You’re riding in your self-driving car when suddenly the doors lock, the route changes and you have lost all control. Then, a mysterious voice tells you, “You are going to die.” Just as self-driving cars become the trusted, safer norm, eight people find themselves in this terrifying situation, including a faded TV star, a pregnant young woman, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an undocumented … husband, an undocumented immigrant, a husband and wife, and a suicidal man.
From cameras hidden in their cars, their panic is broadcast to millions of people around the world. But the public will show their true colors when they are asked, “Which of these people should we save?…And who should we kill first?”
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I listened to the audiobook
I was really into this book for for the first 80%, which were parts 1 and 2. If I gave a rating just on that much of the book, it would be a solid 4 stars. Then part 3 came along, and everything just fell apart for me. The writing was good, for the most part, and some of the characters were interesting. Some were major stereotypes, but to be honest, with that many characters, it doesn’t surprise me. But the thriller aspect just died in the last 20%, even with a push to bring it back.
To be honest, the hacking done on the cars might have been wholly unrealistic, but I don’t really care. I’m blessed to be someone who can just enjoy it for what it is, because I don’t really know a lot about software, AI, or electronics in general. It was pretty clear that some of the Passengers were only in the book so that the Hacker could show how serious he was, as the number quickly dwindled from 8 to 5. Each of those 5 Passengers has their secrets, which are unveiled as the Hacker hurtles them to their doom.
While this is happening, the protagonist, a woman named Libby, is one of the 5 on the jury that is being forced to decide these people’s fate. While there were some things that she did that really bugged me, it was a good perspective to watch the events from. The very end of part 2 was a bit confusing to me, and unfortunately, in the mess that was parts 3 & 4, the book didn’t really give a satisfying reason for what happened.
Parts 3 & 4 are messy and mostly unnecessary. They felt like a tack-on, and frankly, soured the mysterious nature of the Hacker. I felt like there were too many attempted twists, and I quickly got to a point where I just didn’t believe anything, which makes it difficult to enjoy a book.
In the end, I am glad I read this book. Enough of it was enjoyable that I would recommend it for fans of sci-fi, especially people who enjoy books that show horror stories about the direction our technology is heading. Because of the many higher ratings this book has gotten, definitely check it out if you think you might enjoy it.
Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me a copy of this book to review.
this book was very well done and the writing was fabulous The characters are just wonderful there are so many twists and turns. This book will have no problem holding your attention. It makes you think about the future sine we are already starting to see some of these things now. Where will we be in 10 or 20 years from now and what will happen when we do get there
Buckle up for the thrill ride of a lifetime!
Wow! Wow! Wow! This is the second book I’ve ready by John Marrs, but it won’t be the last. Libby finds what she feels could be the love of a lifetime after being deceived by her fiancée. However, what appears in front of you may not always be the whole picture. If you love psychological thrillers this is a must read book. I was constantly impressed with the writing and how parts of the book intertwined with a previous book, “The One”. But here’s the good part….you don’t have to read one of them to understand the other. They are not a series, but anyone who has read previous books will be blown away, (no pun intended you’ll understand after reading). So, get in your car (and be thankful that you can control it yourself), and go buy this book!
Twisty, turny, thought provoking, brilliance!
I loved John Marrs ‘The One’ but I LOVED ‘The Passengers’
The systems of 8 self drive vehicles have been hacked and set on a fatal collision course… the public have to judge who will survive. (Swipe for full synopsis)
Gah! I don’t even know how to put my feelings about this book into words.
Heart pounding
Breath holding
Whiplash giving
Nerve shattering
Heart breaking
Keeps you guessing and on the edge of your seat.
If you love any of that in a thriller then READ THIS!
I do, however, recommend reading The One first. You don’t have to, but it is mentioned in this book and I liked that I knew the background.
I will read anything John Marrs writes. I got hooked with “The One” and “The Good Samaritan.”
The Passengers has over 1,000 Amazon reviews and 12,200 Goodreads Reviews averaging 4.09.
I can’t say too much without giving away some of the surprises.
I liked it, a lot. There are many twists and turns, I guarantee you will have some surprises.
What I liked:
-Takes place in London.
-The background on the many characters.
-The premise of autonomous cars being taken over by a hacker and riders being driven to their death.
-The secret review board that determines fault in autonomous car accidents, almost always the individual’s faults, never the car.
-Watching the review board forced to pick who will live.
-Much more.
What I didn’t like:
Nothing really. Very good story.
Can’t wait for the next one.
Review by Mike Slavin author of award-winning Kill Crime (action-packed thriller on Amazon to buy or KU. As of this writing 94% 5 and 4-star reviews on Amazon with 350+ reviews)
DEALS WITH TOPICAL ISSUES OF FULLY AUTOMATIC CARS AND THE ANONIMITY OF THE INTERNET. ANYONE READING THIS STORY (WHICH IS A PAGE-TURNER) HAS TO REALLY THINK OF THE IMPLICATIONS.
“It may have come to your attention that your vehicle is no longer under your management. From here on in, I am in charge of your destination. The only thing you need to know is that two hours and thirty minutes from now, it is highly likely that you will be dead.”
