Stranded by Melinda Braun

                                                   🌟🌟 out of 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Synopsis:
It’s human instinct to survive…but Mother Nature has other plans.

Plagued with guilt after surviving the car accident that took her sister’s life, Emma ventures into the rugged and mysterious wilderness of the Boundary Waters in search of some much needed peace. But when a freak windstorm kills her guide, Emma and a handful of other campers are forced to fend for themselves. Lost, hungry, and exhausted, the small group must rely on their survival instincts as they travel through the forest towards Lake Superior.

But the Boundary Waters is vast and unpredictable, and as the days drag on, it becomes clear that the group is no match for what Mother Nature has in store—and time is running out.

As they continue to battle the elements, Emma realizes that nature isn’t her only threat: there’s one camper who will do whatever it takes to make it out of the Boundary Waters alive. Even if he’s the only one…


I was so disappointed by this book! I was hesitant to read it in the first place because I don't love survival stories but I've been on a thriller kick lately. This book appeared to fit that genre at a glance. Boy was I wrong! The synopsis mentioned that this book was a psychological thriller and hinted that one of the members of the group had sinister motives. I don't understand why those two things were even mentioned in the first place. This book was not a psychological thriller at all. When people are trying to survive in the wild without the basic necessities it will cause emotional issues but none of these characters was dealing with a distortion of reality.
I'm about to spoil something by saying this next part. The synopsis hints at one of the characters being a killer but he isn't. The character is selfish and even creepy but not murdery. This book is a survival story and nothing more. Once I realized that this book was not what I thought it was, I tried to enjoy it for what it was. I found a lot of difficulty in that task. 
The characters were one dimensional. I wanted to see more depth in all of them but was disappointed over and over again. It felt like I was dealing with different stereotypes: tough black girl who doesn't take any crap, white trash, nerd, and white girl with issues. They always acted the same way regardless of what they were facing in the book and did not change at all over the course of the book. I also found it odd that Emma had never been camping before but suddenly knew survival skills once their guide dies and they are essentially on their own.