Review: "The Passage" by Justin Cronin

Really, believe all the hype and hoop-a-la surrounding this book, The Passage by Justin Cronin. Yes, it is not a very original idea, and yes, it came out at a time when vampire novels were just flooding the market, but it really is as good as the reviews say they are. This book is simply an event; something you can take on vacation or read during break, but be warned, you will be doing little else but existing within its pages for that time, and that is not a bad thing at all. It is so entertaining and so well written, well paced, and well everything, I just have to give it what may be the highest honor any reviewer can bestow upon it, especially this one: it is the best post-apocalyptic epic I have read since The Stand. And with The Stand being my favorite book, I try not to use that term lightly, but I think it is that good. Justin Cronin came out of nowhere (he had published two novels before this, as well as a collection of short stories, none of which I have heard of before this book came out) to create a staggering portrayed of an American wasteland that rivals the granddaddy of all end of the world epics, and catapulted himself high into the ranks of great modern storytellers. And while that story is good and satisfying, do not let that influence your reading experience, because the book itself is so much better than that, and a lot of books that may pass literary genre these days. It starts of very simple, telling the story of Amy Bellefonte, the hero of the book, as her mother, a prostitute leaves her on the doorstep of convent, and dashing off, never to be seen again, leaving Amy vulnerable. This story is alternating with the story of Brad Wolgast, FBI agent sent to gather death row inmates for secret government experiments involving a new strain of virus that turns the infected into super strong bloodsuckers that give of a bright light through there luminous skin. These stories collide violently, leaving the virus out in the open, and Brad and Amy forced to flee to the mountains. When this story ends, we flash forward 92 years, as a colony has developed over decades in California, where Peter, one of the members of the five original families, sees Amy (who got a lighter dose of the virus in the lab) while on a scouting mission, leading him, and a select group of followers on a voyage that could lead to a new world and society. To spoil any real details would be criminal, a lot of the greatness in reading this book is how the plot points and surprises carry you along on a fantastic voyage you really don’t want to end, despite the many dangers and scares involved. Truly a book for people who simply love to read, and find story the most important aspect of a great novel, check it out (and its sequel, due out in October) and fall gracefully under its spell.

Rating: 5/5