** spoiler alert ** I really like this series, and this installment was quite enjoyable. I liked finding out more about Pendergast's late wife, and I also found myself looking up a lot of things this time around - particularly about Audubon - which was nice; I like learning things, even from fiction. Preston & Child do have a really keen ability for evoking a aura of creepiness that I admire. The central mystery of this installment wasn't my favorite, but broader narrative was great.

I am confused about the timeline for the Pendergast novels now, though. If this one was supposed to be happening in 2010 (or even 2009), then the death of Pendergast's wife happened in 1998 (or 1997), yet the first book in the series, Relic, came out in 1996 and started after his wife's death. It wouldn't really be that big a deal, except the timeline this book posits makes Pendergast about ten years younger than I had always considered him, making his achievements all the more improbable.

I'm not yet sure how I feel about how Laura Hayward's character was developed here. On the one hand, I'm glad that she came around to Pendergast's way of thinking; on the other hand, I was interested to see how the authors might present a showdown between Hayward and Pendergast, which they were setting up in the previous novel.

I am also anxiously awaiting next year's addition to the series, since this one left a major enemy (with an exciting Hungarian name! - I love the Esterhazys!) at large. More importantly, though, I was rather surprised with the way Constance's storyline turned out in this one, and I'm interested to see that developed in the next one; again, I think we're headed for a serious confrontation. I remembered Pendergast and Constance as getting along better than they seemed to in this one; I was surprised that he was pushing for her committal. I also really want to go back and re-read some of the novels from the middle of the series (I'm not sure that I've read those more than once, or at least I haven't read them as many times as I've read the first three), since I'm now somewhat hazy - but still very intrigued - about the details of the Pendergast family.

Definitely an enjoyable read! And definitely a pleasure to have a chance to read something fictional entirely for my own pleasure, since I haven't had a chance to do that in months.

(re-read July 2012 to review for the sequel)