The Wheel of Darkness

By: Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

Narrated by: Rene Auberjonois

Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

FBI Agent Pendergast has taken Constance on a whirlwind Grand Tour, hoping to give her closure and a sense of the world that she's missed. They head to Tibet, where Pendergast intensively trained in martial arts and spiritual studies. At a remote monastery, they learn that a rare and dangerous artifact the monks have been guarding for generations has been mysteriously stolen. Pendergast agrees to take up the search.

The trail leads him and Constance to the maiden voyage of the Queen Victoria, the world's largest and most luxurious passenger liner - and to an Atlantic crossing fraught with terror.

Investigate more of Agent Pendergast's cases.

©2007 Splendide Mendax, Inc. and Lincoln Child (P)2007 Hachette Audio

Hi how dearly I enjoy Pendergast and miss Rene🥹

The Wheel of Darkness is when Pendergast came into perfection. Oh how I wish Rene was here to narrate the prior installments of this great series of books. I was afraid there would be a distinct lack of finding someone who has the ability to flawlessly step in and take Rene’s place. Thank goodness for Jefferson Mays. I wish Louise Penny had taken the needed time to find a replacement for the late great Ralph Cosham. The original narrator for Chief Inspector Gomache. I no longer buy her books.

Complex storyline

Similar to their other books, but it's more of a supernatural horror mystery than some. I enjoyed the Tibetian and the ocean liner settings because I have little to no experience with either. On top of the settings, you get to renew acquaintances with Pendergast and his ward. The storylines were unusual and I worried that I might not like the outcome so for me the suspense was great! I enjoyed the reader a lot.

What a Rollercoaster!

The hero is just too good (as is the heroine), the baddies are particulrly bad and the story is just a little too bizarre. I also found the reader a bit hard to take at the start. But with all that negativism, (I clearly need to meditate and get back to my innerself) I have to admit that I listened right to the end and that once into it, I mostly enjoyed the trip into Tibet, the wild sea journey and the moral overtones about our decaying society.

The best yet!

This is the best in the series. You see the human side of agent Pendergast. He is not the wall of all knowing steel he has been in previous books. I cannot wait for the next book to come out. I wish Audible had a program where they would alert subscribers of new additions of their favorite authors. Preston and Child would be on the top of my list. Bravo to you both!

Hard to maintain the velocity...

I love the Pendergast books and I applaud them for their creativity in moving the series to different locals to keep it fresh, but this one didn't quite reach the level for me that others in the series have. It was entertaining, but felt like a side trip from everything we've gone through with Pendergast to date. There are a few important bits that move the story forward, but mostly it's a standalone story.

I know everyone doesn't agree, but after listening to Scott Brick's Pendergast, Rene Auberjonois was a disappointment. It appears I should get used to it, because he seems to be narrating the books now, but it's just not the same for me.

Least Favorite of the Series Thus Far

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Some of the characters just didn't fit for me. Preston and Child generally make very believable and intriguing characters although this was not the case for me with The Wheel of Darkness. It also felt that one recurring character, who I won't name to avoid spoiling anything from previous books, seemed to have some personality changes that just did not fit with the character established in previous books. Again, where consistency was the norm, The Wheel of Darkness felt quite abnormal for me.

Would you recommend The Wheel of Darkness to your friends? Why or why not?

I'd only recommend it for friends that are fans of this series. I'm not one who can listen to random books throughout a series but have to listen to them all in order. So personally I couldn't skip over it although I think some people might be able to.

Did Rene Auberjonois do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

I actually thought a few of the characters sounds pretty close and having spent the last few books in the series listening to Scott Brick, there is a difference between the two narrators and I prefer Scott Brick. My bias likely sways my feelings on Rene Auberjonois but others that loved Brick's narrations with this series as I did may feel like this performance was not up to par.

Did The Wheel of Darkness inspire you to do anything?

It inspired me to grab the next book in the series hoping it is better than this one.

Any additional comments?

If you enjoy the Pendergast series, I'd say you are safe to give this one a go. Besides, out of the many books in the series, there are just some you are bound to not enjoy as much as others. For me, The Wheel of Darkness was one of those I did not like as much, but not enough to deter me away from continuing on with this series.

Not your typical Pendergast novel

If you are a fan of the recent Pendergast novels, you may find this one wanting. Aside from the fact that it's not narrated by Scott Brick (who I adore), this book focuses justs on Pendergast and Constance, and doesn't include any of the other regular characters. And Pendergast isn't even really the main focus--most of the action of the novel takes place without him. If you like Preston/Child's non-Pendergast books (like Ice Limit or Thunderhead), you will probably like this one, but if you are hoping for a sequel to the Book of the Dead, you will probably be disappointed (though some loose ends are dealt with).

Disappointingly weak story

What does Rene Auberjonois bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I was surprised at how well this narrator comes across, as I've been happy with Scott Brick's narration in the past. The narration is good, even though the story isn't.

Do you think The Wheel of Darkness needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

It's an older stand-alone story and there's really nothing worthwhile to add.

Any additional comments?

I've read most of the Pendergast books, albeit out of order. This "stand alone" story is an odd attempt to throw together story lines of Tibetan study and meditation, mysticism, and shipboard mystery/crisis. The characters were not well-developed and an enormous amount of time and ink was spent on details related to transatlantic ships (albeit maybe necessary to the story). If you are a Pendergast fan and enjoy the intellectual elements of his books, I think you'll be quite disappointed with this one. It's a stand-alone, so you aren't missing any elements of a series by skipping this one. I would if I had it to do again.

In a spectacular way they blow up everything.

I love these books. Preston / Child takes you to the most amazing creations of their imagination and then they blow it up. Rene Auberjonois has to be one of the most gifted narrator's I've ever heard. Rene slices through difficult vocabulary and takes on the Persona of characters so thoroughly you think there are a host of players inside him.

Preston Child at their best

Really enjoyed this story and Rene Aberjunois did a great job with narration. Very intriguing twist at the end.