The Fireman

By: Joe Hill

Narrated by: Kate Mulgrew

Some flames burn too brightly to be extinguished.

This exceptional new thriller from Joe Hill is essential reading for 2016 and perfect for fans of Justin Cronin's The Passage.

In a world overtaken by a deadly and dramatic new virus, Harper is determined to live long enough to deliver her baby. But when all it takes is a spark to start a deadly blaze, she's going to need some help from the mysterious fireman.

©2016 Joe Hill (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers US

Great listen

Long. Very long. But nice, strong and fulfilling. The narrator did an amazing job! Will definitely pick up more of Joe Hill!

Pretty interesting but....

The idea of the book is nice. However it had quite a few cheesy parts that I didn't really like.

I wish I cared more ...

When I see any kind of plague, end of the world, type book I can't resist it ... I'm always fascinated by humanity at its most over-taxed. No more family or old friends to share memories, a day-to-day existence with no resemblance to what has been left behind, lack of food and the basic necessities -- so, for me, in a nutshell, it's the people who are left behind, inhabiting this unexpected and unwanted existence who are my conduit to this brave new world.
Alas, The Fireman just doesn't get there for me. Harper is adequate as a central focus, but she is lightweight, someone who things happen to but no ball of fire (excuse the expression) in getting things going herself. But it's The Fireman himself that really bothers me. Who cares about this guy! We're supposed to believe that he is, somehow, the face of the new existence -- Joe Hill even named the book after him. But I just don't get it. To me he's at best a rather underdeveloped secondary personality, one you don't really care about and who you'd be happy to leave behind after a few pages. A better title, if it described him, would be The Wannabe Fireman. This guy is all the way through the book, both in spirit and body, and at the end it's -- okay (?), can we go on now? But that's the end of the book!
On a positive note, the story itself was really well crafted and held together very well -- the basic premise of a plague defined by bursting into flames is unique and really, really scary, so no complaints about that.
I have read all of Hill's books and for the most part I really like his characters -- both fiery Vic in NOS4A2 and world-weary Jude in Heart Shaped Box were fabulous protagonists -- but this one, as epitomized by Harper, really lacks depth of character. Sorry, Joe ... this one just didn't float my boat.

Disappointing

Would you be willing to try another book from Joe Hill? Why or why not?

Maybe. If his other books are this long, then no, because I felt this was one of the book's big problems. It was way too long and hammered on silly details. It could have been half the length and much better.

Would you be willing to try another one of Kate Mulgrew’s performances?

Unlikely. I found her impression of the male characters a little annoying.

What character would you cut from The Fireman?

Ugh, nobody really. For what it's worth, the all contribute to the plot. Some of them annoy me, but that's no reason to cut a character.

Any additional comments?

Way too many easter eggs and pop-culture references, it dates the book and was a little annoying. Unbelievable dialogue, and prolonged stretches of plot that are pretty boring. Nick was one of the biggest reasons I kept reading. I got tired of the book after book 1, which was pretty disappointing.

Disappointing

Joe Hill can definitely write, but the story is limp and lacking originality. How many post-apocalyptic tales do we need? Mixture of good Cormac McCarthy's The Road and bad post-apocalyptic The Walking Dead. Very good performance by Kate Mulgrew.

Unable to continue...

It starts out rather promising, but then it just fizzles out into nothing. I couldn't care less about any of the characters and went nothing happens it becomes a dreaful bore.