The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
ali_k0's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I was excited to read this book when I first picked it up, however I was quickly disappointed. The premise was promising and the world building intriguing but thats about all I can say for it.
The main character is "not like othergirls souls." (this is also the reason why the MMC falls for her.) and that's about all there is to say for her. She's sad about dying for all of 2 seconds before immediately brushing it off again, and barely gives a thought to the people left behind.Â
Both characters have little to no personality, and thus an equal amount of chemistry. They confess their love for each other halfway through the book (ick) even though they have probably had 3 meaningful conversations and all of them were about the guys past souls he ferried/world building fodder. Due to a lack of any real emotional depth between them, these scenes fell flat.Â
In the end, this book is just two people taking a hike and "falling" for the first people to show them an ounce of consideration.
The main character is "not like other
Both characters have little to no personality, and thus an equal amount of chemistry. They confess their love for each other halfway through the book (ick) even though they have probably had 3 meaningful conversations and all of them were about the guys past souls he ferried/world building fodder. Due to a lack of any real emotional depth between them, these scenes fell flat.Â
In the end, this book is just two people taking a hike and "falling" for the first people to show them an ounce of consideration.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Child death
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Child death, Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, and Cancer
The "car accident" is actuallycreativeworld's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I like the first half but in the last 2 hours I got a bit fed up with the characters and wish the plot took a different route. I wish they didn't end up together if I'm honest, I would have reffered Tristan to make the choice to find Dylan and for Dylan to develop in character in isolation
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child death, Death, and Grief
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Panic attacks/disorders
guessgreenleaf's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Injury/Injury detail
asipofcozy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
After multiple reading "failures" this month, I am happy to say that Ferryman captured my interest. I loved the concept, the writing, and for the most part, the characters. It was a quick read and captivated me enough to finish it within a day.
What I loved so much about Ferryman is that it asks the question most of humanity has been asking for thousands of years, What happens to us after death? McFall does a beautiful job of giving us the possibility of life after death and building the world of the afterlife.
Characters
I probably shouldn't start with the characters because this is where my debate for star rating lies.
Dylan is a young adult who lives a relatively quiet and secluded life. Her mum is a nurse, and her dad is out of the picture. This whole story starts with her finally getting in contact with her absentee father and getting the chance to spend a long week with him. On her way to meeting her father, for the first time, she dies in a terrible accident.
Dylan, in those first 30 pages, was annoying. She was whiny, constantly asking questions, and had a very annoying inner dialogue. At times I just wanted to skip her entirely. However, she does start to gain traction and has some great growth after the beginning. She is an old soul for a young adult and reacted to her whole death very maturely.
Tristan, is a mystery. He is a Ferryman whose job is to guide souls to their eternity. Like any young adult male, Tristan was broody, beautiful, and instantly attracted to the main female character. Unlike Dylan, there is no history with Tristan. His sole existence is based on delivering souls. This ends up making him feel like a paper cut-out and only existing for the romance's sake and safe-travels to the soul.
While each character had their merits, they were cut out cardboards in the end.
Plot
For the most part, I enjoyed the plot.
The beginning, like the characters, was boring. Nothing happened for 50 or so pages, and it did become tedious to read Tristan and Dylan crossing this quite dull wasteland. Reading about hills, rocks, and Dylan's dislike of physical exercise is quite cumbersome.
Also, I could have done without the constant explanations and complaints of the bland surroundings. The author should have written a more exciting wasteland for Dylan if that's the case.
However, I loved the race against the wraiths, the challenges they faced with Dylan's ever-changing emotions and the question of what's after the wastelands. I think the plot picked up towards the last few chapters, and it makes me curious what McFall has planned for the next book.
Worldbuilding
The worldbuilding is what captured me and kept me reading. It's also why I am debating my rating for this book. McFall has created an afterlife that is both intriguing and terrifying.
Before a soul can live a peaceful existence, they have to cross the Wasteland. The in-between world of Life and Death. The exciting thing is that while the Wasteland has an actual setting (red skies, red dirt, dark, dead souls), each soul's personal preference changes the surroundings. For Dylan, it was a hilly landscape (a mirror of what it looked like when she was on her way to see her father).
This keeps the soul calm and collected as they cross this in-between world. If they aren't calm, the weather changes, it gets dark...and when it gets dark, the bad things come out, the wraiths.
The wraiths are creatures that survive, devouring the souls crossing the wastelands. If the Ferryman lets go, doesn't keep his charge calm during the journey, or doesn't reach the safe houses before dark, these wraiths will start to swarm and drag the souls beneath the earth to die permanently and rise as a wraith. I loved that these creatures existed within the story; it gives this sense that there are challenges to overcome even in the afterlife. It gave spice to the story, and it didn't make it easy for our characters.
