note: This is another review that I wrote many years ago for my old website. I'm still obsessed with the characters and the work from Preston and Child. Their books still are some of the best action/adventure/mystery stories going today.
Since I sat down to read The Relic when it first came out
years ago I’ve been a big fan of the work of the authors Preston and Child. Together
they have written some very entertaining and thrilling books. Really more than
once I’ve found myself watching the sun come up as I’ve spent a Friday or
Saturday night reading an entire novel in one sitting! While I didn’t read
Fever Dream in one sitting, I did enjoy the book immensely.
The story involves a recurring character named Special Agent
Pendergast, who has been the featured character in several of their novels. Here
we the reader are introduced to his wife, Helen, who I don’t think has ever
been mentioned before. Spoiler Alert:
After a brief flashback that introduces her and then shows her terrible death
the action moves to the present. Quite on accident Pendergast discovers
evidence that proves his wife was murdered and sets off with the help of his
old friend Detective D’Agosta (another reoccurring character) to track down who
is responsible for her elaborate murder. To accomplish this they must retrace
the last few years of Helen’s life, and while doing that they stir up a mystery
from the past. Before you know it there are assassins taking shots at them and
angry locals chasing them across the Bayou.
This is such a great book. The story is very engaging and an
excellent read. There is a fine balance between action and mystery. The plot
isn’t overly complicated but does offer a few unexpected twists and turns that
held my attention from the first page to the last. Though I will admit this is
the first of their novels that I figured out before the end it didn’t diminish
my enjoyment at all. Probably because I expected that I was wrong and was
pleasantly surprised when the big reveal came. By now the characters are very
familiar and well rounded, but even with that I love how each of the books that
feature the Pendergast character gives us just a bit more of his background and
family history. Here we get introduced to his life as a big game hunter and of
course his brief marriage and wife. The authors do a wonderful job weaving this
into the existing character without having to go back and “rewrite” history to
make it fit. I also really dig how the book resolves nicely all while setting
up a couple more plot lines that will need to be resolved in future works.
Really if you haven’t taken the time to read one of the
novels from Preston and Child you need to give one a try. I’ve been hooked
since their first book and can say without qualification that I’ve yet to be
disappointed by them. At least when the work together that is. Hell, my only
real complaint is that I’m dying to figure out what happens with the plot lines
they left dangling at the end of the book! Hurry up and get to writing damn it…
This is
another in the series of stories surrounding Dr. Jeremy Logan, an enigmalogist.
The title and discipline are one that he has made for himself. A history
professor by day he finds himself brought into situations to investigate
phenomenon that has no logical explanation. I’ve totally read these out of
order having already reviewed Terminal Freeze for the site, where he is a supporting
character. I’ve also covered the follow up Full Wolf Moon. Thought I’d might as
well fill in the gap.
Things
kick off with Logan at a press conference having solved the riddle of Loch
Ness. Thru solid research he has proven that there is no way that the creature
can possibly exist, so everyone needs to stop putting themselves at risk
searching the treacherous waters. Then of course we see the private
conversation afterwards about destroying the evidence that he has found. Nessie
exists, but to protect it and those looking for it the powers that be decide to
cover it up and destroy the evidence! Cool way to start the story. This
conversation is interrupted when he is summoned to return back to the U.S. to
help out an old friend.
The Lux is
a thinktank, basically a place where the smartest of the smart can get together
and do research. They are housed in a huge mansion that has been their home for
a hundred years. One of their retiring members had a mental break and killed
himself in a rather gruesome way. Those in charge don’t believe that it was a
simple suicide and hire Logan to investigate. Backtracking on the work that the
man was doing before he died Logan discovers a mysterious room with an even
more mysterious machine in it. The remainder of the book is the unraveling of
the purpose of the room and contents. Also why are people hearing voices? And
who is trying to kill him?
Yet again
the author does a fantastic job of playing on the expectations of the reader.
For much of the book it seems as if the machine is summoning or at least
allowing ghosts to speak to the living. Different characters hear voices and
music in the night and eventually they intrude on the day. This causes all
sorts of erratic behaviors including attempted suicide and violent outbursts.
Logan keeping his mind open dives into the work as if it is some sort of
primitive EVP device. But as more of the story is revealed a scientific, but
not less fascinating story is told. Much like Full Wolf Moon I like the idea of
logical real world explanations of the supernatural.
The last
quarter of the book the action kicks up as the killers descend on the Lux after
it has been evacuated due to an incoming hurricane. There is a big chase scene
thru the mansion as Logan’s survival skills and cleverness are put to the test.
Eventually he is able to turn the tables on the antagonists and save the day. If
I had a complaint about The Forgotten Room, it would be this sequence. The
running around and hiding form the killers gets monotonous after a while. I
loved the setup and the mystery leading up to it, but this just seemed forced.
