From the first page to the last, I was caught in the magic of this compelling book. The story of Proctor Bennett, as his life on Prospera began to disintegrate, was captivating and innovative. To say anything about the plot without spoilers is difficult. But, I can say I thoroughly enjoyed the book and think the mystery of Prospera will appeal to many readers.

My copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to the the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review it.

Recommended for fans of “The City of Mirrors”, “The Alleluia Files,” “Dark Matter,” and “The Giver.”

“The Passage” is one of the best books that I have ever read, full stop. The moment I heard Justin Cronin was publishing a new novel--the first in seven years--I knew I desperately and irrevocably needed it.

“The Ferryman” opens with a deeply satisfying bang. The first chapter was utterly enthralling, both creating a lush scene of comfort and a gripping sense of peril. No spoilers because I want you to savor it as much as I did.

The narrative weaves between the first person POV of Proctor Bennett (the ferryman himself) and several other characters in third person omniscient. One of Cronin’s greatest strengths is his timing; the switch between Proctor and the other characters is never jarring nor frustrating. It always feels right, even when it’s a character we haven’t peered over the shoulder of yet. Proctor himself makes a fine protagonist, even if he gets laid too easily and often--this comes across as authorial wish fulfillment even if that wasn’t the case.

At 560 pages, “The Ferryman” is a bit unwieldy, but the first two thirds or so races by. It really picks up steam just under the halfway point and barrels ahead till the 70% mark. Sometimes the tone felt unsteady, and the narrative became a little lost, but I always wanted to keep reading it. If you expect “The Ferryman” to be as masterful as “The Passage,” I’m not sure you’ll be satisfied, but it does stand well on its own two feet as a gripping dystopia that leans inward and questions what makes us who we are.

Overall, while not as compelling and with prose less captivating than “The Passage,” “The Ferryman” is a solid entry in Cronin’s canon.

My thanks to Ballantine Books/Penguin Random House for an advance copy via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was quite the unexpected treat. An epic dystopian tour de force, it delivers so many twists and turns I was often totally confounded! The writing is superb and helps create an enigmatic air about the entire story. Excellent characters, intense action and truly compelling themes of grief and loss made this impossible to put down. I was totally entranced and was gratified by the unexpected resolutions. This book delivers many of the same vibes as Cloud Cuckoo Land, but seems to be more accessible. A lovely, entertaining read.

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin

Proctor is a Ferryman. He is a senior Ferryman whose duties are to take retirees to the ferry that goes to the Nursery. When citizens reach the end of a self-acknowledged lifespan they return to the Nursery for rebirth. Prospera is an idyllic paradise.
Proctor discovers that there may be a dark side to the beauty and wonders of his paradise. This book takes a look at some interesting concepts of travel, sleep, dreams, and success.
It takes some very abrupt turns than make you rethink the entire plot.
I recommend it.

It's Justin Cronin what more needs to be said? I've been waiting for him to come back into the fold since reading the passage series and Im beyond ecstatic to be given an Arc of Ferryman. Think In time, the island, etc wrapped into one. Its a fun ride.

I have such mixed feelings about this book. I was absolutely gripped reading the first half of this book. Cronin writes so well, and the plot, implausible as it might be, was so propulsive. I bought into the book completely.

And then the book takes a turn. I won’t spoil with any detail, but suffice to say that it pulled the rug out from under my enthusiasm, asking me to buy into a poorly-explained and awkward development that turns this into an entirely different book.

I’m torn by the book because, ultimately, the book ends in a beautiful fashion. And Cronin doesn’t know how to write less than expertly.

The book didn’t work for me for a variety of reasons - the plot turn, unexamined questions and motivations, and a lot of yada-yada’ing to get past gaping logical and plot holes. All that said, I would understand why others might disagree and love this book.

Justin Cronin is a wildly talented writer. His Passage trilogy is a series that I will remember forever. This standalone novel, The Ferryman, is just as, if not more, brilliant. So brilliant that, by the end of it, I felt like it had outsmarted me.

