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Pendergast #0.5
Pendergast: The Beginning
From the #1 New York Times bestselling duo Preston and Child comes THE Agent Pendergast origin story – an event for longtime fans of the beloved series and for new readers who want to start at The Beginning.
380 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 27, 2026
About the author
Douglas Preston
196 books13.8k followersDouglas Preston was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1956, and grew up in the deadly boring suburb of Wellesley. Following a distinguished career at a private nursery school--he was almost immediately expelled--he attended public schools and the Cambridge School of Weston. Notable events in his early life included the loss of a fingertip at the age of three to a bicycle; the loss of his two front teeth to his brother Richard's fist; and various broken bones, also incurred in dust-ups with Richard. (Richard went on to write The Hot Zone and The Cobra Event, which tells you all you need to know about what it was like to grow up with him as a brother.)
As they grew up, Doug, Richard, and their little brother David roamed the quiet suburbs of Wellesley, terrorizing the natives with home-made rockets and incendiary devices mail-ordered from the backs of comic books or concocted from chemistry sets. With a friend they once attempted to fly a rocket into Wellesley Square; the rocket malfunctioned and nearly killed a man mowing his lawn. They were local celebrities, often appearing in the "Police Notes" section of The Wellesley Townsman. It is a miracle they survived childhood intact.
After unaccountably being rejected by Stanford University (a pox on it), Preston attended Pomona College in Claremont, California, where he studied mathematics, biology, physics, anthropology, chemistry, geology, and astronomy before settling down to English literature. After graduating, Preston began his career at the American Museum of Natural History in New York as an editor, writer, and eventually manager of publications. (Preston also taught writing at Princeton University and was managing editor of Curator.) His eight-year stint at the Museum resulted in the non-fiction book, Dinosaurs in the Attic, edited by a rising young star at St. Martin's Press, a polymath by the name of Lincoln Child. During this period, Preston gave Child a midnight tour of the museum, and in the darkened Hall of Late Dinosaurs, under a looming T. Rex, Child turned to Preston and said: "This would make the perfect setting for a thriller!" That thriller would, of course, be Relic.
In 1986, Douglas Preston piled everything he owned into the back of a Subaru and moved from New York City to Santa Fe to write full time, following the advice of S. J. Perelman that "the dubious privilege of a freelance writer is he's given the freedom to starve anywhere." After the requisite period of penury, Preston achieved a small success with the publication of Cities of Gold, a non-fiction book about Coronado's search for the legendary Seven Cities of Cibola. To research the book, Preston and a friend retraced on horseback 1,000 miles of Coronado's route across Arizona and New Mexico, packing their supplies and sleeping under the stars--nearly killing themselves in the process. Since then he has published several more non-fiction books on the history of the American Southwest, Talking to the Ground and The Royal Road, as well as a novel entitled Jennie. In the early 1990s Preston and Child teamed up to write suspense novels; Relic was the first, followed by several others, including Riptide and Thunderhead. Relic was released as a motion picture by Paramount in 1997. Other films are under development at Hollywood studios. Preston and Child live 500 miles apart and write their books together via telephone, fax, and the Internet.
Preston and his brother Richard are currently producing a television miniseries for ABC and Mandalay Entertainment, to be aired in the spring of 2000, if all goes well, which in Hollywood is rarely the case.
Preston continues a magazine writing career by contributing regularly to The New Yorker magazine. He has also written for National Geographic, Natural History, Smithsonisan, Harper's,and Travel & Leisure,among others.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/dougla...
As they grew up, Doug, Richard, and their little brother David roamed the quiet suburbs of Wellesley, terrorizing the natives with home-made rockets and incendiary devices mail-ordered from the backs of comic books or concocted from chemistry sets. With a friend they once attempted to fly a rocket into Wellesley Square; the rocket malfunctioned and nearly killed a man mowing his lawn. They were local celebrities, often appearing in the "Police Notes" section of The Wellesley Townsman. It is a miracle they survived childhood intact.
After unaccountably being rejected by Stanford University (a pox on it), Preston attended Pomona College in Claremont, California, where he studied mathematics, biology, physics, anthropology, chemistry, geology, and astronomy before settling down to English literature. After graduating, Preston began his career at the American Museum of Natural History in New York as an editor, writer, and eventually manager of publications. (Preston also taught writing at Princeton University and was managing editor of Curator.) His eight-year stint at the Museum resulted in the non-fiction book, Dinosaurs in the Attic, edited by a rising young star at St. Martin's Press, a polymath by the name of Lincoln Child. During this period, Preston gave Child a midnight tour of the museum, and in the darkened Hall of Late Dinosaurs, under a looming T. Rex, Child turned to Preston and said: "This would make the perfect setting for a thriller!" That thriller would, of course, be Relic.
In 1986, Douglas Preston piled everything he owned into the back of a Subaru and moved from New York City to Santa Fe to write full time, following the advice of S. J. Perelman that "the dubious privilege of a freelance writer is he's given the freedom to starve anywhere." After the requisite period of penury, Preston achieved a small success with the publication of Cities of Gold, a non-fiction book about Coronado's search for the legendary Seven Cities of Cibola. To research the book, Preston and a friend retraced on horseback 1,000 miles of Coronado's route across Arizona and New Mexico, packing their supplies and sleeping under the stars--nearly killing themselves in the process. Since then he has published several more non-fiction books on the history of the American Southwest, Talking to the Ground and The Royal Road, as well as a novel entitled Jennie. In the early 1990s Preston and Child teamed up to write suspense novels; Relic was the first, followed by several others, including Riptide and Thunderhead. Relic was released as a motion picture by Paramount in 1997. Other films are under development at Hollywood studios. Preston and Child live 500 miles apart and write their books together via telephone, fax, and the Internet.
Preston and his brother Richard are currently producing a television miniseries for ABC and Mandalay Entertainment, to be aired in the spring of 2000, if all goes well, which in Hollywood is rarely the case.
Preston continues a magazine writing career by contributing regularly to The New Yorker magazine. He has also written for National Geographic, Natural History, Smithsonisan, Harper's,and Travel & Leisure,among others.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/dougla...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 939 reviews
March 26, 2026
I got this from the library and really enjoyed it and rate it 4.5* and round up. In the series I am on book 15 and have stalled there as my interest has waned a bit this one has me ready to go and start it again. I enjoyed the back story of Pendergast and how one of the side characters come to work together. Pendergast is a bit too fully formed due to his previous experience so there was little learning on the job. Special Agent Chambers was a good character as a mentor as he is dealing with loss and not there to micromanage Pendergast who goes about his methodical investigations picking up on what others miss. The ending is the beginning of the first book.
February 21, 2026
Pendergast is at his best and will blow the reader out of the water. I never dreamed I would read about his origin. It is truly fascinating.
