‘City of Mirrors’ shines as fitting finale for ‘Passage’ trilogy

“The City of Mirrors” by Justin Cronin (Ballantine Books, 2016, $28, 598 pages)

Justin Cronin delivers the final part of his best-selling “The Passage” trilogy, following “The Passage” (2010) and “The Twelve” (2012). This gripping dystopian work imagines the fall of civilization and the struggle of the few humans left to survive.

Cronin, who published award-winning literary fiction before writing this trilogy, combines the genres of horror, science fiction and fantasy while also emphasizing character development. He keeps readers turning the pages as he creates a world where “virals” have wiped out most of humanity and made North America a wasteland.

While one can pick up this book and enjoy its story, it makes better sense to read the entire trilogy in order to understand what’s going on here and appreciate the scope of Cronin’s achievement.

To summarize briefly, “The Passage” tells how a group of people become infected through an experiment from a virus that turns them into vampire-like beings who escape the laboratory where they are kept and overrun the country, killing and infecting others. Meanwhile, settlements of humans try to fight off these creatures, who have superhuman abilities and are always hunting for blood.

In “The Twelve,” Cronin develops four different plots and skips around chronologically. The book culminates with a resistance movement seeking to destroy the 12 original virals, leaving the survivors in a period of peace.

Throughout the trilogy, Cronin labels each section with dates abbreviated A.V. (after the virus). Year zero is 2016. “The City of Mirrors” opens in 98 A.V.

In this novel, humans are developing a thriving existence in Kerrville, Texas. All seems peaceful, but a threat lurks in New York, a city dead and abandoned. There lies Zero, the first human to be infected with the virus and the father of The Twelve. He is sending an army of virals to Texas to eliminate the remaining humans.

In what is the most captivating section of the book, Cronin uses first-person narration to tell the story of how Timothy Fanning came to be Zero. This monster began as a brilliant but vulnerable young man who goes to Harvard to study biochemistry. Cronin’s ability to humanize him and make him sympathetic is remarkable. When he turns evil, we have some understanding of the loss that led to that.

Cronin has said that the origin of this trilogy was his daughter, Iris, challenging him 10 years ago to write a story about “a girl who saves the world.” That girl is Amy, known also as “the girl from nowhere,” who was infected with the virus around the same time as Fanning but responded differently. She is a Christ figure, though Cronin makes her human and fallible as well.

Cronin’s writing is adept, especially his pacing, as at times he ratchets up the suspense and lengthens scenes to keep the reader enthralled. As in many a Spielberg movie, his characters never simply escape danger – they barely escape.

The prose at times is spot on, as when he describes “the catlike mating shrieks of sirens” or “the world pausing in acknowledgment, history held in time’s cupped hand.”

At a few places, it doesn’t work so well, as in “the wind … tore through the house like the offensive line of the New York Giants.”

The trilogy is a major achievement. Cronin has created a world that feels both all-encompassing and intimate. In an epilogue, he moves forward 900 years. At first, I considered this extraneous, but he won me over. It works well as an ending to the book.

While the trilogy includes vivid descriptions of evil and violence, it also concludes with hope and love. In this way, it is a fitting antidote to the nihilism of “The Game of Thrones” storyline.

Horror, science fiction and fantasy may not be your cup of tea. But if you’re inclined, this is among the best of the lot. Cronin has written a fascinating, enthralling story.

This story was originally published June 28, 2016 at 5:31 PM with the headline "‘City of Mirrors’ shines as fitting finale for ‘Passage’ trilogy."