Bare Bones: A Novel (Temperance Brennan)

Kathy Reichs' books are good, but fairly predictable, lots of personal life crises with relationships (Ryan), family (sister Harry this time) and a potential assault on her in the build to a climax. Still very interesting forensic anthropology stuff (which I like best) and in this case several deaths--possible murders--that may or may not link together. Also a foray into the Acadian culture of Canada which was new territory for me. So different from the TV series which I enjoy for itself.

I love this series of books. Tempe finds herself investigating another set of bones that she literally stumbled onto, and takes her down a mystery path with the usual twists and turns. Glad to see a romantic interest for her and a surprise new cause that I hope continues into the next book. Overall, another hit for Kathy Reichs. Highly recommend this series if anyone enjoys ongoing characters and mystery.

At the beginning of BARE BONES, Reichs' sixth outing featuring forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan, our heroine is looking forward to a long vacation with her lover, Canadian detective Andrew Ryan, who is set to meet her in Charlotte. But things never go as planned for poor Tempe, and before she and Ryan can escape to the beach she's involved with three cases that at first seem unrelated: The remains of an infant are found in a fireplace; a plane with two passengers crashes into a cliff face, the bodies burned beyond recognition and covered in a mysterious black gunk; and Tempe's capricious dog, Boyd, finds garbage-bagged remains in the woods during a backyard barbeque that may or may not be human. As Tempe delves further into the cases--with the help of hunky Ryan, who has decided to forego the beach to help his new love--she begins to see startling connections between the cases that involve drugs and another more illicit black-market trade...and she finds herself being stalked by a killer who will stop at nothing to keep his secrets.

Once again, Reichs calls on her arsenal of forensic knowledge to create an exciting, intelligent new adventure for her heroine. Tempe remains a charming heroine, equal parts sensitive and sassy, smart and sarcastic. Reichs continues her tradition of cold scientific facts combined with warm characters, and Ryan and Tempe's burgeoning relationship is a welcome addition to the story (as are the particularly steamy scenes involving the two).

But of the Tempe novels I've read so far, BARE BONES is the one I liked the least. Although Reichs' stories are always intricate, and there are always multiple plot lines to follow, this one seemed a little bit too convoluted for me; I found the story a mite complicated, and there were too many characters to keep straight. The story was harder for me to get into, and frankly, I was a bit disappointed overall with Tempe's sixth adventure.

I think Reichs is one of the best crime fiction writers out there, and she's definitely created one of the most unforgettable heroines crime fiction has ever seen. Reichs' writing style is straightforward and distinctive, and her stories are impeccably researched with hands-on experience. Particularly interesting in this edition was the "From the Forensic Files" passage at the end of the book, detailing Reichs' real-life inspiration for Tempe's adventures. But sadly, I just couldn't get into BARE BONES like I could the others. I'm sure Reichs will be back on the top of her game in MONDAY MOURNING, and I'll look forward to reading it.

Unlike the last book that I read by Reichs, "Grave Secrets", this one is hot and moves like a scalpel through body fat. Dr.Tempe (Temperance) Brennan is supposed to be going on vacation by herself for the first time in years. But animal and human body parts keep turning up faster than she can review them.

She's been awaiting the arrival her long time friend (and now lover?) Canadian cop Andrew Ryan, so they can head for the beach near her hometown of Charlotte, N.C. Before he shows up, she's called in when a local janitor's infant granddaughter is found dead and charred in an oven. Some decomposing remains are discovered during a barbecue that she's been taken to by her daughter. While she there she finds out that her daughter has a new boyfriend and is moving out.

Brennan's vacation is indefinitely put on hold when a small plane crashes nearby. Two people are dead, and there is a good chance they were involved in drug and exotic animal smuggling. Brennan suspects that all three cases are linked.to a drug-smuggling ring that also dabbles in poaching exotic animals. Ryan who is helping out matches Brennan for intellectual repartee. Their burgeoning relationship evolves the way you would expect one between two professionals to go.