It took until chapter 7 for this writing to take off like a runaway train. Do not get me wrong, the first 6 chapters had no problem holding my attention but the rollercoaster of action starts about here.
He is a junior agent who has been partnered with Chambers, a senior partner who has his own issues. Pendergast soon takes the lead role in the partnership which eventually leads to issues.
The problem in this writing is not knowing who the “bad guys”are but how they will be discovered before more damage is done. Pendergast and Chambers are on two different playing fields. Of course Pendergast follows the road less traveled.
I highly recommend this read. There is no shortage of action, suspense, conflict, resolution ….and the list goes on to an incredible ending. The reader will not be disappointed. In fact, this book has inspired me to reread all his novels in order again.
It took until chapter 7 for this writing to take off like a runaway train. Do not get me wrong, the first 6 chapters had no problem holding my attention but the rollercoaster of action starts about here.
He is a junior agent who has been partnered with Chambers, a senior partner who has his own issues. Pendergast soon takes the lead role in the partnership which eventually leads to issues.
The problem in this writing is not knowing who the “bad guys”are but how they will be discovered before more damage is done. Pendergast and Chambers are on two different playing fields. Of course Pendergast follows the road less traveled.
I highly recommend this read. There is no shortage of action, suspense, conflict, resolution ….and the list goes on to an incredible ending. The reader will not be disappointed. In fact, this book has inspired me to reread all his novels in order again.
January 29, 2026
This is the origin story of FBI agent Pendergast. I have read every book in this series, but this book works perfectly as a standalone and is an excellent introduction to the wonderful creation that is Pendergast. In this book, he is newly installed in the New Orleans office and is assigned to a senior agent who theoretically is supposed to show him the ropes. However, that is not how Pendergast works, and he and his partner are soon exiled from the office and turn to an old case. The case is very creepy, the bodies pile up and Pendergast’s adversary has special skills. Unfortunately for him, so does Pendergast.
This book was perfect for me. It had a great plot. Pendergast is restored to the character I love (unlike the unrecognizable character in the more recent books). There is no Constance (I hate her guts) and it gives more of the Proctor backstory (if you’ve read this series you’ll know who these are). And the audiobook is narrated by Jefferson Mays. The ending of this book leads you right into “Relic”. Also a great book.
This book was perfect for me. It had a great plot. Pendergast is restored to the character I love (unlike the unrecognizable character in the more recent books). There is no Constance (I hate her guts) and it gives more of the Proctor backstory (if you’ve read this series you’ll know who these are). And the audiobook is narrated by Jefferson Mays. The ending of this book leads you right into “Relic”. Also a great book.
March 7, 2026
The book wasn't that long but somehow it took me ages. The pre-story on Proctor wasn't very good. It read like the last novel in a very long line of previous ones. When Pendergast set in, he seemed no rookie but very experienced with his military background. Then, when the typical Pendergast story began we already were over 50% of the book. The story itself was catchy at parts, about PSI experiments gone wrong and some people hiding facts. We also see a serial killer on the loose who managed to captivate Proctor and links the characters. So far so well. From then on it was a fast paced Pendergast novel with a good showdown and a good bridge over to the first novel in the New York Natural History Museum, Pendergast meeting d'Agosta for the first time. You also get many background information on Pendergast's past, his family, his military unit but somehow everything remains a bit pale like the main character. Rounded up I give four stars. Good that the story took off after some time otherwise three solid stars. This is something for the Pendergast enthusiasts who already read all other books of the series. Otherwise you don't have to read it as a start into the series. It was okay and I recommend it to fans.
December 7, 2025
Step into the captivating realm of Special Agent A.X.L. Pendergast, a remarkable man whose extraordinary journey with the Federal Bureau of Investigation is nothing short of legendary. From facing spine-chilling supernatural entities to battling ancient horrors, and even navigating the twists of time to track down a Victorian-era serial killer, Pendergast’s adventures are truly awe-inspiring!
Get ready to uncover the thrilling origins of this exceptional agent as we explore his early days with the FBI! You'll be entranced by the haunting cases that marked the start of his career—each filled with peril and intrigue, where deadly consequences lurked just around the corner. Join us on this enlightening journey as we reveal the truths behind the man, the myth, and the intriguing mysteries that sculpted Special Agent Pendergast into the extraordinary figure we’ve come to admire.
"Pendergast: The Beginning" invites readers on an exhilarating and nostolgic adventure into the formative years of Aloysius Pendergast, as he embarks on his thrilling path as a junior FBI agent in the vibrant, often dangerous streets of New Orleans in the early 1990s. The story dives into Pendergast’s fascinating family legacy, brimming with secrets and unique eccentricities, while introducing his wise mentor, Agent Chambers. This dynamic duo works together to unravel the mysteries posed by a sinister, twisted serial killer.
With every page turn, authors Preston and Child skillfully weave a rich tapestry of suspense and intrigue, filled with unexpected plot twists and clever misdirection that will keep you on the edge of your seat. They create a chilling atmosphere that draws you into harrowing crime scenes, presenting unforgettable villains who will haunt your thoughts long after you’ve finished reading. This gripping installment is genuinely a page-turner, compelling you to stay lost in its intoxicating narrative until the final shocker unfolds. It’s such an engaging story that you may find it impossible to put down! I genuinely encourage you to grab a copy. Whether you’re new to the Pendergast series or a seasoned fan, this book is a fantastic entry point that will surely enchant you.
Mark your calendars—the anticipated publication date in the UK is set for January 29, 2026, while readers in Canada and the US can look forward to its release on January 27, 2026!
A heartfelt thank you to Zoe at Head of Zeus, NetGalley, and Aria & Aries | Head of Zeus for providing the widget to download the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.
Get ready to uncover the thrilling origins of this exceptional agent as we explore his early days with the FBI! You'll be entranced by the haunting cases that marked the start of his career—each filled with peril and intrigue, where deadly consequences lurked just around the corner. Join us on this enlightening journey as we reveal the truths behind the man, the myth, and the intriguing mysteries that sculpted Special Agent Pendergast into the extraordinary figure we’ve come to admire.
"Pendergast: The Beginning" invites readers on an exhilarating and nostolgic adventure into the formative years of Aloysius Pendergast, as he embarks on his thrilling path as a junior FBI agent in the vibrant, often dangerous streets of New Orleans in the early 1990s. The story dives into Pendergast’s fascinating family legacy, brimming with secrets and unique eccentricities, while introducing his wise mentor, Agent Chambers. This dynamic duo works together to unravel the mysteries posed by a sinister, twisted serial killer.
With every page turn, authors Preston and Child skillfully weave a rich tapestry of suspense and intrigue, filled with unexpected plot twists and clever misdirection that will keep you on the edge of your seat. They create a chilling atmosphere that draws you into harrowing crime scenes, presenting unforgettable villains who will haunt your thoughts long after you’ve finished reading. This gripping installment is genuinely a page-turner, compelling you to stay lost in its intoxicating narrative until the final shocker unfolds. It’s such an engaging story that you may find it impossible to put down! I genuinely encourage you to grab a copy. Whether you’re new to the Pendergast series or a seasoned fan, this book is a fantastic entry point that will surely enchant you.
