The Wheel of Darkness
by Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child
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Book Reviews of The Wheel of Darkness
Book Review: It took me 2 years to complete
Summary: 2 Stars
I have read all the Pendergast books and usually eargerly await the new ones. However when this one came out back in '07 I started reading it and found it a little too out there so I put it down for a while. I kept picking it up and putting it down because I love the Pendergast character, but I hated what they did to him in this novel. If you're willing to reach and maybe have not read say Cabinet of Curiosities you may like this novel. However, if you have read the rest of the Pendergast novels be prepared to charge through this one... Hopefully their new one is better. Had Preston and Child not written a new Pendergast novel I doubt I would have ever finished this one.Book Review: Wheel of Darkness
Summary: 3 Stars
Aloysius Pendergast is truly a likable and brilliant character created by Preston and Child. Some of his ventures to bring about a need for information ussually bring a smile to my face.
Even though he's one of those cliche super characters that can do no wrong (i.e. Dirk Pitt), the writers portray him in a way that avoids making him come off as irritating and obnoxious to the reader.
This book had a good start, but falls apart, much like the luxury cruise. The premise was good, and the plot kept me interested for about 300 pages. However, most of the mysteries are cleared up sooner than you'd expect, making the final 100 pages feel like filler.
Book Review: Entertaining, but a bit over the top
Summary: 4 Stars
This is my first book in the series to read, and I found it entertaining, but a bit over the top. There was a bit more of the supernatural involved than what I had heard the series to be known for. Still, it was for the most part a fun read. While the novel begins at a Tibetan monastery, most of the action occurs on a transatlantic liner. Probably the biggest knock for me was that it didn't take long to figure out that anytime a minor character was introduced it was only so that they could be killed off. Still, I'll come back to the series again, and not at all reluctantly, but I'll probably start closer to the beginning of the run.Book Review: Entertaining but poorly written
Summary: 3 Stars
Other reviews touch upon the story line and the entertainment or fear value of this book. I have not read any of the other seven and it took me a while to figure out in which century the story was set as the speech of Pendergast is pedantic, stilted and aged. Were it not for the mention of a cell phone, I might have thought for longer that the story was set in the nineteenth century. No doubt these stories are not read for their literary value.I certainly won't actively seek out any others and am glad I did not pay for this one. Does it say anything that this is the first review I have ever posted of any book?Book Review: Enjoyable, if a little overly "exotic"
Summary: 4 Stars
I enjoyed this book, I usually enjoy anything this writing team churns out. I read mostly as a leisure pursuit and this book is definately for those kind of moments. There were some interesting plot twists and it moved at a good pace. Some slight (nitpicking) issues with the UK setting for part of the plot, I have never seen a london cab at 110 miles per hour, and I don't think anyone has asked for a taxi from "your pool" of hotel taxis for about, er, forty years.
But thumbs up, enjoyed it and have passed it on to friends.