I look forward to the next book to see how their long distance romance continues.

In her sixth Temperance Brennan novel, art once again imitates life as Kathy Reichs writes about forensic anthropologist Brennan, who, like Reichs, is employed in North Carolina and Quebec. When Tempe goes to a picnic near Charlotte, North Carolina with her college-aged daughter Katy, Boyd, Tempe's estranged husband's dog, digs up skeletal remains. With the discovery of human bones amidst bear remains, Tempe's anticipated vacation with Montreal detective Andrew Ryan, comes to a sudden halt.
With the beach trip on the back burner, Ryan joins Tempe, as she investigates the burned remains of the baby belonging to a drug dealer's girlfriend, a fiery plane crash, and more bear and human remains in a latrine pit near Boyd's initial skeletal discovery. While the various investigative sites seem unrelated, Tempe's intuition tells her that they are all somehow connected, as she comes across a complex weave of drug trafficking and illegal exporting of animal parts.
Ms. Reichs' technical knowledge of forensic anthropology adds fascinating information to this novel chock full of murder, mystery, and a dash of romance. With so many twist and turns and death threats against Tempe, this novel is a sure winner with fans who want a no-holds barred suspenseful mystery.

"Bare Bones" is the sixth novel in the Tempe Brennan series, and as such builds upon previous characters, past events, and past plots, but hey...if the formula works, don't mess with it. Brennan, like author Kathy Reichs, is a forensic anthropologist who works between North Carolina and the province of Québec identifying causes of death and IDs remains too badly mangled or maimed for local experts (including the occasional animal).
In "Bare Bones" we find Tempe back from her expedition in Guatemala (the setting of her last novel "Grave Secrets") about to go on a much-needed and long-anticipated beach vacation with detective Andrew Ryan, a colleague from Montréal. However, a series of ominous events derails her leisure time: a newborn's charred remains found in a crack house, a downed drug plane, a cache of bear (and human) bones on a farm, and missing federal agents draw Tempe into another sinister web of deception, danger and death. A mysterious stalker, the Grim Reaper, threatens all that Tempe loves by leaving chilling snapshots as seen through the scope of a high-powered rifle. What has Tempe stumbled onto?
This time around (and much to my consternation), Tempe spends no time in my beloved Québec. That was one of the draws that I loved so much in "Déjà Dead:" the vivid descriptions of "La Belle Province," the descriptions of local Montréal hangouts and restaurants, the charming québécois touches, all set Kathy Reichs apart. In "Bare Bones," however, Reichs grounds Tempe in the South. I loved the research about Melungeons (a subject of great interest to me). Melungeons (meaning "cursed" or "lost soul") live in the Appalachians and are believed to be descendants of Portuguese sailors, Roanoke survivors, First Nations, and possibly Turkish slaves among others), but overall the book seemed to cover less new ground than past outings. Similarly, the three plots are much less loosely connected than in previous novels. The budding romance between Tempe and Ryan was very deftly and gently carried out, although Ryan is not actually present for most of the novel. Tempe's Green Party rants at the end of the book seemed incongruous, more a political statement than in character for Tempe, but overall "Bare Bones" is another enjoyable read from Reichs. I only hope the next novel is set in Québec once more.

