Dance of Death

Dance Of Death is a novel by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child first published in 2005. It is part of their informal Agent Pendergast series.

Aloysius and Diogenes Pendergast have been at odds since they were children. Aloysius was a quiet, brilliant child, while Diogenes was brewing something dark inside of him. Now, Diogenes is planning his "perfect" crime with a simple dare to his brother - "stop me if you can."

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Tropes used in Dance of Death include:

• Always Someone Better: Diogenes is almost always one step ahead of Pendergast.
• Axe Crazy: D'Agosta is warned not to get too close to Aunt Cornelia - even though she's tied to a wheelchair she's managed to put two orderlies in the hospital in the last year.
• Back for the Dead: Margo is brutally murdered a few chapters after her reintroduction though Pendergast managed to save her and fake her death until the novel's end.
• The Bus Came Back: Margo and Smithback return for the first time since Reliquary and The Cabinet of Curiosities.
• Lethal Chef: D'Agosta makes a holy mess of Laura's kitchen as he mentally laments that men are supposed to be the best chefs.