Tag: justin cronin

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The Ferryman

Title: The Ferryman

Author: Justin Cronin

Genre: dystopia, science fiction

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I LOVE Cronin’s Passage trilogy. It’s one I want to revisit every few years. I’m such a fan that I’ll read anything he publishes. When NetGalley offered this one to me, I jumped on it immediately. Not only do I love the author, but it’s also dystopian, which is my favorite genre. And I can easily say this is one of the best books I’ve read this year. I was hooked and never saw all the twists this book takes.

From Goodreads: Founded by the mysterious genius known as the Designer, the archipelago of Prospera lies hidden from the horrors of a deteriorating outside world. In this island paradise, Prospera’s lucky citizens enjoy long, fulfilling lives until the monitors embedded in their forearms, meant to measure their physical health and psychological well-being, fall below 10 percent. Then they retire themselves, embarking on a ferry ride to the island known as the Nursery, where their failing bodies are renewed, their memories are wiped clean, and they are readied to restart life afresh.

Proctor Bennett, of the Department of Social Contracts, has a satisfying career as a ferryman, gently shepherding people through the retirement process–and, when necessary, enforcing it. But all is not well with Proctor. For one thing, he’s been dreaming–which is supposed to be impossible in Prospera. For another, his monitor percentage has begun to drop alarmingly fast. And then comes the day he is summoned to retire his own father, who gives him a disturbing and cryptic message before being wrestled onto the ferry.

Meanwhile, something is stirring. The Support Staff, ordinary men and women who provide the labor to keep Prospera running, have begun to question their place in the social order. Unrest is building, and there are rumors spreading of a resistance group–known as “Arrivalists”–who may be fomenting revolution.

Soon Proctor finds himself questioning everything he once believed, entangled with a much bigger cause than he realized–and on a desperate mission to uncover the truth. 

This book just kept me guessing as to what was going to happen next. When I was convinced I knew where the book was headed, I realized I was only halfway done. The plot pulls the reader in so many different directions that you are also solving the mystery of just what is going on along with the characters. I’ve read more dystopian books than any other genre, and this one is definitely one of the more unique ones. It’s a mix of 1984, The Giver, and The Truman Show (along with others that I won’t disclose because of spoilers). I loved that the story is told in both first and third-person narrators. Proctor is first person, but the other characters are third, which leaves them in a bit of a mystery. I never expected a shift like this to work, but it was great, and I had no trouble following it. The worst thing about this book is that it’s not out until May, so I can’t make all my friends read it now. I absolutely loved this one.

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books and reading

City of Mirrors

I cannot thank Netgalley enough for this advance copy. I have been waiting 6 years for this book, and it was well worth the wait.

After plowing through The Passage and The Twelve the past month, rereading the first two books was beneficial to reading this book. There is no way I would have remembered all that happened from so many years ago. Without a fresh memory, this book would have lost its punch. And boy does it whack you a good one.

I feel like this series is more like a chess game. There are so many pieces in play. The Passage set up the board, introduced you to the pieces, and let you begin the game. The Twelve was a back and forth strategy of master opponents and by the end, the victor made his first step to checkmate. But not quite. City of Mirrors has the opponent battling back fiercely, not to be defeated easily. But the victor makes the final move and the game is over. Some pieces remain on the board, but others are lost in the process. But it all boils down to Amy. Always Amy.

There are pieces of the narrative from the first two books that are finally resolved, so again, a reread was very helpful. And reading the books back to back to back was much more emotional than I was expecting it to be. By the time this one ended, I teared up a couple times, whether happy or sad tears, I won’t say. Maybe a mixture of both.

I was trying to explain to someone recently that this book is about vampires, but not really at all. It’s about people, survival, hope, perseverance, and most of all, love and faith in humanity.

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books and reading

The Twelve

As promised, here is the second book in The Passage trilogy review. And, even though I gave this one 5 stars, this one felt a bit weaker than the first. Still amazing and absolutely worth reading, but I were forced to pick a favorite between the two, I would have to go with The Passage.

The Twelve introduces us to a whole new group of characters, who are extremely important to our core group, but no one you necessarily want to get attached to, if you catch my drift. The ending of this one is wonderful and heartbreaking. Our group is torn apart and reunited, simultaneously. Some are lost, new ones join, so it will be interesting to see what happens with these relationships in City of Mirrors. The lives these people lead are so compelling. Even though they are just people, they do amazing things for humanity, at great risk to themselves. This is what I enjoyed most about the book. I’m not a risk taker by nature, but when the weight of the entire world is on one’s shoulders, one might look at danger differently.

Because of Netgalley, I have an advance copy of City of Mirrors and will be starting immediately. I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you in a few days.

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The Passage

I rarely reread books. Partly because there are just so many books on my “to read” list that I just don’t have time for rereading. I’m too antsy to get to the new ones. Also, because if I loved a book the first time around, I am really nervous to read it again because it might not be as good the second time. There are books that fit into your life exactly in the perfect time and place. Reading Les Miserables was an experience that I could never recreate. The only time I’ve read it, I was teaching and would share the story with my students. Although, I fully believe Les Mis would hold up to a second reading, something would be missing from my joy: my students. So, I’ve never reread it. But there are books that I miss. I want to visit them again. My memories of them have started to fade. So this year, I vowed to reread some of my favorites.

I originally read The Passage when it came out, years and years ago. And then I read The Twelve (review coming soon) when it was published. And I have never revisited either one. But since City of Mirrors is FINALLY coming out this month, and it had been so damn long since I read the first two, I am gladly refreshing my memory of this series.

I loved The Passage. Not your typical vampire story, but really more of a character study. And unlike any story I’ve read, the vampires are humanized, well, as much as death row inmates can be. And you get inside their brains to really understand what life is like for them. The story also follows several formats. It’s not just a narrative, but also emails, journals, documents, etc, which helps break up the 800+ pages. As lengthy as this book is, the story flies. It’s told in a bit of a random order, jumping ahead 100 years in the middle, which was quite surprising when I originally read it, but all is wrapped up fairly well by the end. The Passage isn’t just another “vampire book.” It is unique and one not to pass up.