We've read this entire series and have generally been pleased with the story lines; the reasonably charismatic leading lady, Tempe Brennan; the dual setting of Charlotte and Montreal; and the technicalities of the work being performed to identify victims from bones and chasing clues sometimes all the way to the perpetrators. Much of the books sounds almost autobiographical, as both the technical work and the geographic settings mirror the real life profession of author Dr. Kathy Reichs. We felt her just prior novel, "Grave Secrets", suffered from too much detective work and chasing of criminals, for which Tempe has no particular training nor skills, just a penchant for action. In that book, her specialty skills took second place by far. However, in this latest novel, if anything we have a flood of victims so dominating Tempe's time she barely has a few hours for Canadian love interest Andrew Ryan, a real detective who is visiting Tempe in Charlotte for their first really serious affair. Some scenes with Ryan and daughter Katy added some human interest to an otherwise somewhat gory story. In fact, there wind up being so many dead bodies, including several skeletons of black bears (hence the pun book title), one almost needs a scorecard to keep all the characters and happenings straight. There was a very interesting description of how certain animal organs are being illegally harvested for sale to (mostly) Oriental customers whom attribute curative powers to, in this case, bear gall bladders of all things. Meanwhile dope smuggling, rare bird smuggling, and (by the way) a human murder or two, keep the plot jumping with developments. There are in fact so many sub-plots that miraculously intertwine before it's all over that the book suffers in our mind from being "over-worked".
Reichs has enjoyed success with fresh forensic territory and great timing with the high level of current interest in "CSI" and similar TV shows. A tendency to overwhelm us with detailed analysis in the early books has given way to complicated plot development, no doubt under the guidance of the editors and publishers to "dumb" things down and appeal to a broader audience. Reichs has built a nice fan club to date, but the spotty reception given her last two outings may indicate trouble is brewing. We'd suggest that if you're new to this author, start with one of her first couple of books and let these later ones go for a while. Meanwhile, we hope Reichs can set a firmer direction with her next Tempe Brennan adventure.

Dr. Tempe Brennan, forensic anthropologist, can't seem to get a break. She's counting the minutes to her long-awaited vacation with a possible new boyfriend, but she simply can't break away from her work. Her expertise is suddenly needed everywhere--first, to examine the charred bones of a newborn, who happens to be the grandchild of an old acquaintance. Then, it's the charred bodies of the pilot and passenger in a suspicious private plane crash. And even her irrepressible chow, Boyd, causes trouble by digging up a pile of suspicious bones. But it soon becomes apparent that these cases are intriguingly linked.
The possible boyfriend, Montreal detective Andrew Ryan, takes the postponed vacation in stride. He helps Tempe investigate, fields nosy questions from Tempe's daughter, Katy, who is causing Tempe additional anxiety with a suspicious new boyfriend of her own. And Ryan bonds with Boyd, whom he insists on calling "Hooch."
The stakes become higher than a canceled vacation when Tempe gets threatening phone calls and e-mails from a stalker who wants her to stop asking so many questions. But this only makes Tempe more determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. Along the way she's forced to work with her least-favorite detective, Skinny Slidell, who is a smoking, junk-food-scarfing, sexist neanderthal.
You just can't fault Ms. Reichs's forensic-science details. Tempe's investigative techniques are rendered with so much verisimilitude that the reader feels as if he's reading an actual case study of a true crime. Ms. Reich is very much in the same league as Patricia Cornwell in that respect. The bits and pieces of trivia picked up along the way are downright fascinating--everything from the nuances of DNA testing and bone identification to the smell of a 50-year-old privy on a sweltering summer day.
I do have a beef about this book, however. There was too much coincidence. In addition to the three separate cases that all ended up being parts of the same case, there were numerous smaller coincidences that dulled the believability factor. Tempe just happened to be at some obscure picnic out in the middle of nowhere where her dog dug up bones related to her current cases? And she happens to spot a fugitive drug dealer, the probable father of the dead baby, at a restaurant? And as the name of a missing person comes to Tempe's attention as a possible connection to the case, someone accidentally stumbles across his body floating in a lake--where he's been for five years. How convenient that he picks now to surface.
That said, I will continue to buy and read Ms. Reich's books. Even with coincidences, Bare Bones is still a great read.

Dr. Temperance (Tempe to her friends and colleagues) Brennan is a forensic anthropologist who works in both Charlotte, NC and Montreal, Quebec. This story takes place during a particularly hot August in North Carolina. Tempe sometimes loves her job; but on weekends like this, she hates it because her colleague from Montreal, police lieutenant-detective Andrew Ryan, has arrived in Charlotte for their getaway to the beach (they're hoping to become more than colleagues).

