From the Publisher
"Fast-paced and gripping. Adiba Jaigirdar has crafted an extraordinary heist following four girls who use their unique talents to steal a prize—and find courage within themselves." — Chloe Gong, New York Times Bestselling author of These Violent Delights
"Exhilarating, heart-wrenching, and unforgettable. Every page of Adiba Jaigirdar’s A Million to One glitters like the Titanic itself, with all the exquisite tension of a first kiss—or an impossible heist." — Olivie Blake, author of The Atlas Six
"A Million to One is a fast-paced adventure with rich historical details and so much heart. Even with tragedy looming, I loved spending time with these four brave, brilliant girls." — Jordyn Taylor, author of The Paper Girl of Paris and Don't Breathe a Word
“Four young women board the Titanic to steal a rare, gem-studded copy of the Rubaiyat, the classic book of Persian poetry…. [B]rief chapters in alternating perspectives reveal conflicting interests, hidden motives, and mutual pining. A countdown in the chapter headings adds a sense of urgency—will the girls succeed before time runs out? A character-driven story that builds to a dramatic end.” — Kirkus Reviews
“An underlying sapphic romance and a racially and ethnically diverse cast lend a refreshing dynamic to the familiar backdrop.” — Publishers Weekly
author of The Paper Girl of Paris Jordyn Taylor
A fast-paced adventure with rich historical details and so much heart. Even with tragedy looming, I loved spending time with these four brave, brilliant girls.”
Jordyn Taylor
"A Million to One is a fast-paced adventure with rich historical details and so much heart. Even with tragedy looming, I loved spending time with these four brave, brilliant girls."
Chloe Gong
"Fast-paced and gripping. Adiba Jaigirdar has crafted an extraordinary heist following four girls who use their unique talents to steal a prize—and find courage within themselves."
Olivie Blake
"Exhilarating, heart-wrenching, and unforgettable. Every page of Adiba Jaigirdar’s A Million to One glitters like the Titanic itself, with all the exquisite tension of a first kiss—or an impossible heist."
Kirkus Reviews
2022-09-28
Four young women board the Titanic to steal a rare, gem-studded copy of the Rubaiyat, the classic book of Persian poetry.
It doesn’t take long for Josefa, a thrill-seeking Dublin thief, to select her crew. Croatian Violet, who wishes to reunite with her younger brother at home, has a natural talent for acting and gathering information. Emilie, a skilled painter and forger, is reluctant to take apart the Rubaiyat for profit but is swayed by the thought of using the money from selling the individual jewels to travel to Haiti, her birth country, and visit her deceased mother’s family. Hinnah from Karachi is the youngest of the group, and she’s eager to leave a thankless job at the circus and put her contortionist abilities to better use aboard the Titanic by sneaking through circulation vents and into locked cabins. Stolen tickets and false identities get the four onto the famously unsinkable ship, where they must nab the priceless volume before it arrives in America. While the planning and execution of the heist keep the story ticking along, the action and excitement really escalate in the latter half of the book. Earlier it’s the shifting dynamics between the girls that build tension as brief chapters in alternating perspectives reveal conflicting interests, hidden motives, and mutual pining. A countdown in the chapter headings adds a sense of urgency—will the girls succeed before time runs out?
A character-driven story that builds to a dramatic end. (content warning, author’s note) (Historical fiction. 13-18)
