Wayfarer

I almost feel ashamed that this series is my first by Alexandra Bracken. It’s clear that she has a gift for creating elaborate worlds with the most captivating, yet relatable characters. Not to mention her rich writing style that flows so effortlessly you literally can’t take your eyes away from the pages.

If you have not read the first book there may be some tiny spoilers from that, but otherwise nothing will spoil this one for you!

Side note: If you haven’t read the first book, I highly recommend. It is fun, romantic, and beautifully written- you won’t regret it!


While I adored Passenger, I admit that it was slow at certain parts [note: slow does not necessarily mean bad, there just wasn’t a lot going on at certain parts of the novel]. Wayfarer, however, was anything BUT slow. From the beginning, my jaw was constantly hitting the ground from all the surprises and twists! So much was happening in the first 4 chapters, I could hardly stop to think for a second!

Etta is thrown into an unfamiliar territory, with unfamiliar people and forced to trust those who may ultimately betray her. Nicholas is forced to partner up with one of his worst enemies, to find the only person who has ever understood him. They have to find a way back together, while also stopping the one man who could destroy their whole world.

That’s all I can say about this book without spoiling, I’m sorry! What I can talk about, though, is:

Bracken tackling some major issues in this book. I often applaud authors who use their stories to continue to shed a light on racism/sexism/homophobia/etc, but Bracken deserves a standing ovation. The way she discussed racism through Nicholas’ character was so on point, and never sugar coated. She spoke on the difficult truth of racism and how people of color have been oppressed through all of history and even today.

There is so much that she spoke on that I couldn’t possibly write it all out, but mainly she spoke on sexism throughout history / today, white privilege, gender/sexuality, and of course racism. It takes a special kind of author [or maybe just one who does her research], to properly speak on these topics and I can gladly say that she did. As a woman of color, I truly appreciated how all of this was taken very seriously by Bracken.

OH! And we got new characters! So many too! While Passenger mainly focused on Etta and Nicholas, Wayfarer had a whole TON of new characters. Pretty much all of them are characters that would shock you, so I won’t say any names but trust me, you will be happily surprised!

Final Thoughts?

Bracken created a fast-paced, complex, exciting, and beautifully written sequel. I could list a billion reasons as to why you’ll love this book [or maybe just one: Sophia!], but just trust me and go out and try this series! It’s absolutely wonderful, completely new, and addictive in the best way possible.