The Passage by Justin Cronin

The Passage by Justin Cronin. It's, like, the 'it' novel for the summer. Or at least the sci-fi-vampire 'it' novel. So I ran out and got it. And it is looooooooooong. Here's what Ron Charles of the Washington Post has to say:

"Imagine Michael Crichton crossbreeding
Stephen King's "The Stand" and "Salem's Lot"
in that lab at Jurassic Park"

That's exactly my thought!! Except I might have added a bit of Dean Koontz. (Okay, I've only read Door to December, but still... The Passage feels a bit Koontz.) And I might have added King's Charlie McGee (the little firestarter from Firestarter).

But this is the thing: I love vampires. And I LOVE MICHAEL CRICHTON. And I have a deep respect and enjoyment of Stephen King. So this is, like, perfect, right?

Well, it is and it isn't. I love that vampirism is turned into a coldly scientific and unromantic virus. I love the background story. I mean, who doesn't love an origin story? as my husband would say.

The first two hundred pages are the origin story with all its juicy science-y stuff. Introduced are a hard-nosed FBI guy and an abandoned, precocious little kid. The precocious little kid is purposefully infected with the virus, thanks to US Military's scientific need for research. Loved it.

The rest of the 600 or so pages cover what the world in like 100 years into the post-virus future. A small community has survived called "The Colony." They live in a large compound that is powered by wind turbines, which help the lights stay on. Because the lights have to stay on. There are vampires about, remember?!? Except they call them virals. I agree with Ron Charles's astute criticism: this is where it got a little slow for me. There is so much detail about everyone in this community and their history; it gets tiresome. The story picks up momentum as a group from the colony leave their community, searching for an answer, other humans, something...

I liked this book. Crisp and fun at the start, a bit soggy in the middle, but a delectable end.
Anyway, I'm posting Ron Charles's review here.

BTW, although this has been purchased for its movie rights, I do not think a feature film is the way to go. I know it's risky, but I really believe this story would do better as a mini-series (like The Stand, V, etc.) The Passage is interesting because it takes the time to weave so many stories, and a movie wouldn't be able to do that. (I know! I just complained that the book was too detailed and too long, but I didn't sit down for just an hour or two every Monday night to read it.) The Da Vinci Code worked out well, because in the end, it was about the code - not about the people. But The Passage is about the people not the, necessarily the virals. It's about how they cope with their situation. How they put together the small clues to their future and past. It would really lend itself to a mini-series. Ohwell.