The Passage

By Justin Cronin

The Passage - Justin Cronin
  • Release Date: 2010-06-08
  • Genre: Mysteries & Thrillers
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 2,058 Ratings

Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • This thrilling novel kicks off what Stephen King calls “a trilogy that will stand as one of the great achievements in American fantasy fiction.”

NOW A FOX TV SERIES!

NAMED ONE OF PASTE’S BEST HORROR BOOKS OF THE DECADE • NAMED ONE OF THE TEN BEST NOVELS OF THE YEAR BY TIME AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Washington Post • Esquire • U.S. News & World Report • NPR/On Point • St. Louis Post-Dispatch • BookPage • Library Journal 

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

An epic and gripping tale of catastrophe and survival, The Passage is the story of Amy—abandoned by her mother at the age of six, pursued and then imprisoned by the shadowy figures behind a government experiment of apocalyptic proportions. But Special Agent Brad Wolgast, the lawman sent to track her down, is disarmed by the curiously quiet girl and risks everything to save her. As the experiment goes nightmarishly wrong, Wolgast secures her escape—but he can’t stop society’s collapse. And as Amy walks alone, across miles and decades, into a future dark with violence and despair, she is filled with the mysterious and terrifying knowledge that only she has the power to save the ruined world.

Look for the entire Passage trilogy:
THE PASSAGE | THE TWELVE | THE CITY OF MIRRORS

Praise for The Passage

“[A] blockbuster.”The New York Times Book Review

“Mythic storytelling.”San Francisco Chronicle

“Magnificent . . . Cronin has taken his literary gifts, and he has weaponized them. . . . The Passage can stand proudly next to Stephen King’s apocalyptic masterpiece The Stand, but a closer match would be Cormac McCarthy’s The Road: a story about human beings trying to generate new hope in a world from which all hope has long since been burnt.”Time

“The type of big, engrossing read that will have you leaving the lights on late into the night.”The Dallas Morning News

“Addictive.”Men’s Journal

“Cronin’s unguessable plot and appealing characters will seize your heart and mind.”Parade

Reviews

  • Good storytelling

    4
    By Nessiethefoodie
    Although it was a long book with many key characters it was an interesting read and it held up very well to move the plot forward. I didn’t like how it ended now but there’s more to this series trilogy so I’m glad
  • Too much detail and backstory

    2
    By Nbrig1027
    I enjoyed the overarching plot of the story. What made it unenjoyable for me was the immense amount of detail and backstory. Now I love long books, but the first 40% of the book could have been significantly condensed and still got the point across. A lot of the time it felt like TOO much detail and backstory was given that ultimately didn’t do anything for the story.
  • Joined my lifetime Fav book list.

    5
    By PTCRASH
    Utterly gripping and will not let go. Just when you believe you know where the authors going and you think you kind of know where the story and plot are heading….surprise… you hadn’t a clue and that happens multiple times and one of the reasons I love this novel. Extraordinary, is too weak of praise for this work. Amy, is forever part of me.
  • Not enough stars for this one!!

    5
    By Thaigarr
    Amazing!
  • Good but SO long

    3
    By kelly_sfz
    This was a really good story and very well thought out. Anyone who is into zombie-like stories and post-apocalyptic worlds will like this book. My only critique is that the book is SO long. There is a ton of unnecessary details and character backstories that takes up a lot of space and, to me, was irrelevant to the plot. I also had some unanswered questions that hopefully maybe the rest of the trilogy will address for me. The way the book was written would translate really well into a movie or tv show - which I did recently watch the tv show that Fox put together based on the book, and it is nothing like how the story actually goes.
  • FANTASTIC!

    5
    By OhRayLeeUh
    Began reading not knowing what the book was about- I love it! The dialogue, the perspectives, the world, the characters, everything!!
  • Tough to Get Through

    3
    By KingDapp
    This book is slooooooow. It takes forever to slog through the beginning and get to the meat of the story, and even then it’s honestly not that interesting. The overall idea is fantastic, the execution leaves a lot to be desired. Not horrible, but certainly earns meh status.
  • Outstanding

    5
    By Llyons1
    This is an outstanding story. Engaging and original. Loved it!
  • The Passage

    5
    By Sadie of Dazes
    I really enjoyed the book(s). The only thing I would change is the time jump to the future. To much happened. You read the other books in the trilogy and get a few glimpses back to certain things but it could have had a little more telling. Let the readers know the colony struggles to build and survive in the new world. Stop making books like these into series. They take too much out.
  • Just awful

    1
    By drmorley
    I can’t believe I read it.