FERRYMAN

In the wasteland between life and death, Scottish teen Dylan falls in love with her ferryman.

On her way from Glasgow to Aberdeen to meet her estranged father for the first time, Dylan’s train crashes in a tunnel. Dazed, she emerges, expecting to find ambulances and other survivors—but the only person she sees is Tristan, a solemn teenage boy who insists she follow him. They walk across rolling hills, staying in abandoned cottages at night until an attack by shadowy wraiths forces Tristan to reveal the truth: Dylan died in the crash, and Tristan is there to shepherd her across the land between life and death. Dylan inevitably falls for him but knows that at the end of the journey she’s supposed to move on, while he must remain to ferry another soul across the wasteland. Yet she’s determined to find a way for them to be together. The narrative’s close third-person perspective mainly centers on Dylan but occasionally alternates to Tristan, revealing that he’s just as smitten as she is. Unfortunately, their chemistry falls flat, and the characters feel uninspired. Despite an intriguing premise, the first half of the story is bogged down in their repetitive journey between safe houses, and the worldbuilding is slow to come together. Main characters default to White.

May please some readers hoping to escape into an otherworldly romance.