![]() ![]() ![]() So many writers tackle big themes on big canvases, only to leave us confused, shocked, and eager for something perhaps a little more tangible. ![]() Is anything that happens to us the real story? Is what we’re reading the real story? As with Cronin’s earlier work, the answer is often no. Just when we learn something about Proctor, his family, his colleagues, his work, there is also a note of doubt. Little by little, Proctor’s life is revealed to us-and, it has to be said, to Proctor himself. Is Proctor leading them to their death? Or to some grisly recycling plant? Is the promise of rebirth just empty words? But what is next? The early notes of The Ferryman have a sort of light-creepy effect. In a place called Prospera, a man named Proctor-the ferryman-helps those at the end of life go on to whatever is next. What I can say is that Cronin goes out of his way to make his characters’ lives-and flaws-the kinds of things we can easily recognize, even in a novel where nothing is really what it seems. I’m hesitant to say too much because there are so many ideas in this book, and so many things to spoil. ![]() Justin Cronin’s first novel since his amazing Passage trilogy is filled with unforgettable characters, twists galore, and plenty of gravitas and pathos to get your heart racing…and breaking. There is so much to love about The Ferryman that I hardly know where to begin. ![]()
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