Why You Should Really Give Vampires Another Chance

Review of The Twelve by Justin Cronin, Published 10/16/12

Several years ago, vampires entered the public's conscious in an entirely new way. More popular and sparkly than ever before, they fell upon the United States swiftly, taking up many teenage girls in their path. And since then, their love has been equaled only by their ridicule. Somewhere along the way, the bad ass vampire-- the kind who'd rather eat your face than caress it-- was given up. As the popularity of Edward Cullen grew, the true Draculas and Nosferatus of the world were being pushed away. Some of te most fearsome and amazing monsters of all time were forgotten. I say it's about time that we take the vampires back, and Justin Cronin is here to lead the campaign.

Reclaiming vampires from screaming teenage girls, Justin Cronin brings us The Passage Trilogy. His books tell the story of Amy, a young girl and the final stage of a horrific military science experiment that goes terribly wrong. The experiment, an attempt to create super soldiers, creates a new kind of monster which is very similar to the vampires we know today. When the experiment fails, the original test subjects escape and begin infecting the rest of society and Amy is left immortal and on her own. She continues onward as the world collapses around her, aging only a few months every decade or so. The novel then skips 100 years with Amy, after civilization shattered and has been built anew. As a teenager, Amy meets up with a team of colonists whose way of life is at it's end. Together they travel across the ravaged United States, hunting down the original twelve test subjects as a desperate attempt to save what's left of their world.

Believe me, this book will restore your faith in vampires. Cronin re-imagines the monsters with unique twists that fit with the structure of the world in his book, while remaining true to most of the aspects that made us love vampires in the first place. Not only is the book exciting and suspenseful, but it's very well written as well. The Passage was released this year in mass market paperback for $7.99 and you can pick up The Twelve (second of the trilogy) in hardcover this October! Trust me, you'll be glad you gave vampires a second chance.