Review: Bare Bones

The remains of a new-born baby are discovered in a wood stove. Bones are discovered in two plastic bags in a wood, and further investigation finds more bones in a farmhouse nearby. A small plane crashes on a North Carolina hillside and bursts into flames. A mysterious black substance is found on the bodies of the pilot and passenger and the burnt-out interior. These events bring forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan into a whirlpool of mystery that will eventually end with her taking a life.

It’s good. It’s not great. It’s certainly not Fatal Voyage or Death du Jour, but is more like the quality of Deadly Decisions. Tempe remains the wonderfully human character that she always has been, and there are some magical moments between her and daughter Katie that are guaranteed to please readers, as well as a very welcome return from Andrew Ryan, who, even though fictional, simply sizzles on the page. However, aside from that, there isn’t a great deal in the way of further character development, even though it is interesting to see a novel with Tempe firmly entrenched in the city of Charlotte for the first time in the series. And it’s a series that, what with all the possible locations and directions it can take, certainly remains fresh and promises to do so for quite a while yet.

Reichs’ dialogue, as always, is brilliantly snappy, acute, and amusing, even if there is a little much of it, and there’s plenty of great detail to make this an incredibly good and authentic thriller on the forensics front. Reichs’ writing style is quirky and somewhat eccentric, but only because she’s such a wonderful first-person writer, really getting into the head of her main character (maybe because, I suspect, there is a great deal of the writer herself supplanted into the protagonist) and making the writing seem curiously human. However, Bare Bones (as well as being a little too short to be fully developed) ultimately suffers from something that a couple of her books have done She gets bogged down in bones. Or, rather, the reader does. There are rather too many sets of bones and crimes and villains, and as a result it’s very easy for the reader to get them all muddled in their mind. There are too many criminals mixed up in the goings on, and to be honest by the end it’s a job to keep up with who killed which person where and how and why they did it. But, with a little careful checking of your facts, this can still remain a mostly satisfying and hugely suspenseful pageturner of a thriller.

To be honest, the quality of Reichs’ novels seems to be entirely subjective…every year, each new book runs the entire gamut of reader opinion, with some thinking it her best, others her worst, and everything else in between. This book will probably get a very similar reaction, so the most sensible thing to do is to try it out for yourself and see.

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Fiona Walker

Please Note: Books reviewed are usually provided by the publisher, author, or an agent. Reviewers usually get to keep the book.

Book Review: Bare Bones

Please Note: Books reviewed are usually provided by the publisher, author, or an agent. Reviewers usually get to keep the book.