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The Passage (The Passage #1)

3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 · rating details · 66,362 ratings · 10,431 reviews

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

First, the unthinkable: a security breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for t...more

Hardcover, 784 pages

Published June 8th 2010 by Ballantine Books (first published 2010)

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Jul 08, 2010 Ellen rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: novel, sci-fi-fantasy

Later, Keith Olbermann’s words, “WORST PERSON IN THE WO-O-R-R-L-L-D!!!” would echo in my head.

The other morning, my daughter called, crying, and said, “I just did something terrible.”

I froze. As a parent, these words could mean anything. I waited.

“I hit a car. I was trying to move over because the street was narrow. I hit someone’s mirror. I panicked. I just took off. I’m late for work already. They’ll fire me if I’m late. I know I damaged the mirror. I feel awful.” This was all delivered in pie...more

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May 22, 2010 Newengland rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary, finished-in-2010

THE PASSAGE is a lot like the month of March. It comes in like a vampire thriller and goes out like a batty soap opera. And it's big! Spreading its bat wings, it measures in at 766 pages (or at least the ARC version does). TWILIGHT this ain’t, and regular vampire fare it isn’t either. It’s a hodgepodge of Bram Stoker, Tom Clancy, Stephen King, and John Steinbeck: one if by vampires, two if by military games, three if by bloodbath, and four if by brotherly melodrama.

Overall I liked it. Honest. I...more THE PASSAGE is a lot like the month of March. It comes in like a vampire thriller and goes out like a batty soap opera. And it's big! Spreading its bat wings, it measures in at 766 pages (or at least the ARC version does). TWILIGHT this ain’t, and regular vampire fare it isn’t either. It’s a hodgepodge of Bram Stoker, Tom Clancy, Stephen King, and John Steinbeck: one if by vampires, two if by military games, three if by bloodbath, and four if by brotherly melodrama.

Overall I liked it. Honest. I don’t read 766 pages during the school year easily. “Big Mo” (that’s “Momentum” to you young folk) carried me through as the Laws of Physics applied. Meaning? Cronin got this off to such a sick start that the action carried me. I couldn’t put it down.

The opening plot line was simple: Dr. Strangelove goes to South America to find the cure for death and instead turns it loose. You can always count on your military brass for that sort of screw up, no? You see, they wanted a serum from these batty vampires living deep in the jungles (only why didn’t they migrate and take in... er, over... the world, like they did later in the book?) so they could extract the GOOD part of vampirism (you know, extended life, superhuman strength, and damn near indestructibility) without the bad part (bad skin, bad breath, restricted diet, No Exit signs in the Mortality Room, etc.). The idea was to give the serum to U.S. soldiers and then look out world! That's right, the USA would be able to kick some North Korean slash Al Qaedan slash Taliban butt!

You know the drill, though: the best laid plans of bats and uniformed men.... At their underground Telluride, CO, fortress, the Army injects 12 death row inmates and one special little 6-year-old girl (hint: key to the book) and keeps them under lock and key (and 12-foot steel walls and multiple doors and so on) for observation. Only the hanging upside down former prisoners, now “virals” (that’s the word for them in this tome), are playing with their guards’ minds because they want to come out and play. Can you say “telepathic disaster”? Uh-huh. All hell breaks loose and the score winds up being Hell 1 and U.S. Army 0.

Here’s where the book takes wing. These nasty hobbits come out of nowhere and rip you open like a can of beets. Every couple of dozen victims are just “scratched” on the throat so they can become part of the Viral Army. And soon America as we know it and love it turns into Cormac McCarthy PlayLand.

Yep. It’s THE ROAD all over again. Dystopia with teeth. And compelling stuff, too. We go to various outposts where certain humans have figured out certain ways to survive. Lights, chiefly. Because the virals are creatures of the night and don’t like the spotlight.

Where the wheels start to wobble is halfway through. Suddenly Cronin plays fast and loose with his own rules. Suddenly a viral attack develops more than two possible results (death and the equivalent of taxes – being a vampire for life). Suddenly “the good guys” (i.e. major characters) are given preferential treatment.

