Add to Goodreads

About the Book

Welcome to the Arcadia.

Once a luxurious cruise ship, it became a refugee camp after being driven from Europe by an apocalyptic war. Now it floats near the coastline of the Federated States – a leftover piece of a fractured USA.

For forty years, residents of the Arcadia have been prohibited from making landfall. It is a world of extreme haves and have nots, gangs and make-shift shelters.

Esther is a loyal citizen, working flat-out to have the rare chance to live a normal life as a medic on dry land. Nik is a rebel, planning something big to liberate the Arcadia once and for all.

When events throw them both together, their lives, and the lives of everyone on the ship, will change forever . . .

About the Author

Sarah Daniels is an ex-archaeologist who escaped academia and now writes stories from her home in rural Lincolnshire. Her work has been published in various online magazines and has been nominated for best British and Irish Flash Fiction and Best Small Fictions. 

If you want to contact her, you can do so at the following locations:

Website:  http://www.sarahdanielsbooks.com

Instagram: @sarahdanielsbooks
TikTok: @sarahdanielsbooks
Twitter: @sarahdanbooks

What I Thought

I’m so very glad that dystopian ya fiction is making a comeback and was so excited to get into this one and it really doesn’t disappoint. This is a rip roaring fast paced thriller with our protagonists in constant danger.

Esther, so close to escaping the Arcadia and heading to university on land gets drawn into a rebellion she never knew was sleeping in the same room as her. Esther is dedicated to her studies, and to helping others, and her loyalty to the regime that will see her head toward a better left, is severely tested time and again. She is not a chosen one but she chooses to do the right thing, even when it hurts. And boy is there a lot of hurt in this book. 

Nik has grown up an integral part of the rebellion and he has his biggest role still to play. When he ends up needing a medic, he and Esther get thrust together and start to realise all the ways they are connected. 

I am so glad that this is a Duology and that the second book is out because I need more now. 

Author Sarah Daniels has created a cast of morally grey characters with complex relationships and a situation that keeps you on the edge of your seat. The ship itself is as much a character as it is a hostile setting. 

We get a third point of view character – Commander Hadley who really gives President Snow a run for evil bloke of the YA novel award. 

With echoes of Demolition Man, The Hunger Games and Divergent, if you are a fan of white knuckle rides you need to pick this up. 

Thanks to The Write Reads and the publisher for the #gifted copies of this and the second book in the Duology The Exiled. I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the thrilling conclusion next week. See what everyone else on the tour thought too.