The Bone Code: A Temperance Brennan Novel

Kathy Reichs

Jul 2021 · A Temperance Brennan Novel Book 20 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

#1 New York Times bestselling author Kathy Reichs’s twentieth “brilliant” (Louise Penny) thriller featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan, whose examinations of unidentified bodies ignite a terrifying series of events. “This is A-game Reichs, with crisp prose, sharp dialogue, and plenty of suspense” (Booklist).

On the way to hurricane-ravaged Isle of Palms, a barrier island off the South Carolina coast, Tempe receives a call from the Charleston coroner. The storm has tossed ashore a medical waste container. Inside are two decomposed bodies wrapped in plastic and bound with electrical wire. Tempe recognizes many of the details as identical to those of an unsolved case she handled in Quebec fifteen years earlier. With a growing sense of foreboding, she travels to Montreal to gather evidence.

Meanwhile, health authorities in South Carolina become increasingly alarmed as a human flesh-eating contagion spreads. So focused is Tempe on identifying the container victims that, initially, she doesn’t register how their murders and the pestilence may be related. But she does recognize one unsettling fact. Someone is protecting a dark secret—and willing to do anything to keep it hidden.

An absorbing look at the sinister uses to which genetics can be put and featuring a cascade of ever-more-shocking revelations, The Bone Code is “a murder mystery story that races across America at the speed of fright” (James Patterson).

Ratings and reviews

Temperance Brennan is on the case, trying to discover the identities of four female victims and the killer who wrapped them in plastic and put them into a container to float away. With the help of Ryan, private investigator, and an intrepid police detective named Vislosky, Brennan is determined to find out what happened to the young women and a young girl, two in Canada and two in South Carolina. The trail and clues were twisted and many. I enjoyed the plot itself, but the details about the genomes and genetic alterations were too much for me to fully comprehend. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed seeing Dr. Brennan and Ryan in action again and I especially enjoyed the character of Vislosky, a brusque and no-nonsense detective who has little time for foolishness but all the time in the world to solve crimes. This is a welcome addition to the Temperance Brennan series and I’m confident that fans of Kathy Reichs will not want to miss this one! Disclaimer: I checked out a copy of this book from my local library using the Libby App. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.

snark-fest, South Carolina, Montreal, law-enforcement, family-dynamics, forensics, friendship, anthropologist, murder, murder-investigation, egoist, greed, relationships, wry-humor, private-investigators, learning-opportunity***** Identical twins eighty years apart, too similar double murders involving medical waste containers fifteen years and two countries apart (Montreal and later South Carolina) perhaps tied together by a couple of pharmaceutical companies, covid essentially over but new virus causing fear. Add in the friend with benefits in the Canadian investigation, a cranky South Carolinian Homicide detective, a lot of wry humor and a ton of snarkiness, a potted history of Resusci Annie, and enough technical info to give paramedicals and bioscience geeks an orgasm. Another great read from one does more than talk the talk. This is not an unbiased review because I have adored reading Ms Reichs' books since book one. I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Scribner via NetGalley. Thank you!

A well-paced read with a satisfying conclusion

About the author

Kathy Reichs’s first novel Déjà Dead, published in 1997, won the Ellis Award for Best First Novel and was an international bestseller. Evil Bones is Reichs’s twenty-fourth novel featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. Reichs was also a producer of Fox Television’s longest running scripted drama, Bones, which was based on her work and her novels. One of very few forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology, Reichs divides her time between Charlotte, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina. Visit her at KathyReichs.com or follow her on X @KathyReichs, Instagram @KathyReichs, or Facebook @KathyReichsBooks.