In the not too distant future, eight automated vehicles are taken over by an unknown hacker with an unknown agenda…all broadcast for the whole world to see. Soon, the social media voting begins. Who lives? Who dies?
Spending time in the mind of John Marrs has always been one of my favorite places to be but whoooooooo, he outdoes himself in this one. I was so impressed by the research he must have done to execute this book so capably.
This is not one to miss!
Imagine if a Hacker Collective, with an agenda, took control of a select few driver-less cars. Great book, great story.
This was a great thriller with a hint of sci-fi. I loved this book.
The word I would use to describe this book is chilling. When 8 passengers get locked in their self-driving cars while trying to go about their day, it turns into mass chaos. Now there is a panel off jury members who must decide their fate. Nothing is fair and nothing is easy. This book chilled me to my core to imagine that something like this could ever happen. It’s such a great book.
This book had me from the very beginning, all the way through to the end. It was worth every bit of the 416 pages…backstories and all.
The drama started with eight passengers all going about their day as normal; all owners of the Level 5 fully automated vehicle. Let me explain, there are five levels, with level one giving the owner full control of the car and level five just the opposite. In level 5 there are no controls whatsoever (such as brake or gas pedals, and a steering wheel) and the passenger is totally dependent on the car to make decisions for them in case of emergencies, accidents, etc. However, the passenger can access all other features through the touch screen and voice activated commands (i.e. temperature, music, internet searches, etc.)
Just think about how the Level 5 car would make a split-second decision for you if a pedestrian or car jumped out in front of you. What would it be based on? Statistics or distance? Or, do you think they would decide which life is more important to save when making the decision? The driver or the pedestrian. Frightening thought, right?
Anyway, on one particular morning the destination the eight passengers had programmed was diverted by a hijacker called the Hacker. This hacker had found a back door to the software. Everyone’s worse nightmare was coming to fruition. His voice was all the passengers heard before the panic set in. He told them their vehicles had been re-programmed to a new destination, and that in approximately two and half hours they would be dead. Next, their doors were locked, they had no cell signal or Internet connection to communicate with the outside world.
Now, I would like to think we are a long way away from this type of crisis happening, but in reality, self-driving cars are already out there. Once they are perfected, this would be the logical next step.
Even the ‘fitbit’ technology is beginning to grow to the level in this book, which demonstrated how they were using their watch for GPS linked with their car, their Smart Watch was logging not just heart rate, but actual health concerns and sending to their doctors, they were using it to pay for goods and services, for talking and texting, and so much more.
Also noted in this book was the technology of DNA matching. This was a technique used to match you up with your perfect mate through DNA. (which is the topic of his next book The One!) I can’t wait!
Anyway, I won’t tell the whole story, but the Hacker had an elaborate plan to expose the automated car industry and involved the public via social media into that plan.
In the end, many lives would be sacrificed for the Hacker’s cause.
This was a book I will NEVER forget. Thank you to the author for providing that closure at the end, letting us know what happened with the main characters years later. And, thank you for doing so much research on the technology capabilities with automated vehicles, detailed in the end of the book as well.
FIVE WELL-DESERVED STARS!!
The Passenger by John Marrs is a futuristic book about driverless cars. What a concept right? Maybe not. The eight characters in the story would argue against it. Everyone’s day was going along as it should when they get into their cars and find themselves locked in and the car is set on a course where all of the cars will collide head-on in a few hours and the people were told they would all die. They were hacked. The deal is, only one person will be allowed to survive. It is up to a “jury” and the internet to decide who gets to live and who does not.
What an imaginative story, I read it in two sittings. I did not want to put it down! Can you imagine that someone can hack into your car and decide your fate? Personally, I don’t like the idea of an autonomous car. An electric car is fine if it is to save the environment but not one that is programmed to do what you want it to do. Like any internet linked device, they can be hacked. I love the premise of this book though. It is about a domestic terrorist who has a certain agenda.
I love Libby, at first, she seemed like a meek woman but as the story went on, the reader finds that she is a very strong woman. I enjoyed reading about each of the characters and what their faults were and what was going on in their lives that would determine their fate. So why were they hacked? For what purpose? Those are good questions and reasons for you to get a copy of the book.
This book is an edge of your seat kind of thriller, futuristic but not a fantasy. A story that will have you wondering about the future. I think that if you love this kind of story you can’t go wrong and I think I want to read more from this author! I give it 5 stars!
I was very pleased to have won an Advanced Reading Copy of this book from Read It Forward. Honestly, I’ve never liked the idea of autonomous vehicles, and reading this book didn’t alleviate my fears one iota. Although Mr. Marr’s book is fiction, it appears to have been ripped from the daily news. Artificial intelligence (AI) and terrorism make an interesting combination. There’s a hitch though—AI developers can be just as flawed as the rest of us.
I absolutely loved it. It sucked me right in and kept me gripped right until the end. With some real jaw dropping moments, it was an edge of your seat read.
One of the most exciting, original thriller writers out there. I never miss one of his books.
[A] savagely clever near-future thriller. Provocative, terrifying and compulsive.