And he delves more deeply into the social life of our hearty crew of humans, too, including a fraternal rivalry between bros named Theo and Peter. This is the Steinbeck part -- East of Eden, West of Transylvania. Here Cronin gets a little too sentimental for my tastes, too, especially with the single “good vampire” Amy, who has none of the bad attributes (elongated bicuspids, penchant for Bloody Marys) but all the good ones (extended life, telepathic abilities, the keys to the city and the book, etc.).

In the end, the virals become less scary, the bag loses some of its punch, and you're flipping pages just to find out how Cronin ties this mess together. Then, when you get to the promised land, you see that he doesn’t. Then you see on the Internet that this is the just the first of three books. Then you say, "Oh, no!" and ask yourself how in hell a book just south of 800 pp. would ever need a sequel when it's too long by far already.

Finally, you collect yourself and recall where you are – the United States of A-Royalties. This, after all, is supposed to be the Summer Blockbuster of 2010! This, after all, is supposed to be money in Cronin's (and Random House's) bank! This is a book already in the cinematic pipelines with Ridley Scott as director. Fasten your seat belts, then. Get home before dark and pay your electric bill, too. This won't be the last you hear of THE PASSAGE.

Five stars for the first half, three for the second. I'll rate it down the middle and let you judge this glorious, bloody mess for yourself.
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Jun 12, 2011 mark monday rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: alpha-team, after-the-fall, horrortime

when i read horror, i'm usually looking for: (1) cheap thrills or (2) surreal and metaphysical weirdness or, best of all,
(3) an epic full of dread and melancholy .

there is plenty of the first sort and so much of it is trash. but fun can be had with trashy things and i'm no snob. the second type can be a little more hard to find, but there's a lot to be had as well, if you look in the right places, especially the past. but the third kind, that's the hardest, i've only found a few. Declare, It,...more when i read horror, i'm usually looking for: (1) cheap thrills or (2) surreal and metaphysical weirdness or, best of all,
(3) an epic full of dread and melancholy .

there is plenty of the first sort and so much of it is trash. but fun can be had with trashy things and i'm no snob. the second type can be a little more hard to find, but there's a lot to be had as well, if you look in the right places, especially the past. but the third kind, that's the hardest, i've only found a few. Declare, It, The Terror. and The Passage. in a lot of horror, i'm not exactly eager to slowly lose myself in the world depicted - the experience is often more like a rollercoaster or a fun nightmare. but that last category, those mournful sagas - they are my special favorites. i may not want to live in a novel's world, but if it is a world that is so carefully crafted and then grown, one filled with tragedy and sadness and coming together and coming undone... i find it very easy to get lost in those worlds. it is a great feeling.

so on to The Passage. it is an excellent novel, complete with multi-leveled characters, spiritual mysteries, exciting action set pieces, and the trappings of several genres (vampire, post-apocalypse, and in the first third, an on-the-run-from-the-government-style thriller). the writing is solid, well-crafted, and certainly in no rush. particularly outstanding is the depth of characterization present in even minor or elusive characters such as the scientist Lear or the child molestor Grey. the first third of the novel is pretty much perfect, tightly-paced yet generous with motivation and context, and featuring three of the most warmly written and sympathetic characters i've come across in a while: Agent Wolgast & Sister Lacey & Anthony Carter: fallen agent, unearthly nun, misunderstood criminal. the empathy created by the author for these three and the depth of their background stories... i just really was not expecting that and it was wonderful to experience.

unlike many other readers, i felt the remaining two-thirds were very strong, moving easily between a wide range of physical and emotional landscapes, from complex world-building to pointed irony to moments of eerie beauty to straight-up horror (particularly in the Haven sequence). although it could be said that characterization was a bit less rich in the last two-thirds, the range of emotions depicted was often on a wider and more dynamic scale - the reader is able to watch characters actually grow and change.

i appreciated Cronin's vampires. they certainly run against the current grain! although the threat of their bizarre, bestial presence looms over the entire novel, they remain enjoyably enigmatic and largely in the background. i assume the amount of attention paid to the vampire Babcock and his traumatic past (also very well done) will be paralleled in the sequels by depictions of the remaining vampires.

