Synopses & Reviews
A gripping and explosive new thriller from internationally acclaimed forensic anthropologist and New York Times bestselling author Kathy Reichs, featuring Temperance Brennan and Detective Andrew Ryan on the trail of a modern murder and an ancient biblical mystery... When an Orthodox Jewish man is found shot to death in Montreal, Temperance Brennan is called in to examine the body and to figure out the puzzling damage to the corpse. Unexpectedly, a stranger slips her a photograph of a skeleton and assures her it is the key to the victim's death. Before she knows it, Tempe is involved in an international mystery as old as Jesus, and one that could lead to the rewriting of two thousand years of religious history.
As Tempe investigates, she learns that the stranger's picture shows bones uncovered during an archaeological dig. She discovers the Montreal shooting victim ran an import business that just might have been a front for the trading of black market antiquities. Along with Detective Andrew Ryan and biblical archaeologist Jake Drum, Tempe travels to Israel to probe the origins of the skeleton and the ancient crypt in which it was found. Together they make a startling discovery that raises radical questions about Christ's death and places them squarely in the middle of a swirling controversy. Could one of the tombs really be Christ's last resting place? Are the bones in the ancient ossuary the last remnants of James, the brother of Jesus, as the inscription claims? Or has someone concocted an elaborate hoax?
Using her skills as a forensic scientist, Tempe plunges into the most controversial case of her career. The stakes have never been higher -- the more she learns, the greater the danger. And though Ryan is sexier and more engaging than ever, he may not be able to protect Tempe in this place where there seem to be so many foes.
Cross Bones, with its lightning pace, intricately plotted story, riveting and state-of-the-art forensic detail, is Kathy Reichs's most compelling and dramatic novel yet.
Review
"The science is fascinating, and every minute in the morgue with Tempe is golden." Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review
Review
"Lots of witty dialogue keeps the plot moving along....[T]he novel offers plenty of Reich's trademark humor. That, her attention to forensic detail and the swiftly moving plot...serve to make Cross Bones a riveting thriller, and another likely bestseller for Reichs." Charlotte Observer
Review
"Reichs devotes too much time at the novel's beginning to technical details, but those who wait out the first few chapters will be pleased by the engrossing story that follows. Recommended." Library Journal
Review
"[A] fun and interesting whodunit with religious implications but without being preachy or even very religious in nature itself. The writing is solid and the pace is just right....[A] good mix of fiction and nonfiction presenting many alternate theories about the life of the historical Jesus." BookReporter.com
Review
"Unlike Tempe's previous forays into the world of crime, this episode isn't long on thrills....Yet another read-alike for Da Vinci Code fans." Booklist
Synopsis
New York Times bestselling author and world class forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs delivers perhaps her most exciting book yet, set in Montreal, North Carolina and Israel, where a murder in the present lead to a controversial discovery in biblical archaelogy that will have vast implications for the Judeo-Christian world.
Synopsis
A gripping and explosive new thriller from internationally acclaimed forensic anthropologist and
New York Times bestselling author Kathy Reichs, featuring Temperance Brennan and Detective Andrew Ryan on the trail of a modern murder and an ancient biblical mystery...
When an Orthodox Jewish man is found shot to death in Montreal, Temperance Brennan is called in to examine the body and to figure out the puzzling damage to the corpse. Unexpectedly, a stranger slips her a photograph of a skeleton and assures her it is the key to the victim's death. Before she knows it, Tempe is involved in an international mystery as old as Jesus, and one that could lead to the rewriting of two thousand years of religious history.
As Tempe investigates, she learns that the stranger's picture shows bones uncovered during an archaeological dig. She discovers the Montreal shooting victim ran an import business that just might have been a front for the trading of black market antiquities. Along with Detective Andrew Ryan and biblical archaeologist Jake Drum, Tempe travels to Israel to probe the origins of the skeleton and the ancient crypt in which it was found. Together they make a startling discovery that raises radical questions about Christ's death and places them squarely in the middle of a swirling controversy. Could one of the tombs really be Christ's last resting place? Are the bones in the ancient ossuary the last remnants of James, the brother of Jesus, as the inscription claims? Or has someone concocted an elaborate hoax?
Using her skills as a forensic scientist, Tempe plunges into the most controversial case of her career. The stakes have never been higher the more she learns, the greater the danger. And though Ryan is sexier and more engaging than ever, he may not be able to protect Tempe in this place where there seem to be so many foes.
Cross Bones, with its lightning pace, intricately plotted story, riveting and state-of-the-art forensic detail, is Kathy Reichs's most compelling and dramatic novel yet.
About the Author
Kathy Reichs is forensic anthropologist for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of North Carolina, and for the Laboratoire de Sciences Judiciares et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec. She is one of only sixty-eight forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology and formerly sat on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. A professor of Anthropology at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Dr. Reichs is a native of Chicago, where she received her Ph.D. at Northwestern. She now divides her time between Charlotte and Montreal and is a frequent expert witness at criminal trials. Her first novel, Deja Dead, brought Dr. Reichs fame when it became a New York Times bestseller and won the 1997 Ellis Award for Best First Novel. Death du Jour, Deadly Décisions, Fatal Voyage, Grave Secrets, Bare Bones, and Monday Mourning also became international and New York Times bestsellers. Cross Bones is her eighth novel featuring Temperance Brennan.