Mark your calendars—the anticipated publication date in the UK is set for January 29, 2026, while readers in Canada and the US can look forward to its release on January 27, 2026!
A heartfelt thank you to Zoe at Head of Zeus, NetGalley, and Aria & Aries | Head of Zeus for providing the widget to download the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.
February 8, 2026
First of all those who have read this novel know that the title of this book is not quite correct, it should have been Pendergast: the beginning of the FBI years. As it turns out there have been Pendergast adventures before the FBI involving a military carreer .
Anyhow we meet a young Pendergast and his FBI mentor whose mental state is somewhat off after losing his wife. Pendergast is being himself in uncovering something very wrong at the FBI and his mentors covers for him resulting in being somewhat suspended.
Which means they are not welcome at the office, so they dive into a coldcase and find the actions and identity of a serial killer. When they move in they find the killer killed and somebody has tried to torch the evidence.
Finding this New killer turns out to be another ballgame with far more danger involved.
This is Pendergast in his native New Orleans and it suits him very well and as always the writers deliver an excellent tale leaving you wanting more
The book ends with a chapter from their first Pendergast book "Relic".
This tale offers a lot of New directions to go with A.X.L Pendergast and so far continue to count me in with a next pre-order of a book from mesieurs Preston & Child as they seem to fullfill me with their tales and taking Pendergast to New horizons.
Anyhow we meet a young Pendergast and his FBI mentor whose mental state is somewhat off after losing his wife. Pendergast is being himself in uncovering something very wrong at the FBI and his mentors covers for him resulting in being somewhat suspended.
Which means they are not welcome at the office, so they dive into a coldcase and find the actions and identity of a serial killer. When they move in they find the killer killed and somebody has tried to torch the evidence.
Finding this New killer turns out to be another ballgame with far more danger involved.
This is Pendergast in his native New Orleans and it suits him very well and as always the writers deliver an excellent tale leaving you wanting more
The book ends with a chapter from their first Pendergast book "Relic".
This tale offers a lot of New directions to go with A.X.L Pendergast and so far continue to count me in with a next pre-order of a book from mesieurs Preston & Child as they seem to fullfill me with their tales and taking Pendergast to New horizons.
April 11, 2026
4.5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Ebook format 📖
I really enjoyed this one! I loved getting backstory with Pendergast when he’s a young FBI agent, sniffing out weird murder cases and being the badass rogue that we all know and love.
I enjoyed getting more information about Proctor and not having Constance in this book.
Sorry all, her character was wearing a bit thin with me! 🤣😂
When reading a Pendergast book, Preston & Child always find a way to introduce me to random or odd topics that I’ve never heard about. Absolutely love that!
Is this the last Pendergast book in the series?
I’m not sure but if it is, it’s an excellent way to bring a beloved series to a satisfying end.
Ebook format 📖
I really enjoyed this one! I loved getting backstory with Pendergast when he’s a young FBI agent, sniffing out weird murder cases and being the badass rogue that we all know and love.
I enjoyed getting more information about Proctor and not having Constance in this book.
Sorry all, her character was wearing a bit thin with me! 🤣😂
When reading a Pendergast book, Preston & Child always find a way to introduce me to random or odd topics that I’ve never heard about. Absolutely love that!
Is this the last Pendergast book in the series?
I’m not sure but if it is, it’s an excellent way to bring a beloved series to a satisfying end.
February 13, 2026
I think I'm in love w/ Aloysius Pendergast. He's a little bit charming, romantic, creative, brilliant, dangerous, and lightning fast. I'd trust him with my life! Learning how he joined the FBI, plus one of his first big cases, really helped bring a lot together. I've been trying to figure out how old he is (in the latest books) and in this one, he's likely just shy of 30. So that would make him 60 given this book specifically talks about dates, and unless time has slowed down for the later ones, I'm mostly confident. Proctor's life before joining Pendergast as his "chauffer" is explained. We learn about their roots in New Orleans. And we see the beginnings of the enemies he will make in the future. Great descriptions - truly, the scenes leap off the pages. I did this as a buddy read with a good friend, where we read it around the same time to catch up on our thoughts.
February 6, 2026
An origin of sorts. There are still a lot of mysteries in Pendergast’s past that would be interesting to see the authors delve into. A great jumping on point for new readers.
March 20, 2026
Despite being a prequel, this book will be SO much more satisfying if you read it after the rest. Why? Because while it fills in the blanks of Pendergast’s early FBI career and introduces you to some of the other characters in the series, it is like adding pieces to a nearly finished puzzle… which is way more fun than throwing down those corner puzzle pieces.
Pendergast may be younger and a rookie, by FBI standards, but it’s not long before he does the Pendergast thing and go his own way on his first case. We learn how he found his way to the FBI and we see him through the eyes of his first partner— which I especially liked.
But the best part which was also the most disappointing was meeting Proctor. I think the first 100 pages features Proctor before Pendergast and that was great. In fact, as a long-time fan of this series, I wish that Proctor had played a larger role than he did. But I thank the authors for giving him an interesting backstory and showing his connection to Pendergast.
As with any of his cases, this was a multilayered mystery involving a cold case intersecting with realtime villainy. And the villains (the more the merrier) are fairly creepy and over the top. The last third of the book is pure adrenaline and saved me from having to write a different kind of review.
And now, I’ve got another year to wait for the next book.
Pendergast may be younger and a rookie, by FBI standards, but it’s not long before he does the Pendergast thing and go his own way on his first case. We learn how he found his way to the FBI and we see him through the eyes of his first partner— which I especially liked.
But the best part which was also the most disappointing was meeting Proctor. I think the first 100 pages features Proctor before Pendergast and that was great. In fact, as a long-time fan of this series, I wish that Proctor had played a larger role than he did. But I thank the authors for giving him an interesting backstory and showing his connection to Pendergast.
As with any of his cases, this was a multilayered mystery involving a cold case intersecting with realtime villainy. And the villains (the more the merrier) are fairly creepy and over the top. The last third of the book is pure adrenaline and saved me from having to write a different kind of review.
And now, I’ve got another year to wait for the next book.
January 27, 2026
Thanks to Netgalley and Grand Central for the pre-release copy of Pendergast: The Beginning by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. Below is my honest review.
I am *super* excited that we are getting a pre-Relic Pendergast tale. There is so much history that's hinted at and revealed over the course of the extremely long series, so having full length stories going into depth for some is such an awesome thing.
I really loved this one. It's classic Pendergast, but it's early on in his career and explains some really lingering questions: why was he transferred to NYC? Why is Proctor so loyal? What happened to his New Orleans partner agent?
