Book two finally arrived!
The Twelve is Justin Cronin’s eagerly awaited sequel to The Passage,
his best-selling ‘adult’ vampire novel.
I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this novel, especially as
The Passage was one of my favourite books of 2010.
I was so eager to be transported back to the post-apocalyptic world of virals.
Where The Passage was a more intense and emotionally
gripping read, this second book shifts the series into an action/thriller genre.
But the main problem is that does so in a very slow way. It
isn’t until a good third into the book that the pace picks up and the characters
all converge to (another) climatic battle scene.
In these sections, you do have to admire Cronin’s ability to
drive the narrative forward creating a gripping and compelling page turner.
A lot the set peices are perfect for the Ridley Scott produced movie to come.
The final battle scene is so vivid, with the gore and violence certainly pitched up a notch.
But unfortunately the start of the book did leave me a little bit cold and
I had to really persevere.
For me the book certainly didn’t hit the high notes of The
Passage, and in some ways get a bit too swallowed up in its own mythology.
Overall, I felt that Cronin just wasn’t able to sustain the epic world
that he created so wonderfully and vividly in The Passage.
Here's hoping Book Three: The City of Mirrors (2014-really so long again!!!) brings back some of the spark.
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