Friday, December 21, 2012

The Passage by Justin Cronin

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Orion

Pages: 963pgs

The Story

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 the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.

As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he’s done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has triggered apocalypse. He is determined to protect her from the horror set loose by her captors. But for Amy, escaping the bloody fallout is only the beginning of a much longer odyssey—spanning miles and decades—towards the time and place where she must finish what should never have begun.

The Review

THE PASSAGE was one of the most hyped up books of 2010 and I've been meaning to read it for a long, long while, especially after reading so many raving reviews on it. But, like with most good old books that we are dying to read, I've never quite got the chance to explore this awesome-sounding book . . . until now that is. So as of today, it is really simple to say that I'm kicking myself here because I wished I had picked up this book sooner than I did. Not only is this book cryptic, engaging, and even more terrifying than any other post-apocalyptic book I have ever read, but it's also one of the most epic books I have read in my entire life and let's just consider my own mind blown. Completely.

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From a world-building perspective, while some elements of the book closely follow the post-apocalyptic worlds including titles such as The Road, I Am Legend and Dawn of the Dead, but what made THE PASSAGE so much different and stand on its own two feet (assuming books even have feet) is the way that it was written and the story that clearly channels all of the right elements to entertain readers, while also showing readers just what an awesome writer Justin Cronin IS. Honestly I think this book deserves every bit of praise it has been receiving over the past few years since its release because I have no words at all - and for once I'm actually speechless here, and there are no words that could possibly do this book justice anymore than what I am saying now.
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The same instances go along with the characters as well. Both large and varied right from the beginning of the book, THE PASSAGE contains a large set of characters that are both human and infected alike, and not once did I get distracted by the many voices that we are soon introduced to: from the tragic young woman Jeanette Bellafonte, to the wondrous and completely faithful Sister Lacey, to the hardened FBI agent Wolgast and to the mesmerizing and unearthly young girl named Amy. They were ALL so in-your-face-amazing, especially this girl character named Amy who was such an addictive character when it came to reading from her perspective and she was my favourite character in the entire book since she was uber-amazing in every way! And, even for such a large book, I have to say that the author did such a splendid job in crafting his peculiar, odd world while still keeping each one of his own characters as engaging as the next one you will meet along the way. That is quite a talent I must say and boy I was a total sucker for it . . . I hanged off every word, every chapter and every page to be honest with you!

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Overall, THE PASSAGE, the first book of an adult trilogy (yes two more books are in the works so let's hi-five each other in the glory of it all), is without a doubt the best book I've read this year and this review doesn't even begin to describe my many feels for this book alone. So if you're eager for a tale about a world that is already crumbling to the masses of ruin and utter devastation, and one that is erasing what's left of the human population along with it, then I would highly highly recommend this book to you all. It's just one of those books where you MUST READ before own our world meets the apocalypse (hopefully not too soon!).

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The Rating
5/5 stars

13 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you liked this as much as you did! I have a friend who is a HUGE fan and who's constantly trying to talk me into this but I've been strangely reluctant until now. It seems that I should give in.

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  2. WOW! You've got me now! I haven't heard of this book before and I have no idea how did I miss it. It sounds so good. I'm adding in to my to-read list right away :) Thanks for sharing :)

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    1. I hope you get a chance to pick it up. It was SO awesome.

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  3. I haven't heard of this one until now, but I have to admit, you have me totally stoked for it! It sounds so action-packed and awesome...it's definitely going to have to go on my wishlist! Thanks for the recommendation!

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  4. I'm reading this book at the moment and while it's huge book, he manages to hook me to the story every page :) It's great how he handles the world-building and massive amount of characters! Great review :D

    Mel@thedailyprophecy.

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    1. Exactly! The length looks very challenging but the book is so addictive that you don't even notice how long the book actually is. Thanks Mel!

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  5. I'm sure I've heard of this but I don't think I've read a review until now and you definitely have me wanting to read this! I don't read a lot of adult fic any more but I think I need to make an exception

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    1. I rarely read adult fiction either unless it's fantasy or dystopian or thriller base, but yeah this one is a must read!

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  6. Oh wow this sounds epic! And you say it was of the most hyped in 2010? Because I don't think I've heard of it before. I guess I wasn't in the loop before my blog >.< I definitely have to add this one on my list though because holy crap it sounds awesome! I also have been meaning to read The Road, and I Am Legend is one of my fav movies--though I hear the book is better.

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    1. It sounds like quite a few bloggers haven't heard of the book either but from what I understand from reading reviews on other adult blogs and talking to a few people it was pretty hyped up, so definitely check it out. It WAS awesome. Couldn't praise it enough!

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  7. It just seems the author went WAY too long telling this story. I liked the 2nd hundred pages no the last 200. Some of the middle middle was ok, but just took too long. I'd prefer 3.5 stars, but it's closer to 3 than 4....

    Rowena Hailey (Hummer H1 Parts)

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