The Passage has been compared to The Stand; personally i think The Passage is superior. my only real issue is the very ending, which could come across as cheaply ironic and unnecessarily brutal if it wasn't clear that this is only book 1 of 3. i assume that this disturbing cliffhanger of an ending will eventually be resolved with the same sensitivity and grace brought to the rest of the novel's various episodic sequences.(less)

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Mar 11, 2011 Kemper rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: apocalypse-now, horror, sci-fi, vampires, playing-god

Good afternoon. This is Wolf Blitzer from CNN’s The Situation Room, the program that tries to make viewers think that you’re seeing the busy hub of television journalism instead of admitting that despite our high-tech looking set and satellite feeds, you’d probably learn more about what’s actually going on in the world by looking out your window.

We turn our focus now to growing rumors that the U.S. Army is conducting secret medical experiments on American soil. The bizarre claims seem like somet...more

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Mar 25, 2012 Garet Wirth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Oh, The Passage. You promised me such wonderful things with your sparkly cover, your titillating title (a passage to WHERE??), and your massive hype. Also your sizable heft, as you are a large, obese book, full of words and things. I figured if I didn't like you, I could use you to stone evil-doers in some town square somewhere. How could I turn you down?

Your promises, though, were only partially fulfilled. While I enjoyed stoning people in the village square with you, your cover was simply too...more Oh, The Passage. You promised me such wonderful things with your sparkly cover, your titillating title (a passage to WHERE??), and your massive hype. Also your sizable heft, as you are a large, obese book, full of words and things. I figured if I didn't like you, I could use you to stone evil-doers in some town square somewhere. How could I turn you down?

Your promises, though, were only partially fulfilled. While I enjoyed stoning people in the village square with you, your cover was simply too pretty to be true, and your title too vague to really *mean* anything. I still don't know what the passage was, but it was full of vampire-things and massive doses of character backstory that also didn't really *mean* anything... except make you a very, very heavy book. Brick-like, really. I believe next I'll tie a ransom note to you and throw you through a window, just for the giggles.

You had such lovely backstory, such vivid characters in your opening quarter, I couldn't put you down. Well, I could, because you are a fatass and my arms grew lethargic and weak after about an hour, but figuratively speaking. I was hooked, and I loved you for it. Vivid characters, shocking scenery, emotion. You had it all, baby.

But then things changed. Oh, did they change. You forgot your old ways and introduced me to a whole slew of new characters. Characters that I didn't care about, in a situation that seemed so distant and unreal compared to your sharply defined predecessors that I thought perhaps I was reading a different book. Gone were the late nights of voracious reading. Gone were my massive biceps developed from holding you at a readable height. I slogged through you, sometimes telling friends that you were "getting better," even daring to say "really good again" in whispered tones... but you would then disappoint, like a dog who is allergic to grass, and I would yell angrily at perfect strangers that you were a meandering, lame book with stupid characters and unbelievable situations. I finished you, though, because I had devoted a better part of the year reading you, and I had to see it through. Like climbing Everest, I just wanted to *breath* again, but I knew I had to finish you anyway.

And see you through I did, to an ending that only set you up for a sequel, likely full of more meaningless backstory and characters painstakingly developed over 100's of pages only to be forgotten or rendered unimportant. I did not spend 3 weeks reading you to get a cliffhanger, damnit. !@#$ you, The Passage. !@#$ you.

Goodbye, The Passage. You were a good workout, and my man-arms thank you. But you were bit of a slog and kind of boring. Sorry.

