The Passage

I have no qualms about giving a rating of five stars to “The Passage.” Justin Cronin's writing is on par with Stephen King. In fact, “The Passage” in some sense can be compared to King's “The Stand.” But some of the plotline also reminds me of Max Brooks' “World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War,” since parts of the book take place in a far future time looking back to events as referenced in one of the main character's diaries. This is not a quick read and will take a commitment of time to complete the book; however it is well worth it. Cronin unwinds the story slowly, making sure to cover every detail completely. The reader gets to know and comes to care about the characters and their struggle for survival. Similar in theme to many modern day horror fiction tales, a viral apocalypse is mistakenly unleashed upon the world by a covert military lab in the western United States. When the infected escape the lab, a growing carnivorous horde of monstrous vampire-like mutated humans is set free that will bring modern civilization to an end, leaving the dwindling number of the human race to seek survival in any way possible. The story picks up around a century later and the reader is introduced to the core group of protagonists living in a California sanctuary; a sanctuary harassed by virals by night and whose days are numbered, as the supply of electricity to maintain the warding nighttime perimeter searchlights will eventually fail. As tensions rise within the sanctuary the small core group leaves on a dangerous quest to find the source of a mysterious radio signal in the Colorado mountains. With them will travel a strange ageless girl, Amy, who after approaching the sanctuary had been mistakenly wounded by one of the guards. With her recuperation it is discovered that she has the ability of telepathic communication and seems to have some mental connection with the virals as well. The reader follows the small group through their trials and tribulations as they fight to reach their goal and possible answers to the survival of the human race; some will not survive the ordeal. This is the first book in “The Passage” trilogy but can be read as a stand-alone story if the reader so chooses.