As I had read and loved The One by John Marr previously and this book was on offer for just 99p so I thought I would give it a go. Initially I was really struggling with this one, it seems the last couple of lines is repeated on the next page every now and then, surely this is not meant to be like this, but would such a thing be missed in the editing/printing procedure. (I have been assured by the author who I contacted via Instagram that it was some sort of download issue) The One is actually mentioned on more than one occasion within the plot of this book too. So, The Passenger is set around the same futuristic era that The One is also set in. There are various covers for this book but my favourite is the one I have chosen to go with my review. (pictured above).
I think the byline on the book cover “Eight intended victims, Who lives, Who dies? You decide.” I also like the dashboard feel to the cover with the skull warning light illuminated. The genres I have seen listed for this book are Sci-Fi, Thriller which fit well though after reading the book I would add futuristic and dystopian to the list.
The book has two groups of major characters, jurors and passengers. Those that have been called for a modern, futuristic version of jury service all in a locked room. They are there to give judgement on accidents that have occurred as a result of the new driverless cars. These new cars are fantastic! You don’t need a drivers licence. You get into your vehicle, put in your destination in something like our present sat navs and sit back. The car does all the work. You are just a passenger, you are free to take telephone calls, do your emails, or paperwork on the way to work or just enjoy the scenery as you go past. This type of car has lots of special additions to what a normal car would have such as accident prevention software. However, what happens when there is an accident who is at fault, the car or the passenger? This is what the jurors have been called together to decide. The evidence is presented in a way that they are steered towards not blaming the cars. Of course, there are lots more details within the book about the cars. This book had me seriously thinking of what the future in cars is going to be in reality. I mean most people have sat navs, parking assist things in their cars and there is so much more to compare to this book such as the car that parks itself. There are different levels of driverless cars from ones that only park for you perhaps, that you can still override to the level that you have no control of at all. You can also hire these driverless cars too, kind of like using them as a taxi. The car arrives, you input your destination and off it goes. The dashboard in these cars allows you to do anything from watch TV, to doing your emails, checking social media or even reading. Passengers as young as fourteen can be a passenger alone in a fully automated driverless car! The government are certainly encouraging people to change to this type of vehicle, such as tax breaks, free charging and cheaper insurance!
The other group of eight main characters are the ones that are basically trapped in their cars and at the mercy of a very clever group of people who have chosen them to make a point. It soon becomes apparent that the man talking to the jurors is in charge and they will listen to him and do as he tells them to. The passengers are introduced in the book via their own chapters. You could say there is a wide range of passengers to represent different age groups, sexuality and races. The hacker lets the passengers introduce themselves and he tells them that they are all set on a collision course and will die in two hours thirty minutes. The hacker also continues this countdown throughout the book. As each passenger realises they are not heading to the destination they inputted into the cars system, their reactions vary from pressing any and every button they can find, to screaming and crying. In turn all the vehicles windows turn a kind of opaque so no one can see in to the vehicles and their panicking passengers. Passenger One is Claire Arden, who is pregnant with a baby boy. I thought the fact the baby had a nickname and reason behind the baby’s nickname “Tate” made you kind of count the baby boy as a “passenger” within his own right. Passenger Two is Jude Harrison who turns out to be the guy that Libby (one of the jurors) has been looking for since meeting him in a bar when out with friends one evening. Jude is a single, good looking male who had purchased a driverless car at the beginning of the governments hyped “Road Revolution” Passenger Three is a 78year old actress called Sophia Bradbury who is on her way to one of the many charity events and is in the process of trying to revive her flagging career….
Each passenger is given the opportunity to introduce themselves, then the hacker reveals a dark secret about them to the public. It is the jurors and the public watching everything as it happens via the internet who will vote and decide who lives and who dies! Each Juror is given the chance to champion one of the passengers and talk to them. Then in turn try to influence public opinion on them. Things may seem very black and white but it turns out they really aren’t.
My favourite character was Libby who had her own views on driverless cars coloured by the accident she saw happen quite recently. I also adored Claire Arden, her husband Ben and their unborn baby Tate. Claire begs for her unborn child and seems to have both the jurors and the publics support. That is until her dark secret has been revealed, which leaves the question of should her unborn child suffer because of his parent’s poor choices. The character I loved to hate was Jack who came across uncaring, bullish and in favour of the driverless vehicles no matter what the risk to the public was. He only reveals the information he wants to.
This really is a rollercoaster type of read. Being totally honest, I got really irritated with the whole download issue but the book is so good and such compulsive reading that I had to continue with it. I felt I had to know who lived and who died and why. I also wanted to find out the identity of the hacker and the group behind him and what their agenda was.
I would recommend reading this book and also The One by John Marrs too. I will also still be checking out other books by this author. You can really easily imagine this scenario happening not too far in our future.
What an incredible book!
This is an edge of your seat thriller like no other. The plot is a fascinating, page turning story that will keep you guessing to the very end.
The characters that John Marrs creates are so well developed that you either love them or love to hate them, and this book is no exception.
This is my new favorite book by John Marrs and I can’t recommend it enough.