It was like Child didn’t have a good way to end the story.
We also
get some more background on the character as it is explained he was briefly a
member of the Lux before his field of study was deemed unworthy of the
institution. This is also the first time that Logan’s wife is mentioned. I
enjoy that these snippets of information are parsed out slowly by Child to the
reader giving more depth to the Logan character one book at a time.
For me the
Forgotten Room wasn’t a slam dunk like Terminal Freeze or Full Wolf Moon. But
it still is a solid book that is a decent read if you find yourself a copy.
That said if you wanted to dip your toes into the world of Dr. Jeremy Logan,
I’d recommend Terminal Freeze as a better place to start. And it is the first
time he appears as more than a minor character (he is mentioned or appears in
one scene in earlier books) so you would be reading it in order!
Ever since I reviewed Full Wolf Moon, I’ve wanted to check out more stories with Child’s Dr. Logan character. Like I mentioned in that review the character is the main protagonist in three of the five books that he appears in and a supporting character in two. Terminal Freeze is one of those where he is just there to move the story along, but it is what I found in my local used bookstore, so I figured why not.
Our main character is Evan Marshall who is part of a team studying the effects of Global Warming. While working at an isolated decommissioned military station in Alaska he and the others discover a strange creature frozen in the ice. It is then that the reader finds out that their funding came from a production company that was hoping to make a documentary out of their findings. Well this creature is a sensational discovery and soon the base is filled with a production crew that nearly overwhelms the scientists and the skeleton crew of soldiers who serve as caretakers of the facility.
Thru greed and hubris, the creature is pulled out of the ice and plans are made to thaw it on live television. Before that can happen, it unfreezes itself and wakes up. The prehistoric killing machine was alive in the ice! The bodies begin piling up while the survivors try to figure out how to destroy the thing. Bullets bounce off of it and electricity barely slows it down. This is further complicated by the fact that anyone near the creature feels an unbearable pressure in their heads and suffer overwhelming fear.
I’m not going to spoil the ending so that is about all I’ll say about the story. What I can share is that Child again gives the reader a fast paced and engaging book with interesting characters that have depth. Some you can root for and others end up getting what they deserve in gratifying ways. There aren’t any real twists as the plot follows the expected formula of monster is found, people get killed, and eventually it is destroyed by the hero. The only thing that might pass for a twist is a little story from Dr. Logan where he gives an alternate theory of the creature’s origins. Not really a twist but a clever last minute what if from the author.
I have to mention one thing that as a fan of classic science fiction movies I noticed and loved seeing in the book. At one point the characters think that electricity is the only way to kill the creature so they setup an elaborate trap for it. The plan includes a metal plate on the floor and a narrow hallway next to power station. Again, these characters are trapped in an isolated military station surrounded by the hostile frozen landscape. All I can say is that Child must have seen and been a fan of The Thing from Another World.
I finished Terminal Freeze over a couple of days and enjoyed the heck out of it. Consider this one recommended. Now please excuse me while I head off to dig thru the stacks of my local used book shop looking for more goodies. Seriously I’m leaving right now to do so.
Child is
one half of my favorite writing team and while not as great as his
collaborations with Douglas Preston his solo efforts are still superior to most
else you will find in the modern techno thriller aisle at your local bookstore.
When I saw a copy of his latest novel I had to pick it up and give it a try.
Jeremy
Logan is headed to an isolated hotel in the Adirondacks to work on a book he
has been writing but hasn’t finished yet. This is because while his day job has
him working in academia he is best known as a world famous “enigmalogist” which
I think means he goes looking for all sorts of inexplicable stuff and tries to
solve the mystery. But again, he has come to work on his book and avoid
distractions. When an old college friend who is also a park ranger shows up
asking for help with some odd killings in the deep woods Logan is sucked into
yet another mystery. This one finds him unraveling the secrets of both an
insular clan of locals, some science types who may or may not be up to no good,
all while ducking those who wish he would leave things alone. It all builds to
a satisfying if not predictable ending.
I enjoyed
the heck out of this book. From the first page you are sucked right into the
story with a hiker being killed. This sets up some foreshadowing as our main
character, Logan, appears in the pages following looking forward to a nice
quiet time focusing on his academic pursuits and finishing his book. Of course,
we know that isn’t going to happen. Child then takes his time setting up the
locations and the inhabitants painting a realistic world that is one hundred
percent believable. This is important for later when things get weird. The
pacing is brisk, and the characters are well fleshed out.