Friday: A newborn has been found burned in a wood stove. Tempe knows the child's grandfather. Saturday: Tempe and her daughter, Katy, are at a party in the North Carolina countryside. Her dog, Boyd, finds a bag of bones buried on the farmland. Tempe goes through the stuff only to find they're bear bones, but there are a few strange items in the mix, too. Sunday: Tempe's off to a plane crash and has to help put the human pieces together to figure out who they are. Monday: Tempe, Boyd, and Ryan are back at the farmland site. Boyd goes nuts at an old privy where bones are found (compliments to those in with the bear bones?). Other interesting items are found in the abandoned house on the property.

Are all these incidents, murders, bones connected in some way? If you can wade through some of the technical subjects and descriptions, you'll get to a good mystery and Tempe's close encounter with the murderer.

Reichs is adept at painting the scene and describing forensic details in vivid and graphic detail. Throughout the book, you will come across scenes where you may suddenly find yourself in a CSI-show zoom-animation sequence with lots of gory detail.

Three cases are introduced in the first 100 pages: a newborn that was cremated in a woodstove, a small plane crash, and remains (animal and human) that are discovered during a picnic. Linking these three cases together is the focus of the rest of the book as Tempe shifts into sleuth mode. The plot follows Reichs' usual pattern of having Tempe charge off into dangerous situations without backup and ends up with Tempe badly injured in the hospital again. Instead of the normal question-and-answer-session-to-wrap-up-loose-ends taking place in the hospital, Reichs places Tempe and her new lover Andrew Ryan on the beach.

Along the way, Reichs teaches the reader about methods of modifying small airplanes to aid in delivering drugs; the effects of leprosy on bone; the Melungeon people group; the plight of the rare Spix bird; the poaching of bears for their gallbladders and paws; goldenseal; Kleinfelter syndrome; neurotoxin; and a bunch of factoids about endangered plant and animal species.

Overall an enjoyable book. Not Reichs' best, but neither her worst.

--Lynellen.com

Bring Back the Old Temperance!
The sixth in Dr. Kathy Reichs' wonderful Temperance Brennan series is a good story, but like "Grave Secrets," Reichs has found a new tone, and it's driving me crazy.
The mystery is still engaging, even though, in this outing, it's a bit confusing as there are many evil perps. But Temperance is still herself, a brilliant forensic anthropologist (like Dr. Reichs herself). And her love interest, whose romantic fate in Temperance's life was left very much up in the air in the last book, is satisfyingly back in her life (I won't say who so as not to spoil the surprise for readers).
BUT...the aforementioned new tone, about which I complained in the last book, is now in hyperdrive. It consists of a fast-paced series of pulp fiction groaners that had me, by the middle of the book, ready to throw it into a wall. Examples: "I felt trapped, stuck in town like a moth on a pest strip." "Nice, eh? Kinda Green Acres Gone Trailer Park." Or...when referring to a man he cannot find, a cop associate of Temperance says, "I'm thinking about setting up a séance with his dead granny." Or..."To say she looked tense would be like saying Enron's accountants did some rounding up." And my favorite (NOT)..."I sat motionless, like a hunting trophy that's been stuffed and mounted."
Dr. Brennan: stop! Yes, you were sometimes boring with your chapter-long lectures on the anthropology of bones. Yes, Temperance was sometimes too serious. But this is just awful, and not worthy of your very brilliant self. It got so I was tensely waiting for the next groaner (no more than a page away, usually) and forgetting the plot.
Still, I liked the book and recommend it, although not with my usual enthusiasm for Reichs' work. I look forward to a slightly more temperate Temperance in the next one.