It had a great plot, some very Pendergast-novel murders, and some fun little tidbits of sci-fi goodness.
Keep at it, Doug and Linc. We need more Pendergast stories, and I'll gladly devour any stories about him from ANY point on the timeline.
Five stars, highly recommended, AND since it's a prequel that was specifically written to be another potential starting point for new readers, you can start with this one if you'd like.
I am *super* excited that we are getting a pre-Relic Pendergast tale. There is so much history that's hinted at and revealed over the course of the extremely long series, so having full length stories going into depth for some is such an awesome thing.
I really loved this one. It's classic Pendergast, but it's early on in his career and explains some really lingering questions: why was he transferred to NYC? Why is Proctor so loyal? What happened to his New Orleans partner agent?
It had a great plot, some very Pendergast-novel murders, and some fun little tidbits of sci-fi goodness.
Keep at it, Doug and Linc. We need more Pendergast stories, and I'll gladly devour any stories about him from ANY point on the timeline.
Five stars, highly recommended, AND since it's a prequel that was specifically written to be another potential starting point for new readers, you can start with this one if you'd like.
February 23, 2026
Pendergast at his Pendergastiest. But not Pendergasiest. Because that man has never once broken wind.
June 12, 2026
★★★★★
Pendergast: The Beginning was my first Pendergast novel, and now my TBR just increased by 20+ books.
Set in 1994, this prequel follows newly minted FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast as he investigates a bizarre murder involving missing body parts. It starts as a strange homicide case but quickly spirals into something much darker and much weirder.
This book completely hooked me. The mystery is brilliant, the pacing is relentless, and there were multiple moments where my jaw genuinely dropped.
How is this not a TV series already?
An easy 5 stars. I can't wait to read more Pendergast.
Pendergast: The Beginning was my first Pendergast novel, and now my TBR just increased by 20+ books.
Set in 1994, this prequel follows newly minted FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast as he investigates a bizarre murder involving missing body parts. It starts as a strange homicide case but quickly spirals into something much darker and much weirder.
This book completely hooked me. The mystery is brilliant, the pacing is relentless, and there were multiple moments where my jaw genuinely dropped.
How is this not a TV series already?
An easy 5 stars. I can't wait to read more Pendergast.
June 24, 2026
“The killing was quick, efficient, and humane—if you will forgive that word—and there were no signs of torture. Hence my conclusion that the killer derived little or no pleasure from the act of murder. The killing was, rather, a means to an end; a furtherance of his business.”
“You talk about the killer’s ‘business.’ What business is this?”
A cold smile gathered on the pale man’s face. “That, Agent Chambers, is the fundamental mystery.”
Pendergast: The Beginning, the 23rd novel starring FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast, is a prequel to the entire series. It takes place when Pendergast is a brand new FBI agent, still on probation. He is assigned to work with Special Agent Dwight Chambers out of the New Orleans office, and soon they are investigating a series of brutal murders involving victims whose arms had been vivisected before death ….
Pendergast: The Beginning is an interesting story. It was fun seeing Pendergast doing his Pendergast things in a setting where instead of everyone giving him lots of leeway as a respected, experienced agent, everyone is questioning the new guy’s rather bizarre tactics. The story has a nice twist at the midpoint that shifts the focus from one suspect and motive to a different suspect and motive. The ultimate villain is a bit over-the-top, and the story requires some suspension of disbelief, but is a fast, entertaining read. A solid prequel to a series that still delivers more often than not. Recommended.
April 22, 2026
A great book in the continuation of this series, and one we long-time readers have surely wanted for a long time. I only wish it could have been longer and provided even more info, but it was good to get at least a glimpse of the earlier life of Pendergast. Hopefully there will be many more books in this series to come!
April 16, 2026
In the burgeoning world of prequels, it was only a matter of time that we would get one for Special Agent A.X.L. Pendergast. I was looking forward to it. I pre-bought the book on Amazon prior to its release date and waited. I had read all of the other Pendergast novels, so I was curious to see how this undeniably unique character came to be. The story was good, what you would come to expect from Preston and Child. It moved well, had enough twists to keep me engaged, and the writing was slick (even more so than some of the other novels in the series). I could see the genesis of Pendergast, but at times it felt a little underdeveloped. He was difficult to work with, often did his own things, employed disguises, was one step ahead of everyone else in the investigation. So, in many ways, he was true to form. I was a little disappointed that his background was not more nuanced, portrayed as something to grow from instead of being a younger version of what was already fully formed.
February 14, 2026
What a ride! Pendergast's first case for the FBI. He's assigned to a stodgy veteran who has recently lost his wife and has been drowning his sorrows and mailing it in on the job.
Pendergast is the same quirky, intuitive, brilliant investigator that he's shown to be throughout the series. After pissing off the agent in charge Pendergast and his partner are told to leave the office and don't show their faces for a while.
After reading about an interesting case in nearby Mississippi he takes an interest. The case proves to be the same sort of level of weird we've come to expect. This book is a prequel for the series and is fine as a standalone.
Pendergast is the same quirky, intuitive, brilliant investigator that he's shown to be throughout the series. After pissing off the agent in charge Pendergast and his partner are told to leave the office and don't show their faces for a while.
After reading about an interesting case in nearby Mississippi he takes an interest. The case proves to be the same sort of level of weird we've come to expect. This book is a prequel for the series and is fine as a standalone.
December 30, 2025
Have you been reading Pendergast books for a while, entranced by this man, his shadowy background and almost otherworldly skills, involved in solving often peculiar, often shocking crimes? Or have you heard of Pendergast but read little of the Preston and Child series? Have I got a book to recommend to you both. Pendergast: The Beginning is the foundational story of the man as an FBI agent. With new hints of his life before the Agency, we see the man hit the road running in his probationary placement in the New Orleans field office in 1994.
Beginning by taking a look at older unsolved cases, Pendergast begins to see what he considers a possible trail of a serial killer, linked to a current murder case. In a style that will make many of his bosses and co-workers irritable or downright angry in coming years, Pendergast works with Chambers, his mentor, before going rogue with his own theories and investigations. The case that he discovers uncovers layers and years of strange events and death. The men he has identified as involved are interesting and the chase becomes a very exciting fight to the death.
I really enjoyed this outing with Aloysius Pendergast as he begins making his unusual mark on the world of fighting crime and unusual criminals. I plan to continue reading new works about his exploits.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book. I’m happy to provide a review.
Beginning by taking a look at older unsolved cases, Pendergast begins to see what he considers a possible trail of a serial killer, linked to a current murder case. In a style that will make many of his bosses and co-workers irritable or downright angry in coming years, Pendergast works with Chambers, his mentor, before going rogue with his own theories and investigations. The case that he discovers uncovers layers and years of strange events and death. The men he has identified as involved are interesting and the chase becomes a very exciting fight to the death.
