The focus of my blog is to review book series and not individual novels. But writers are going to continue writing novels within a series even after I have done my review, so I plan on reviewing the individual novels as they come into circulation.  Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child have recently released a short story, Gone Fishing, from the Pendergast series.

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Gone Fishing first appeared in James Patterson’s Thriller: Stories to keep you up all night, an anthology of short stories, however, Preston & Child have recently released it separate from the anthology. The story features Vincent D’Agosta which all Pendergast fans recognize as the New York City detective that has worked alongside Alyosius Pendergast through numerous adventures especially during the murder investigation that occurred at the New York Museum of Natural History made famous in the first book of the series, Relic.  

The story begins with two thieves that have stolen an artifact from the NY Museum of Natural History and have taken to hiding out in the backwoods of New Hampshire. They expected to find isolation in the tranquility of the forest but what they found instead is horrifying.

I have a hard time considering this a Pendergast novel as D’Agosta’s presence is brief and only occurs at the end. It seemed that Gone Fishing was more like the beginning of what could have been a fun story which could have included not just D’Agosta but Pendergast as well, but instead it ended rather abruptly. Nonetheless, it is a worthwhile read with a rather disturbing ending.

To learn more about the series check out Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child’s Pendergast series.