It's the second-to-last day of archaeological field school. Dr. Temperance Brennan's students are working on a site of prehistoric graves on Dewees, a barrier island north of Charleston, South Carolina, when a decomposing body is uncovered in a shallow grave off a lonely beach...The skeleton is articulated, the bone fresh and the vertebrae still connected by soft-tissue; the remains are encased in rotted fabric and topped by wisps of pale, blond hair - a recent burial, and a case Tempe must take. Dental remains and skeletal gender and race indicators suggest that the deceased is a middle-aged white male - but who was he? Why was he buried in a clandestine grave? And what does the unusual vertical hairline fracture of the sixth cervical vertebrae signify? While Tempe is trying to piece together the evidence, her personal life is thrown into turmoil. When a bullet - intended, perhaps, for her - puts Tempe's estranged husband Pete in hospital, her unexpectedly emotional response complicates her on-off relationship with Detective Andrew Ryan...But before long, another body is discovered - and Tempe finds herself drawn deeper into a shocking and chilling investigation, set to challenge her entire view of humanity. ..

About the Author

Kathy Reichs is forensic anthropologist for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of North Carolina, and for the Laboratorie de Sciences Judiciaires et de Medecine Legale for the province of Quebec. She is one of only fifty-six forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Antrhopology, and served on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. A professor of anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Dr Reichs is a native of Chicago, hwere she received her Ph.D at Northwestern. She divides her time between Charlotte and Montreal, and is a frequent expert witness in criminal trials.

Prizes

The latest gripping thriller from world-class forensic anthropologist, Kathy Reichs, bestselling author of Monday Mourning and Cross Bones

Reviews

The success of the Fox TV show Bones, based on bestseller Reichs's series featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (Cross Bones, etc.), bodes well for this latest installment, in which Brennan once again stumbles on a modern-day mystery inadvertently. While supervising a dig of Native American burial grounds in Charleston, S.C., Brennan finds more recent remains. Soon, her ex-husband, who's a lawyer, appears in town, pursuing leads in a missing persons case connected with a local church. Bodies start piling up at an alarming rate, and Brennan begins to suspect that the deaths are linked to each other and her ex-husband's inquiry. Reichs's down-to-earth heroine is an appealing creation, who deftly juggles personal problems with professional challenges. Despite the somewhat obvious solution, this novel confirms the series' place in the front rank of the ever-expanding forensic thriller subgenre. (July) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

While supervising an archaeological field-school dig in Charleston, SC, forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan unearths a much-too-recent set of bones fresh enough to bring out her coroner friend, Emma. Struggling with major health issues, Emma begs Tempe to lead the investigation, and soon there's a reunion of sorts for all the series' regulars. Then Pete, Tempe's estranged husband, comes to town to investigate the case of a missing young woman with ties to a Charleston free clinic. The moment the clinic's sleazy personnel are introduced, readers can guess that Pete's and Tempe's cases are totally interlinked. Andrew Ryan, Tempe's Montreal-based detective boyfriend, shows up next, ready to test Tempe's loyalties and help her fend off the bad guys. "Seemingly unconnected" dead bodies surface in all sorts of places, their bones revealing startling parallels. Forensic anthropologist Reichs's (Cross Bones) change of venue is intriguing in this series' ninth entry, but the case itself is lackluster and the plot exceedingly predictable. Forensic thriller readers, however, will drive demand, which will be high owing to the growing following of the Fox television series Bones, based on Reichs's protagonist. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 3/1/06.]-Teresa L. Jacobsen, Solano Cty. Lib., CA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.