Book Review: Deadly Decisions

Reviewed By: Luke Croll - RAM

Deadly Decisions     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon UK PB Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Kathy Reichs
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Forensics   Woman Main Character
Series: Dr. Temperance Brennan # 3
Heinemann; 2000; £15.99; pp. 332

Classification: Adult fiction (thriller)

In her third novel featuring Dr. Tempe Brennan, Kathy Reichs pits her against the bikers in Montreal. During a teaching course at Quantico, she is recalled urgently to Quebec to examine the mutilated bodies of two bikers blown up in an explosion. A biker war is raging and a little girl ends up being killed as well. Can she stop the fighting?

When I read her first novel, the ending disappointed me. It was too predictable, but she then picked up again in the second novel. However, the third one made me feel irritated. Brennan puts herself into danger twice, quite blatantly and quite stupidly, one could say. Also, her nephew Kit quickly became annoying and whilst the identity of the killer was a great surprise, the behaviour and description of the character made it clear all along that there was a link to the bikers - yet Brennan could not see it.

These annoying weaknesses have managed to spoil Reichs' latest work. She goes to great lengths to ensure that the reader knows what she is talking about, explaining forensic points in detail, and I certainly learnt a lot about blood spatter patterns, amongst other things. However, this authenticity cannot hide the fact that the book is not as good as the previous one. I was expecting more from it, especially as the publishers continue to promote it with the tagline 'better than Patricia Cornwell'.

Luke Croll - RAM

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Luke Croll - RAM

Luke Croll - Conference interpreter and translator
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