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Nov 17, 2012 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: and-we-ve-got-fangs, yikes-it-s-the-apocalypse, 2010, five-star-reads

I haven’t read any of Justin Cronin’s books. I picked this one up solely based on an interview the New York Times did with the author. Of course, the interviewer was asking Cronin if he read Twilight (he hadn’t.) Is Twilight REALLY the be-all, end-all of vampire books? This book runs circles around that teenage sop-fest. A better comparison would be Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Actually, an even better comparison would be to the movie The Village (without the awkward twist) or George Stewart’s Earth...more I haven’t read any of Justin Cronin’s books. I picked this one up solely based on an interview the New York Times did with the author. Of course, the interviewer was asking Cronin if he read Twilight (he hadn’t.) Is Twilight REALLY the be-all, end-all of vampire books? This book runs circles around that teenage sop-fest. A better comparison would be Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Actually, an even better comparison would be to the movie The Village (without the awkward twist) or George Stewart’s Earth Abides.

When I first picked up this book, I considered not reading it because it was 766 pages and that seemed way too long. However, I read the first sentence and got sucked in: Before she became the Girl from Nowhere -- the One Who Walked In, the First and Last and Only, who lived a thousand years, she was just a little girl in Iowa, named Amy. Amy Harper Bellafonte. It took me about a week to get through this book -- I couldn't put it down (except to sleep and work.)

Cronin’s writing is exquisite. I felt like I truly knew (and cared about) the characters. I was even sympathetic to the vamps (or virals as they’re called in this book). Let’s face it, his vampires are the creatures in the night you warn your children about, not the ones you want to make out with. I couldn’t get a good sense of what they looked like, but I visualized something that was a little human, a little praying mantis and a little bat. And let me tell you, the thought scared the bejeezus out of me.

It was a fascinating read. I love reading these post-apocalyptic books because there’s such a sense of hope. Even when the world is overrun by scary bloodsucking bat-things, pockets of humanity somehow find a way to survive. I need to start stockpiling batteries and canned food!

The ending is a little abrupt – and hopefully what appears to happen doesn’t actually happen. There are two additional books in the series. I think the next one is coming out in two years (ugh). (less)

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Apr 06, 2010 Mark B rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Mark B by: GoodReads GiveAway

Thank you, GoodReads for this Advance Reader's Edition. So hard to rate. Act I is simply superb - brilliantly written, suspenseful, beautiful, a full 5. Act II is cluttered, (too) many actors moving on and off stage, rarely doing anything of consequence while they are there. Act III is a combination screenplay, set-up for a sequel, exciting in a dystopian, end-of-days sort of way, (with a ray or two of hope).

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May 19, 2011 Bonnie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads, full-of-wonderful, dystopian-post-apocalyptic, pn-vampires, adult

This was such an amazing novel. Sure it was insanely long and sometimes could be so intense that you just had to give yourself a break even though you felt you just couldn't stop no matter what... but was well worth it.

This is a novel about a transformed world full of vampires, but it is nothing like anything out there today and is the most original story I have read in a long time. The details of all the storylines and the depth shown in each and everyone of the characters... this was a treat,...more

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Jan 26, 2012 Kaia rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: dnf

Chapter One: Long sob story about poor, small town girl who gets herself knocked up at 19 by an abusive man. Woman eventually loses house, has to prostitute self out to keep a roof over her head and her daughter's. Eventually does something bad and has to strand daughter with a bunch of nuns. Verdict: Cliche, stereotypical, possibly a bit misogynistic. Also, wtf is up with the dialog?

Chapter Two: E-mails from doctor/scientist guy on secret mission for something involving vampires in South Americ...more

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Nov 17, 2010 Eddie rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book, by far, was the biggest book I've read to date. And I stay away from really big books, usually, because I don't want to get to the end feeling dissatisfied. This big book left me feeling just that. The first 250 pages of this book were brilliant—left me wanting more—Initially. But, the rest of the 766 pages? Not so brilliant. By page 650, I wanted this way-too-long story to be over. I wanted to be taken off of life support and die. I had to convince myself to finish the last 100 pages...more

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Nov 15, 2012 Maciek rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: big-tomes, post-apocalyptic, speculative-fiction, dystopia, read-in-2012, reviewed

