Passenger by Alexandra Bracken

Passage, n. i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes. ii. A journey by water; a voyage. iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time. In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now. Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not. Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.

It was the cover of this one that caught my eye first, with the city in a bottle and the reflection of a ship under the water, such neat artwork! It was suggested as a possible group read in a Goodreads group that I admin, and while it didn't win that round, I was intrigued enough to still give it a try.  I will definitely keep it in the running for the group read! Adventure, time travel to exotic locations, some romance, an artifact hunt, roller coaster feelings, there is a lot here!

The main draw after the cover caught me was time travel, I'm a sucker for the ability to pack history in with that nifty mechanism, and I enjoyed looking up images of the places they traveled to online.  I won't say where they went, that's part of the fun!  Also, you need a good hunt through time with a puzzle, and a handsome and conflicted pirate (ahem, legal thank you very much), while being chased by who knows how many different factions.  For not knowing anything like this was possible, Etta really took the whole thing very well! 

I enjoyed the characters, except for Sophia, you aren't supposed to like her though, and every time you almost feel sorry for her, yep, she says something that just makes you want to strangle her.  Papa Ironwood is of course super evil, though even he you can feel a smidge of empathy for when you know what he's up to, although it's still all for his own gain.  Nicholas and Etta fit together almost immediately, in fact so well that he is afraid to believe it.  Etta meanwhile is just bulling through the whole adventure like a bat out of hell that will not be stopped! She's got moxy for sure!

On the whole this was a great YA adventure with a lot of my favorite elements included which I would definitely recommend to you if you're looking for some treasure hunting, time skipping fun!