Reviews

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin

cdipierro's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I've rarely finished such a long book I liked so little. I suppose I have to start by acknowledging that the characters and plot were engaging enough to pull me through. For that, I'll have to say the story is a success, but my real issue is the central mystery, which was heavily telegraphed early on and then finally confirmed at a tortuously slow pace. So the rest of the review will be spoilerly:

Why does the reveal of everything being a simulation running in a generation ship feel so tired? No other story immediately comes to mind with a similar premise, yet as soon as Proctor started being drawn to the stars, it was clear as day. Then, of course, all 'the world is not the world' stuff when Proctor's dad was being retired made the simulation angle obvious. The various layers of different characters subverting the original simulation was interesting, but there was a long slog of Proctor's simulated world breaking down around him to get there.

So I was left with a not-so-mysterious mystery and characters pantomiming fake relationships that we see get peeled back as the artifice of the world falls away.

jletra's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Almost too complex a story to keep track. 

wgadd's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

dolores_lola's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

materialambition's review against another edition

3.0

great concept a tad too long … the reveal was somewhat predictable 

bechkit's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Personally felt the auther struggled with the classic show dont tell rule, and his female characters felt 1-dimensional to me. The storyline was pretty cool and I enjoyed the constant wondering over the reality of the world he introduced.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death

moderatemac's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

kimbar's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

lydiahephzibah's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Setting: Prospera (fictional)
Rep: n/a

This is one of those books where, the whole time you're reading it, you're not sure what is actually going on. And then, even as things become clear, you're still not entirely sure. It is an incredible feat from the author who is clearly very clever and imaginative, but I wish it had been a bit shorter and there were a lot of characters, none of whom I cared for. The plot was cool, though, once I got my head around it, but I think the execution could've been tighter. 

gmerrall's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25