I really enjoyed this outing with Aloysius Pendergast as he begins making his unusual mark on the world of fighting crime and unusual criminals. I plan to continue reading new works about his exploits.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book. I’m happy to provide a review.
February 28, 2026
It was fun to learn of Agent Pendergast's beginnings and a lovely surprise to discover the story includes another of my favorite characters - Proctor. Simon and I enjoyed listening to the audio version together, ably narrated by Jefferson Mays. The setting is New Orleans in 1994.
The epilogue segues into the first novel, 'Relic' and we are tempted to begin the series all over again!
Favorite quotes:
“'Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home,' Matsuo had said. A rather contradictory phrase from Jung came to mind, 'I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.' Idly, Proctor wondered who would win in a knife fight – the poet or the philosopher?”
A sentence that made me squirm - “The heat was unbearable and Chambers could hear his hair crisping.”
A sentence that made me laugh - “He knew Pendergast’s ears could detect even a fly farting.”
An 'ah ha' moment - Chambers likens Pendergast to “a terrier unable to let go of a bone.”
“From time to time he had encountered a startling original mind; a person whose thoughts took unexpected paths in the gardens of ratiocination. This fellow Pendergast was one of those but he was even more, he had it seemed the ability to climb the hilltops girdling the gardens and take in the entire landscape displaying powers that rivaled Magnus’ own. He was sui generis - a man possessing one of the most intriguing and dangerous minds he’d ever encountered.”
In disguise - “A. X. L. Pendergast, unshaven and dirty, dressed in a soiled suitcoat and shabby tuxedo pants, carrying a bottle of *Night Train in a stained paper bag lounged in a doorway.”
*Night Train is flavored fortified wine
A conversation at the closing of the story:
Pendergast - ‘we’re civilians now, although one of us is still actively working for the government.’ At this, he pulled the FBI badge out of his black suit jacket and showed it to Proctor.
‘What, you’re working for those candy asses,’ Proctor said.
‘The analogy I’d prefer is that I’m a diner and they are the restaurant, they offer up many interesting and mysterious Sauce Piquant dishes of which I may sample.'
The epilogue segues into the first novel, 'Relic' and we are tempted to begin the series all over again!
Favorite quotes:
“'Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home,' Matsuo had said. A rather contradictory phrase from Jung came to mind, 'I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.' Idly, Proctor wondered who would win in a knife fight – the poet or the philosopher?”
A sentence that made me squirm - “The heat was unbearable and Chambers could hear his hair crisping.”
A sentence that made me laugh - “He knew Pendergast’s ears could detect even a fly farting.”
An 'ah ha' moment - Chambers likens Pendergast to “a terrier unable to let go of a bone.”
“From time to time he had encountered a startling original mind; a person whose thoughts took unexpected paths in the gardens of ratiocination. This fellow Pendergast was one of those but he was even more, he had it seemed the ability to climb the hilltops girdling the gardens and take in the entire landscape displaying powers that rivaled Magnus’ own. He was sui generis - a man possessing one of the most intriguing and dangerous minds he’d ever encountered.”
In disguise - “A. X. L. Pendergast, unshaven and dirty, dressed in a soiled suitcoat and shabby tuxedo pants, carrying a bottle of *Night Train in a stained paper bag lounged in a doorway.”
*Night Train is flavored fortified wine
A conversation at the closing of the story:
Pendergast - ‘we’re civilians now, although one of us is still actively working for the government.’ At this, he pulled the FBI badge out of his black suit jacket and showed it to Proctor.
‘What, you’re working for those candy asses,’ Proctor said.
‘The analogy I’d prefer is that I’m a diner and they are the restaurant, they offer up many interesting and mysterious Sauce Piquant dishes of which I may sample.'
November 25, 2025
***Slow And Unevenly Paced Through The First 70% But Finishes Strong!
Pendergast: The Beginning is one of those books that’s both satisfying and somewhat disappointing at the same time. As an early but lapsed fan of the series in recent years, I looked forward to reading this book in order to get a closer look at the early life of Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast—his family, his formative experiences, and the shadows that shaped him. There are some genuinely very good moments here and, as always, Preston & Child continue to do a very good job in building atmosphere.
But… this is also a rare case where the authors’ own mythology works against them. By pulling back the curtain on Pendergast’s past, the book inevitably removes some of the mystique that made him such a compelling character in the first place. Certain revelations feel a bit too tidy, and I found the pacing to oftentimes be uneven—slow throughout a considerable portion of the book, then suddenly rushing once the actual plot kicks up the excitement level during the final 30% of the book. Further, several side characters come off as flat; more archetype than flesh and blood.
Still, for big fans of the series featuring Pendergast it’s an enjoyable dive into the lore—even if it’s not as tight, thrilling, or surprising as the best entries in the series. For newcomers, though, this probably isn’t the book to start with. It’s more of a companion piece than a standalone knockout.
#Pendergast,The Beginning. #Net Galley
Pendergast: The Beginning is one of those books that’s both satisfying and somewhat disappointing at the same time. As an early but lapsed fan of the series in recent years, I looked forward to reading this book in order to get a closer look at the early life of Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast—his family, his formative experiences, and the shadows that shaped him. There are some genuinely very good moments here and, as always, Preston & Child continue to do a very good job in building atmosphere.
But… this is also a rare case where the authors’ own mythology works against them. By pulling back the curtain on Pendergast’s past, the book inevitably removes some of the mystique that made him such a compelling character in the first place. Certain revelations feel a bit too tidy, and I found the pacing to oftentimes be uneven—slow throughout a considerable portion of the book, then suddenly rushing once the actual plot kicks up the excitement level during the final 30% of the book. Further, several side characters come off as flat; more archetype than flesh and blood.
Still, for big fans of the series featuring Pendergast it’s an enjoyable dive into the lore—even if it’s not as tight, thrilling, or surprising as the best entries in the series. For newcomers, though, this probably isn’t the book to start with. It’s more of a companion piece than a standalone knockout.
#Pendergast,The Beginning. #Net Galley
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This review was originally published at FanFiAddict.
According to the Goodreads star-ratings metric, two stars means a book was OK. If one must use a star-rating, this works well enough since Pendergast: The Beginning is the textbook definition of a supremely OK book. Coming along as entry #23 in the Pendergast series, co-authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child go back in time to just before their collaborative debut with The Relic to explore the titular FBI agent’s first case a newbie investigator in ye olden days of 1994.
This makes for a neat trip down memory lane, although I shudder at the realization that some of you reading this now might not even have been born then (a thought that has prompted me to sprout at least three more gray hairs), but Pendergast itself feels less like a story the authors were in urgent need of telling than a book written to fulfill a contractual obligation. Sure, they throw in the requisite twists and turns, transforming a rote serial killer story into something more nefarious and deeper, not to mention something straight out of another ‘90s staple, The X-Files, but it lacks that particular spark of yesteryear.
