Fever Dream is a story that has almost everything. The characters travel to extreme and exotic locations, they explore multiple cold cases, and there is intrigue, betrayal, historical interpretation, large animals with sharp teeth, big guns, romance, unsavory characters, and pharmaceuticals. Twelve years after the fatal lion attack on his wife, Special Agent Pendergast figures out that she was murdered. He enlists the help of a trusted friend, NYPD Lt. Vincent D'Agosta, and they search the savannahs of Africa and the bayous of Louisiana to find out who set up both the savagely-trained lion and crack-shot Helen.

The one thing I missed is suspense. This book is classified as a "Thriller", but I didn't see it. It is a Class A mystery, and I don't think I've listened to a story that has held my interest so strongly in a long time. There is a lot of action, meaning gunfights and murder, but I never did get a feeling of anxiety about the story. I think the authors were relying on the savagery of the lion attack and other similarly brutal scenes to set that tone, but that is shock after the event, not apprehension for what is to come. The most unnerving scene was when the "bad guy" was testing his weaponry and coldly disintegrating any little bird or frog that wandered across his big-bore sights. But even at that my emotion was revulsion, not a building of anticipation or unease. This was not the fault of the narrator! The expressive voice of Rene Auberjonois tensed and strained at the appropriate times, but the emotion just didn’t play. His performance provides believable female characters, and a variety of inflections from Britain, New Zealand, Louisiana, Maine, and New York City.

I chose to listen to Fever Dream because I enjoyed The Cabinet of Curiosities by the same authors and narrator (also reviewed on Myshelf.com). I have not read the rest of the Pendergast books. I have always hesitated because I tend to be squeamish, but I am very interested now. I want to know more about Constance; where is she really from? And why is Pendergast so remarkably pale? Were these things explored in earlier books or are they just ongoing enigmas? I guess we're going to have to read more and find out.

Reviews of other titles in this series

The Cabinet of Curiosities, #3    [audio 1 ] [audio 2 ]
Still Life With Crows, #4     [book] [audio]
Brimstone, #5    [audio 1] [audio 2] [book]
Dance of Death, #6    [book]
Book of the Dead, #7    [audio]
Wheel Of Darkness, # 8    [book] [audio]
Cemetery Dance, #9    [book] [audio]
Fever Dream, #10    [book] [audio]
Cold Vengeance, # 11 [audio]