The hype machine worked! With a delay. The Passage was a publishing sensation of 2010 - cleverly marketed as The Stand meeting The Road, its gorgeous cover (will you just look at these trees!) immediately caught attention of readers, and even its bulk was not discouraging - after all, who does not enjoy getting caught up in a good novel? Publishing details topped the cake: Cronin received a $5 million advance payment: $3.5 for the publishing rights to The Passage and two planned sequel (in North...more

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Jun 25, 2010 Sandi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nook-book, post-apocalyptic-dystopian, sci-fi, horror, cross-genre, literature

The Passage by Justin Cronin is one of those books that generated a lot of positive buzz before it was even released. It was an instant best seller when it came out a couple of weeks ago. This is pretty unusual for a relatively unknown author. Now, I generally wait for the buzz to die down on a new release before I read it. If I see it at the library, I'll pick it up. Otherwise, I'll wait for the paperback. However, the pre-release reviews were so good and the book is post-apocalyptic fiction, s...more

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Aug 07, 2010 Will Byrnes rated it 2 of 5 stars

The hype machine was working. With some terrific reviews, this was immediately one of THE BOOKS TO READ for summer 2010, a vampire tale not written by Stephanie Meyer, and not even promoted very much as vampiric. Maybe our capacity for reading vampire novels has clotted somewhat?

The world in question begins in 2022. Gas is $13 a gallon. Iranian jihadists have killed hundreds at the Mall of America. Jenna Bush is Texas guv (this is a horror story, after all). New Orleans, battered by another mons...more The hype machine was working. With some terrific reviews, this was immediately one of THE BOOKS TO READ for summer 2010, a vampire tale not written by Stephanie Meyer, and not even promoted very much as vampiric. Maybe our capacity for reading vampire novels has clotted somewhat?

The world in question begins in 2022. Gas is $13 a gallon. Iranian jihadists have killed hundreds at the Mall of America. Jenna Bush is Texas guv (this is a horror story, after all). New Orleans, battered by another monster storm, is now an uninhabitable industrial park. An expedition to a remote corner of South America, sponsored by the US Army, is searching for a promising and dangerous virus. What could possibly go wrong? The Passage is nothing if not very, very derivative. Although there are a few nifty new notions within its 766 pages, (I will not spoil them by telling) there will be little here that is not almost immediately familiar. Government projects gone wrong, post-apocalyptic struggles for survival, battles between good and evil, strong people, weak people, and lots and lots of vampires.

That said, I felt that there were almost two complete, independent books within the whole. The first tells of the beginning of the unpleasantness, lasts for 246 pages and is gripping. I hated to put the book down. Even with the been-there-read-that aspect of the book, there was something about the writing of that 246 pages that kept me turning the pages, thirsty for more. As for the remaining 520, not so much. We move forward almost a century and enter the too-familiar landscape of post-apocalyptic survival. Although there were elements here that were interesting, some characters that held promise, I found it a very, very long yawn. I also felt that the author cheated a few times too many in leading us to believe that certain events had taken place when they had not. He even jokes about it in the writing, having one character say out loud what any reader might wonder about how a particular event transpired.

If The Passage had kept up the frantic and so-engaging pace of its long opening, it would indeed have been one of THE BOOKS TO READ this summer. Instead of reading The Passage, though, I would look for an alternate route.

I gave it two stars instead of one because the beginning was so good. Otherwise, I resented the time it took to read this waaaaaay too long book.(less)

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Apr 17, 2012 Stefan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

The Passage was truly one of the best new novels that I have read in quite some time. Epic in scale but written with enough care that you truly feel for the main characters, this book really has a lot going for it. In some ways it is a bit reminiscent of The Stand, but for the most part The Passage is fairly original. A grand adventure, thriller, horror, love story that should easily stand the test of time and be something read over and over again.

