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)

Aawesome

I loved the book as well as the narration. I went ahead and stared book 2 in the trilogy as soon as I finished book 1. Scot Brick's performance is top notch.

good but long

it's a novel about survival, about what happens after the end of the world, about vampires in a non-fictional world. in this story, vampires arent hiding among us, because they can't. they lose their mind and become beasts. Very dark. Not for children or romantic. Good book but a bit long.

Absolutely love it!!!

This is the second time I am leasing to this book. It doesn't cease to impress me over and over again. And I am sure I will be listening to it again.

Epic!

What an amazing journey. I haven't read a book in a long time that covered so much territory while keeping you gripped st all times.

Quite an Investment to be Left w a Cliffhanger Anyway

Lots of hours .. Great for me since I am always searching for books over 15 hours to wile away the commute time to and from work and in the grocery store. Sucked me in by the second half to find out the ending. Disappointed to learn I will have to invest another chunk of my life to read what I guess will be a sequel – didn't know there was one and assume there will have to be one…

great story

starts off slow. gets better. well narrated. interesting take on the vampire genre. walking dead of the vampire world.

Excellent book.

I loved this book although I felt a little let down at the end. It isn't your typical vampire story which made it very interesting and the character development was pretty good. While I wish the ending had been a bit different, I'm still thinking about it and finished it two days ago which says something!

A few stalls but overall...interesting

Despite some of the reviews I read here, I enjoyed it. The basic story, while somewhat similar to other books I've read, was interesting; as were most of the characters. It's style resembles Stephen King's. The character development fits the category as does the length. It was, at times, predictable, but overall a good read—though quite depressing. It had few stall points, and a couple moments that seemed to have no originating points, but in Mr Cronin's defense, Mr King's works can, too.

Some reviewers have mentioned the jump into the future. This took me by surprise as well, and I did find the first part more engrossing, but he brought it back around eventually.

For the record, I get sucked into the long books for the sheer escapist factor. While I'm reading I'm also gardening, driving, floating in my pool, etc. While I can get into an autobiography or non fiction book, I usually prefer the entertainment factor of unrealistic fiction.

Pretty good

I thought the story was very good and so was the readers but early on there seemed to be allot of pointless drivel and a few places where you wanted to say OK enough already! Overall it was worth the time although I may have to replay the last chapter.

One of the best...

I am a big fan of apocalyptic scenarios - books, movies, series - love them all. The Last Tribe, The Stand, The Walking Dead ... And this is one of the very best I came across... Even more complex than The Stand and that 's something I thought I would never say. I loved the characters, loved the story and most of all loved the narration. Scott Brick is just suberb for this story and he even gets better with the next 2 books. I was confused with the sudden jump of the story 100 years ahead, but after a while it all made sense and in the next books its even expected. I am now finishing the book 3 and the story is unfolding even more, becoming something I couldnt even imagine in the beginning.
By now I have spent about 4 weeks in this world and I feel I know those people just as much as I know people in the real world. It was well worth the money spent and I am really sorry I am about to finish. Well done, Mr. Cronin, well done, Mr. Scott ...