For one thing, he’s been dreaming-which is supposed to be impossible in Prospera. Proctor Bennett, of the Department of Social Contracts, has a satisfying career as a ferryman, gently shepherding people through the retirement process-and, when necessary, enforcing it. Then they retire themselves, embarking on a ferry ride to the island known as the Nursery, where their failing bodies are renewed, their memories are wiped clean, and they are readied to restart life afresh. In this island paradise, Prospera’s lucky citizens enjoy long, fulfilling lives until the monitors embedded in their forearms, meant to measure their physical health and psychological well-being, fall below 10 percent. And always center stage is the place itself-a magical, forgotten corner of New England where the longings of the human heart are mirrored in the wild beauty of the landscape.įounded by the mysterious genius known as the Designer, the archipelago of Prospera lies hidden from the horrors of a deteriorating outside world.

He comes bearing two things: his wish for a day of fishing in a place that has brought him solace for thirty years, and an astonishing bequest that will forever change the lives of those around him.įrom the battlefields of Italy to the turbulence of the Vietnam era, to the private battles of love and family, The Summer Guest reveals the full history of this final pilgrimage and its meaning for four people: Jordan Patterson, the haunted young man who will guide Harry on his last voyage out the camp’s owner Joe Crosby, a Vietnam draft evader who has spent a lifetime “trying to learn what it means to be brave” Joe’s wife, Lucy, the woman Harry has loved for three decades and Joe and Lucy’s daughter Kate-the spirited young woman who holds the key to the last unopened door to the past.Īs their stories unfold, secrets are revealed, courage is tested, and the bonds of love are strengthened. On an evening in late summer, the great financier Harry Wainwright, nearing the end of his life, arrives at a rustic fishing camp in a remote area of Maine.

Justin cronin the passage series