Lisa's Loves(Books of Course): Review of Kathy Reichs' Bones Never Lie-5*

Title: Bones Never Lie
Series: Temperance Brennan #17
Author: Kathy Reichs
Genre: Murder Mystery

Rating: * * * * *

Publishers: Bantam (Sept 23, 2014)

Hardback: 336 pages

ISBN: 978-0345544018

FTC Disclosure: ARC from Random House Reader's Circle program

The evidence is irrefutable: In sixteen New York Times bestsellers over the course of as many years, Kathy Reichs has proven herself “a genius at building suspense” (New York Daily News). In forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan, Reichs has created a detective fiction heroine who’s brilliant to the bone. “Every minute in the morgue with Tempe is golden,” says The New York Times Book Review.In the acclaimed author’s thrilling new novel, Brennan is at the top of her game in a battle of wits against the most monstrous adversary she has ever encountered.

Unexpectedly called in to the Charlotte PD’s Cold Case Unit, Dr. Temperance Brennan wonders why she’s been asked to meet with a homicide cop who’s a long way from his own jurisdiction. The shocking answer: Two child murders, separated by thousands of miles, have one thing in common—the killer. Years ago, Anique Pomerleau kidnapped and murdered a string of girls in Canada, then narrowly eluded capture. It was a devastating defeat for her pursuers, Brennan and police detective Andrew Ryan. Now, as if summoned from their nightmares, Pomerleau has resurfaced in the United States, linked to victims in Vermont and North Carolina. When another child is snatched, the reign of terror promises to continue—unless Brennan can rise to the challenge and make good on her second chance to stop a psychopath.

But Brennan will have to draw her bitter ex-partner out of exile, keep the local police and feds from one another’s throats, and face more than just her own demons as she stalks the deadliest of predators into the darkest depths of madness.

In Bones Never Lie, Kathy Reichs never fails to satisfy readers looking for psychological suspense that’s more than skin-deep.

This is the first book by Reichs that I've read. I received a complimentary advance copy from the Random House Reader’s Circle program and decided what the heck, I’d go ahead and read it even though it was book 17 in the series. I’ve watched “Bones” for years but had held off reading the book

series until the TV series was a done deal. I have, however, listened to two audio books in this series recently so had a picture of Tempe, Slidell, and Ryan in my head. After reading “Bones Never Lie”, I’m setting out to read the first 16 books in this series as it was freaking awesome. These two different formats of the character Tempe Brennan are so totally different that I really hate that I did not pick up these books earlier. Other than at a very basic level are they similar, though I do think they complement each other very nicely.

I generally don’t like to read a series of books while watching the TV show or movies. Neither will I normally read them out of order but these two are different enough that one will not ruin the other and this book was so entertaining that the order simply didn’t matter. Yeah, you would know the back-story with Ryan but it’s really not necessary as Ryan has only a minor role in most of this book.

Reichs forensic details are not mind numbing and her characters are often witty and human in a way that makes them so credible. The murders takes place in Montreal, Vermont and Charlotte, NC and extend over 14 years. The suspected killer, Pomerleau (the only one who got away) nearly killed Brennan years earlier when she was working this case in Montreal and all signs point to her involvement again though there was a very nice twist that I definitely did not see coming. I get the feeling that you generally do not know who the killer is early on in these stories but with the surprise ending, this so worked. Once starting this book, I read it in one day as I could not stand to put it down. Each chapter just flowed so well into the next one that it was impossible to lay it aside. It was fast paced, scary and twisty enough to keep you reading long after you should have been in bed. I’m so looking forward to starting this series from the beginning so I can enjoy many more hours with Tempe, Ryan, Slidell and Birdie. It’s not often that you get a chance to start an ongoing series with such a fascinating cast and story-lines.

Temperance Brennan

1. Deja Dead (1997)

2. Death Du Jour (1999)

3. Deadly Decisions (2000)

4. Fatal Voyage (2001)

5. Grave Secrets (2002)

6. Bare Bones (2003)

7. Monday Mourning (2003)

8. Cross Bones (2005)

9. Break No Bones (2006)

10. Bones to Ashes (2007)

11. Devil Bones (2008)