The Passage

In a recent article in Entertainment Weekly, author Stephen King mentioned the book The Passage by Justin Cronin (June 2010) as a upcoming must read. I agree, although I had to power through the beginning of the book as I felt a disconnect with some of the initial characters and scenarios leading into the heart of the story. I feel that about another 100 pages needs to be edited out as a few passages throughout the book tend to become a little tedious in the details.

The main premise of the book is a post-apocalyptic society after a "vampire" virus spreads through America. The beginning of the book deals with how the virus was brought to America and used by the government/military in virology experiments on 12 death row inmates and finally a little girl named Amy.

Amy, a young girl who is abandoned at a nunnery early in the story, forms a telekinetic bond with the virals (the vampiric beings), in which she understands them and also can control them.

In California, a community called the Colony has formed during the Apocalypse and has maintained and existence that has withstood infiltration by the mutated beings for several generations. In this community is a young man named Peter Jaxon who will ultimately lead Amy and small group of friends to the place where it all began and also begin the process of reclaiming mankind.

This book reminded me of I am Legend, with the vampire virology and the characters' feeling of isolation from the world. This book, however, allowed me to have a sense of hope that mankind will prevail.

Once a Spy

We have all been caught up in the mystery and intrigue of classic spy characters like James Bond and Jack Ryan due to movie dramitizations of popular novels. We generally associate spys with suave debonair movie idealizations, when in fact most literary spys have very fallible lives.

A book that dramatically illustrates this point is Once A Spy by Keith Thomson due in March from Doubleday Books. Character Charlie Clark gets a rude awakening when the father he always assumed was a low key appliance salesman, turns out to be a former CIA operative. This is only the beginning, Charlie's father Drummond has alzheimers, and now the CIA want him "contained" as he might inadvertantly disclose information regarding still active ops. Once a Spy allows readers to get a dose of a classic spy novel with clandestine meetings, gadgetry and shootouts, but the book really deals with the growing relationship between father and son. Through some serious and sometimes comical situations to evade the "bad guys,", Charlie and Drummond's relationship evolves from distant to close.

This quick, easy read had the nostalgia of Ian Fleming or John Lecarre, but with the humor of Man from U.N.C.L.E and Wild Wild West (yes, that dates me, but I watched them in reruns as a kid). Charlie and Drummond have to create makeshift disguises, forge alliances with shady characters and interpret code from racing forms in Drummond's moments of lucidity. This is a first novel, and while I had a few issues with some of the plot construction, it was a fun read and I would recommend it.