The Passengers by John Marrs

Title: The Passengers

Author: John Marrs 

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: August 27, 2019

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 illegal 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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What a dark and possible nightmare!

In the near future, people are using self-driving cars. One day, eight passengers are taken hostages by a mysterious voice. Their routes are modified and they are told they are in a collision course to their death. Social media and a group of selected people are all in charge of selecting the sole survivor. 

Who would you pick? 

The pregnant female? The husband or wife? The abused wife? Or the man you met once and had a connection with?

The hacker has placed cameras inside each of the cars. He also has cameras inside the Vehicle Inquest Jury, where Libby Dixon is a Juror. Each of the passengers will have a chance to defend their lives as the sole survivor. The only problem is that each of them is hiding a terrible secret and the man behind their abduction seems to know their deepest secret. A secret so terrible that death could be a better choice.

What made The Passengers so exciting and scary is that it could become a possibility in the near future. The idea of self-driving cars is not outrageous any longer.  I for one, hate driving, and I'm not sure I wouldn't love a self-driving car. Although, after reading this book, I'd think about it twice. Maybe I'd chose a level 3 and not a 5.

John Marrs does a wonderful job with The Passengers. He gives us great characters, a fantastic plot and at least two very good twists.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

Thank you, Loren Jaggers, Berkley and Netgalley for my complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.