Review – The Bone Code by Kathy Reichs

Posted July 23, 2021 by Carole in Reviews / 6 Comments

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review – The Bone Code by Kathy ReichsThe Bone Code by Kathy Reichs
Series: Temperance Brennan #20
Published by Simon and Schuster on July 6, 2021
Genres: Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense
Pages: 368
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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four-stars

#1 New York Times bestselling author Kathy Reichs returns with her twentieth gripping novel featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan, whose examinations, fifteen years apart, of unidentified bodies ignite a terrifying series of events.

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 sheeting and bound with electrical wire. Tempe recognizes many of the details as identical to those of an unsolved case she handled in Quebec 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 Temperance Brennan’s most astonishing case yet—one that gives new meaning to today’s headlines.

I really enjoyed this book! This is the twentieth installment in the Temperance Brennan series but it could work as a stand-alone. I binged this series years ago but missed picking up any of the newer installments until this one and I had no problem jumping back into the series. I love books that have medical or scientific elements so this is a series that has always appealed to me. I really had a great time with this story.

There is plenty of excitement in this book. Tempe is in the middle of a hurricane as the book opens. A container holding two bodies wash onshore during the storm and Tempe is called in to look at the remains. This case resembles a case that she dealt with in Montreal several years earlier that remains unsolved. Tempe finds herself drawn to the case and is determined to help solve this mystery. Unfortunately, things will get dangerous before the case can draw to a conclusion.

I was very intrigued by this mystery. I liked that it had a lot of layers and I enjoyed watching each piece fall into place. I wasn’t sure how things would work out until everything was revealed within the story. I found the DNA elements of the puzzle to be very interesting and I liked what it added to the mystery. I thought that this book had the right balance of exciting scenes and more thoughtful research that come together to solve the case.

I would recommend this book to others. I really like the way that Tempe works to determine what happened to the victims of these crimes. I definitely plan to read more of this series soon.

I received an advanced review copy of this book from Scribner Books.

6 responses to “Review – The Bone Code by Kathy Reichs

  1. I love this series and have this one on my library holds as well as the previous one. I’m one behind but I’ve read all the rest of them. I haven’t tried her books on audio but plan to try these two. Fantastic review!

  2. I read a few Kathy Reichs books years ago and would really like to get back to the series. This looks like a good one!