One of the
best choices that Child makes in his books is to place odd supernatural events
next to logical characters and scientific explanations. Here we have a story
filled with skeptics who are forced to come to grip with the fact that they
might be dealing with a werewolf! This conflict isn’t the focus of Full Wolf
Moon, but it is referenced as everyone around Logan has to deal with what is
happening. The character of Logan comes off a bit more willing to accept the
creature, while looking all the time to try and fit it into a scientific
explanation. This makes the story more realistic and a heck of a lot creepier
than it would have otherwise been.
Child
isn’t the kind of author that will relish or dwell on the gorier parts of the
story. He does briefly describe severed heads and other nasty wounds. But unlike
some of the other books I’ve reviewed here this is less about the creature and
kills. Instead it focuses more on the mystery of who, what, where, and why.
While it is different it can be just as much fun when done well. That is the
case here and because of that I highly recommend Full Wolf Moon. I finished
this book in two sittings one of which included a night where I stayed up way
too late unable to put it down.
I
used to say that there weren’t any good horror movies in the nineties. Then I
started looking around and sure enough the decade was a heck of a lot better
than I thought it was. The Relic is one of those that I had seen and enjoyed
back then but had totally forgotten about. I haven’t watched it in ten or
fifteen years, so I think it is about time for a revisit.
The
action kicks off with a scientist named John Whitney photographing a native
ceremony in the jungles of Brazil. The locals seem nice enough and even offer
him the concoction they just created. He drinks it and is almost immediately
scared by a guy in a costume. This seems to mean something to Whitney but
doesn’t make much sense to the audience yet. Next, we see him desperately
trying to get his crates unloaded from a ship that is setting sail for home.
The captain informs him that isn’t possible, so he sneaks onboard. It is only
then that we see that the crates weren’t loaded after all.
Six
weeks later that ship is found drifting on Lake Michigan and is brought to
Chicago. There is evidence of violence with blood smeared around, but the crew
is missing. That is until they look in the bilge and find all their bodies. It
is here that we are introduced to Lt. Vincent D’Agosta, played by Tom Sizemore,
who is investigating the killings. A week later he is called again when another
body shows up at the Museum of Natural History. Similarities between the
killings on the boat and the body at the museum has D’Agosta connecting some
dots and investigating the staff. This includes Margo Green, played by another
nineties staple Penelope Ann Miller, a scientist working on DNA sequencing.
Eventually
the characters realize that a monster is running loose killing people to eat
their pituitary glands, which unfortunately means removing their heads. This
also coincides with the big gala event where all the movers and shakers of high
society show up for a fundraiser. Not only are people dying, but important
people at that! Monster shenanigans happen, mysteries are solved, and science
is done!
This
movie is a blast. The story is based on a book from Douglas Preston and Lincoln
Child, which I loved, and is a decent adaptation. Though it is ironic that The
Relic (book) introduced their most famous character Agent Aloysius Pendergast
who was cut out of The Relic (movie) in exchange for making D’Agosta the
central figure. While that is disappointing, I do think that the screenwriters
did capture the fun that was the monster running amok. And to be fair it wasn’t
for a few years that the Pendergast character really took off.
I love the creature design.
The
pacing is wonderful with the action slowing down long enough to dole out a few
tidbits of plot or to creep the audience out. The setting of the Museum at
night with the lights off is beautiful. The shadows and the way the exhibits
look in the dark brings a ton of atmosphere. This helps set the stage for what
happens later. This is a very atmospheric movie with a few scares tossed in
here and there to spice things up.
In
addition to Sizemore and Miller we also get some other familiar faces including
Linda Hunt and James Whitmore. Heck there is even an appearance from Audra
Lindley in her last movie role. You might not recognize her name but if you
watched reruns in the eighties you have seen her. This is a wonderful cast that
is given some decent material to work with. What else could you ask for? Well,
I’m glad that you asked that.
The
creature looks amazing and is brought to life with some latex and practical
effects work. Now there is some CGI, but it looks decent. Well except for the
very end when we see the creature running around on fire, that is sketchy. But
for the most part the work is fantastic. That shouldn’t be a surprise
considering it was done by one of my favorite monster makers Stan Winston. In
addition to the great creature effects work there are some decent kills and
other gory stuff. Multiple heads go flying and one unfortunate SWAT member gets
split in half. Like the creature these are “helped” with some CGI, but it isn’t
too bad. We do get tons of body parts after the fact that are handled with
latex appliances and look amazing. The best scene is when D’Agosta visits the
morgue to talk with the coroner.
Good
cast, great story, and a fun creature. This is the perfect monster movie. I’m
not sure why people, including myself, aren’t talking about The Relic more
often. I feel like if this had come out in the eighties it would be considered
a classic, but somehow the reputation of the nineties has hurt it. Regardless I
highly recommend everyone check out the Relic. I won’t be waiting that long to
watch it again.
