Crooked River by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

All the gang from Verses for the Dead are back in Crooked River, Agent Aloysius Pendergast’s 21st literary outing.

After the events of Mr Brokenhearts, Aloysius and his ward, Constance Green, have remained in Florida for a much needed vacation. However, it’s not long before ADC Pickett comes looking for Pendergast’s help with a puzzling case involving hundreds of human feet that have washed ashore on Captiva Island.

While Constance entertains herself with hunting ghosts in their rented house, reporter Roger Smithback starts his own investigation into the feet, and Pendergast recruits wave pattern analysts Pamela Gladstone and Gregory Lam, as well as cutting short Agent Coldmoon’s recovery, in an effort to unravel the secret of the soles.

In a surprisingly topical storyline, the investigation takes agents to China, as well as looking into coyotes smuggling people into the U.S.A, before revealing its explosive conclusion.

A much stronger outing than its two previous installments, Crooked River feels like a return to form for Agent Pendergast. While the plot isn’t as speculative as I would like, it is a solid story, well paced with a quality ending. Aloysius is in good form, much more like his old self, and Constance is a constant delight. I admit I was thrilled to see the return of Agent Coldmoon and his foul smelling coffee, as well as Roger Smithback. The change of location to Florida seems to be a boon for all of them, and I looking forward to the next book with more excitement than I have in a while.

I award Crooked River…

Crooked River is available for $5.88 ebook and $15.09 print book on Amazon.

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Read my review of the previous Pendergast novel, Verses for the Dead.