Swan Song

Rating:
Summary: The BEST book I've ever read!!
Review: I, too, had read just about every horror work out there, and looking for something new, I took a chance and picked up "Swan Song" by some guy I'd never heard of. WHAT A STORY!! I couldn't put it down! I have since sought out McCammon's other works (Stinger, Boy's Life, Usher's Passing, etc.), and have gotten my two sisters hooked on Swan Song as well. Swan Song's characters are wonderfully real (my fav being Back Frankenstein/Josh), and each time I read it, I never want it to end! I LOVE THIS BOOK!

And hey, for all you "End-of-the-World-Stories" buffs, look for a book called "Fire" - it's no Swan Song, but it's not too bad either.

Rating:
Summary: Once started this novel is hard to put down!
Review: I read Swan Song over ten years ago and can still say that it is one of my all time favorites. His characters are rich and in particular I liked "Sister Creep". I loaned this book to several friends who also could not put it down. Insofar as comparing it to "The Stand" , well I feel McCammon's writing has more texture and nuance than "The Stand" did and in fact is more believable than what King writes. I was very lucky and found a first edition hadback in a used book store in mint condition, this is one book that I will never lend out!! [e-mail]

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Summary: THIS BOOK CHANGED MY LIFE!!!
Review: Years ago when I first read this book I extreamly enjoyed it but it really made me look deep into my own soul and ask myself "What would I do in this shituation?" The line between good and evil is very thin! Read this book and then ask yourself! --C-YA!--Magadogx13--6/25/98

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!!!
Review: I read this novel over ten years ago when it was first published. Today, I still remember the richly drawn characters and the post-apocolyptic America that the author painted for the reader. If you are a fan of The Stand, read Swan Song and you will see what real horror writing is all about. Thank you Mr. McCammon.

Rating:
Summary: Maybe the future to come?
Review: This is a book that will really make you think when you put it down. The end of the world could really end with a nuclear holocaust. People who are parinoid shouldn't read this book, but for the rest of us, it is McCammon's best, only second to Boy's Life.

Rating:
Summary: Epic
Review: The end of the world has always been a popular choice for horror and science fiction writers, and over the course of the last couple of decades a number of fine novels have been penned on the subject. Niven and Pournelle's "Lucifers Hammer" is always a good place to start, and Greg Bear's "The Forge of God" ain't too shabby either. And then, of course, towering above all other pretenders to the throne is King's "The Stand", an awe-inspiring work which surely must have a place in any discerning fan's top ten. In the years since its release no other novel I'd read came close to matching it for sheer scope and breadth of vision, and I'd got to figuring that that was the way it was going to stay. Until, that is, I happened on a copy of Robert R McCammon's "Swan Song", proving that maybe I didn't know everything there was to know on the subject after all.

McCammon has been in the horror game since 1978. In that time he's turned out about a dozen novels, including the mainstream work "Boy's Life" which, I kid you not, is one of the best books of popular fiction ever written (I urge you to go to any lengths to obtain a copy of this book - it's that good.) Many of the other novels are fine indeed, but "Swan Song" is something else again. What it is is 900+ pages of gritty, dark, post-apocalyptic action, sometimes terrifying, sometimes pulse-poundingly suspenseful, sometimes even deeply moving in its depiction of the effect of a nuclear war on the people left behind.

The plot revolves around the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust, following several bands of survivors in their quest to build a life in the nuclear winter which follows. Matters are complicated by the arrival on the scene of some kind of supernatural agent (pretty much ripped off of The Walkin' Dude from "The Stand", but that's where the similarities between the novels cease), who has as his mission the destruction of Swan, a child who supposedly possesses the power ! to return life to the blasted landscape. A large cast of characters get caught up in the ensuing struggle, taking their sides in the lead-up to an action-packed showdown which makes the climax of "The Stand" look flaccid by comparison.

I can think of many reasons to praise this novel. I could praise the characterisation, which while not quite up to King's brilliance is still more than adequate, making it easy to invest yourself with the fate of the protagonists. I could praise the variety of the characters, who run the gamut from the good to the bad to the downright homicidal (rarely has there been such a large number of villianous characters contained in a single novel, the anticipation of the eventual demise of said scumbags being one of the great pleasures of the book). I could praise the plot, which is varied, detailed, and somehow manages to weave a number of seemingly disparate threads into a satisfying whole. I could praise the overall tone, which is dark as midnight in a coal mine, stripping away the gloss which pervades many such works and replacing it with gut-wrenching realism (this is not a novel to read when you're feeling good - it doesn't take long for the chill of the winter endured by the characters to seep into your bones). I could praise the pacing of the narrative, which gives the characters time to grow and the plot the space to expand without ever boring the reader unduly (King take note). I could praise all of these things and more, but in the end there is really only this -

"Swan Song" is the kind of book which, when I finished it, I felt sad because there was no more to read, and if I live to be a hundred I'll never fully forget the pleasures contained within. And that, friends, is about the highest recommendation I know.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: Why does everyone want to compare this work of art to "The Stand"? I'm a Stephen King fan as well, but let's face it this book is a thousand times better. It's a pager turner throughout, the characters are more likable and hatable, and it is wonderfully written and crafted. Sorry, folks but in my opinion "The Stand" pales in comparison. I just wish R. McCammon would write again.

Rating:
Summary: An Epic Horror Masterpiece
Review: Approximately 15 years ago, I wrote a letter to Mr. McCammon praising him for "They Thirst," arguably the best vampire novel written since Bram Stoker's "Dracula." He was kind enough to respond to my letter with the most sincere thanks. Now, all these years later, and I have finally read "Swan Song," and I must say it is right on par with "They Thirst" in terms of horror, epic scale and suspense. Mr. McCammon is one of the best writers of horror fiction today. All I can say is, "When is the next one coming?!" Bravo!

Rating:
Summary: Not nearly as interesting as Steven King's "Stand".
Review: Well, it's long. The characters are thin and the plot is fat. But, it's not a bad read if you want to shack up with an "end of the civilized world" "people have turned into ruthless animals" yarn. There are few surprises, lots of agony.

Rating:
Summary: A dense apocalyptic and engrossing story
Review: McCammon strikes a bullseye with Swan Song. It is a hefty book (950 pages) but fully enjoyable. The bad thing about a book being big as this one is you end up getting so used to the characters that you want to continue reading about them. I felt disappointed the book had to end. Not the way it did, because it all tied in neatly into a big and tidy climax with precise timing. There will be certain scenes here I am sure will prevail in my memory for a long time due to their effective descriptions. At times it ventured into the horror and suspense so successfully it made me feel uneasy. Certainly a recommendation for the fans of well written epics of horror. For that is what this is. Well done Mr McCammon!