The Paleontologist -Luke Dumas

I liked this book. A little bit mystery, a little bit supernatural, a little bit science, a little bit crazy scientist and a museum with a past. Simon Nealy is young, but with a great resume. When the Hawthorne Institute hires him as its Paleontologist, it fits his recent inner calling to go home. Besides, he has just gone through a breakup with the man he thought he would be with forever. The Hawthorne was Simon’s favorite place to be when he was a child. He loved the dinosaurs and Morgan, his little sister, loved the bugs. And then, Simon brought Morgan there when he was ten and she was seven. They each went to their favorite exhibits. She disappeared without a trace. His neglectful, drug addled mother blamed him. Soon, his aunt rescued him and took him off to raise him up to the man he is today. He’s back. The museum is deteriorating and shabby. COVID is threatening its future as it has been closed down for quite awhile. Simon soon finds the museum has an unassembled set of dinosaur bones. He is tasked with getting the dinosaur exhibit up by the big fundraising gala on a shoestring budget, aided by a very interesting benefactor who he befriends. He works long hours. And after dark, he hears her. And them. Morgan seems to be haunting the museum, her voice calling after dark. And too, he hears the sounds of creatures, has weird, inexplicable visions and the signs left behind suggest he might not be imagining things.

Simon is there to investigate and find out what happened to Morgan. At first a local cop helps. But others are there to stop him and dissuade those who are helpful. His mother is in a mental institution, still blaming him. Has he gone crazy? New in town, he mostly has his coworkers as his connection to the world. He gets along with them, although the board of directors and his boss are a very mixed bag and the woman in charge of fundraising is pushy and resentful of his youthful rise to a well-paid position and friendship with the benefactor. Ultimately, a number of cinematically notable and sometimes horrifying scenes mesh with a bizarre twist or two and–if not all the answers are satisfying, we get–resolutions. The writing is good. The clues are there. Most characters are interesting, some stereotypical, Definitely recommended. BONUS Some amazing and pertinent illustrative drawings that are fabulous.