The book Bare Bones, written by Kathy Reichs introduces the reader to the world of forensic anthropology through her interesting main character, Temperance Brennan. In the book, Brennan has three cases to solve. As she gets more evidence and brings the clues together she starts to think that all the cases are connected in a very disturbing way. During the book, Brennan has conflicts with co-workers, and gets back into the dating game after a tough divorce. The book was very detailed and is interesting enough to keep the reader turning the page. The end of the book was very dissapointing, even though all the cases were figured out, it seemed as though Katy Reichs just finished the book without the great detail that she had put in the beginning of the book. Despite the quick ending, I thought the book was easy to read and was very interesting. If you are interested in science and lot's of adventure, then Bare Bones is the book for you.

In the sixth book of this series Dr. Temperance ("Tempe") Brennan actually is supposed to go on a beach vacation with Andrew Ryan, her police colleague from Quebec/Canada and the center of her indecent thoughts as of not so lately.
The beach vacation has to be held off yet again, because besides examining the charred remains of the charred grandchild of a former janitor of UNC, unidentified body parts keep turning up.
Tempe - or rather the dog Boyd- unearthes some at a BBQ. Plus a plane crashes near Charlotte and Tempe seems to be the only one who has the required skills to examine and identify the remains.... bear bones and a handless corpse.
Tempe's daughter Katy (the master eyeball-roller and a stunner) has a drop-dead gorgeous new boyfriend who gives Tempe an uneasy feeling....
Ryan has to spend his time in Charlotte w/o beach vacationing but nevertheless exploring Tempe's "habitat". Due to the hospitalization of his niece he has to go back to Quebec however and leave Tempe alone amidst the gore and threats to her live and bothered by Detective Skinny Slidell.
The reader experiences a family tragedy, poaching of exotic animals or parts of animals, drug-smuggling, the advancing romance with sleuth Andrew Ryan and also the "hooch" Boyd who adds some fun to the book with his funny dog behavior.
You will learn about bear gall bladders, endangered species, the Klinefeldter Syndrom amongst other things.
Fortunately the acronyms Mrs. Reichs uses are mostly explained -unlike in previous books.
Compared to "Grave Secrets" this book is a giant step back or forward (depends on how you see it) on the road to the intensely thrilling first four books in this series. However, there are far too many characters in this book for my taste. They make it hard to keep real track of the plot, because you never know which of the characters she throws in w/o really introducing them is going to be of importance for the development of the story.
At the moment I am not really sure whether Patricia Cornwell Daniels or Kathy Reichs is the "Alpha-female"-mystery/thriller writer. If Mrs. Reichs presents her next novel and if that is going to be as boring as "Grave Secrets" I would opt for Patricia Cornwell Daniels. If Mrs. Reichs' next novel is going to be yet a tad better than this one (and maybe has fewer characters to keep track of), I'll opt for Kathy Reichs.
Keep going Mrs. Reichs!!!

The residual heat of Guatemala from the previous novel is toned down by a Quebec summer but it leaves a sizzle on Tempe, the heat keeps the storyline in a quick pace with an added element, Temperance discovers some bones with the help of her dog Boyd while on a relaxing trip with her daughter Kathy and her potential new suitor, what seems like human hands tightly wrapped in a garbage bag is really ursus, best known to us as bear. Looks like someone is cutting up and disposing of the regal animals, on top of it all there's a small plane crash that Tempe and Ryan are investigating, seems like the guy is there for moral support but how many meals can he cook for her until she realizes he likes her? Things are coming together on the professional and personal front for Tempe, hers is a story of a brave woman who takes pride in her work and who will sacrifice all she can to bring truth and honesty into her world. She put on her battle gear and take her pride and honesty into a world of some very bad people and her story is as interesting as always, this story line continues on a climb that is hard to abandon, evetry time I finish reading a Kathy Reichs novel I want to dive into the next one right away, as usual this delivers and satisfies even with less action than the last one, it still is a great book that beckons to be read by fans of the series.

This book begins with Tempe being back on her home turf, she's in Charlotte and examining some charred remains of a baby burned in a stove, at the same time she gets entangled with some possible bear poachers and drug smugglers with even dirtier past, to make things worse someone is out to get her and she must solve the unsolvable riddle if she wants to live to see another day, this nail biter makes for a great read that will entice the reader to read more and more of this fabulous series.

