I went to the library last week in search of some Tess Gerritson, having been persuaded to read her by some very positive reviews on Random Jottings. I did pick up a couple but I haven't started them yet because I also spotted this, which I think is the most recent of Kathy Reichs' Tempe Brennan novels. I've been a huge fan of these terrific, funny, intelligent thrillers right from the start, but the last one I read, Devil Bones, was a great disappointment, I felt, and I was not alone in this, that the novel was really rushed and a bit skimpy and altogether not up to her usual high standard. So I was a little apprehensive about starting on this one.
I needn't have worried - Reichs seems to be back on form. Yes, of course any series in which the same characters reappear again and again is bound to have some common elements, but the story here is a complex one. As a forensic anthropologist, Tempe is often working on several cases at the same time, and generally they are quite separate. But here she finds some curious connections which lead her to believe that there is a serial killer responsible. However, things in the lab are not going at all smoothly, and she begins to feel she may be losing her grip -- she misplaces important items of evidence, overlooks obvious clues, misses a vital diagnosis. Her boss is increasingly worried and she is unsure how to proceed. She does have the friendship and support of her friend and ex-lover Ryan, but most of her colleagues seem unhappy and mistrustful. Yes of course it all works out fine in the end, but only after Tempe has gone through some pretty gruelling experiences.
What I like so much about this series is way Kathy Reichs manages to combine the knowledge and experience derived from her own extremely distinguished forensic and anthropological training with the ability to tell a fast-paced, exciting story with wit and sensitivity. Tempe is far from perfect -- she is often bad-tempered and grouchy, she's very confused about her continued feelings for Ryan -- but when it comes to the job in hand, she is absolutely focused and trustworthy. And it does help that Ryan is so totally gorgeous -- I'm sure I'm not alone, at least among female readers, in longing for them to get back together again. And do they? You'll have to read the novel to find out.
