Gosh, I hate to say this, but Angel of Vengeance is strikingly average. Preston and Child rank in the top five of my favorite authors and I put them on a pedestal. In addition, I have read every book in the Pendergast series so I feel qualified to share my thoughts about this novel.

The beginning will be a mess for those who didn't read the previous book (The Cabinet of Dr. Leng) because it picks up right where the last one left off. Pendergast, D' Agosta, Constance, and Diogenes all find themselves apparently trapped in the 1880s when the portal they used to get to that time has been destroyed. As begun in the previous book, the quartet has traveled back in time to stop the evil deeds of distant Pendergast relative, Dr. Enoch Leng.

With that said, there's very little action in the first third of the book creating a level of excitement equivalent to that of putting out the family dinnerware before supper. Because of this, the book is a slog to get through. It's only after the quartet devise a plot to finally get at Leng (taking place in the last half of the story) that the book begins to get interesting. It's actually pretty riveting in the last third of the book, but that's not enough to make this more than a 3 star story for this reviewer.

I feel like I'm a little tough on the authors (and I'm sure that many readers will disagree with me) but if P & C would have spent more time on plot development and less on throwing out their $5 words interspersed with the vernacular of the 1880s, then this would have been a better story.

This book brings an end to the Leng trilogy, so hopefully, better storylines are ahead for Pendergast fans. In this reviewer's humble opinion, P & C need to bring back more of the original snarky, aloof, and mysterious Pendergast, and less of the warm and relatively fuzzy Pendergast from the past 4 or 5 novels. I'm hopeful that the series isn't running out of steam, but I'm worried.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. ( )

Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child’s Angel of Vengeance picks up where The Cabinet of Dr. Leng left off. FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast, NYPD Detective Vincent D’Agosta, and Pendergast’s former ward Constance Greene find themselves trapped in the 1890s. Similar to Michael Crichton’s Timeline, the device they used did not send them back to their own past but rather a parallel world that nearly duplicates their own other than existing more than a century behind. Constance’s efforts to save the parallel world’s version of her younger self and her siblings from Dr. Enoch Leng’s ministrations failed, with the wayward Pendergast relative now aware of her actions and the fact that a version of himself succeeded in perfecting the arcanum. Though Constance feels all is lost, an unlikely ally appears in the form of Diogenes Pendergast, Aloysius’ wayward younger brother who is criminally insane and who Constance rejected in the events of The Obsidian Chamber. Leng is their most dangerous enemy yet due to his intelligence and utter lack of scruples. As another member of the Pendergast family, he thinks just as Aloysius and Diogenes do. Even Constance learned from him in her own world. With the children’s lives at stake as well as the very future of the world to which they’ve traveled, Pendergast, D’Agosta, Constance, and Diogenes divide their efforts to throw Leng off their scent while knowing that he is similarly making plans to advance his own goals and counter his opponents. Preston and Child ably employ a Xanatos Gambit to great effect in a story that perfectly uses every page to resolve the narrative they began so many years ago. Angel of Vengeance is a solid thriller and well-worth the wait since The Cabinet of Dr. Leng. Further, its connections back to some of their best Pendergast stories including The Cabinet of Curiosities and the Diogenes Trilogy work to its advantage. ( )

Pendergast and crew go to the past to later events ( )

Pendergast and his cohorts go up against one of his most notorious nemesis, his own ancestor Enoch Leng, in ANGEL OF VENGEANCE, by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. The group ends up in New York in the late 1800's and quickly have to find Leng, rescue Constance Greene's family, thwart Leng present and future plans, and manage to survive and hopefully return to there present. The question quickly becomes, can Leng be outsmarted on his own turf and can everyone keep their emotions in check and stick to the plan?
Preston & Child have crafted quite a world with Pendergast. For those who have read books in the Pendergast series, the characters are so familiar and feel like a arm blanket wrapping around your brain, For those unfamiliar, the characters are still fascinating, unique and likeable, but the extra knowledge and nuance is missing. The plot is somewhat formulaic to others in the series, but that doesn't mean the book is entertaining and a fun page turner. The action in the last quarter of the book is well crafted and the momentum leading to the finale is palpable. The ending is rewarding and leaves a pleasant tease of possible future stories.
ANGEL OF VENGEANCE is a thriller, a period piece, and a mystery all rolled into one. I think this has mass appeal and Preston & Child create some of the most charismatic and distinctive in modern pop literature. I look forward to the next book in the series.
Thank you to Grand Central Publishing, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! ( )

Angel of Vengeance by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child is the very highly recommended intricate thriller that continues the story started in The Cabinet of Dr. Leng that ended with a cliffhanger. Angel of Vengeance is absolutely not a standalone thriller. The four Pendergast novels in the Dr. Enoch Leng series are: The Cabinet of Curiosities, Bloodless, The Cabinet of Dr. Leng and finally Angel of Vengeance.

Readers have been anxiously awaiting Angel of Vengeance to conclude the story arc that left FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast, Constance Greene, and D'Agosta in an alternate version of NYC in the late 1880's where Constance is hoping to not only protect her siblings from Dr. Enoch Leng, but to defeat him entirely. Unknown to Leng, Diogenes, Pendergast’s brother, appears crossing through the time portal unexpectedly, offering to help for his own reasons. No spoilers here; read the series!

The narrative immediately starts out at a frantic pace and keeps it up throughout the novel with plenty of action, plot twists, and surprises along the way. If you have been waiting for this novel and know the characters and their backstories, you will not be disappointed. Thanks to Grand Central Publishing for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2024/08/angel-of-vengeance.html ( )