Keeping a series character feeling fresh after 30 years is a difficult task for any author. I stopped reading the Pendergast books roughly 15 years ago after Cemetery Dance and have only occasionally dipped back into the various other series Preston & Child have dreamt up since. I haven’t felt much of a need to check back in with Pendergast, but nostalgia and curiosity once again got the better of me with The Beginning. I’m happy to report this wasn’t a complete waste of my time, but I probably won’t feel the need to pick up a Pendergast book for at least another 15 years.
Pendergast, for me, is a character that has always worked better in small doses as a supporting character. He’s an eccentric, anachronistic, know-it-all oddball. He’s a Deep South Hercule Poirot derivative, a moneyed aristocrat who never feels like a contemporary character but one that has been plucked from a Holmesian mystery book several centuries past and plopped into the present-day, of which he is completely oblivious to. Pendergast is not without charm, but it’s easier to relate to senior Agent Chambers, the Lestrade to Pendergast’s Holmes, whom he is partnered with in The Beginning. Chambers is often completely exasperated by and at wits end with the ostensibly younger agent’s roguish deductions, leaps of logic, and overall strange behavior. I, too, have come to find myself more exasperated than charmed by Pendergast over the years, particularly as he has become the central focus of so many books that have served to progressively strip away the mystery and deepen the soap opera of his weirdo life. See again: small doses.
Pendergast: The Beginning is written with a certain irony, of course. At one point, Chambers thinks of the clues his partner has uncovered as the kind that can only exist in fiction. It’s also a wink and a nod to readers, given that Pendergast is the type of character that can only exist in fiction. He’s a striking work of imagination, but every time he appears on page we are forced to reckon with the uncanny valley of his artificial existence. Nobody speaks or behaves like this in the real world. He’s a comic book character writ large, a sort of Batman for popular fiction airport reads, with his master of disguise schtick, which we see in the book’s opening, and suit jacket cum utility belt filled with hidden compartments chockfull of the investigator’s tools. Pendergast isn’t an FBI agent so much as he’s the imaginary ideal of an FBI agent, working for the imaginary ideal of a competent federal investigatory agency that, even in this entirely made-up world, has a hard time putting up with his shit.
Said shit eventually culminates in a fiery climax set aboard a paddle wheel steamboat, because not even Pendergast’s nemeses can behave even the least bit contemporary, forcing one to question why these guys aren’t caught sooner. If you want to know who the killer in any given Pendergast book is, look for the guy who acts like he’s a Jame Bond villain that’s at least two centuries past their expiration date.
Part of the problem with Pendergast: The Beginning is that it’s tonally inconsistent. It tries to be everything for everyone and ultimately feels like nothing more than a mish-mash of incongruent oddities. Lincoln & Child have their fun crafting a modern-day Sherlock Holmes howdunit (who the bad guy is is never in question for long, to either readers or Pendergast himself), right down to giving Pendergast his own Moriarty (something they’d already done previously in the Diogenes trilogy). Their wannabe brainy horror-mystery then devolves into a straight-up actioner that reads like Under Siege on a riverboat. Readers, it is impossible not to feel some degree of whiplash swinging from Sherlock Holmes straight into a ‘90s-era Steven Seagal set piece.
As a teenager in the ‘90s, I couldn’t help but think of The Relic as one of literature’s greats. It helped scratch that particular itch I had as an X-Files obsessive. Thirty years later, I can’t help but see Pendergast, with all its pastiche derivations and its central character’s baggage of oddities, as pure silliness. Fun, certainly, but still supremely silly, with Pendergast and all his affectations, coming across as the silliest of them all. In another year, in another country, under a different presidential administration, I might question how he’s managed to keep himself employed in the FBI, but considering the state of our constantly norm-defying, increasingly AI slop-ridden, real world and the agency currently being led by the ever-embarrassing Trump cultist Kash Patel, I suppose I must give him yet another pass. I don’t know if Pendergast is any sillier than what’s happening outside these book’s pages, but I do know he’s certainly less harmful.
According to the Goodreads star-ratings metric, two stars means a book was OK. If one must use a star-rating, this works well enough since Pendergast: The Beginning is the textbook definition of a supremely OK book. Coming along as entry #23 in the Pendergast series, co-authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child go back in time to just before their collaborative debut with The Relic to explore the titular FBI agent’s first case a newbie investigator in ye olden days of 1994.
This makes for a neat trip down memory lane, although I shudder at the realization that some of you reading this now might not even have been born then (a thought that has prompted me to sprout at least three more gray hairs), but Pendergast itself feels less like a story the authors were in urgent need of telling than a book written to fulfill a contractual obligation. Sure, they throw in the requisite twists and turns, transforming a rote serial killer story into something more nefarious and deeper, not to mention something straight out of another ‘90s staple, The X-Files, but it lacks that particular spark of yesteryear.
Keeping a series character feeling fresh after 30 years is a difficult task for any author. I stopped reading the Pendergast books roughly 15 years ago after Cemetery Dance and have only occasionally dipped back into the various other series Preston & Child have dreamt up since. I haven’t felt much of a need to check back in with Pendergast, but nostalgia and curiosity once again got the better of me with The Beginning. I’m happy to report this wasn’t a complete waste of my time, but I probably won’t feel the need to pick up a Pendergast book for at least another 15 years.
Pendergast, for me, is a character that has always worked better in small doses as a supporting character. He’s an eccentric, anachronistic, know-it-all oddball. He’s a Deep South Hercule Poirot derivative, a moneyed aristocrat who never feels like a contemporary character but one that has been plucked from a Holmesian mystery book several centuries past and plopped into the present-day, of which he is completely oblivious to. Pendergast is not without charm, but it’s easier to relate to senior Agent Chambers, the Lestrade to Pendergast’s Holmes, whom he is partnered with in The Beginning. Chambers is often completely exasperated by and at wits end with the ostensibly younger agent’s roguish deductions, leaps of logic, and overall strange behavior. I, too, have come to find myself more exasperated than charmed by Pendergast over the years, particularly as he has become the central focus of so many books that have served to progressively strip away the mystery and deepen the soap opera of his weirdo life. See again: small doses.
Pendergast: The Beginning is written with a certain irony, of course. At one point, Chambers thinks of the clues his partner has uncovered as the kind that can only exist in fiction. It’s also a wink and a nod to readers, given that Pendergast is the type of character that can only exist in fiction. He’s a striking work of imagination, but every time he appears on page we are forced to reckon with the uncanny valley of his artificial existence. Nobody speaks or behaves like this in the real world. He’s a comic book character writ large, a sort of Batman for popular fiction airport reads, with his master of disguise schtick, which we see in the book’s opening, and suit jacket cum utility belt filled with hidden compartments chockfull of the investigator’s tools. Pendergast isn’t an FBI agent so much as he’s the imaginary ideal of an FBI agent, working for the imaginary ideal of a competent federal investigatory agency that, even in this entirely made-up world, has a hard time putting up with his shit.
