Brimstone

By: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

Narrated by: Rene Auberjonois

Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

Behind the gates of a fabulous Hampton estate, FBI Special Agent Pendergast discovers the carnage of a gruesome crime, a nightmare of seemingly supernatural origin. The smoldering remains of infamous art critic Jeremy Grove, a melted cross branding his chest, are found in a locked, barricaded attic. The hoofprint singed into the floorboards and the smell of brimstone recall the legendary horrors that befall those who make a pact with the Devil.

Reuniting with police officers Vincent D'Agosta and Laura Hayward, Pendergast combs New York hoping for a simple explanation: a villain who is merely a man. But his search takes him beyond the exclusive clubs and luxury penthouses of Manhattan to a crumbling, legend-shrouded castle in the Italian countryside, where 30 years ago four men conjured something...unspeakable.

Featuring bone-chilling suspense and Preston and Child's trademark meticulous research and vivid detail, Brimstone is the duo's, and Pendergast's, most dangerous and gripping adventure yet.

©2004 Splendide Mendax, Inc. and Lincoln Child (P)2004 Time Warner AudioBooks

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner, Fiction (Abridged), 2005

"The perfect thriller to stuff into a beach bag....Fans of cerebral action adventure novels know that, outside of Michael Crichton, no one delivers the goods like the veteran writing team of Preston and Child." (Publishers Weekly)
"A highly compelling thriller." (Entertainment Weekly)

Do NOT waste your time

I listened to the first 30 minutes in disbelief at the poorly written characters and plot. I almost stopped listening and even spent some time through the audible site to see if they had a return policy (they don't). I decided to give the book a second chance - big mistake and a huge waste of time. Another reviewer wrote that this is campy, and they were right. At times, I felt like that silly boardgame "clue" had been brought to life, and they cast McGuyver as the lead character. Beware! Cliches at every corner!

Had to be 2 authors

I started with Book of the Dead and went back for several more. This is my 4th and probably last. I have Dance of Death on my Treo but will listen only if I run out of other stuff. It had to take more than one author to write a book this bad. I am not sure whether they improved or Book of the Dead was a bit better.This just got to be like eating hamburger for every meal for a whole year. I hope I don't have to hear the word preternatural again for a long time. By the way, Diogenes first appearance has him , I believe , 5 inches taller than Pendergast. I think Pendergast is 5'11" or 6 feet. How does that check with all the disguises in the other two Diogenes as arch-villain novels? The whole thing is just too cartoonish...

Just Ok

Perhaps it is because I figured out the how almost immediately, this book just didn't keep my interest. This was my first Pendergast novel -- maybe I missed something, but in the end I just didn't care about the who or why.

Doesn't stand up to the rest

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I'm not sure what type of reader would enjoy this book more than I did.

Has Brimstone turned you off from other books in this genre?

Absolutely not. Brimstone was not bad, but it wasn't as good as the other Pendergast novels that I've read.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator did not detract from the book. It was more of the storyline.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Brimstone?

I don't know if there was one particular scene as opposed to some of the descriptions that seemed to drag on and lose my attention.

Disappointing – going to skip the rest

I don’t like this book. Not fun, not captivating not entertaining. It’s disappointing. I recommend listening to Relic and Reliquary. Don't waste your time on this one. If it was a traditional book I'd use it for toilet paper.

wow

like all Pendergast books great read

Brimstone: Pretentious Nonsense

I have never read, or heard, a novel so full of trite cliches! There is a totally ridiculous super-hero who gets out of every scrape with unbelievable aplomb, and spouts pretentious culture at every opportunity. The book is mildly amusing because of its incredible campiness; but it is not really worth the time to listen to it.

brimstone

engaging story. a good page turner.