About a third of the way through the book, things begin to shift, and we start to learn what's really going on. That's where things got difficult. Had the story remained in its initial form, a "simple" story of a dystopian utopia where everyone and everything is very carefully engineered, it would have been brilliant, on par with The Passage. The way it develops into an even more complicated story takes it a little bit out of my reach.

Basically, this is like when I took AP Physics in high school. I probably shouldn't have been in the class, and I ended up with a C+. But I did learn something, and was proud of myself in the end!

Will absolutely recommend this book to others. 4/5 stars.

This had two quite disparate sections, and I again found myself wanting to just explore the normal day to day life of a quiet dystopia. The title, the way things are explained, the world building, I adored it.

This reads more like a movie than a book, to be honest -- which I think sci-fi readers will like. It was almost as if the author were writing with the adaptation already in mind.

In terms of the book world, I would recommend this book to fans of Blake Crouch and Dean Koontz.

But, like I said, this felt more familiar to film than books, almost like a mash-up of many of movies, really, so I would recommend this to fans of: Inception, The Matrix, Westworld, The Island, and Passengers.

Reads quickly, despite the large page count.

Thanks to Justin Cronin and Ballantine books for this free digital ARC. My review is voluntary.

I have always been a fan of science fiction stories and I enjoyed Mr. Cronin's book, The Passage. As such, I looked forward to this new story. The Ferryman starts off a little slow. This almost discouraged me because it is long and I was concerned that it could become a slog. I need not have worried. The tension and plot turns built up early on and before I was a quarter way through, I had a hard time putting it down. I liked the variety of characters and analyzing their shifting motives. I enjoyed delving into all the questions that arose and the uncertainty the answers triggered. There were some sections that confused me, but it mostly made sense in the end.

And the ending... It made me laugh and made me sad. I highly recommend this story.

Wow! This was my first Justin Cronin book, but now I have to read the backlist!

This book is a wild ride - and enjoyable from beginning to end.

It’s full of twists and turns. At one point in the middle, I thought for sure it would run out of steam, but I flew through the last 1/3 of the book because I just had to know what happened next!

I really enjoyed this one! @netgalley and @Penguinrandomhouse - Thank you so much for the advanced copy!

I received a free digital ARC from Random House Ballantine via NetGalley. We mostly follow Proctor Bennett in the world of Prospera where the rich enjoy their lives until their meters indicate it is time to be ferried away for a reincarnation of sorts. Proctor’s job is to ferry away people to the Nursery. All of the support staff for the island live at the Annex. When Proctor is tasked with whisking away his own father everything changes. We also start to see the uprising within the workers of the Annex. What are Proctor’s next steps in the unfolding conspiracy?

I loved the Passage series by Cronin, however in this long book, the middle dragged. I didn’t feel any emotional investment to the characters and that made it hard to push forward. The focus of this story was in the world building and the grand reveal ending - which did keep me reading to the end. An interesting read, well written, but 3.5 stars for making me plod through to get satisfaction..

What I Enjoyed
-Themes of loss and grief
-dystopian setting
-slow build up
-Plot twist (can't say much without ruining what it was but it was the right combination of surprising and foreshadowed for me to love it.)
-Tied up in a way that leads to me to think this is a stand alone novel.
What Didn't work as well for me
-By the nature of the book the exposition was front loaded rather heavily
-dialogue felt very off in the first fourth of the book. it smoothed out after that point
Who I Would recommend the book for
Fans of works such as The Giver,Lost,and Gone will be in for a wonderful treat with The Ferryman by Justin Cronin.

Founded by the mysterious genius known as the Designer, the archipelago of Prospera lies hidden from the horrors of a deteriorating outside world. In this island paradise, Prospera’s lucky citizens enjoy long, fulfilling lives until the monitors embedded in their forearms, meant to measure their physical health and psychological well-being, fall below 10 percent. Then they retire themselves, embarking on a ferry ride to the island known as the Nursery, where their failing bodies are renewed, their memories are wiped clean, and they are readied to restart life afresh.

This is the premise of the book and it is brilliant. I struggled putting it down while on vacation with tons of things to do besides read! The ending was extremely satisfying and well thought through. Intelligently written, unique story, and fun to read. I highly recommend picking up this one.

