I received a free Kindle copy of City of Endless Night by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child courtesy of Net Galley  and Grand Central Publishing, the publisher. It was with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley, Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and my fiction book review blog. I also posted it to my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Plus pages.

I requested this book as I am a fan of the Pendergast Series (this is #17) and I have read all of them.

This is a very good bounce back book. The last one in the series was absolutely dreadful and I chose to read it in hopes that the authors were back in form or if they were going to continue to phone it in, in which case I would have stopped reading further books in the series.

Without giving away the plot, the book centers on Agent Pendergast, Vinnie D'Agosta, and Bill Harriman. There is teaser about Constance Greene included at the end. This is an engaging and fast read. It has the legs to be a stand alone novel, but I recommend that you read the whole series so that the teaser makes a little more sense.

I will end by saying Welcome Back to the authors.

CITY OF ENDLESS NIGHT is the 17th book in the Agent Pendergast series--arguably, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child's most popular character to date. This book brought back "the old Pendergast", with his enigmatic ways and a mind that is always several steps ahead of the rest. As a fan of all of their joint and individual novels, I have to say that I feel they are really in their element with Pendergast and D'Agosta. The previous books that focused more on Constance (and emotionally unbalanced Pendergast to an extent), just made the FBI detective almost "too" human while his readers have come to expect anything BUT from him.

This novel seems to get back to the basics, with a refreshingly new case, characters, and the usual fast-paced read that I've come to expect from a Preston/Child book. CITY OF ENDLESS NIGHT delivers the Pendergast that readers fell in love with, as well as some fantastic plot-lines, twists, turns, and subplots along the way. A five star read from my favorite writing duo!

Highly recommended!

Almost back to true Pendergast form. The character of Bryce cannot match up to Bill Smithback though.

Another excellent Pendergast novel. I really enjoyed it. It's a bit different being that he rarely comes up against someone who has so completely outmaneuvered him from the beginning. I am a little mixed on the ending though. Almost dying cab put things in perspective for people, but I think Constance should have made him wait a little longer before coming back.

City of Endless Night finds Aloysius Pendergast as clever as ever. D'Agosta and Pendergast are hunting a ruthless killer and the clock is ticking. As a battle of wits ensues, Pendergast will have to use every weapon in his cerebral arsenal to succeed. Preston and Child are at the top of their game in book #17 of the Pendergast series.

As a Agent Pentergast fanatic, I was overjoyed to get an ARC of the newest installment. I also was delighted to see Agosta joining in. The story was entertaining and taut. I did so miss Constance though.

Awesome. Preston and Child never fail to deliver. And this time they include a modern-day take on the famous short story "The Most Dangerous Game." Don't miss this one!

A headless corpse is found in an abandoned warehouse by two children. So begins the terror in the "City of Endless Night" the latest Pendergast novel from Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. This was clearly Pendergast's most complex case with a killer who has none of the common serial killer traits and follows no clear path. A compelling read that I had trouble putting down!

Pendergast and D'Agosta try and track down a killer who is beating impossible odds and decapitating his victims. But Pendergast isn't his usual self. Constance's departure at the end of the last book has affected him more than he realizes. For most of the book his heart isn't in tracking down the killer. There's some subplots with new characters that don't seem to have a whole lot to do with the overall story. Kings Park Psychiatric Center plays a role in the book. This is a real place that locals go urban exploring in frequently. It has a fascinating history consistent with what is depicted in the book.

<img src="https://abandonednyc.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/kings-park_abandonednyc_will-ellis_004.jpg?w=750&h=500">
https://abandonednyc.com/2014/06/17/kings-park-psychiatric-centers-building-93/

This book hearkens back to the style of the early Pendergast novels. It's more of an ensemble book with multiple chapters focusing on other characters. We don't delve into anymore of Pendergast's history. I found that refreshing. It's solely a stand alone murder mystery, but still a great read.

