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The Book of the Dead  By  cover art

The Book of the Dead

By: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child
Narrated by: Scott Brick
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Publisher's summary

The New York Museum of Natural History receives their pilfered gem collection back, ground down to dust. Diogenes, the psychotic killer who stole them in Dance of Death, is throwing down the gauntlet to both the city and to his brother, FBI Agent Pendergast, who is currently incarcerated in a maximum security prison.

To quell the PR nightmare of the gem fiasco, the museum decides to reopen the Tomb of Senef. An astounding Egyptian temple, it was a popular museum exhibit until the 1930s, when it was quietly closed. But when the tomb is unsealed in preparation for its gala reopening, the killings, and whispers of an ancient curse, begin again. And the catastrophic opening itself sets the stage for the final battle between the two brothers: an epic clash from which only one will emerge alive.

©2006 Splendide Mendax, Inc. and Lincoln Child. All Rights Reserved. (P)2006 Time Warner AudioBooks. All Rights Reserved

Critic reviews

"Another gripping, action-packed page-turner...with a tantalizing, ominous twist at the end." (Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The Book of the Dead

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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I like this series

I have avoided this book and its predecessor because I generally avoid "man wrongly accused" However, this book was really fun. It had the return of a number of fun characters from earlier books (always a pleasure) and there was resolution.

These books are somewhat formulaic. I don't actually mind this. there is enough fun to keep me interested. I enjoy the development of characters from book to book. I enjoy the bizarre internal logic that the authors keep.

Some of the later books in this series have parts that move grindingly slow. I didn't find that in this one at all. There was no point where I just wanted to cry because I couldn't flip through the pages and ignore the boring stuff.

I highly recommend it.

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Perfect follow-up! A+++

Months ago I listened to previous book, "Dance of Death" and found it intriguing and suspenseful. This book gives you an extremely rare opportunity to know the villain's alter-ego way before the characters even catch a whiff. The villain is uniquely twisted individual! Brick does a masterful job with these characters. A satisfying read ... make sure you read the other one first. A tiny complaint that the last portion of the book could have been more tighter.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Out of Order

Like other readers, I was unaware of this being the third in a series until I had finished it, and was advised in the epilog of the best order to read these. I am reading #2 at this moment, and while I know where it goes in the future, it is still good to fill in the blanks. Very well written.
An advisor in the initial book summary would steer readers to have these poresented in a more complete manner.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Not bad

Although a bit predictable and formulaic, it's still an enjoyable 'read'. I might suggest, however, you read Dance of Death before reading this one. It gives you a good base for the characters.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Pendergast Lite

This is not a bad book, but as a devoted follower of all the Pendergast books I was a bit disappointed. The story was solid enough, the narration terrific, but I was surprised to find that I was almost at the end of the first of two parts before Agent Pendergast made his first appearance. His appearances were brief, also. Most of the story goes on without him, focusing instead on his evil brother. This was my biggest problem with the book. Pendergast is the very soul of this series of books, and to have him appear so little and so late was a peculiar decision, in my opinion. Were this a television show, it would be the one shot when the leading actor was sick, or in a contract dispute with the producers. My second reservation is that I think the author(s) are "jumping the shark" by focusing so much on Pendergast and his family. I preferred the earlier books, where he was the mysterious outsider, appearing out of nowhere with keen insights and esoteric knowledge which flustered those who opposed him. There isn't much mystery left regarding the man himself, unfortunately. I hope that in future works the authors take a step back and allow him to disappear into the shadows again, to reappear in some creepy town where no one knows him, and where the evil he faces is truly unknown, both to him, and the reader.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Very Predicable Book

This could have been a good mystery if not for the multitude of unnecessary characters in the story, all introduced in each short chapter.
Historically, it leaves something to be desired, but most unfortunately rarely delves into the science & particulars of egyptology and the reason for the title of this book. It mentions a few times, but briefly the meaning of the ancient texts. It was an easy read but could have been much more interesting with some historical facts that could have fitted nicely into this story.

Scott Brick's overly dramatic narration of the book was almost too much for me to finish the book. Note to self do not listen to any books he has narrated.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Great!

I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It kept me wanting more all the way through, and I often had trouble putting it down, so-to-speak. Scott Brick gave a great narration to this book, and I highly recommend it. I would, however, suggest reading The Dance of Death first to really enjoy this book. This book literally picks up right where Dance of Death leaves off, and while the former was not as entertaining, it is pretty necessary to completely understand all of the nuances of this plot. Preston/Child did not, in my opinion, make this a "stand alone" book. At any rate, this is a great listen! Enjoy!

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Left me hanging... again!!

I love, LOVE this book. It was a fantastic "read" - the revelation about how the Pendergast brothers became so polarized was satisfying and made Agent Pendergast a little more human. I was very happy to see Constance come into her own. Watching her character develope and learning more about her inner workings was great.

So much is resolved in this book, you are almost afraid that like any good story it has no where left to go. So not true. In the end, although I had predicted at least part of this ending, I was left wanting more.

This is by far Pendergasts most personal and revealing novel. He truly becomes a human being in this story. I really hope the authors continue the series.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The Brothers Pendergast

The final book in P&C's The Brimstone Trilogy. Really should be read in order. The Duel To The Death between the Pendergast Brothers is reminiscent of Holmes vs Moriarty.

I didn't care for the final 45 minutes but the bulk of the story is as riveting as any of the eight Pendergast stories I've read so far.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Terrible

Any additional comments?

Terrible. It was like being stuck in a loop in a dream about strange happenings at a freak show. The characters were strange, cheaply crafted, robotic stereotypes. Their descriptions literally made me cringe. The super intelligent beauties, who were all the same except for hair color, were bad enough, but what was truly awful was the way minor characters were relegated to second class through their physical attributes. They made it clear that everyone short, bald or fat was unattractive, and basically a nobody. The description of the Governor's wife as something like "so well put together she could only have been the wife of the governor," reeked, and there was a strong element of worship in their rendering of the main characters. I could imagine the authors writing FBI Pendergast while gushing.

I can't discuss the plot because I do not want to relive it, but it was a muddled hodgepodge of the ridiculous and the unrealistic. Lasers, noise, vapor and lights? If this reduced you to a knuckle-dragging, tongue-hanging, psychotic killer, imagine what you would become after spending your teen and young adult years attending rock concerts.

I will admit, though that there was a time while listening to this book that I did, but only for a brief moment, think that if I heard the word segue or segway one more time, I was going to go ballistic.

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5 people found this helpful