What intrigued me was the system behind ferryman. Each ferryman appears to their charge as either a past family member, old friend, or even someone attractive. They change based on the needs of the soul. This, too, is to keep the soul calm through the journey of the Wasteland. They also can order the soul.
Romance
What would young adult literature be without insta-love or, in this case, insta-attraction? While the love did take time to build (sort of), the attraction was instantaneous. The romance is based mainly on appeal and has little to do with compatibility and ideal. While Tristan knew everything about Dylan (due to his ferryman abilities), Dylan knew little to nothing of Tristan - even in the end. So to me, the romance was quite silly, but that's young adult literature for you.
Conclusion
All in all, this was a good read. I wish we had more to the plot and less of getting from point A to B. I wish that the romance wasn't an insta-attraction situation and that the characters felt like they had more personality.Â
However, I did enjoy the world build and the after-life that McFall has created. After the ending, I want to know what happens next, so I will probably pick up the next book.
What I loved so much about Ferryman is that it asks the question most of humanity has been asking for thousands of years, What happens to us after death? McFall does a beautiful job of giving us the possibility of life after death and building the world of the afterlife.
Characters
I probably shouldn't start with the characters because this is where my debate for star rating lies.
Dylan is a young adult who lives a relatively quiet and secluded life. Her mum is a nurse, and her dad is out of the picture. This whole story starts with her finally getting in contact with her absentee father and getting the chance to spend a long week with him. On her way to meeting her father, for the first time, she dies in a terrible accident.
Dylan, in those first 30 pages, was annoying. She was whiny, constantly asking questions, and had a very annoying inner dialogue. At times I just wanted to skip her entirely. However, she does start to gain traction and has some great growth after the beginning. She is an old soul for a young adult and reacted to her whole death very maturely.
Tristan, is a mystery. He is a Ferryman whose job is to guide souls to their eternity. Like any young adult male, Tristan was broody, beautiful, and instantly attracted to the main female character. Unlike Dylan, there is no history with Tristan. His sole existence is based on delivering souls. This ends up making him feel like a paper cut-out and only existing for the romance's sake and safe-travels to the soul.
While each character had their merits, they were cut out cardboards in the end.
Plot
For the most part, I enjoyed the plot.
The beginning, like the characters, was boring. Nothing happened for 50 or so pages, and it did become tedious to read Tristan and Dylan crossing this quite dull wasteland. Reading about hills, rocks, and Dylan's dislike of physical exercise is quite cumbersome.
Also, I could have done without the constant explanations and complaints of the bland surroundings. The author should have written a more exciting wasteland for Dylan if that's the case.
However, I loved the race against the wraiths, the challenges they faced with Dylan's ever-changing emotions and the question of what's after the wastelands. I think the plot picked up towards the last few chapters, and it makes me curious what McFall has planned for the next book.
Worldbuilding
The worldbuilding is what captured me and kept me reading. It's also why I am debating my rating for this book. McFall has created an afterlife that is both intriguing and terrifying.
Before a soul can live a peaceful existence, they have to cross the Wasteland. The in-between world of Life and Death. The exciting thing is that while the Wasteland has an actual setting (red skies, red dirt, dark, dead souls), each soul's personal preference changes the surroundings. For Dylan, it was a hilly landscape (a mirror of what it looked like when she was on her way to see her father).
This keeps the soul calm and collected as they cross this in-between world. If they aren't calm, the weather changes, it gets dark...and when it gets dark, the bad things come out, the wraiths.
The wraiths are creatures that survive, devouring the souls crossing the wastelands. If the Ferryman lets go, doesn't keep his charge calm during the journey, or doesn't reach the safe houses before dark, these wraiths will start to swarm and drag the souls beneath the earth to die permanently and rise as a wraith. I loved that these creatures existed within the story; it gives this sense that there are challenges to overcome even in the afterlife. It gave spice to the story, and it didn't make it easy for our characters.
What intrigued me was the system behind ferryman. Each ferryman appears to their charge as either a past family member, old friend, or even someone attractive. They change based on the needs of the soul. This, too, is to keep the soul calm through the journey of the Wasteland. They also can order the soul.
Romance
What would young adult literature be without insta-love or, in this case, insta-attraction? While the love did take time to build (sort of), the attraction was instantaneous. The romance is based mainly on appeal and has little to do with compatibility and ideal. While Tristan knew everything about Dylan (due to his ferryman abilities), Dylan knew little to nothing of Tristan - even in the end. So to me, the romance was quite silly, but that's young adult literature for you.
