Special Agent Pendergast is back, only this time he's not
clad in his natty suits and his cloak of imperturbability.
Instead, he's in prison, accused of murder, while his
psychotic brother, Diogenes, is wreaking havoc.
In a plot begun in the previous Pendergast book, DANCE OF
DEATH, Diogenes continues his taunting of the New York
Museum of Natural History. Previously stolen items are
returned in powder form and mysterious happenings occur
around the construction and opening of a new, dramatic
exhibit. Nora Kelly is pulled off of her museum work to
orchestrate the re-opening of the Tomb of Senef, an
Egyptian tomb that was on display originally around the
time of the Depression.
But the work is doomed from the beginning and the discovery
of a grisly murder there just serves to add to the Museum's
recent bad publicity. With Pendergast in prison, how can
someone find Diogenes, who is wickedly clever, and stop his
plans?
It was a great day when I discovered the work of Douglas
Preston and Lincoln Child. I immediately began a buying
spree that has eventually made me owner of all their books,
as well as some of the works they've done separately. But I
really think to get the full enjoyment of Pendergast and
the myriad fascinating supporting characters, you should
read from the beginning. (RELIC was the first Pendergast
book.)
Terrific plotting, intriguing characters and great scenes
set in the grandiose atmosphere of the New York museum make
for terrific reading. A must-read for summer!!
The New York Museum of Natural History receives their
pilfered gem collection back...ground down to dust.
Diogenes, the psychotic killer who stole them in DANCE OF
DEATH, is throwing down the gauntlet to both the city and
to his brother, FBI Agent Pendergast, who is currently
incarcerated in a maximum security prison. To quell the PR
nightmare of the gem fiasco, the museum decides to reopen
the Tomb of Senef. An astounding Egyptian temple, it was a
popular museum exhibit until the 1930s, when it was quietly
closed. But when the tomb is unsealed in preparation for
its gala reopening, the killings--and whispers of an
ancient curse--begin again. And the catastrophic opening
itself sets the stage for the final battle between the two
brothers: an epic clash from which only one will emerge
alive.