As a vampire novel, I really enjoyed the way tha...more

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Nov 05, 2012 Shelli rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012

I really enjoyed reading this book in October. Perfect for a little fear-fest. I didn't think of it as horror at all though. More of a science fiction and fantasy mix. It had all of the things I like in a good story. The fact that it had vampires and all the other stuff made it a 5 star read for me.
If you don't think you can handle the length, then I would recommend the abridged audio. I started out listening to it that way. I also had the hardcover and had it on my kindle, so I was following a...more I really enjoyed reading this book in October. Perfect for a little fear-fest. I didn't think of it as horror at all though. More of a science fiction and fantasy mix. It had all of the things I like in a good story. The fact that it had vampires and all the other stuff made it a 5 star read for me.
If you don't think you can handle the length, then I would recommend the abridged audio. I started out listening to it that way. I also had the hardcover and had it on my kindle, so I was following along to see what was missing. The audio skipped over lots of extra details...especially about character relationships. The book also described settings like malls, military compounds, houses and especially traveling in detail, the audio skipped this. I found after a short time that I wanted all the "extra." I would read the book and in some cases then listen to it again in abridged form. This was great when something seemed a bit confusing, however, I found the story surprisingly easy to follow for how complicated it all was.
By the end of the book, I truly "felt" like the beginning had happened a long time ago. It has solid characters that you care about. They are in a very compelling situation. The humans and how they've come to where they are is believable. The vampires are fascinating. They are ruthless killers, but you can actually feel for them too as we learn their circumstances. Here's the scary part, their story isn't too far out of the imagination. There are definitely some "what was that noise?" Turn on the lights...."did you see that?" moments while reading!! I was outside at night with my dogs near the woods...and I'm telling you....I could feel them in the trees!!!
Very well written. I thought a lot about this book when I had to put it down, and couldn't wait to get back to it. Great references to stores, books, movies and locations.
Some compared this to The Road by Cormac McCarthy. While the time period may have similarities, I found that book utterly depressing while I found this to be a suspense filled and possibly hopeful thriller!
Looking forward to The Twelve.(less)

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Jun 13, 2010 April rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review, horror, signed, own, bea-2010

I kind of sort of hate it when a book comes out and it is compared to all of the other popular books in it's genre. I understand the need for comparison,so when someone looks at a book they can say oh this was compared to BOOK A, I really enjoyed BOOK A so I will probably enjoy this one. However, it does bother me when I've read all the books the upcoming read is compared to, so I wind up expecting it to be like them. This, friends, is what happened to me when I read The Passage. I had seen comp...more

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Jul 29, 2010 Chandra rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of The Stand.....maybe?

Shelves: 2010_reads, sci-fi-fantasy

It really doesn't surprise me that I didn't love this. It immediately reminded me of The Stand - which I have never been able to get through. It does surprise me that I actually got through the thing (800 freaking pages!!!) But a very dear, respected and highly intelligent friend gave this to me as a gift and so I felt super obligated to give it an honest try. There were a few bright spots and interesting moments through out - I like post-apocalyptic carnage as much as the next gal. But mostly I...more

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Jul 28, 2010 Annette2009 rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-favorites

A combination of King's The Stand, McCarthy's The Road, and the movie I Am Legend.

Very engrossing; the first third reads like sci-fi thriller, thoroughly setting up the scenarios of the plague that alters the world. I enjoyed the small details of the future world; no spoilers, but look for the name of the Texas governor and certain details about evacuation plans and state secessions.

Unlike others, I enjoyed the second third the best. I found the society and government established to precariously...more

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Dec 16, 2012 C.W. rated it 4 of 5 stars

I was intrigued by Mr Cronin's apocalyptic tale of a scientific experiment gone awry and a world overcome by virological vampires, aptly dubbed "virals." At the center of his huge story spanning over 700 pages is an enigmatic girl named Amy, whose abandonment by her mother propels her into the horrific events leading up to the end of civilization as we know it, and the creation of a much-altered and frightening post-collapse society, where clusters of surviving mortals hide behind enclosed homes...more

9 likes · like · see review

Jul 02, 2010 Benjamin is currently reading it

Shelves: unlikely-to-ever-finish

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 06, 2010 Robert rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampires, viral, sci-fi, good-book

In this masterfully written tale, Justin Cronin takes us on a dark and harrowing journey to witness the death of one age and the birth of another. Epic in scope and yet profoundly personal, Cronin's work is full of depth, evil, heroism, and a surprisingly beautiful, if all-too-human, darkness.

