Review: The Passage

The Passage by Justin Cronin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I think this is the fastest I've ever read 900+ pages.

I mean, this is a mammoth book. Of the type affectionately referred to as 'doorstop books'. But it also covers a long passage of time (see what I did there) so it works.

Now, first I have to say that the less you know before you read it, the better. I would recommend you steer clear of reviews and synopses and just let the story unfold by itself. Much more interesting that way, and I really enjoyed the way the story was told. If you intend to ignore this advice, please read on. :)

Plot: Basically, there's a science experiment that goes horribly wrong and starts the apocalypse. It's hard to really talk about the plot without giving away too much but I think it's no spoiler to say that it's split between now and after. There are some really interesting characters and we get several viewpoints to make things interesting, and through each individual story is woven that of Amy, who is a Really Big Deal. It's interesting to read about how people deal with this collapse of society, and what sort of lives rise from the ashes.

At the same time, I kinda hate that element. This had all the stuff I hate about zombie books. Small bands of survivors scurrying around just trying to survive in the ghost of the World That Was. I don't know why this one was so much more interesting for me. There were still moments that seemed straight out of a zombie film but I guess I liked the characters enough to forgive this. Also how they relate to one another when there are so few of them is quite interesting. Some of the colony stuff was a bit slow for my liking but I still got through it fast enough.

Reality is, a book this long is not going to be non-stop action. But a lot of this story is the 'what would you do?' factor so there are a lot of moral questions and there's plenty of curiosity raised just by human behaviour. The different environments, different actions and emotions, different outcomes. Plenty to sink your teeth into. (see what I did there, too.)

If someone had told me the gist of this book, I probably never would have read it. So I'm really glad I went into it relatively ignorant. This book gives plenty of info but I still have so many questions so I'll be moving on to the next one asap!

Now, for those who have read it, here's some spoilery thoughts:
(view spoiler)[

1. Super curious about what Amy was before she got injected. Coz the animals already knew 'what she was' at the zoo, but like, I don't? I thought maybe she'd already been vamped one night while mum was out. Looking forward to an explanation!

2. Sad for the lack of Carter after everything goes up in smoke. I hope he gets a starring role later.

3. Books that kill dogs are THE WORST.

4. Nearly lost it when Lacey turned up again and then it switched to Sarah's viewpoint. So did NOT care about Sancho dying.

5. Had an 'awwww' moment over the backpack and the Peter thing, though.

6. I kinda didn't get Amy saying goodbye to Wolgast? Like, he was a ghost that was stalking her? But why? And how? That bit was too confusing.

7. Kinda wish the vampires were more like vampires and less like mindless zombies. If you're gonna combine two classic horror baddies, I'd much rather see werewolves.

8. So curious about Bolivia.

9. The whole 'fat lady dream' thing did nothing for me. Like, I got it, but it was tiring and repetitive and I'm super glad that he got blown up.

10. (It seemed incomplete to not have a tenth point here.)
(hide spoiler)]

View all my reviews