The book begins with a suicide that is a mystery. Cynthia has an idyllic life with a loving husband and son. Why would she take her own life and what is the monitor she digs out of her flesh? The answer to this is at the core of the reality of this world. The book follows her son Proctor who knows something is not right. What are the monitors? Why do people have an idyllic life on one island while the people on the other island are manual laborers catering to them? What happens when their lives are recycled? Is there life on the other side of the veil? Justin Cronin has written a thought provoking novel that questions what is reality. It was refreshing to have a stand alone novel when so many books are now at least trilogies.

This was my first Justin Cronin novel and it won’t be my last! Loved this book - reminds me of Blake Crouch.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC.

An overall engaging read that sets up with a good "what's going on here" premise. The twist that follows unfortunately made me not care at all about much happening in the initial setting, but the story continued to explore that narrative further. The main character was also not my favorite, I found him very naive and unconvincing. But the concepts explored were pretty fun and put together a bunch of things I like.

The Ferryman is world-building at its best. Having read Mr. Cronin’s Passage trilogy I expected nothing less and this book blew me away. The story takes place in a rigid class society on the island nation of Prospera. Those who live on Prospera have all they need to live comfortably. They are educated. They do not have to worry about the necessities of food and shelter. Those that live on Annex serve those on Propera. They are given only enough to do the manual and servant labor that Propera needs. The final island is the Nursery and this is where the world-building tells you that this is a science fiction/fantasy story. All the islands exist within a veil that protects them from the catastrophes of the world.

Proctor is the main narrator. His story is told in the first person. At times the story switches to a third-person view to illustrate what is happening beyond Proctor’s surroundings. The story begins when Proctor is forty-two and fifteen years into his marriage with Elise. He and his wife and their families all live on Prospera and are privileged. There are characters from the Annex who play a large part in the story.

I am not sure what plot points I can discuss without giving away the majority of the twists and turns this book takes. And it does have some really big turns. Arrival at the end is satisfying and breathtaking. I needed to take a moment to just appreciate the journey The Ferryman took me on. I have already preordered the Audible version of the book which releases May 2, 2023. The Ferryman is on my list of the best books I have read or listened to in 2022.

I received an advanced review copy of The Ferryman from NetGalley. I read the book, read it again, and then wrote an honest review.

#Netgalley #JustinCronin #TheFerryman

Where to begin? This feels like it could be a typical story about a utopian style city headed for trouble from the lower classes. Situated on an island, Prospera is "entirely beneficent." Unless you happen to be one of the support staff who are forced to live on a neighboring island, the Annex, and brought in to do all the unpleasant and menial tasks. The narrative follows Proctor Bennett who is the titular ferryman. His job is to facilitate the journey of Prosperans who have reached the end of their healthy lifespan and need to journey to the Nursery island.

But as the book progresses, other threads become more apparent. Is his wife having an affair with their friend? What is going on with the sullen girl that Proctor meets on the beach? What is the new Arrivalist movement among the Annex residents? And the odd word his father mutters before he boards the ferry - Oranios - does anyone know what it means? The more Proctor tries to figure out all the oddities popping up in his life, the more someone else is trying to keep him in the dark or silence him, perhaps permanently.

It may feel like a slow start, but events pick up pace until you are flipping the pages as quickly as you can to see how it all resolves. And there are some rather mindboggling reveals that cannot even be hinted at without giving too much away and spoiling all the surprises in store.

With vibes of the Star Trek episode "The Cloud Minders," some of the feeling of Logan's Run, and a complex mystery to solve, this book will appeal to readers who enjoy science fiction thrillers.

Justin Cronin is an amazing writer. The way he sets up a scene really has a way of fully immersing you in the scene without being overly descriptive. This story is The Matrix meets The Island. Halfway through the story I realized I was so immersed in it that I felt anxiety and disappointment, like I was actually the character experiencing all of these things happening to him. I love when a story has the ability to do that to me! This story had puzzle after puzzle. I had to keep reading to figure them out. I can already tell I’m going to have a long book hangover from this one! Absolutely amazing!

Huge thanks to Ballantine Books and Netgalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!