Relic

Pendergast, Book 1

By: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

Narrated by: David Colacci

Length: 13 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Relic, a Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child thriller that introduces FBI Special Agent Pendergast

Just days before a massive exhibition opens at the popular New York Museum of Natural History, visitors are being savagely murdered in the museum's dark hallways and secret rooms. Autopsies indicate that the killer cannot be human....

But the museum's directors plan to go ahead with a big bash to celebrate the new exhibition, in spite of the murders.

Museum researcher Margo Green must find out who - or what - is doing the killing. But can she do it in time to stop the massacre?

Prolong the suspense: listen to the sequel, Reliquary.

©1994 by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. (P)1995 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"With its close-up view of museum life and politics, plausible scientific background, sharply drawn characters and a plot line that's blissfully free of gratuitous romance, this well-crafted novel offers first-rate thrills and chills." ( Publishers Weekly)

"Wildly cool....Thrill hounds couldn't ask for a creepier environment....a thriller staged in the world's scariest building, with no room for the squeamish." ( Kirkus Reviews)

Sucker for a Series

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I started this series on a recommendation from a friend. It wasn't that bad. The lead in was a bit slow but once the story got going it was pretty good. If you like sci-fi, this would be a good book for you.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Agent Predergast is the truth! Funny but dry wit.

Have you listened to any of David Colacci’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Same as the book.

Great movie, great book

I really like this movie! :) And I really enjoyed this book. Its a little formulatic with stock characters and plot, but its got good scenes, exciting suspense, fun setting and a great monster.

The characters might be stock characters types, but there can be something satisfying with stock characters if done well, a reader can know them, understand them, they are familiar, and yet there are quirks and personalities to make them interesting and fulfilling. I cared about the characters and worried about what would happen to them.

The setting of a museum built on a catecomb of old, unmapped, dark, dank drainage and sewer pipes seems hard to believe at first, but it was very well done, and made for a great environment for this spooky monster story. I especially liked the details of museum life and employees, archeology digs and scientists. It made everything vivid and real. Great details that added to the story.

I usually like books better than the movies, but I really enjoyed the movie and the book both. The book added a lot with great, funny, enlightening internal dialogue and commentary. I found this book entertaining, humorous, suspenseful and thrilling. I laughed out loud at work. I listened in my car on my way home unable to put it down. I listened at night and skipped one of my favorite shows. I would recommend this book to others.

In addition, the narrator does a great job. Voices seemed right on. Sarcasm comes through perfectly. A joy to listen to.

Very good book

I enjoyed this book. It is a little out there, but it has a good story line, and the right combination of mystery and suspense. The narrator is excellent, his ability to keep the characters straight is superb.

Kept my interested all the way.

This was the first audio book my husband has heard. He found it wonderful. He loved the story line and was worried a couple of times that it went off in different directions but all the story lines kept coming together well.

Incredible performance and story telling!!

Loved this creepy creature fiction. Can't wait to read more! I highly recommend it for the sci-fi loving person.

Fun and entertaining

A light hearted fun and entertaining listen. Yes it's very predictable and follows the same formula countless other novels follow but it just works. It's a bit science fiction ( think Godzilla in a museum), a bit drama, and a little scary. I was afraid to go to sleep alone afterwards. I loved the characters and the novel wasn't too long that it didn't hold your attention.

They made this novel into a movie but the book is defiantly better. The movie is quite different to the novel and *spoiler* some characters are not in the movie.

Dont forget the sequel, Reliquary. You will want to keep reading about these characters and their adventures.

good

good listen, but still would prefer it read by scott brick, best pendergast around !!

Twice as good!

Kids loved this one on a long roadtrip. It was second time I had listened to it. I caught several details that I missed first time around. Really recommend it. Voices and special effects made it very engaging.

MORE! MORE! MORE!

Page turning mystery that had a head scratching final twist. Loved it, on to listening to the next in the series.

Well paced and exciting read!

I don't branch to new authors too often but this was a great surprise of a read with a very good performance by the narrator and fascinating subject matter. It may be considered somewhat contrite or even somewhat uninspired but I really enjoyed the story of this mythic beast that greatly upsets the opening of a museum exhibition much to the dismay of it's wealthy and ignorant patrons. The mix of scientific technobabble and eerie but unassuming setting make for an exciting story as told by the museum's more intellectual employees and how the mystery of a gigantic killing machine comes to pass from a forgotten corner of the Earth. The added effects of radio static, echoing voices etc add drama to the already tense story albeit a bit exausting toward the final chapters of the book and it's something I would like to see more of in other audiobooks. Great read if you don't mind the violent imagery!