The Passage

Wow! Nearly 40 hours in length, the unabridged audio recording of PEN/Hemingway Award-winning writer Cronin's detail-rich third novel is nothing short of epic excellence. The first entry in a new trilogy, the book is set in a bleak, postapocalyptic America at a time when the world is overrun by vampire-like humans infected by a virus. Divided into two huge parts—pre- and postoutbreak—the tale is equally gripping and frightening and the characters are very well developed. To boot, Audie Award winner Scott Brick's (see Behind the Mike, LJ 10/15/09) narration is nothing short of masterly. Impossible to stop listening to; highly recommended. [The New York Times best-selling Ballantine hc was an Editors' Spring Pick, LJ 2/15/10; a film adaptation is currently in production.—Ed.]—Scott R. DiMarco, Mansfield Univ. of Pennsylvania Lib.