My husband is a HUGE fan of Cormac McCarthy. I, on the other hand, have never really appreciated his books. But I decided to give The Passenger (the first in a two-book series) a try, hoping that because it sounded like it might be a mystery/suspense thing (right up my literary alley) that finally I would join the CMcC appreciation club. 

The first chapter seemed to set the stage for a mystery/suspense story. Then it got confusing and just plain weird. Thinking it might just be me, I gave it to my husband for his input. He truly loved two of McCarthy’s previous works, All the Pretty Horses and The Road. 

As I understand it,  a salvage diver named Western has been sent to explore a sunken airplane. He and his partner find the plane, including all the passengers (still strapped into their seats) resting on the bottom of the ocean. Except: one passenger is missing. And so is the plane’s “black box.” WTF? 

Very intriguing, even for this non-appreciative reader. I was curious as to what had happened, and  where the plane and the missing passenger had gone. I was ready! But then McCarthy didn’t stay with that intriguing story, but chose to switch both location and timeframe with every chapter (I think). The other main storyline is definitely odd, and somewhat offensive, even including some characters from a carnival sideshow…including a “thalidomide baby” with “flippers’’ and this was about where I gave up. Is it a metaphor? Am I missing some symbolism? Is it just too complex for my taste? I may never know…

If my husband chooses to finish it, I am sure he will share his opinions, and I will update this partial review. I suspect that when the second volume comes out in December 2022,  he will leap on it, anmaybe even convince me to add it to my TBR pile. For now, I am giving it three stars just because – well, because it is Cormac Freaking McCarthy! Thanks to Knopf Doubleday and NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my attempt at a review.