This book was so interesting. I’m still processing and don’t even know how to explain it. I had no idea what I was getting into and don’t remember reading any reviews so went in blind really.

The society was fascinating and yet simplistic in its order at least at the beginning. The way the ferryman position worked and old age would send you back to the nursery. But our narrator wasn’t very reliable they kept forgetting everything.

And the dreams kept giving me a clue. My dreams usually get majorly intense or scary when my body is overheating or I need to wake up for other reasons. But I was not expecting where all the stories and dreams would lead.

The result of a wasted world and a parents intense grief.

Dystopia is becoming a more difficult sub-genre for me with every passing day. Is that because I feel the world I’m actually living in becoming one? Maybe. Either way, it is what it is. Luckily, a past version of me read The Ferryman. A version of me that didn’t feel the daily slide into oblivion. That version of me had a good time with the story. It’s a bit overlong (538 pages!), and it’s not treading any new ground (if you’ve read a dystopian story before, you know what I mean – they’re rarely mind-blowing), but it is told in an engaging manner.

Proctor Bennett, as main characters go, felt a little underwhelming to me. He pretty much cycles through every aspect of the dystopian-hero’s journey beat for beat, and doesn’t offer the reader much beyond that. He has an Everyman feel about him – I imagine that was intentional. But I liked pretty much all the characters he interacted with much more than I did him, so it still worked out well for me. The Ferryman has big The Giver and Logan’s Run vibes, although as mentioned, I definitely engaged with the mc way less than I did in either of those examples. But story-wise, like I said, if you’ve read one dystopian novel, you can pretty well figure out where this one is going.

I know all this sounds like I didn’t enjoy The Ferryman, which is probably confusing. I apologize for that. But the thing is this: although I didn’t find the premise of The Ferryman terribly original, and at parts the story did feel a bit too plodding for my taste, overall it was an enjoyable read. I like this kind of story even though they lean heavily toward mind-numbing predictability. It’s like I watched a really long episode of a comfort show. Or literally any of the Hunger Games movies, but this time I actually had a good time (which I wouldn’t because WHY ARE THEY SO LONG AND BORING). He definitely plotted it out well, and told an entertaining story. (3.5 stars)

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, Ballantine for the copy of this eArc. I read this book way back in April 2023. Sometimes life gets in the way of reviews despite the reviewers best intentions. This is this reviewer's attempt to make up for past regressions. This book was surprising. The description of it couldn't give the story justice. I have enjoyed Justin Cronin so I decided to read it. I was not disappointed. It is a strange world Cronin has created that is layered with tropes of dystopianism.

This book was like a fever dream and was quite the wild ride. If you like The Matrix, Inception, or Shutter Island, I would recommend this book. I did get a little confused at times, but I didn't have difficulty getting back on track. I enjoyed the world building throughout. I was also satisfied with the conclusion. I did a mix of the audiobook and e-book and would recommend either format.

I love this I wish i hadn’t waited so long to read this science fiction fantasy novel. Proctor is the ferryman the one who helps usher the people of Prosper to be reset as children after their lives are over as adults. Surrounded by the mystery of his mother’s suicide when he is told about Oranios from his dying father it leads down a crazy rabbit hole that has him questioning everything and everyone. This is a big book but bought myself a physical copy because I just had to have it. Justin Cronin is an amazing storyteller. 5⭐️

4 Stars

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin is a haunting and intricately woven tale that pulls readers into a world both familiar and unsettling.

Cronin’s storytelling truly shines in dystopian/apocalyptic realm as we already know from The Passage. I found this story to be an interesting take on a thriller. Our main character Proctor Bennett, is a compelling perspective to explore the mysterious, idyllic society of Prospera through. The world building is excellent, and forces us to consider deeper questions about mortality, memory, and the pursuit of perfection. The atmosphere is both utopian and eerie, an makes the novel compulsively readable.

My one drawback is that certain plot points are predictable. There are many surprises to maintain suspense, but if you're a reader of the genre (and I am) you will find some aspects of the story to be underwhelming.

The Ferryman was well written and imaginative sci-fi/dystopian thriller . I would recommend this to readers who enjoy speculative fiction with a layered, intricate, thought provoking plot.

DNF at 81 percent. I am just confused... I keep thinking about this one and how I should just pick it back up, but I don't even really know for sure that I was liking it? There was just so much going on but at the same time, I actually couldn't tell you a single thing that was really happening. I wanted to see this one through since I hate quitting once I am past the halfway point, but after reading some reviews and seeing that others say it doesn't really get better, I lost the desire to continue completely.

The Ferryman is one of those books that really makes you think, especially given the current state of our daily news headlines. However, while the author ambitiously tackles a wide range of big ideas, this very ambition seems to obscure the heart of the story. I found myself confused for a significant portion of the book, uncertain about what was happening.

Thank you Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

So - first off this is the epitome of hard core Sci-Fi and I found myself a bit out of my depths and overwhelmed My brain doesn't work this way - there is so much going on, so many things happening.
All that to say - in the end this is a great book. I just had to find my rhythm in reading. I thought it was interesting, I mean aren't Utopian societies always a good thing to read about?
All in all this is an entertaining read. Not one of my favourites, yet not one of my least favourites either. I won't be re-reading it, but I certainly don't regret the time spent in this world, with these characters.

Unfortunately this one just wasn't for me. The writing style was a touch literary for my taste - I immediately couldn't get into it. I was drawn in by the synopsis, but couldn't connect to the writing style. Literary fiction readers will love this one, just wasn't the genre fiction take on dystopian that I had hoped.

