Lost City of the Monkey God (Preston) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
Preston builds a compelling case for the scientific significance of what the expedition unearthed.… The year may still be young, but I would wager a small fortune that Douglas Preston has already written the best snake-decapitation scene of 2017.… The book's most affecting moments [center] on the otherworldly nature of the jungle itself.… Memoirs of jungle adventures too often devolve into lurid catalogs of hardships [but] Preston proves too thoughtful an observer and too skilled a storyteller to settle for churning out danger porn. He has instead created something nuanced and sublime: a warm and geeky paean to the revelatory power of archaeology.… Few other writers possess such heartfelt appreciation for the ways in which artifacts can yield the stories of who we are.
Brendon Koerner - New York Times Book Review


Breezy, colloquial and sometimes very funny.… A very entertaining book.
Wall Street Journal


Deadly snakes, flesh-eating parasites, and some of the most forbidding jungle terrain on earth were not enough to deter Douglas Preston from a great story.
Boston Globe


A swift and often hair-raising account.… Preston pushes The Lost City of the Monkey God well beyond the standard adventure narrative.
Chicago Tribune


A well-documented and engaging read.… The author's narrative is rife with jungle derring-do and the myriad dangers of the chase.
USA Today


This nonfiction thriller about plunging into the interior of the Honduran jungle is actually true and a perfect read for armchair travelers or would-be adventurers who bemoan the fact that there's nothing left to discover...Douglas Preston's true-life tale includes everything from the latest technology to ancient curses to scientific backbiting and a mysterious illness that came out of the jungle and is headed your way.
Huffington Post
 

The Lost City of the Monkey God is a superior example of narrative nonfiction, an exciting, immersive tale of modern science and ancient mythology. Preston captures the complexity of his subject without bogging down in the details, presenting scenes with clarity, purposefulness and wit. It's a great story for a snowy day, an action-packed journey into a hot zone of scientific intrigue.
Portland Press Herald


(Starred review) Irresistibly gripping… [and] reads like a fairy tale minus the myth.… Preston explains the legendary abandonment of the [city]… and provides scientific reasoning behind its reputation as life-threatening.
Publishers Weekly


(Starred review) This modern-day archeological adventure and medical mystery reads as rapidly as a well-paced novel, but is a heart-pounding true story.
Shelf Awareness


Replete with informative archaeology lessons and colorful anecdotes about the… expedition, including torrential rains and encounters with deadly snakes, Preston's uncommon travelogue is as captivating as any of his more fanciful fictional thrillers.
Booklist


(Starred review) [A]nother perilous Preston prestidigitation.… A story that moves from thrilling to sobering, fascinating to downright scary—trademark Preston, in other words, and another winner.
Kirkus Reviews