Said shit eventually culminates in a fiery climax set aboard a paddle wheel steamboat, because not even Pendergast’s nemeses can behave even the least bit contemporary, forcing one to question why these guys aren’t caught sooner. If you want to know who the killer in any given Pendergast book is, look for the guy who acts like he’s a Jame Bond villain that’s at least two centuries past their expiration date.
Part of the problem with Pendergast: The Beginning is that it’s tonally inconsistent. It tries to be everything for everyone and ultimately feels like nothing more than a mish-mash of incongruent oddities. Lincoln & Child have their fun crafting a modern-day Sherlock Holmes howdunit (who the bad guy is is never in question for long, to either readers or Pendergast himself), right down to giving Pendergast his own Moriarty (something they’d already done previously in the Diogenes trilogy). Their wannabe brainy horror-mystery then devolves into a straight-up actioner that reads like Under Siege on a riverboat. Readers, it is impossible not to feel some degree of whiplash swinging from Sherlock Holmes straight into a ‘90s-era Steven Seagal set piece.
As a teenager in the ‘90s, I couldn’t help but think of The Relic as one of literature’s greats. It helped scratch that particular itch I had as an X-Files obsessive. Thirty years later, I can’t help but see Pendergast, with all its pastiche derivations and its central character’s baggage of oddities, as pure silliness. Fun, certainly, but still supremely silly, with Pendergast and all his affectations, coming across as the silliest of them all. In another year, in another country, under a different presidential administration, I might question how he’s managed to keep himself employed in the FBI, but considering the state of our constantly norm-defying, increasingly AI slop-ridden, real world and the agency currently being led by the ever-embarrassing Trump cultist Kash Patel, I suppose I must give him yet another pass. I don’t know if Pendergast is any sillier than what’s happening outside these book’s pages, but I do know he’s certainly less harmful.
Read
February 1, 2026The Lord’s Name in Vain. DNF’d.
December 8, 2025
This review is for an ARC copy received from the publisher through NetGalley.
Preston and Child take us back to the year 1994, when Agent Pendergast was new to the FBI, stationed in his home town of New Orleans. For his first real action, he discovers an old cold case ties in with a recent killing, and eventually connects more, proving there's a serial killer. Already displaying his trademarked tendency to ignore authority and conduct investigations as he sees fit, even if it means going rogue with regards to department policy, Pendergast will have a challenge persuading his mentor that the deaths they're investigating aren't as clear cut as they appear.
It was great going back in time to the early days of Pendergast, to see him operate and feel what it was like in the earlier novels as opposed to how far down the rabbit hole the series has gone in recent years. And, of course, an introduction to his driver/bodyguard Proctor and how evnetually those two came together. I wouldn't mind seeing more retro stories in the series.
Preston and Child take us back to the year 1994, when Agent Pendergast was new to the FBI, stationed in his home town of New Orleans. For his first real action, he discovers an old cold case ties in with a recent killing, and eventually connects more, proving there's a serial killer. Already displaying his trademarked tendency to ignore authority and conduct investigations as he sees fit, even if it means going rogue with regards to department policy, Pendergast will have a challenge persuading his mentor that the deaths they're investigating aren't as clear cut as they appear.
It was great going back in time to the early days of Pendergast, to see him operate and feel what it was like in the earlier novels as opposed to how far down the rabbit hole the series has gone in recent years. And, of course, an introduction to his driver/bodyguard Proctor and how evnetually those two came together. I wouldn't mind seeing more retro stories in the series.
February 20, 2026
Hooray! Another Preston & Child book!
It occurs to me that I first learned of their books shortly after getting married. My wife is a fan of horror movies, so I got her a gift subscription to Fangoria magazine, and they did a writeup about a then-forthcoming movie, The Relic, based on P&C's first novel. I found a copy of the book at the local Borders, and the rest is history. I started buying them in hardcover with the release of Thunderhead because I couldn't stand to wait for the paperbacks. I'm reminded of all of this because Pendergast: The Beginning takes us all the way back to show us a young Pendergast, just before Relic. In fact, the Epilogue is a direct excerpt from that book showing P meeting D'Agosta for the first time …
In this book, Special Agent Chambers is having a rough time of it. His partner has been killed. His wife left him. His life is falling apart. So he's unenthusiastic to be assigned a new partner, a young A.X.L. Pendergast. His misgivings seem justified when his new partner pulls a stunt that gets them both reassigned to the backwaters of Louisiana. Where they stumble upon a bizarre series of murders, a figure from Pendergast's past, and a villain capable of challenging the newly-minted Special Agent to his uttermost.
The one drawback to having this set in the past, is that you know at least a couple of the characters are going to survive because they've been in other books. So it's less a question of Will Pendergast Survive [spoiler]? than a question of How?
That said, the book is still the engaging pageturner we've come to expect from Preston and Child. There's a point where key events are happening earlier than expected, and obviously something is going to happen to prolong the suspense, an escape or some other complication. But the book went in an unexpected direction, eventually reaching a full and satisfying conclusion. Nicely done!
Being something of a prequel to the entire Pendergast series, this book is uniquely well-suited as a starting point for readers unfamiliar with P&C's work. I've been reading their books for so long that I'm hardly objective. As far as I'm concerned, they're all great, and you should read them all! Highly recommended!
It occurs to me that I first learned of their books shortly after getting married. My wife is a fan of horror movies, so I got her a gift subscription to Fangoria magazine, and they did a writeup about a then-forthcoming movie, The Relic, based on P&C's first novel. I found a copy of the book at the local Borders, and the rest is history. I started buying them in hardcover with the release of Thunderhead because I couldn't stand to wait for the paperbacks. I'm reminded of all of this because Pendergast: The Beginning takes us all the way back to show us a young Pendergast, just before Relic. In fact, the Epilogue is a direct excerpt from that book showing P meeting D'Agosta for the first time …
In this book, Special Agent Chambers is having a rough time of it. His partner has been killed. His wife left him. His life is falling apart. So he's unenthusiastic to be assigned a new partner, a young A.X.L. Pendergast. His misgivings seem justified when his new partner pulls a stunt that gets them both reassigned to the backwaters of Louisiana. Where they stumble upon a bizarre series of murders, a figure from Pendergast's past, and a villain capable of challenging the newly-minted Special Agent to his uttermost.
The one drawback to having this set in the past, is that you know at least a couple of the characters are going to survive because they've been in other books. So it's less a question of Will Pendergast Survive [spoiler]? than a question of How?