- Kasia S.

Disappointing in the extreme. Reasons?

--I couldn't suspend enough disbelief. Temperance, the main character, gets via e-mail several photos of herself going about her daily business. The photos have her in rifle sights, and the caption is "Back Off!" She is rather upset by this. So what happens next? Her Perfect Boyfriend (who recently set aside their long-planned vacation) LEAVES TOWN. That's right. He leaves town. This is so far out of character for him, my jaw actually dropped when I hit this section.

--More disbelief. Temperance shows these photos, which clearly say someone is training a RIFLE on her whenever she leaves her house, to the police, and ALL the police offer to do is drive by her house more often. That's it. Nothing else. Not one person offers to use the photos to triangulate the position of the photographer or otherwise track down who sent them, despite the fact that this series is supposed to be all about forensic investigation. The supposedly smart cops don't even say, "Maybe you should stay inside, away from windows. And while we're at it, here's a Kevlar vest. If you must go outside, WEAR IT, you idiot."

--Yet more disbelief: Temperance attends at dinner party a couple hours after she gets said death threats, and not once does she think about the incident. She's put it completely out of her mind. This despite the fact that a couple chapters earlier, she's so unable to separate her work from her private life that she breaks into tears in her Perfect Boyfriend's arms because the particulars of a case have upset her. Oookay.

--Reichs is AWFUL at characterization. A character who is supposed to be annoying really IS annoying, in that you start hating to read about him. An expert on birds turns out to be--surprise!--bird-like herself. An expert on bears turns out to be--oh, can it be?--bear-like! This sort of cheating is usually found in the work of beginners who think they're being clever. Reichs (and her editor) should know better.

--The author's dialogue is thoroughly realistic. Completely. Totally. And I mean that in a bad way. Her dialogue is everyday, dull, and pedestrian. It completely lacks any hint of snap, sparkle, or anything resembling color. It's extremely easy to lose track of the characters because they all talk alike, despite the fact that we have characters from Virginia, Boston, Washington D.C., and Canada. The closest she comes to interesting dialogue is when Perfect Boyfriend (the Canadian character) unsuccessfly tries to imitate cowboy slang, and it falls totally, utterly, embarrassingly flat. Reichs apparently went to great lengths to have her characters talk "realistically," and totally missed the fact that realistic speech makes for dull reading.

Save your money.

Tempe Brennan, forensic anthropologist, is planning a much-needed vacation to the beach with her love interest, Andrew Ryan...the handsome Canadian detective who has figured in the last two novels by Reichs. As Ryan arrives in Charlotte to whisk Tempe away, body parts start turning up requiring Tempe's attention. I guess that viewed from a distance, the various parts of the plot and all the coincidences make sense, but at first glance it all seems pretty far-fetched. There are numerous characters that require the reader's close attention just to keep track of them. However, I did enjoy this story. I especially liked the antics of Boyd, the chow who has a newly discovered talent. Apparently he very good at sniffing out cadavers. I liked Reichs Fatal Voyage very much and although this outing wasn't quite as good, it still made for an enjoyable read.

Ms. Reichs books are wonderful because they are full of forensic information. Her knowledge of anthropological forensics is extensive and she puts a lot of it in books, but in a way that is interesting for the layman. I liked this book better than her last one that was set in Guatemala. In this Tempe is doing her thing in Charlotte. We also get to see more of Ryan and Tempe's relationship with him does pick up a notch. The book starts out very strong with Tempe examining the burned bones of a newborn. From there we go to drug tafficking and the illegal sale of animal parts. There are a number of seemingly unrelated incidents (and bodies) that clutter up Tempe's table, but it turns out they are all related in one way or another. That's where I feel the book falls down somewhat because of the incredible coincidences that keep happening, and the ending is rushed and disjointed. Still it's an excellent read and there's lots of excitement and a little romance too.

