I read a lot of books and I do mean a lot of books, but I have to admit that I rarely get to read such a finely tuned blend of horror and science fiction as what I just read. Relic by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child is the first book in their Agent Pendergast series. It takes place in the Museum of Natural History just before they are set to open their new exhibit, Superstition. Two young boys who were briefly separated from their group while touring the museum end up brutally murdered inside the museum. NYPD descends upon the museum in an attempt to solve the crime only to discover they have no idea who, or what, was behind it. Detective D’Agosta ends up joining forces with Pendergast, an FBI agent who specializes in weird cases. However, they are still quickly running out of clues as the situation continues to get worse with the discovery of additional bodies. Meanwhile, inside the museum young scientist Margo Green starts her own investigation into what is going on with the help of Smithback, a journalist currently writing a book about the museum. Together, they consult with Dr. Frock and Dr. Kawakita and discover that it may have something to do with an expedition from a decade prior. An expedition from which no one returned, only artifacts. The same artifacts now being prepped for the new Superstition exhibit.
I don’t typically read books that are so dark and creepy like this one was. I have nothing against books like that but they are not my typical preferred reading fare. That being said, I want to say that this is a superb example of that genre. The blend of the mystery and horror of what is taking place and the science that they are slowly unraveling to discover what is actually going on is exquisite. These two authors have done an incredible job of slowly ramping up the suspense, the terror, and the unease that both the characters and the readers have to face. It starts out slow as it works on setting the stage. It sprinkles in just the right amount out details for the characters to figure things out. Even as you are reading you get this slowly building feeling that it won’t be fast enough though. That something is going to happen, worse than what has already happened. At the same time, you can’t help but hope that you are wrong and it won’t happen. The worst part is if you pay attention you may end up with a better picture of what happened and what may happen before all is said and done. A picture that is worse than any of the characters realize. Sorry if I waxed eloquent there for a second but this is the kind of book that, when you get to the end, you are blown away by how well everything built to reach the climax. The same climax that you can see hints of from the very beginning of the book. This is a book that you feel compelled to finish but know that you will not like how a lot of it ends up resolved. Reading this was definitely a case of I want to finish this but at the same time I am not sure I want to know what will happen. One of the only things I did not like about this book is I sometimes got lost in the science. I have to admit though that is really not hard to achieve with me as I frequently get lost in the science, so yeah, let’s just move on now shall we and give it four out of five stars.
I am going to start right off by saying this book is, in part, about a bunch of bloody, gruesome, brutal murders so if you cannot handle that I would not recommend you read this. However, if that doesn’t put you off and you happen to enjoy a good thriller that I think you should try this. Like I said before, I don’t normally read something like this but I am happy I did as it was well worth it. There is something else you should keep in mind. I do not recommend this book for younger readers unless they happen to be exceptionally mature. Even then I would suggest nobody younger than their late teens due to the content. Let me know if you consider trying it as I look forward to hearing what you think.