That said, the book is still the engaging pageturner we've come to expect from Preston and Child. There's a point where key events are happening earlier than expected, and obviously something is going to happen to prolong the suspense, an escape or some other complication. But the book went in an unexpected direction, eventually reaching a full and satisfying conclusion. Nicely done!
Being something of a prequel to the entire Pendergast series, this book is uniquely well-suited as a starting point for readers unfamiliar with P&C's work. I've been reading their books for so long that I'm hardly objective. As far as I'm concerned, they're all great, and you should read them all! Highly recommended!
May 26, 2026
I don’t know if it’s a straight up five star read, or the fact that it has been a while since the last Pendergast novel I read. Either way, I was so glad to be back reading about him again, and I really enjoyed it.
November 25, 2025
Decent but somewhat disappointing origin story about the start of Pendergast's FBI career in New Orleans. The case chosen is a bit more pedestrian than you'd expect and not seemingly worthy of the beginning of a character as iconic as Pendergast. As has been the case with several of the last few entries in the series, the writing is getting somewhat stale and cliched at times. I've read every book in the series and I long for the days of exciting stories like Relic and Still Life With Crows, just to name a few. It's certainly not a bad book, but it's just not as good as you'd expect for an entry of this nature. We do get to see the initial connection with Proctor, which is cool, and the epilogue reminds us of the glory days of the series. I liked it generally, but I was left wanting more. Here's hoping again that this duo can find the same magic that once existed in the series. I know I'll keep reading regardless, though. Thanks to the publisher via Netgally for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
May 9, 2026
I apologize in advance to all the fans and avid readers of Preston and Child's
Pendergast series.
I found PENDERGAST (The Beginning ) to be an uneven, contrived thriller that
was too easy to put down and ignored after a few chapters. Days separated
reading sessions. I even started reading an Ian Rankin detective novel after
struggling through the first third of this book. I finally finished PENDERGAST
out of morbid curiosity. There was this mental image of the character Pendergast
reading the rough draft of the actual novel, then stepping back into the story
identifying all the villains and zeroing in on these miniscule clues so he could
astound his superiors as well as the reader.
You have:
- Cardboard characters whose emotions are broadcasted, not intuited from
dialogues or actions.
- Character backgrounds that either sounded like soap opera tearjerkers ( suicidal
Agt. Chambers) or, in the case of the titular hero (Pendergast), a family history of
absurdly compounded tragedies and insanity. And all this horror we are to believe
just helped mould a stable genius with no PTSD symptoms ? 'Yes, old boy, my wife was
indeed mauled and eaten by a lion. Why might you ask ? ' This is a protagonist with a
detailed knowledge of Steamboat construction and layout, old southern mansion
architecture and their contemporary refurbishment with hidden doors. Now add
jewelry making, lock picking and the arcane Tibetan "science" of body projection
and somewhere Sherlock Holmes is smiling and furiously taking notes.
A plot filled with gratuitous blood, gore and guts and a let's kill everybody-denouement
which Pendergast actually annouces to the reader.
THE WILD BUNCH , THE DEPARTED or GOODFELLAS ring any bells ?
Back to Ian Rankin.
Reengaging brain.
No apologies due.
Pendergast series.
I found PENDERGAST (The Beginning ) to be an uneven, contrived thriller that
was too easy to put down and ignored after a few chapters. Days separated
reading sessions. I even started reading an Ian Rankin detective novel after
struggling through the first third of this book. I finally finished PENDERGAST
out of morbid curiosity. There was this mental image of the character Pendergast
reading the rough draft of the actual novel, then stepping back into the story
identifying all the villains and zeroing in on these miniscule clues so he could
astound his superiors as well as the reader.
You have:
- Cardboard characters whose emotions are broadcasted, not intuited from
dialogues or actions.
- Character backgrounds that either sounded like soap opera tearjerkers ( suicidal
Agt. Chambers) or, in the case of the titular hero (Pendergast), a family history of
absurdly compounded tragedies and insanity. And all this horror we are to believe
just helped mould a stable genius with no PTSD symptoms ? 'Yes, old boy, my wife was
indeed mauled and eaten by a lion. Why might you ask ? ' This is a protagonist with a
detailed knowledge of Steamboat construction and layout, old southern mansion
architecture and their contemporary refurbishment with hidden doors. Now add
jewelry making, lock picking and the arcane Tibetan "science" of body projection
and somewhere Sherlock Holmes is smiling and furiously taking notes.
A plot filled with gratuitous blood, gore and guts and a let's kill everybody-denouement
which Pendergast actually annouces to the reader.
THE WILD BUNCH , THE DEPARTED or GOODFELLAS ring any bells ?
Back to Ian Rankin.
Reengaging brain.
No apologies due.
March 30, 2026
I suppose it's not a spoiler to say a big house is set on fire since it's right on the cover of the book (in the USA anyway). And they didn't even "stop, drop, and roll" after getting out!
What can I say? It's a Pendergast book. Of course it's good, go read it! Seriously these guys are masterful writers. What I noticed was that they didn't just create some random FBI guy as Pendergast's partner. No, they created a realistic character, who had recently lost his wife, who he loved deeply, and is going through painful grief. When we first meet him he's just phoning it in, just going through the motions at work, ignoring his new partner. It takes an interesting cold case that Pendergast finds to bring the guy out of his grief and back into his job. That's some good writing decisions there.
And this book has not only one demented bad guy but two! That's a new one on me. Usually there's just one bad guy and a showdown at the end. We do get a showdown but halfway through the book. I'm looking at the book thinking, what about the rest of these pages? Well through Pendergast's independent investigations (because of course no one in charge listens to him) he discovers a second bad guy and then we have the usual big showdown at the end.
All in all a great book. Interesting bad guys. And we find out some interesting things about Pendergast's past.
What can I say? It's a Pendergast book. Of course it's good, go read it! Seriously these guys are masterful writers. What I noticed was that they didn't just create some random FBI guy as Pendergast's partner. No, they created a realistic character, who had recently lost his wife, who he loved deeply, and is going through painful grief. When we first meet him he's just phoning it in, just going through the motions at work, ignoring his new partner. It takes an interesting cold case that Pendergast finds to bring the guy out of his grief and back into his job. That's some good writing decisions there.
And this book has not only one demented bad guy but two! That's a new one on me. Usually there's just one bad guy and a showdown at the end. We do get a showdown but halfway through the book. I'm looking at the book thinking, what about the rest of these pages? Well through Pendergast's independent investigations (because of course no one in charge listens to him) he discovers a second bad guy and then we have the usual big showdown at the end.
All in all a great book. Interesting bad guys. And we find out some interesting things about Pendergast's past.
April 8, 2026
Misters Child and Preston, if you’re reading this, please don’t stop writing Pendergast stories!
Loved this installment and it reminded me of falling head over heels for the Pendergast universe for the first time years ago.
Loved this installment and it reminded me of falling head over heels for the Pendergast universe for the first time years ago.
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