretzel and fit in any space. What she seems to struggle with is finding her voice in a world that seems only to see her body.

Emilie is alone in the world, having lost her mother as an infant and her art loving father not very long ago. Her loneliness is only made more stark but the loss of her artistic muse. Without any inspiration for her singular talent, Emilie finds herself adrift, wandering through countries chasing her father's dreams and hoping to find her own convictions.

When this unlikely quartet comes together, can they pull of a heist of magnificent proportions and sneak onto the Titanic to steal away the infamous, bejeweled Rubaiyat? And if they do, will it truly solve their problems?

Adiba Jigirdar takes us on a journey that explores the hopes and dreams of the four complex characters while sweeping us through an action packed heist. Marketed as the love-child of Ocean's 8 and Titanic the movie, A Million to One lives up the hype.

While the story initially starts by following the plot of Ocean's 8 it eventually branches off and begins to find a life of its own. The book is character-driven, taking the time to delve into the past of each of the four girls and exploring their fears, hopes and dreams. Unfortunately, these explorations into the depths of the characters also turns into the one of the books biggest weaknesses, with the emotions cutting into and dampening the excitement of the action, and the deep-dive into the characters' ill-chosen life decisions sometimes detracting from our sympathy towards them.

Overall, however, the book was an interested read, made better by the fact that Jaigirdar succeeded where many authors fail, and found an ending that satisfies. A quick, fun read, I'd recommend this book to those who love heist movies and a little bit of periodic romance.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for giving me access to an e-ARC of the book in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

This was a fun novel with great characters that immediately had my attention from the beginning.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

An extremely entertaining historical fiction about a heist on the Titanic starring four girls. Each of the characters was well-rounded and well-written. They felt like real people and each had a unique backstory, qualities, and flaws. My favorite was Hinnah and I wish she had gotten more screen time. Violet was a little harder to like because she was so mean to Emilie for no real reason. But I appreciate the interpersonal conflict between the characters. I think this would be a great read for the younger end of YA just because of the writing style - it reminded me of adventure/mystery books like the Enola Holmes series that I really enjoyed as a younger teenager. I loved the diverse cast and the central f/f romance. The end was very tragic and also felt rather abrupt. I think it could have used another chapter to really process what happened. I'm so glad I got to read this book early because I was really anticipating it. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Josefa is an unapologetic and charismatic thief, who loves the thrill of the chase. She has her eye on her biggest mark yet—the RMS Titanic, the most luxurious ship in the world. But she isn’t interested in stealing from wealthy first-class passengers onboard. No, she’s out for the ultimate prize: the Rubiyat, a one of a kind book encrusted with gems that’s worth millions.

Josefa can’t score it alone, so she enlists a team of girls with unique talents: Hinnah, a daring acrobat and contortionist; Violet, an actress and expert dissembler; and Emilie, an artist who can replicate any drawing by hand.

They couldn’t be more different and yet they have one very important thing in common: their lives depend on breaking into the vault and capturing the Rubiyat. But careless mistakes, old grudges, and new romance threaten to jeopardize everything they’ve worked for and put them in incredible danger when tragedy strikes.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins Children book for this advanced copy.

Let's begin with the concept, A Million to One did a great job to make me forget about Jack and Rose. It wasn't a secret, every time I heard "titanic", the only thing I thought was the titanic movie, especially Jack and Rose and yes, Celine DIion's song : My Heart Will Go On. And then, after I finished this book, I would thinking about Josefa and her heist story every time word "titanic" was mentioned.

Moving to the characters, I really loved every single characters in this book. Adiba Jaigirdar made solid characters for this book. Josefa, Emily and the squad had their own up and down personalities.

The story itself quiet engaged me from the first chapters. Especially because the pacing was quiet fast and the short chapters.

Overall, A Million to One was a good book if you love sapphic story plus heist story

The premise is interesting and I appreciate Adiba as a person, but I wasn't really into this one. I think it's because historical novels are usually hit or misses for me. It's def not a bad book tho, just not for me. thank you for the arc.

this book was a masterclass in structure. four alternating povs through very short chapters. this book was high action without a single slow moment, but none of it felt rushed. i never complain about books being too short, but i selfishly wanted more of this one, if only just to get to see the girls carefree and HAPPY for once, just like eating dinner together or playing the 1912 version of truth or dare. you’ll fall in love with each of them and their stories, even the prickly ones (cough cough violet). i was so enraptured with them that i forgot about the whole THING with the titanic until like halfway through when i thought about what the countdown at the beginning of each chapter was. how does one read a book about the titanic and completely forget it SANK?? i was so invested in the heist, i hadn’t even thought about that. good lord am i sad.

