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jakepcole 's review for:
The Passage
by Justin Cronin
I had no idea what to expect from this and was delighted to find it was basically The Stand with better character writing. King's book is leagues ahead at capturing the sheer horror of a planet falling apart, relating the carnage with a detached, almost ironic flatness that enhances the dread, but the characters were all peeled out of laughable types and were prone to cringe-inducing soliloquies. Cronin may not have King's gift for suspense or overarching nihilism, but his character work is so lovely, defining a huge cast, most of whom are fleshed out just in time to become flesh for the hordes of vampires that stalk the plains. Only toward the end does it get difficult to keep track of the splintering survivors, but even then the sturdy plotting and clear cross-cutting make for an engaging read. Just a pleasant surprise all around, I'm looking forward to the other books.