Reichs writes a good suspense/thriller. This is book six in the series starring forensic anthropologist Dr Temperance (Tempe) Brennan. I enjoy these books for the forensic anthropology and quick pace. I'm irritated by Tempe's continued "helplessness" - the woman never gets herself out of a jam, but is always rescued by the convenient arrival of a strong man. This particular book also got a little preachy on environmental / endangered species issues. Don't misunderstand me, I support efforts so stop poaching of endangered species, but I read mysteries / thrillers for entertainment; I don't need to be preached to when reading them.

Sorry to say that this is the second consecutive Kathy Reichs book that I struggled to enjoy. She followed the same method of resorting to checklists to review the status of the characters and the story line. Her manner of inserting entertaining tidbits was the only real good part of the book. I found this book to be uninspiring and a common storyline. That is a shame given the multitude of what must be interesting cases in her forensic anthropology work. Ms Reichs is my wife's favorite author so we have all her books. I will go onto the next in the series in hopes the story improves.

Tempe is back home in Charlotte. She is planning a much needed vacation with the man of her dreams. At the same time, her daughter Katy, is introducing her to her new boyfriend. Unfortunately, one thing leads to another, and Tempe finds herself thrown into a case involving bones, dead animals, birds, a missing family and a dead infant. As usual, Tempe cannot seperate work and her private life, and the case takes Tempe and the reader from one point to another. Sometimes there are too many characters and too many loose ends, and that is why this book does not get 5 stars. The book is well written and the plot is good, and it was a very fast read, that just kept going. Without knowing the other Tempe Brennan books, it may be a bit of a disappointing read, and it is definitely not Kathy Reich's best, but it is still worth reading and highly recommendable to anybody who like a good mystery!

Although I have enjoyed the plots and the science in Ms. Reich's storys, I find Temperance Brennan to be a very unpleasant character. She is rude, impatient,condescending and demanding. She is also a terrible mother, giving her daughter scraps of her time after she has done what she wants to do in terms of her career and her romances. I find myself wondering if Ms Reichs has modeled her character after herself. In her ego inflated world the main character can be as obnoxious as she wants to be, yet she is still highly respected by her colleagues and sought after by a very eligibly man who apparently could have any woman he wants. I don't see this as being likely in real life.
Please Ms. Reichs make Tempe more likeable, give her some manners and some patience and understanding with her fellow man. After all she is supposed to be so compassionate and caring about those who have died, how about a little of that compassion for the living.

Tempe accepting an invitation daughter, Katy to a barbecue Tempe takes her dog Boyd. Playing with the children Boyd find garbage bags of decaying flesh that prove to be mostly bear. Tempe is looking for the Mother of bones of a baby found in a stove. Ryan arrives for a visit and Tempe is so busy he joins her in the search. Why are there bear carcasses buried and how does the dead baby relate? How does the farmhouse fix into the picture? The subplots are brought together nicely.

Tempe Brennan shuttles between Charlotte, North Caroline and Quebec serving as a forensic anthropologist as needed. Currently she is in Charlotte, informing someone she knows that his granddaughter was burned to death in a wood stove and the police want to question his daughter. After she performs that grim duty, she, her daughter and their dog attend a barbecue party.
When the canine behaves like he did once before when he found a body, Tempe looks and finds bones. Her initial determination is that they are bear remains, which leaves her happy that no one was murdered and she and her Canadian boyfriend can go on a vacation. Just hours before she is to pick him up, she is called to the site of a plane crash where the bodies of two men were burned beyond recognition. While examining the bones for clues to the identity, Tempe relooks the bear remains and finds a human bone. This discovery leads to a series of events that force Tempe to either take a life or forfeit her own.
Kathy Reichs gets better with each book she writes. Considering the stratospheric level she started at that is quite an accomplishment. Her protagonist has made life-altering decisions and acts upon them so that the character stays fresh. BARE BONES is a thriller that fans of Patricia Cornwell and Linda Fairstein will enjoy. The novel contains just enough forensic data to make the story line understandable but not enough to overwhelm the reader. It is easy to predict that this book will be a New York Times best seller.
Harriet Klausner