Thank you to Netgalley for a ARC of A Million to One by Adiba Jaigirdar!

This book was very slow and not very interesting. I didn’t really connect with the characters. I love the titanic so I was excited to read this but it just wasn’t interesting.

This was Ocean's 8 meets the Titanic. I really enjoyed this. Was the plot complicated? No. Were the characters deep and insightful? Not really. Was this fun? HELL YES! It was a quick read with lots of action and plenty of heist scenes. I loved how confident the main character was and how that translated to her thievery. There is a sapphic romance as well as solid friendships. I also enjoyed how the author subtly wove in the historical aspect of the setting, though I feel as if more could have been done with it. Things seem cut at the end, but it's not like we didn't know what was coming. I would recommend this to Titanic enthusiasts, heist lovers, and to anyone who enjoys a quick fun read.

5 stars

This is one of my favorite reads of the year! A Million to One is a diverse Titanic retelling with a heist involved. It had good pacing and lovable characters. I felt so many different emotions throughout the book and the ending was sad but also amazing. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who had a Titanic phase.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC of this book.

This was Agatha Christie meets Knives Out. Seriously, I loved this one. I was totally invested in both the wit, the characters, the mystery.... this was NUTS! Such a wild ride. I never knew what was coming next.

Wanted to love…the storyline of titanic and a heist is pretty great.. but not well executed. I wished the story was longer so that it could all play out better. The best part of this book was that we know all what eventually happens to the Titanic, but the leads in the book don’t.
It was nail-biting in the worst-best way possible.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I really loved this book and I connected with the characters super quickly. It was diverse and I loved how well Adiba was able to incorporate Irish history and diversity into the book! I also loved the plot and the ability for the book to be as historically accurate as was possible (for the story to continue on, some liberties were taken, but that’s fine with me).

So let’s talk about the characters. Emilie, Hinnah, Violet, and Josefa. All of them had different motivations for getting on the Titanic and trying to steal the Rubyiat together. Some of them didn’t like each other or trust each other and some of them wanted to date each other. I enjoyed the fact that they weren’t a perfect team and needed to work on connecting and communicating with each other.
But I’m getting away from myself. So anyway Emilie, Hinnah, Violet, and Josefa are all Very different people. They have different desires and don’t like each other sometimes and have different preferences. That was fun to see.
They tried to bond over the course of the book and it sometimes worked and sometimes didn’t, which was also fun to see. I also enjoyed the gradual learning of backstories and how their pasts affected their decisions today.
The book was also very diverse with people of color and many sexualities represented. I can’t judge about the representation of the BIPOC characters, but I thought they were written well and would recommend that you view a review by a BIPOC person for that perspective. However, I am queer and did very much enjoy the way this story was written.
I thought the romance was very cute and it made me smile a lot and I felt quite connected to those characters and their romance made me giggle a lot. I enjoyed watching them learn more and more about each other and get closer as the story went on, and then bond and…well I won’t spoil the rest.
But I loved it.
Sadly, I didn’t think I connected with the book and was as invested in the story as I could have been. I don’t know why that is exactly, so it very well could have just been a personal preference thing, but I didn’t connect very well to the story and had no strong desire to see what happened next.
I was, however, very impressed with how Adiba was able to talk about Irish history in the book. All of the main characters were in Ireland and at the end of the book, Adiba had a section talking about the Irish and the Titanic, and about the history of the boat and what/who was on it. That was really interesting to read and I was glad it was included there. In this section, Adiba shared what liberties were taken for the plot and what it might have been like on the real Titanic.
I really enjoyed this because it helped me understand more of Adiba’s creative process and know what was factual and what had been stretched for the benefit of the story.
I would also like to note that there were some very fun Titanic movie references throughout the book and they made me snicker a lot.
So, all in all, I loved this book! I’m giving it 4 stars because it didn’t pull me in that well, but I did love it and hearing about the characters and their lives.

I'm glad that today is not the day that I stop reading books about <i>The Titanic</i>, something I say to myself every time I think about picking one up. But when Adiba Jaigirdar promised a sapphic heist aboard one of the world's most famous shipwrecks, I couldn't resist - and that was absolutely the right call. <i>A Million to One</i> follows four girls as they sneak aboard (well, steal tickets to get onboard) the <i>Titanic</i> in order to steal a special edition of <i>The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam</i>, a classic work of Persian poetry. Josefa, the ringleader, has conflicting motivations for the theft, but all four girls are looking for a better life - Hinnah needs an escape from her circus life, Violet needs the money to reunite with her younger brother in Croatia, and Emilie has been lost since her father's death. All four are looking for a family, and this is something they find in each other. Although everyone's dreams are not fulfilled - and I do appreciate that Jaigirdar doesn't allow for a complete escape from the tragedy of the vessel, even as I wish it could have been different - there's a peace to the ending that I haven't often found in novels about this particular disaster.

