I have the same thoughts on The Passage (and the sequel) that javachik does.
My biggest issue with The Passage was that it needed more editing. It didn't need to be almost 800 pages.
You turn on any of my crew, you turn on me.
Mal ,'Ariel'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Rayne - Aug 18, 2013 1:24:53 pm PDT #21256 of 28406
"Oh no! Has falling sky liquid once again caused you the sadness?" -Starfire
Amy - Aug 18, 2013 1:48:20 pm PDT #21257 of 28406
Because books.
It is pretty indulgent, but so far I don't mind. Sad to hear about The Twelve, though I know I'll probably read it anyway.
I also like that I didn't know it was set in a not-too-distant future. The world is pretty much the same as we know it, and then suddenly he's talking about the Mall of America Massacre or New Orleans being turned into a giant petrochemical factory or border checkpoints and it all seems chillingly plausible.
javachik - Aug 18, 2013 2:32:11 pm PDT #21258 of 28406
Our wings are not tired.
It's definitely worth reading, despite the let down, Amy.
The Passage was an interesting experiment on use of the Kindle. A friend recommended it without telling me a single thing about it. I downloaded it without reading anything about it, and obviously I didn't have the book jacket for hints or clues. So it was so much fun being completely surprised by the plot and themes. It would have been a totally different experience had someone handed me the paperback.
megan walker - Aug 18, 2013 2:53:22 pm PDT #21259 of 28406
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
Agree with everything above about The Passage, especially the editing. That book so did not need to be that long. I read it without knowing it was a trilogy and was very sad when I realized after over 700 pages that it was not going to be resolved.
I found the second volume hard to get into because I had forgotten so many details of the first one. So, when I saw the hardcover of #1 at Goodwill, I bought it so I could re-read at my leisure before the third installment (which I am looking forward to despite disappointment by #2).
Jesse - Aug 18, 2013 3:13:12 pm PDT #21260 of 28406
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.
As soon as I read Gone Girl, I read her first two books. Very dark and gruesome, and I loved them.
Oh yeah, I was wondering about her others. Good one!
sj - Aug 18, 2013 3:44:48 pm PDT #21261 of 28406
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."
As soon as I read Gone Girl, I read her first two books. Very dark and gruesome, and I loved them.
Me too. She needs to write more books soon, or I need to find another writer whose works are that dark.
javachik - Aug 18, 2013 3:46:31 pm PDT #21262 of 28406
Our wings are not tired.
SJ, right??!
Amy - Aug 18, 2013 3:54:19 pm PDT #21263 of 28406
Because books.
I got Dark Places and I had trouble getting into it -- the protagonist was unlikeable in a way Nick wasn't, for me. I'll pick it up again later, though.
sj - Aug 18, 2013 3:57:23 pm PDT #21264 of 28406
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."
Truly, I went into a little bit of book withdrawal after I was done with all of them.
javachik - Aug 18, 2013 3:58:12 pm PDT #21265 of 28406
Our wings are not tired.
I found the protoganist in Dark Places to, in the end, be the most likable protagonist out of Flynn's 3 books (she's the only one who's on a path to getting somewhere in life IMO), that said I wouldn't want to have a cup of coffee with anyone in any of her books! Yikes.