Douglas Preston | Book Chatter

Extinction
By Douglas Preston
Forge, 9780765317704, April 2024, 384 pp.

The Short of It:

Gripping and impossible to put down.

The Rest of It:

The Erebus Resort is a “real deal” experience to behold. Millions have been poured into de-extincting woolly mammoths, giant ground sloths and more and those with some money to spare, can enter the park and experience these beautiful, amazing creatures. Creatures that have been modified to exclude their violent tendencies.

BUT, big but, in the opening pages two guests go missing and the evidence left behind hints at a very alarming type of kill. One of these guests happens to be the son of a billionaire so once word gets out, the resort is overrun with the media and yes, the father of the missing man with all his overblown bluster to hinder the search.

Agent Frances Cash partners with county sheriff James Colcord to track down the perpetrators and it’s non-stop action from page one. It’s clear very early on that something is strange about Erebus and that the staff might be hiding something. As Cash and Colcord getting closer and closer to the truth, things really ramp up and it’s survival of the fittest. Literally. Surviving in those Colorado Rockies requires a certain kind of physique and many are not up for the task.

Think The Island of Dr. Moreau. There is a lot of science. Science which is terrifyingly realistic. I am a long-time fan of Preston and Child books such as Relic and The Cabinet of Curiosities but I was curious to read Preston’s latest even without the inclusion of his writing partner, Child. Let me tell you, it holds up.

The camaraderie between Agent Cash and Colcord is admirable and enjoyable as they solve the case. The description of Erebus and the creatures living within it put you right there on the valley floor. It’s NOT for the faint of heart. There are some pretty graphic descriptions of what goes on. That said, get ready for a wild ride because once you pick it up, you will read it straight through.

Highly recommend.

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

Bloodless
By Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Grand Central Publishing, 9781538736708, August 17. 2021, 400pp.

The Short of It:

Didn’t disappoint. Loved visiting with Agent Pendergast again.

The Rest of It:

Agent Pendergast faces his most unexpected challenge yet when bloodless bodies begin to appear in Savannah, GA.

This was a fun story to read right before the big trip to Missouri. Bloodless bodies begin to appear. The first body is torn apart. The second is almost entirely intact, the only mark left is the exit wound where the blood was removed from the body. Is it the work of a vampire? Someone thinking he’s a vampire? Agent Pendergast is called and when he arrives to investigate the evidence left behind, he is reunited with some people from his past. Some, have their own secrets to hide.

The setting for this one made the book for me. Savannah, GA with all its old school charm, marred by these horrible killings. I have to tell you though, it has a little bit of “woo woo” in the story if you know what I mean and a tiny bit of time traveling. Kind of. But Pendergast is Pendergast with all the mannerisms that we readers have grown to love. This the perfect book to entertain you as we head into Fall. Would be good for the R.I.P Challenge too. I have not read every book in the Pendergast series and yet, they all read like stand alones to me so I think you can still enjoy this one without reading the others.

Recommend.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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