I was immediately drawn in and captivated by the amazingly well-written prose. After a few days of finding myself called back to the book, as if by telepathic inducement, I completed this amazingly satisfy...more

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Jun 21, 2012 Nicholas Sparks rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: nicholas-recommends

Cronin combines two classic and overused literary elements--vampires and the end of the world--and spins them into something entirely fresh and new. To me, it's an amazing accomplishment.

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Jul 20, 2010 galleycat rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. All that beach-book buzz you're hearing these days is almost certainly for "The Passage," Justin Cronin's big-as-a-brick apocalyptic vampire saga.

One part Stephen King's "The Stand," one part Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," this dark, humorless, 784-page morality tale is the opening act for Cronin's ambitious trilogy about a military experiment gone horribly bad.

The marketing machine for this thing is in overdrive: $3.7 million for the three-book deal, $1.7 million for the rights to the first movi...more

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Jan 10, 2011 Kathy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, read-in-2010, favorites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. 7/29/10
I'm really enjoying this so far. I love the way he has let us get to know the characters so well. I was invested in their fate long before anything really happened. No wonder Uncle Stevie liked this so much and recommended it. Already wondering about Amy. She was different to begin with. After what happened at the zoo, how can anyone doubt that. And so far she isn't like the other virals. She seems normal in most ways with just some variations: Can't go out in the sun, not much need for s...more

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Jan 07, 2011 Joel rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Twilight fans, just for fun

Recommended to Joel by: Hype, BOTNS

Shelves: 2010, 52-in-2010, dystopia, sci-fi-fantasy, ooo-scary, long-as-shit

If you don't count audiobooks, this is one of the the longest books I have ever read. At first I thought that The Fountainhead was longer, but it only seemed that way because Ayn Rand is kind of a terrible writer and there aren't any parts where Dominique Francon is beset upon by a swarm of vampires (unfortunately).

Justin Cronin is not a terrible writer, in fact he's most often a very good writer, and this book has lots and lots of scenes with vampires. Lots and lots because it is so very long...more If you don't count audiobooks, this is one of the the longest books I have ever read. At first I thought that The Fountainhead was longer, but it only seemed that way because Ayn Rand is kind of a terrible writer and there aren't any parts where Dominique Francon is beset upon by a swarm of vampires (unfortunately).

Justin Cronin is not a terrible writer, in fact he's most often a very good writer, and this book has lots and lots of scenes with vampires. Lots and lots because it is so very long and it is just the first book in a trilogy, of course, because everything these days is a Series which is why I hardly ever read any YA fiction, because everyone wants to be the next J.K. Rowling.

Except Cronin actually wants to be the next, I don't know, Stephen King, if this book is anything to go by. It won't remind you a lot of The Stand just because both are post-apocalyptic thrillers that detail at length the efforts of the last survivors of a worldwide plague on a quest to save humanity, but because both writers prefer a curious blend of horror and soap opera, tense action and slightly clumsy spirituality (aside on the length issue: I confess I haven't actually read The Stand, which is probably just about as long as Book One of The Passage Whatever-ilogy, but I saw the mini-series and have read enough of Wikipedia and The Dark Tower to get the gist). Oh but where I was going with this point was Cronin is a better writer than King, at least when it comes to tension and characters and dialogue and detail, certainly far less exasperatingly crude (Stevie always relishes his sick sense of humor a little too much. If this was a Stephen King book, when the people transformed into vampires, he'd spend a paragraph talking about how their intestines would let loose and splatter the ground with shit, and then someone would make a fart joke).

But this book: it is mostly pretty awesome, and it held my interest all the way through. The first section is the most fascinating, a slow burn build to the release of the plague upon humanity, slowly developing characters in a manner reminiscent of linked short stories. Ultimately this level of attention to ultimately disposable characters (spoiler alert: not everyone is going to survive your apocalypse, even when it happens on page 256) is probably unnecessary, but it's so well done you'll just keep reading.

