The Passage

A Novel (Book One of The Passage Trilogy)

By: Justin Cronin

Narrated by: Scott Brick, Adenrele Ojo, Abby Craden

Length: 36 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best seller.

This thrilling novel kicks off what Stephen King calls “a trilogy that will stand as one of the great achievements in American fantasy fiction".

Now a FOX TV series!

Named one of Paste’s best horror books of the decade.

Named one of the 10 best novels of the year by TIME and one of the best books of the year by The Washington Post, Esquire, U.S. News & World Report, NPR/On Point, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, BookPage, and Library Journal.

“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born".

An epic and gripping tale of catastrophe and survival, The Passage is the story of Amy - abandoned by her mother at the age of six, pursued, and then imprisoned by the shadowy figures behind a government experiment of apocalyptic proportions. But Special Agent Brad Wolgast, the lawman sent to track her down, is disarmed by the curiously quiet girl and risks everything to save her. As the experiment goes nightmarishly wrong, Wolgast secures her escape - but he can’t stop society’s collapse. And as Amy walks alone, across miles and decades, into a future dark with violence and despair, she is filled with the mysterious and terrifying knowledge that only she has the power to save the ruined world. Look for the entire Passage trilogy:

• The Passage
• The Twelve
• The City of Mirrors

©2010 Justin Cronin (P)2010 Random House

Critic reviews

“[A] blockbuster.” (The New York Times)

“Mythic storytelling.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Magnificent...Cronin has taken his literary gifts, and he has weaponized them...The Passage can stand proudly next to Stephen King’s apocalyptic masterpiece The Stand, but a closer match would be Cormac McCarthy’s The Road: A story about human beings trying to generate new hope in a world from which all hope has long since been burnt.” (Time)

Negative reviews are from YA/Vampire book/Stephen King fans

This is a work of adult fiction. Instead of mindless ‘scary’ action, the author builds a complete world of fully developed characters that you can become engrossed in. Also, the bad guys aren’t even vampires. I wish people would stop saying that.

Calling this book a Vampire book (or even horror) is like calling Game of Thrones a Dragon book (or horror). George RR Martin spends countless pages describing the towns his characters pass through and more countless pages on the people who are merely interacted with. This book is similar.

Another perfect comparison to Game of Thrones would be the supernatural aspects. If want to read a book about dragons or ice zombies, GoT isn’t for you. If you want to read a book about vampires, The Passage isn’t for you. If you want to be sucked into an awesome reality where you are fully invested in the characters and their life, this is what you are looking for.

Loved it.

I don't understand the negative reviews--this was a great book. I have been a lifelong fan of Stephen King, and have read everything he ever wrote. This novel easily matches kings best.

I will be anxiously awaiting the next novel by Justin Cronin

Wow, what a story!

I'm not at all into the vampire craze and from reading some of the reviews knew this was about vampires. But, I bought it for my daughter and I thought I might as well give it a try, I could just stop listening if I wasn't enjoying it. And, I'm one that never gives up on a book and I was a bit intimidated by the 40 hours of listening. So, I waded in with a bit of trepidation but it didn't take long before I was caught up in the story and it just started rolling along. This isn't a vampire story like True Blood or Twilight, it's more of an epic sci-fi novel. The author had a creative imagination and told a good story. I also like that he honed his writing skills at the Iowa Writers Workshop. I was sorry to see it end.

Intense

There is little mercy in the telling of this story, and that's a good thing.

Justin Cronin’s, “Passage”, presents a future that is frightening and plausible..

The characters represented America, ie, white, Black, Hispanic, Asian, etc. with women in some primary roles, which made for a much richer reading experience. The novel is well written particularly action scenes are easy to visualize and enjoy. The monster(s) is(are) sufficiently frightening however Cronin makes it clear, as always, that our fellow man is usually the real monster..

Interesting story, but...

The plot of this book is interesting and it is very well plotted. Most of the characters are well drawn. There was one character I was hoping would killed off who never did... And he is the hero. I got so tired of his stupidity. I was able to anticipate the very often repeated line, "He didn't know what to say." Or he doesn't understand. How this dude could go through all these travails and still be clueless and generally passive was frustrating. There's a hint that he has hidden properties, so I'm hoping that might explain his behavior.
That I'm thinking about these characters as if they are real is a testament to how good the author is.
However, I couldn't help thinking a lot of words could have been cut. When you are reading a book, your eye can jump ahead or just ignore all the characters nodding rhetorically. But in the audio version you're kind of stuck listening to every word.
If I had checked this audiobook out from my library's, I suspect I would've bailed early on. Because I bought it, I slogged on and was generally rewarded. So I'll take a chance on book 2 and hope the Amy character becomes more the focal point.

Excellent

Great listen. Even at almost 37 hours I could not stop... I had to find excuses to take a break and listen. This is the type of book you actually stop and listen to, no running around doing other things while listening. Gripping and addicting from start to finish. Best book I've heard in a while. Already downloded "The Twelve" hope it's just as good. Excellent job by the narrators as well.

The passage to where?

Did I miss the part that told us this is book 1 of a series? The Passage was enjoyable and quite riveting until the end. Did the author give up on how to end it or just not finish it because there is going to be a passage 2? I'm sorry, but it annoys me when things are just left hanging. If we are supposed to have something to ponder upon, please let it be the contents of the book, not what WE imagine will come next.

great book

very well done story line, as usual scott brick is a fantastic narrator. 2 thumbs up

Good Entertainment

I was a bit skeptical about this book at first but quickly got into the story and listened to the entire series. The story kept me interested and the narration was spot on.