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A review by johnbreeden
Crimson Shore by Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child
5.0
I'd have to say at certain points, I was completely wrapped up in what was going on, but in others it wasn't quite that intoxicating. I am honestly split in some ways on my feelings about this novel, but that ending...true Pendergast!
I'm sure some other readers were let down a bit by the solution to the mystery of the wine collection and the bricked up body. I look for these novels to be near-equal parts mystery and thriller. I also expect a certain twist into the macabre or arcane. By the time the "main" mystery is solved, however, I was convinced this wasn't a good book. I felt like the mystery didn't leave many clues and that every hope I built up with the talk of the escaped witches of Salem and the man in the marshes was dashed with the solution of the crime. I wasn't wanting a Poirot style ending from this book, but I felt like all the loose ends tied up in quaint bows. (No offense intended, because I am a Poirot fan. Just wasn't wanting it here.)
Then, the second "half." In the audiobook, there was a bit over 3 hours left when the mystery was solved, and I wondered how the rest of the book was going to play out. Then, all Hell, in a literal sense, broke loose. And suddenly, it really felt like I was back in Relic with D'Agosta and Pendergast looking for the unholy creature running around, this time rampaging the village. Except we had Constance with Pendergast and her viewpoint to change the perspective completely. I'll have to say, if the demon had played any part in the first half of the story, I would have to look for ways to give this a higher score.
And then, the last shock. Pendergast is missing, presumed drowned. And a "ghost" from his past emerges to reek havoc on his survivors. We fade out with Proctor, drugged and without knowing what was to happen next.
So, after all that, the last section of the novel rescued this from perhaps the lowest score I'd give a Pendergast novel. And the last, last section, ramped it up to 11.
Spoiler
I'm sure some other readers were let down a bit by the solution to the mystery of the wine collection and the bricked up body. I look for these novels to be near-equal parts mystery and thriller. I also expect a certain twist into the macabre or arcane. By the time the "main" mystery is solved, however, I was convinced this wasn't a good book. I felt like the mystery didn't leave many clues and that every hope I built up with the talk of the escaped witches of Salem and the man in the marshes was dashed with the solution of the crime. I wasn't wanting a Poirot style ending from this book, but I felt like all the loose ends tied up in quaint bows. (No offense intended, because I am a Poirot fan. Just wasn't wanting it here.)
Then, the second "half." In the audiobook, there was a bit over 3 hours left when the mystery was solved, and I wondered how the rest of the book was going to play out. Then, all Hell, in a literal sense, broke loose. And suddenly, it really felt like I was back in Relic with D'Agosta and Pendergast looking for the unholy creature running around, this time rampaging the village. Except we had Constance with Pendergast and her viewpoint to change the perspective completely. I'll have to say, if the demon had played any part in the first half of the story, I would have to look for ways to give this a higher score.
And then, the last shock. Pendergast is missing, presumed drowned. And a "ghost" from his past emerges to reek havoc on his survivors. We fade out with Proctor, drugged and without knowing what was to happen next.
So, after all that, the last section of the novel rescued this from perhaps the lowest score I'd give a Pendergast novel. And the last, last section, ramped it up to 11.