Let us begin by exploring what it means to describe a book as being part of a trilogy. I would expect that a trilogy of books would contain at least one common character, common geography, and sequential time periods. The common character requirement is probably the strongest, in my opinion. With this in mind, I decided to read "The Crossing" because I enjoyed "All the Pretty Horses", and I assumed the next book in the "Border Trilogy" would tell the story of what happened next to John Grady Cole. Wow, was I disappointed. As far as I could tell, there was no connection whatsoever between the two books -- no common characters, no common towns, no common time period. Just because two book are set on the border between the US and Mexico and they both have horses, does not mean they are a trilogy!
Beyond feeling deceived by the "Trilogy" description, I really did not enjoy this book at all. McCarthy's unique style that made "All the Pretty Horses" enjoyable was much weaker in this book. There were a few compelling pages in the book, but 90% of it was incredibly boring, overly dark, and just plain miserable drivel. I recommend skipping this book. Grade: D
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