The Passage

This book is a post-apocalyptic tale of the United States in the near future.  It is set in two time periods.  The first portion of the book chronicles the events leading up to an outbreak and spread of a virus, which had been weaponized by the U.S. military.  Humans infected by this virus are transformed into deadly vampire-like creatures.  The rest of the book occurs about 90 years after the “virals” have overrun the nation.  The fate of civilization lies with a group of misfits who live in a California colony.  With the colony’s deteriorating defenses weakening, and the infected creatures closing in on their settlement, they decide to embark on a perilous journey to the military base that was ground zero of the initial outbreak.  Their hope is to discover an antidote or a way to combat the creatures.   The only clue to aid them in their quest is Amy, a mysterious 100 year old girl, who is infected with the virus, but is seemingly harmless.

Although this book is classified as horror, I really liked it because it has elements of other fiction genres including science fiction, fantasy, suspense, and believe it or not, westerns.  Given the fact that this audiobook is over 36 hours long, the story included extensive character development, which was good.  However, the length of the book was not a bother.  The story was so riveting that I couldn’t stop listening.  The Passage is the first installment of a trilogy.