Book Review: Seabound by Jordan Rivet

Media Type: Ebook

Title: Seabound
Series: The Seabound Chronicles #1

Author: Jordan Rivet

Publisher: Self-published

Pages: Paperback; 409

Release Date: October 30, 2014

Source: Author

———————————————

Genre: Post-apocalyptic adventure

HDB Rating: 4 Keys to My Heart

Recommended to: Readers who enjoy post-apocalyptic adventures with interesting characters.

Add it on: Goodreads | Amazon | BookLikes

When an apocalyptic catastrophe decimates the land, a lucky few escape to sea. 1,003 survivors make their home on a souped-up cruise ship called the Catalina. After sixteen years, the strain begins to show in a floating world of distrust and shifting allegiances.

Esther is a young mechanic who wants to prove herself, and she’s willing to take risks in the name of progress. But when the fresh water tanks explode, endangering the lives of everyone aboard the Catalina – it’s all Esther’s fault.

With only a little water left, the crew of the Catalina must use its last fuel to sail for help. They head to an unknown seabound metropolis called the Galaxy Flotilla. The inhabitants of the Galaxy are keen to parade their lives of luxury, but what do the saviors really want in return for their warm welcome? And what is really going on below decks?

When disaster strikes again, Esther must fight to save the lives of her friends aboard the Catalina before it’s too late.

Find out how far Esther is willing to go to save her home in the fast-paced first novel in the Seabound Chronicles, a post-apocalyptic adventure series from an exciting new author.

Although the story started off a bit slow for me, about a quarter of the way through the adventure really began to pick up and I enjoyed it a lot more. The world building was well done and it was easy to jump into the idea of life at sea thanks to Jordan Rivet’s detailed storytelling. 

Esther was a heroine I could really get behind. She is feisty, rebellious, smart, strong and caring which I think is a great combination. It was nice to read a post-apocalyptic story where the girl doesn’t have to all of the sudden learn a ton of new things in order to survive. Esther grew up on this ship and chose her profession because it interested her. While everyone on the ship had to contribute to their society in a tangible way, I really enjoyed that people could pursue their interests as a part of that.

The delicate nature of an enclosed environment was really well done. Rivet does a wonderful job of showing that the slightest threat of limited resources can really change the way a peaceful society interacts. Life at sea is a precarious notion, you must rely on luck and good judgement to survive a storm or find the right parts to fix your ship. Coming across other ships wasn’t always a good thing as anyone could be a threat. 

The supporting cast of characters brought a lot to the story as well. Varying personalities and views of the world gave this book some tenacious moments and left me wanting to learn more about them. The ending left me satisfied but optimistic about future books in the series.