The Passenger

How a Travel Writer Learned to Love Cruises & Other Lies from a Sinking Ship

By: Chaney Kwak

Narrated by: Keong Sim

In March 2019, the Viking Sky cruise ship was struck by a bomb cyclone in the North Atlantic. Rocked by 50-foot swells and 40-knot gales, the ship lost power and began to drift straight toward the notoriously dangerous Hustadvika coast in Norway. This is the suspenseful, harrowing, funny, touching story by one passenger who contemplated death aboard that ship.

Chaney Kwak is a travel writer used to all sorts of mishaps on the road, but this is a first even for him: Trapped on the battered cruise ship, he stuffs his passport into his underwear just in case his body has to be identified. As the massive cruise ship sways in surging waves, Kwak holds on and watches news of the impending disaster unfold on Twitter, where the ship’s nearly 1,400 passengers are showered with “thoughts and prayers”. Kwak uses his 27 hours aboard the teetering ship to examine his family history, maritime tragedies, and the failing relationship back on shore with a man he’s loved for nearly two decades: The Viking Sky, he realizes, may not be the only sinking ship he needs to escape.

The Passenger takes listeners on an unforgettable journey from the Norwegian coast to the South China Sea, from post-WWII Korea to pandemic-struck San Francisco. Kwak weaves his personal experience into events spanning decades and continents to explore the serendipity and the relationships that move us.

©2021 Chaney Kwak (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

Reminded me that the aftershock of a life threatening experience prioritizes your priorities going forward.

I liked the honesty of the account and could identify with the emotions which it evoked. The appreciation which the author recognized the contribution made by unseen crew members resonated.

An exciting yet dark account.

Having cruised many times, and in fact going on another in 2022, this is a bit of nightmare. But one thing stood out to me was the near miracles performed by the crew and rescue people. A big thanks to them from a mere reader of a near shipwreck.
Four stars on story for the more than necessary account of the writer's gay connection, in my opinion.

Harrowing experience

The true story was well-told. However, it was too short. There's so much more I want to know about the event Chaney Kwak lived through. The narrator did a very good job.

Great listen

This is an awesome story and very interesting and contains suspense. This is great. It is awesome!

thoughtful and entertaining

a meditative and gripping story, intimate without being sentimental. vivid and dreamy, a great way to spend a long weekend.