Forensic anthropologist, Temperance Brennan, is back in another grisly, multiple death novel. In short order a newborn is found in a wood-burning stove, animal and human bones in a plastic bag are found in the woods while Tempe is at a pig-pull party, bones are found in a farm outhouse, and a plane crashes into a mountain bursting into flames. Tempe is involved in all the deaths and amazingly connects them all. Reichs ties it all up with a nice big red bow for the reader at the end, but not before throwing in a nice obvious red herring.
I loved Reich's previous novels. I didn't dislike this one even though it is not up to her previous work. I expect more from Reichs than this book delivered. The main problem was each of the many deaths came complete with its own set of characters. I kept having to flip backwards to figure out who people were. There are just too many characters to keep track of. If I'd had known, I would have written down the character and the relationship to the story as I read along. To be fair, I usually read books within a day or two, but read this one over a week. On the plus side, Reichs tried to explore the relationships between Tempe and her college-age daughter and between Tempe and Quebec detective, Andrew Ryan. It made Tempe more of a full-fleshed, human character with a real life. I just wish more time had been spent on that instead of the barrage of death.

Patricia WHO? I vowed never again to read Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta series. Rumour has it she has a new one out? I don't know and I don't care. Kathy Reichs is the reigning Queen of the Coroner Crowd: she weaves a first-rate forensic story - without bashing the reader over the head with Cornwellian agenda.
In the current caper, Dr. Temperance Brennan, forensic anthropologist, is out to separate the bears from the boys. But what she'd really rather do is vacation with Ryan. From the killer opening sentence to the final "Bullwinkle in a body bag," it's a trip you won't want to miss. There is enough background information to start reading the series here, but, like Glenda told Dorothy in OZ: it's always best to start at the beginning.
Caveat: Unless you are one of those readers who read the end first, Do Not Read the Acknowledgements at the beginning of the book until after The End. If you are an afficionado of the genre, they divulge too much of the upcoming plot. Reviewed by TundraVision

This book is categorized as a suspense-thriller, which is interesting because it contains barely any suspense and hardly any thrills. You'd have to read the entire book to realize this, however, so not a lot of people would catch the stunning lack of suspense and thrills and the inaccuracy of it being placed in the wrong category.
I've heard a great deal of praise for Reichs' first novel, Deja Dead, and in retrospect I wish I had read it instead of this one because it sounds like it at least belongs in the suspense/thriller genre whereas this one is not even worthy of praise.

If you don't like to get excited, or if your doctor has suggested you should lay off all excitement for a while, then THIS is your kind of book.

After her somewhat lackluster but still enjoyable Grave Secrets, Reichs has returned to form with this fast paced, intriguing mystery. This installment has Tempe Brennan turning up the heat between her and that Detective Ryan. That's just one of the satisfying plot lines in Bare Bones.

Instead of continuing with the kinda-almost-romance going on throughout the previous books between Detective Ryan and Brennan, their relationship undergoes a welcome evolution as Reichs takes the romance to the next level.

Tempe's daughter Katie and her dog Boyd also get interesting roles in this story. This book is recommended for readers who are fascinated by the rich forensic detail that Reich's provides and for those who appreciate colorful interplay between the major characters.

Only Kathy Reichs can plot a suspense mystery from bird feathers, goldenseal and bears then interweave a budding romance for Temperance Brennan. BARE BONES is a can't put down read for fans of this series. The title was the selection for our bookclub this month and it will be fun to discuss.
Dr. Brennan is in North Caroline awaiting the arrival of a special friend to share the first vacation she's had in years. She goes to a picnic with her daughter and Boyd, her estranged husband's dog. Boyd digs up more than discarded hot dogs and a case of a burn baby gets complicated.
Forensic mystery at its best as the reader acquires extensive new information.
Writing as a Small BusinessQualifying Laps: A Brewster County NovelUnder the Liberty Oak