Pendergast is reunited with Vincent D'Agosta, searching for the person or persons responsible for three murders in which the victims are left without their heads. Pendergast is not at the top of his game, and there are no new revelations this time around, so not the best of the series, but still good fun, and I was surprised when the killer was revealed. Thanks to NetGally and the publisher for the opportunity to read City of Endless Night.

This installment fits firmly in the middle of the pack when it comes to enjoyment value. Pendergast is always wonderful to spend time with, but in this book he seems psychically disturbed somehow, not the invincible man we are familiar with. His conversations with D’Agosta are nebulous, even distant, and there is no chemistry between them. Perhaps this is what the authors intended to create, given the final chapter’s activities. In any case, there are murders, bad guys, and beheadings, with plenty of gory details that Pendergast devotees are familiar with.
Some other reviews have stated that they could see the plot twists coming; I could not. Mostly I spent my time mentally urging the characters to make better choices and communicate more.
Some of the more enjoyable parts: having Pendergast battle things out in the abandoned mental hospital (I am an urban explorer and love hearing about places, even if I can only be there vicariously), and some of the dialogue is utterly delicious. Case in point – as Pendergast is trying to get into an office without an appointment:

“An appointment was merely a courtesy,” he said, allowing a little iron to mingle with the butter. “As a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, looking into an active homicide, I go where I please, when I please, as long as I have reasonable suspicion to do so. Now, I suggest you speak to your minders and arrange an audience….without delay. Otherwise, there might be unpleasantness in store for each of you, personally.”

This is the kind of dialogue I live for in a Pendergast book. Often there are hidden gems like this, bright spots among dull moments in the plot. Perhaps these books are like pizza – as the saying goes: even if it’s done bad, it’s still good. Despite the characters not having chemistry, it was still great to spend time with them. Perhaps the next installment will show a happier Special Agent, given the plot twist at the end. I miss his smooth arrogance and confidence, and I’m sure you do too.
Summation: great characters behaving in ordinary ways. Pendergast is not shown in the strongest light, and there isn’t any real furthering of the big picture. However, it’s not the worst P&C book ever written. Let this book tide you over until the next one comes along.

Agent Pendergast is . . .depressed? At least, he’s just not his usual self. This put me off at first until I was reminded that the lovely, mysterious Constance is gone. While Pendergast is moping about, a diabolical killer is going around town sportingly beheading people and collecting their heads as trophies. Detective D’Agosta drags Pendergast into hunting down the fiend, only to have the tables turned and Pendergast becomes the hunted. It was a bit odd to have an antagonist who could best the otherworldly Pendergast appear out of no where, but he manages to pull himself together to make a good adventure. I thoroughly enjoyed it and the ending left me anxiously awaiting the next book.

I used to be an avid reader of the Pendergast series but the series sort of lost it's luster with me around the time it began focusing more on Constance and I stopped reading. This one sounded more like what I loved about the earlier books so I decided to give it a try when I saw it available for review and am glad I did. It had all the things that I loved about the stories.

I'll admit that Pendergast got on my nerves a bit with his sulking over Constance leaving but once he put that aside we saw the Pendergast I know and love. The twists and turns in the story were great and it's not often that we see Pendergast so stumped by a villain and I will admit that at one point I was wondering who would really prevail by the end of the story.

I'm glad to see this series have a new life breathed into it for me and can't wait for the next one.

City of Endless Night by Preston & Child allows Detective D'Agosta to take the lead while Special Agent Aloyius Pendergast assumes a smaller role than normal. Well, Aloyius does have a lot on his mind.

I've been reading these books for such a long time and realize how difficult it must be to keep coming up with fresh ideas for the series.
While I always enjoy revisiting the familiar characters, I haven't found the last few books as much fun as the earlier books. This may just be because this is #17, and Relic (the first in the series) was published in 1995. Pendergast has undergone some changes in this long series, but maybe I just love the supernatural and mysterious aspects of the earliest novels.

