Not surprisingly, Pendergast The Beginning is the latest in the Agent Pendergast series by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.
Having read several of the more recent Pendergast novels, I was interested in discovering more background information and how Special FBI Agent Pendergast got his start.
I was intrigued by the sketch of the arm that appeared on the first page of each chapter, never imagining just how twisted and ghoulish the plot could get.
The Beginning by Douglas and Child focuses on the agent’s first case.
The prologue takes place at a shocking funeral in Grosse Tete, Louisiana in 1989. Chapter 1 jumps quickly to New Orleans in August 7, 1994 where a shady courier company is transporting unique and questionable items. To those who are aware of Pendergast and his connections, the familiar military man Proctor, is recently hired as a driver. His life is soon in jeopardy.
In the meantime, much too experienced for a trainee, Pendergast has joined the FBI division under the mentorship of less than motivated Special Agent Dwight Chambers who is barely keeping his deteriorating personal life afloat.
Pendergast plays by his own rules. He is a thorn in the side of the Powers that Be, so due to a misstep, the two are temporarily suspended. That gives them the opportunity to pursue a side investigation of a disturbing unsolved murder.
This is where the book takes off. Chambers is more than willing when the brilliant Sherlock Holmes-like Pendergast, takes an unofficial lead in their case.
One murder leads to more. Prominent citizens are involved. Their motivation is sinister and twisted, with hidden agendas, abductions and secret deadly experiments. Pendergast deduces the mastermind, and they soon go head to head.
More than a little disturbing, even with strong elements of the bizarre and macabre, Pendergast: The Beginning by Preston & Child is more grounded in reality than some of the other novels I’ve read in the series.
Descriptions are like-you’re-right-there precise, and as the plot gains momentum, the book becomes more and more engaging.
Pendergast: The Beginning can easily be read as a stand-alone novel, or as an introduction to Preston and Child’s unique narratives and interesting characters, or by existing fans continuing to experience the series.
Personally, I look forward to catching up with more of Pendergast’s adventures. There is still much more to this Special Agent than meets the eye.
Pendergast: The Beginning
Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child
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2026
J Curran
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