In this dystopian/post-apocalyptic sci-fi novel, Proctor Bennett is the "Ferryman" - a person who helps people at the end stages of their life. These people are going into "retirement", sometimes forced, others not, due to their mental state. Proctor is then giving the task of "retiring" his father who give him a cryptic message. This is just one of the clues that leads to the fast paced, twists and turns of this lengthy novel. The second half of the novel moved much faster than the first, which was mainly set-up. The islands in the novel are wonderfully and artfully described and the whole new world really comes to life. Overall, I found this book very enjoyable to read and would recommend it.

I loved Cronins The Passage series and this is no different. The writing is strong and while I didn’t connect with the characters I did feel interested in the plot. Hard to put down

As a huge Justin Cronin fan, I was super excited to learn about this book. I really enjoyed The Ferryman, it is very different from The Passage trilogy (that I am total in love with). The Ferryman follows the life of Proctor Bennett on the lovely island paradise of Prospera. But is everything as perfect as it seems. The Ferryman takes us on a wild adventure of people finding out that the truth is not always as it seems.

This books starts out a little slow because there is a lot of world building that has to be done. But once the story starts going it goes into to hyperdrive and stays that way until the very end.

I am very happy that I was able to read this book and very much look forward to the next story that Justin Cronin has for us.

This is a long drawn out story. It’s complex and just a little too science fictiony for me. If you like long epic stories definitely check it out

The literal definition doing too much! Wish I was watching it as a movie instead of trying to follow the many dreams within dreams within simulations.

This was my first Justin Cronin book and I cannot wait to read the rest of his backlist.

The Ferryman was a part sci-fi, part dystopian novel about a man named Proctor Bennet, who worked as a Ferryman in Prospera. Ferrymen led people who "retired" to the Nursery, a space where the old could be "restored" to a more youthful body with their memories erased read to live life anew. Yet, when he is called to accompany his own father to the Nursery, and his father has an outburst telling him "the world is not the world" Proctor comes to question his very existence and what is really going on in the world of Prospera.

While I had a hard time with the longer chapters, I truly enjoyed The Ferryman. I particularly loved some of the musings about life and our existence that Cronin weaved throughout the story via Proctor and some of the other characters.

Read this if you are a fan of Black Mirror, Fahrenheit 451, Dark Matter, or any similar books. The Ferryman had parts that reminded me of all of them! :)

This book was incredibly long, and incredibly confusing. I'm not sure I know what I just read, and that's in a bad way. Every few hundred pages it seems like we were presented with a new version of reality, along with the characters, but it left me just confused and feeling a bit like the story was annoyingly pointless. Not a great read, in my opinion.

Justin Cronin is such a gifted writer. He has a way of portraying things so cinematically, with a big brush full of wondrous images and propulsive action, while at the same time exploring the complex interior of his well-drawn characters and explaining the heady ideas he brings up in his stories. I was a huge fan of his "Passage" series, having devoured those 3 books last year, all due to his skill at telling a scary, emotional adventure story without sacrificing character or craft.

I was beyond eager to read his next big doorstopper book, "The Ferryman", and apart from a vague idea of the setting, I went in blind, hoping Cronin would deliver again. For me, he absolutely did! While the "Passage" series was a horror-adjacent multi-volume epic, "The Ferryman" is a self-contained sci-fi mystery storyline full to bursting with complex scenarios, mysterious characters, and twisty plot developments. I really enjoyed the structure of this book; for most of the novel, I was left wondering what the reality of the story actually was. The characters inhabit a society, presumed to be in the future, where most of the world is now housed on a group of three islands. They live somewhat prescribed lives and are able to "reintegrate" into society as new people after their current lives are spent. Some of these people lead privileged lives, while others are born over and over again to serve them. Cracks in this structure appear early, and the story develops from there.

To say much more would be to spoil the richness of the characters involved, not to mention the "swing for the fences" twists the entire plot takes as the nature of events and people are revealed. I could see how, taking the story as a whole and knowing all its secrets, the book might feel somewhat stuffed with ideas, but I enjoyed the cerebral nature of the plot and felt very satisfied with the full context of what was happening. Mileage may vary on that, but Cronin again demonstrated a strong sense of writing style and theme with this work. Like the "Passage" series, I could easily see this novel becoming an acclaimed film or TV adaptation. Fingers crossed!

I would recommend "The Ferryman" for existing Cronin fans and readers who like epic-feeling speculative fiction books. I could list several films and stories this book draws clear inspiration from as well, but that might spoil things for potential readers!

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine and NetGalley for an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this novel in exchange for my honest review!

Omg this book is absolutely crazy and awesome and strange and trippy… in other words, it’s a book that is completely well written and once you really get into it, the story will be pulling you along as if you have no choice but to finish it. I loved our main character , the ferryman - Proctor Bennett.

We follow him in his journey to find out what’s happening in this topsy turvy world where if you’re on the right side, your skating along in a beautiful life where you never really have to die. But if you’re on the wrong side, you have to slave away, waiting on those people who never even stop to think about how their world is so perfect.

I loved the premise of this book and I really couldn’t stop reading once I got into it, which took me a minute. I had to get my bearings because it’s such a strange and interesting plot. Everything turns upside down multiple times. I continually wondered how it was going to end and what in the holy hell was going on. It was fabulous. I did take off one star because of how confusing it was at times. Took me a bit to get a handle on things.

I highly recommend this to science fiction lovers who enjoy a mystery and can handle lots of details and love beautiful prose. This is an amazing story and it will be pulling you along once you really dive in.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this for my honest opinion.

What a mammoth book. What a mammoth story! What a MAMMOTH ride! Justin Cronin delivered with this one! I’ll proudly display this one on my shelf.