Not that I will ever refuse to see what is happening in Pendergast's life!

Read in November.

NetGalley/Grand Central Publishing

Mystery/Thriller. Jan. 16, 2018. Print length: 368 pages.

Five stars are not enough! Another nonstop adventure with Pendergast who never ceases to amaze. Love this series & the authors never disappoint.

Love a good mystery. Child and Preston present unique characters in equally unique situations.

In this fast-paced page-turner, FBI Agent Pendergast and NYPD detective D'Agosta are pitted against a brilliant strategist who happens to murder and decapitate his victims. The perpetrator is able to surmount any supposedly impregnable security systems that happens to be in his way, and also seems to target the extremely wealthy and amoral. A couple of subplots involve a newspaper reporter trying to make a name for himself, and also a former Jesuit who wants to spread an anti-wealth message. As each horrific crime unfolds, the pressure mounts for Pendergast and D'Agosta to find the killer; and as smart and savvy as they are, it becomes clear to the reader that they may have met their match. The climactic scene is rather overwrought, but heightens the tension to quite a fever pitch.

Another thrilling Agent Pendergast book by the 2 authors who have kept their readers turning pages for years.
This one doesn't let us down. It's agony waiting a year between these books. Loved the ending!

Thanks to the publisher, via Netgalley, for the opportunity to read and review this title.

Undeniably Fun!

We all know that when Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child get together they crank out thrillers like nobody else and the newest Agent Pendergast is no different.

People are dropping like flies in NYC. What appears to be targeted executions of the 1% crowd and the subsequent decapitation and theft of their heads has the jetsetters fleeing the city in droves, forcing NYC police Lt. Vincent D'Agosta and Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast to once again team up to outsmart the culprit.

So buckle up y'all cause this is a fast paced, un-putdownable, first class, page turner of a ride!

Love this series; loved this book. From the first page on, I didn't want to put it down and, for the record, I read the whole thing in record time.

While there's no shortage of action, though, this one - the 17th - focuses far less on the almost otherworldly side of FBI Special Agent A.X.L. (Aloysius) Pendergast. Maybe that's because his beloved ward, Constance Greene, isn't part of his life now; she's retreated to a monastery, apparently with no plans to return any time soon - and understandably, he's in a bit of a personal funk. But by the end of the book, he's picked up investigative steam - finding clues, digesting them and spitting out spot-on conclusions.

The saga begins with the murder of the daughter of a ruthless, much-hated technology billionaire. It's a killing with a gruesome twist: There's a body, but no head. The case falls under the purview of Lt. Vincent D'Agosta, who's less than thrilled that it landed in his lap in large part because he knows the whole thing will turn into a media circus. So it is, then, that he's not unhappy when his rather eccentric friend Pendergast turns up at the crime scene.

A shortage of clues leaves both men scratching their heads - Pendergast less so, of course - and the situation slides downhill fast. Not only does another victim turn up (well, most of him, anyway; he, too, is headless), but a nosy newspaper reporter got a whiff of a Pulitzer and starts sharpening his pencil - to the point of coining the phrase to describe New York City that became the title of the book.

Still, law enforcement folks try hard to squelch the rumor that a deranged serial killer is on the loose, but those efforts take a nosedive as more heads roll (literally). Now, there's little doubt that the murders are the work of one person (perhaps with a cohort); and it's up to Pendergast and D'Agosta to discover the why and, of course, the who - the sooner the better.

Meanwhile, the reporter's articles continue to rile up the general public (as well as spark a sub-plot scenario that, as an aside, to me seemed totally out of joint with the rest of the story). Near the end, the action takes a very serious turn toward the worst-case scenario, leading Pendergast on a not-so-merry chase that could result in no possibility of an 18th book.

If there is one, though, it's a sure bet I'll be chomping at the bit to get my hands on it. As for this one, three cheers to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review an advance copy (via NetGalley).