The big leap for readers, and for the narrative, takes us 100 years into the future, and suddenly we're into some heavy world building as we examine the last vestiges of society that have managed to endure. Here the book does slow down considerably, lingering for about 200 pages in this last outpost of humanity, and again, it would probably be a little boring if it didn't do such a good job of making most everyone so interesting. Which is a relief, since they could just as easily have been cardboard cutouts in a book more concerned with plot; certainly they're archetypes, but Cronin is more interested in using the apocalypse to explore human nature than to, uh, revel in vampire nature.

When the story really kicks in is page 477, which is kind of astounding, and a lot happens in those last 300 pages, enough action that you really appreciate all the character development that came before, because it makes the suspense sequences that much more intense, and you really don't want anyone to die. But some of them will, though nearly not enough, because there are a few too many GOTCHA!s, when you are sure everyone is safe and then someone dies! Oh but wait, they are somehow fine a few pages later. But then someone really does die! So you're kept on your toes but really, you get the sense that no one you really care about is going anywhere, at least until the climax of the next book (i.e. The Dumbledore Gambit). If you've seen a lot of genre movies you'll probably anticipate some of this stuff, though I admit I usually didn't catch on until after the fact, and then I'd just shake my head; yes, he went there, but he managed to fool me into following him, and that takes some skill.

I should probably have avoided calling this a vampire book (the book is indifferent, preferring more often: smokes, virals, even dracs, wink wink) because they aren't, and it takes quite a while but when you finally realize what Cronin is doing with his take on the mythos, it opens up a lot of possibilities for the next two books. I'll be reading them. Sigh.
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31 likes · like · see review

Jul 07, 2010 Alex rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010

This book got me to the important realization that zombies are just vampires gone retarded.

35 likes · like · see review

Oct 15, 2012 Damali rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of The Stand, Margaret Atwood

Shelves: dystopian-pa-zombies-survivalist

The Passage opens with scientists discovering a potential weapon in a jungle, and bringing it back to the U.S. for testing in a government facility, experimenting on members of society that won't be missed. The second part of the book jumps 100 years to one of the last cities still standing, and then follows the survivors as they try to find a safe place, and figure out how to battle the virals.

Amy's a central figure in both parts of the book, but she's not really the main character, or ever say...more

8 likes · like · see review

May 09, 2011 Rad Ryan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, all-time-favorite

:-----------------------:

If you hate lengthy reads or long read novel (I think they are just same), you gonna love this. I mean you gonna hate it. I have the paperback edition and just looking with the pages of it, ughh, I'm being lazy to read it. There's what like 800+ pgs. on it.

But flyers! I love this book, I don't hate it, I don't resent it, I don't hate it, I don't hate it. Kay, so you got it. I'm a fan of this. And I'm so looking forward to the second and third book of it, I just so wish...more

4 likes · like · see review

Jan 10, 2011 Katie rated it 3 of 5 stars

OK, long book, long review. That's the deal.

If you write a book that is over 750 pages long, then you sure as heck better deliver a whoppingly satisfying ending. What you should not do is write a book of that length that ends with nothing more than a set up for the sequel. To do that is arrogant and presumptuous. And it makes me hate you. More on that later.

The premise is not unfamiliar: secret military experiment goes awry, super virus spreads everywhere, most people die, the rest have to pick...more

26 likes · like · see review

Jan 02, 2011 Corina rated it 2 of 5 stars

Recommended to Corina by: the internet!

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

8 likes · like · see review

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About Justin Cronin

Justin Cronin is an American novelist. Awards he's won for his fiction include the PEN/Hemingway Award, the Stephen Crane Prize, and the Whiting Writer's Award.

Born and raised in New England, Cronin is a graduate of Harvard University and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. He currently lives with his wife and children in Houston, Texas where he is Professor of English at Rice University.

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“We live, we die. Somewhere along the way, if we're lucky, we may find someone to help lighten the load.” — 140 people liked it

“What strange places our lives can carry us to, what dark passages.” — 67 people liked it

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