Jewels can't save us. Ships go down. But what's important is what lives on in your heart, and that's a message that resonates throughout this novel.

this book !!!!
tbh I was a little worried that I wouldn't love A Million to One; I struggle sometimes with historical fiction and it often fails to hold my attention. this book tho!
I was engaged the entire way through. I never needed to take a break because it was a slog or I got bored. I was totally invested in our girls by first few chapters.

A Million to One is the heist book of your dreams. we have four different POVs; Josefa, a thief and ringleader to the other three, Violet, conwoman extraordinaire, excellent at manipulating people, Hinnah, here for (literally) all the team's physical needs, whether it's climbing, sneaking, judo defense or sneaking through air vents and Emilie, an artist and now something of a begrudging forger. Josefa's plan starts with sneaking the four of them onto the Titanic, as it makes its maiden voyage from Ireland to America. there's a special book on board that Josefa badly wants, a jewel-encrusted tome of poetry that would fetch them unimaginable sums.

the girls were hands-down my favorite aspect of this book, because they were all so different and genuinely interesting. I loved the slow development of feelings, and that equal care was paid to the burgeoning friendships as well as the romantic crush.

my second favorite aspect was the countdown that each chapter begins with. I'm assuming most folks are at least passingly familiar with the story of the Titanic but if you're reading this and you're not, just skip this paragraph.
I was admittedly a little worried that my foreknowledge of the ship going down was going to remove some of the anticipation of the story, because I already know how that part of it ends. but have no fear! Jaigirdar starts every chapter with a little countdown and as the story progresses it becomes rapidly clear that we're counting down to the ship sinking. honestly it adds to the dread of the story; these girls have no idea what's about to happen but the audience is captivated by it. the girls continue with their heist and the reader has to sit and squirm that they're wasting time.

overall, this book was lovely and I'm so excited for it to be published so I can get my best friend to read it too.
thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC 💜

This was so unlike any book I have read is recent times. The Titanic+heist plot line was so intriguing thou. Of course we know what happens to the Titanic, but the leads in the book don't know. That was perhaps the best part of the book too. It was nail-biting in the worst-best way possible.

A sapphic story about a girl group planning a heist on the <i>Titanic</i> has got to be the most incredible story idea ever. Plus I loved <i>Henna Wars</i>, so I was extra excited for this book.

Jaigirdar is so good at writing young women with complicated yet relatable lives — even in a book set in 1912. I loved the way she approached the inclusion of sapphic and women of color in this story without focusing solely on the trauma of racism and homophobia in this time period.

My only complaint about the novel was that it often felt like there were just so many events, one after another, without taking the time to truly delve into the characters’ motivations and development. Perhaps it was the short chapters or the perspective switches, but it left me wishing the story was either longer or had less going on.

Overall <i>A Million to One</i> was tons of fun and I devoured it quickly! I will continue to read whatever Jaigirdar writes because she never fails to make my gay heart happy.

This was just "meh" for me. The Titanic reference caught my attention in the summary. Unfortunately, I didn't really like Josefa or Violet or feel a connection to them. The backstories were unclear and came a bit too late in the story. Some parts were quite farfetched, the pacing was uneven, and the ending was lackluster.

Josefa has been pulling cons all her life, but this would be her biggest one yet. Having planned for this mission for months now, she pulls together a team of women with unique skills.

Emilie, an artist who can expertly copy the documents and maps they need on the Titanic. Hinnah, a circus performer who has trained her body to push the bounds of human movement. And, finally, Violet, a wonderful actress who is determined to get what she wants.

The goal? The Rubaiyat, a jewel encrusted copy of the Rubaiyat, a collection of beautiful poetry by the poet Omar Khayyam that would set the four of them up for life.

Now if you're familiar with the RMS Titanic sinking, you know the Rubaiyat was never recovered. Did they succeed? Well, their chances are a million to one.

Josefa, Emilie, Hinnah, and Violet all have distinctive voices that made it easy to tell one another apart. Their distinct personalities, motives, and growth on the Titanic made sense. I was rooting for everyone the whole way. Jaigirdar has a knack for characters and that's what really sold the novel for me.

Otherwise, this novel was a little disappointing. From the inconsistent pacing, to the really obvious solution to their problems (it's practically a Chekhov's gun!), the characters are the main reason I was able to finish this novel.

That said, the ending made me cry, and that counts for something.

I enjoyed the characters and was pleasantly surprised by the stakes of the ending, but the prose reads as very contemporary. I never quite feel like these characters are from the 1910s, as opposed to time-traveling in from the 2020s.