The Passage

By: Justin Cronin

Narrated by: Scott Brick, Adenrele Ojo, Abby Craden

Length: 36 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

Amy Harper Bellafonte is six years old, and her mother thinks she's the most important person in the whole world. She is.... Anthony Carter doesn't think he could ever be in a worse place than Death Row.... He's wrong. FBI agent Brad Wolgast thinks something beyond imagination is coming.... It is. The Passage.

Deep in the jungles of eastern Colombia, Professor Jonas Lear has finally found what he's been searching for - and wishes to God he hadn't. In Memphis, Tennessee, a six-year-old girl called Amy is left at the convent of the Sisters of Mercy and wonders why her mother has abandoned her.

In a maximum security jail in Nevada, a convicted murderer called Giles Babcock has the same strange nightmare, over and over again, while he waits for a lethal injection. In a remote community in the California mountains, a young man called Peter waits for his beloved brother to return home - so he can kill him. Bound together in ways they cannot comprehend, for each of them a door is about to open into a future they could not have imagined.

And a journey is about to begin. An epic journey that will take them through a world transformed by man's darkest dreams, to the very heart of what it means to be human. And beyond. The Passage.

©2010 Justin Cronin (P)2010 Orion Publishing group

How can an ending sneak up on you after 36 hours?

At first I thought I'd scream at the melodramatic narration (Scott Brick), trying to make every syllable drip with nuance, but either he settled down or the story just got me in, because I really did look forward to my daily commute to hear the next chapters.

It's an epic, and I'd often rewind because I thought I'd missed something, only to find it was explained further down the track. In that way, it may have been a better story to read than listen to. Also, so many characters make it a bit hard to keep track of everybody, but ultimately it was an engaging story and well worth the cost of the download.

As others have said, it's only part 1 of a possible 3 books. The ending was a bit of a cliff hanger - in fact I often felt through out the book Cronin was writing it with a movie screen play in mind.

The story reminded me of the movie I Am Legend (Richard Matheson book) and a little of the book Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. (which is also a great audio book)

LOVED IT!!!!!!!!

I am going to read book 2 now as the book one was totally captivating. I couldn't put it down, more please.....

Fantastic listen.

When is the next one coming out???? It cannot finish like that. The dude that reads it is a mite bit monotone, interesting concept,

Tops

The main reason i gave this 5 stars is not because it was one of the best books i have read, although it certainly is great, but because this book is so bloody long and it never loses you, and there is no way for myself that it seems that long... great....

Not very original, interesting or inspiring

A fairly good read, but at the end a bit underwhelming. Similarities to Stephen Kings, "The Stand" cannot be overlooked. The characters not really well developed, and large portions of the book seem a bit unnecessary and long winded. Parts are satisfyingly exciting and gruesome, but a bit few and far between. The plot also became a bit silly at times. Possibly I am being a bit harsh, it wasn't a bad read, but it all seemed a bit predictable.

A Long & Winding Road

Right off the bat - I enjoyed this however it was a tough listen. At parts I felt like I was wading through pages and pages of preamble to the action - which was quite tough.

The narration change makes it interesting - Mr Brick and I have a history and i sometimes struggle with his tempo - he pauses in strange places, but he builds good intensity.

The story is extreme in its ambition starting in the present and going well into the post-apocalyptic world. The characters link really well and the action is great.

All of the main characters have a story to tell, making the tale come alive in different ways with many emotions surfacing....

I will definitely read the remainder of the series however I need a little break.

This can be better

It was good the narrator had the thing down. The author know how to do this and entertains and draw the reader in, but so often loose the reader again. I think it is to long. The story ended to abrupt as if the author lost intrest and "skipped" across it. It felt like the objective was to write a 36 hour 52 minute book. The lead in was fast and full of action, the middle part just crawled on and on and then the end just like that!!!! Still good liked it.

Worth the time

Definately not the story I had anticipated. I love a long read, with lots of characters and complicated parts. The beginning was excellent and for a while, I couldn't stop! I kinda wished he could have kept up that type of storytelling for the entire book but the pace slowed in the middle with the need to establish characters and set the background for the next book. Hope the next installment is as good as the first part of this book. Be a winner for sure if so.

'Viral' post-apocalyptic adventure.

For a book to get five stars from me, it'd have to be good. So far in my audiobook journey, 'The Passage' and it's sequel, 'Twelve' come the closest. Not a vampire story as such (thank goodness), but the fresh and innovative take on the vampire myth is compelling. While the character development is a bit hollow and predictive I really enjoyed this action packed adventure. Don't however, read The Passage unless you also plan to read the sequel Twelve. The Passage does not conclude at all, but leaves off in the middle of the story. Twelve is just as good as The Passage and brings the story to a satisfying conclusion but with hints as to how the story will continue in the third book 'The City of Mirrors' - can't wait!

Nothing has beat this book yet in my library.

What made the experience of listening to The Passage the most enjoyable?

I really enjoyed this book and the following sequels. I usually pass these type of books up as not interested in the main topic (vampires). However this is not your ordinary vampire story. This puts an entirely new spin on vampires to the point of which they probably would be if ever real. Excellent characters and the book spans generations with some interesting outcomes.

What other book might you compare The Passage to and why?

The Remaining by D.J. Molles. Also worth a read. Not vampires but Zombies. Again, not a topic I usually listen too, but both of these Authors have come up with a unique portrayal of them. Very gripping.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, Scott Brick is a great Narrator and is how I got onto this. I often search for books based on others I have listened to by the same narrator. He is very good.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Impossible, this book and the series are very long, but if I didn't need to eat, sleep and work I probably would have listened to it all in one go.

Any additional comments?

Don't let the topic of vampires put you off. Trust me, they're not vampires its not even close to vampires and thank god is absolutely nothing like twilight. This book is worth a read and would make an excellent mini series.