It begins with cicadas. It will end with the swarm. When millions of insects appear unexpectedly, off the rhythm of their 17-year cycle, Detective Vicky Paterson is investigating a bizarre killing in her sleepy hometown. At the same time, a pair of hired guns work to free their client's daughter from a shadowy cult. As these events intertwine, things begin to spiral out of control. When Vicky's young daughter, Sadie, is attacked by the insects, it's clear that the once-harmless creatures have invaded with a malevolent purpose. But this is only the first wave. Soon, the infestation is impossible to contain. As the world desperately works to unravel the mysteries of the swarm, and humanity rests on the knife's edge of extinction, Vicky and a group of strangers will fight to uncover the shocking origins of the attack-and the terrible purpose behind it. This panoramic novel of insect apocalypse reaches back into the darkest recesses of the twentieth century and unleashes its horrors on