Conclusion
All in all, this was a good read. I wish we had more to the plot and less of getting from point A to B. I wish that the romance wasn't an insta-attraction situation and that the characters felt like they had more personality.Â
However, I did enjoy the world build and the after-life that McFall has created. After the ending, I want to know what happens next, so I will probably pick up the next book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death
kazik's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Bullying, and Child death
Minor: Cancer
gonnachangethislater's review
"if it helps I don't feel like an adult, and you don't seem like a child" please you're supposed to just be helping the définition of I'm not like other girls get to the afterlife it's not hard
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, and Body horror
sharon_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
What could you expect from an already shitty day turn worse? Definitely not ending up dead and entering the wasteland to meet your Ferryman before the age of twenty. This novel follows our main character Dylan. On her way into Scotland to visit the father sheâs never had a connection to, when the train she was on is involved in an accident. Regaining consciousness, Dylan is alone in a dark tunnel, alone and terrified, and canât seem to figure out why there are no rescue workers there to help her. Stumbling out the tunnel, Dylan meets the only other soul around, a teenage boy named Tristan, who seemed to be waiting for someone at the end of the tunnel. Tristan is determined to get her to follow him, while Dylan believes they should wait for the rescue workers to show up. But something takes over Dylan and she follows Tristan into the barren wasteland, unsure of anything and terrified of the strange noises she keeps hearing from the distance.Â
I canât even begin to explain my thoughts on this novel. It was beautiful. The writing, the concept. The struggles of what we believe and want to know once we pass. It tackled the topic of the great beyond, and not knowing anything, realizing who you are and that even in death, you can still be a good person and bring out the good in people. At least in our MC Dylanâs perspective anyway.Â
She comes off as accepting at first, saying yes, itâs okay that she is dead. But in the end, she is still a 16-17 year old girl, that hasnât had much life experience and is still alone. She was alone when she was alive, woke up alone in the tunnel, and still feels alone even with Tristan. She never got to do anything, and here she is putting on a brave face just for the fact of knowing she needs to, instead of dragging down Tristan with her woes and worries. They donât hit it off in the beginning, and thatâs honestly why I think Dylan seems so relax about not expressing her fears about being dead, because she barley knows Tristan and she can tell his job is weighing him down.Â
There is something beautiful in how this world and this story works. The unknowns match what we already know, and the then having two characters who donât know anything are scared to try and break out of the mold is just intriguing. There are so many unknowns and twists and turns, but thats to be expected. The whole truth of this novel with that, we donât know anything when we die. We donât know what happens to us. Not even the Ferryman, has an understanding of what happens to the souls once he delivers them.Â
I loved the idea that even though we donât see any other souls or ferryman on the journey, they are still theyâre making their journey with their ferryman. The idea of this world being a lot bigger and souls traveling the wasteland at the same time and just not knowing it, really stuck with me.Â
Iâve seen a lot of negative reviews around this novel, and honestly, I personally donât get it. I was connected to this story right from the beginning, and even if things fell âflatâ at times, the overal story and journey, just made it worth it for me. I thought there was a lot of depth in this novel about the subjects they touch. Especially around Dylan and what she is to the wasteland. She experiences things that has never happened before, and yet, it still works because the novel has been setting it up from the beginning. Yes, this book has a romance subplot, itâs very minor, but you see the connection of the characters and see their friendship form and itâs just beautiful.Â
This may get a little spoiler like beyond this, so be warned. I donât go into extreme detail in the events, but just my thoughts about some circumstances.Â
Letâs talk about the clues and symbolism for a second. When we first meet Dylan, she is still alive and living her ordinary life. Doesnât sound like a great life, but we are introduced to her one of those shitty days where everything seems to go wrong. But in the mist of all that, Dylan mentions her dream, and recalling a blonde boy she saw in her dream. She doesnât even really recall it, until standing at the train station waiting, when she spots something across the tracks, a figure resembling the boy she had seen in her dream. I knew right from the beginning who they were referring to, and even though itâs never mentioned later on, I found it quite interesting that the story of Tristian starts before we actually meet him.Â
Dylanâs dreams also play a âsignificantâ role in the beginning of the book. The first sleep she has after the train accident, she recalls what actually happens to her and train. But to her, she doesnât realize sheâs dreaming. It was like she had come alive again in her last moments, recalling everything. Something about it was so powerful. This is the last time we see Dylan confront and remember what happened to her, even though it gets brought up later. I felt so connected to her after that, because of course she is suppressing what happened to her, it was traumatic.Â
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
heybethrenee's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.25
An interesting idea and a creative setting, however I think the pacing of the book was a bit off. Our two love interests seemed to fall in love very quickly when they only ever displayed a friendly relationship with one another? I feel like it lacked intimacy. But the plot and story was so creative and interesting!Â
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Blood
Moderate: Medical content and Medical trauma
Minor: Terminal illness
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