Did not finish it. Perhaps the weakest of his books. ( )

Usher's Passing is my second foray into McCammon, and my first novel length work.
As one might imagine, this focuses on the Usher family of Poe's story, from roughly the time of the Poe story until 'present' (i.e. 80s). This conceit, that the Usher family was real and known to Poe (who even figures briefly in the beginning of the story) does feel a little silly. As do some of the more meta- aspects of the narrative, such as one of the main characters being an author with a novel rejected because of a number of characteristics shared by Usher's Passing.
The Ushers are afflicted with a curse/genetic malady, that only seems to mysteriously improve (those not vanish) when on their family's home estate. Which is located near and funded by their large military armaments business.
As we move through current day events involving the passing of the most recent patriarch of the Usher clan and uncertainty about which of his three heirs will inherit, we are exposed to much of the family's history through flashbacks, and follow the repercussions of its curse and its influence on current events.
While an enjoyable and fast read, I get the impression this is not one of McCammon's strongest efforts. I'm guessing he knew it, since he does present many of the characteristics shared of the rejected novel shared by his own work as flaws (rambling cast of characters, murky plot, over-use of certain tropes). Worth a read, but I think you would mostly be better served with one of his other books unless you're a completionist. ( )

Written as a sort of sequel to The Fall of the House of Usher, Poe's tale, while not being an account of actual events, comes so close that Roderick Usher's brother accuses Poe of copying the true events.

Fast Forward to the 1980s and near Asheville, NC the location of the Usher estate, known simply as The Lodge, where the Ushers have lived for centuries. The location is reminiscent of the Biltmore estate in Asheville although only as the location for the tale.

The horror writer Rix Usher (obviously McCammon's alter ego in this one) is the only Usher that does not live on the Estate having left years ago to pursue an independent career. Nevertheless he is still afflicted by the Usher Curse, obviously based on Roderick's affliction in the Poe story and the only Usher that seems to age. Rix is summoned back to the estate along with all the other Ushers to attend to their dying father Walen Usher. Thus the background for the story.

McCammon's strength is usually characterization although I think he sacrifices some of that here, making a number of characters two-dimensional, in favor of a much more complicated and stronger plot than usual. By midway through the book it seems that it will be almost impossible to bring all these threads together but McCammon clearly has an idea where he wants to go and sews things up nicely. Unlike King, McCammon knows how to ALWAYS finish a tale well. I do think with one or two changes the finish could have been more poignant but this isn't how McCammon ended his early novels.

I think this is one of McCammon's better early novels and although Boy's Life and Swan Song are hard to beat. I would start with Swan Song if you are new to McCammon although you are going to immediately think it somewhat derivative of King.

Usher's Passing is a fun and thoughtful read. All McCammon's novels are now available as e-books as Usher has been long out of print otherwise. However, it is still possible to acquire a decent physical copy for a reasonable price on the secondary market. ( )

A good book. Not a great one, but a good one. Probably just me, but I felt the plot a little overcomplicated.

Having said that, I still enjoyed the rich history McCammon created for the Ushers. This one was more atmosphere than actual scares, which isn't a bad thing. But I just kept waiting for McCammon to take us into The Lodge, which turned out to be a bit of a disappointment.

Still, McCammon's a good enough author to engage me throughout. ( )

I loved the Gothic themes in the book; McCammon is a guy who characterizes the spirit of Halloween. The middle of the novel is a great place to be, too bad the ending was weak. ( )