Bones to Ashes: A Novel (Kindle Edition)

by Kathy Reichs (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In bestseller Reichs's entertaining 10th Temperance Brennan forensic thriller (after Break No Bones), Brennan, her relationship with Det. Andrew Ryan on the rocks, welcomes the distraction of an unidentified New Brunswick skeleton from Québec's cold case unit. But when the bones are determined to be that of an adolescent girl, Brennan is convinced they belong to her childhood friend, Évangéline Landry, who disappeared at age 15. Now Brennan must come to terms with Évangéline's possible death, while trying to ignore her feelings for Ryan as they investigate a series of teenage abduction murders that could be tied to the mysterious bones. With her usual blend of cutting-edge forensic science, nail-biting suspense and characters that pop off the page, Reichs, who's vice president of the American Academy of Forensic Scientists and the producer of Fox's Bones, has produced another winner in one of the genre's most satisfying series. (Aug.)
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From Booklist
With crisp prose, well-drawn characters, unflagging attention to detail, and a resonant emotional angle, Reichs' tenth Temperance Brennan mystery (after Break No Bones, 2006) featuring the forensic anthropologist finds the forensic anthropologist in top form. This time it's personal, when the skeleton of a young girl evokes memories of a deep, decades-old friendship with10-year-old Evangeline Landry, who sustained 8-year-old Tempe at a time of great personal loss only to disappear several years later. As Tempe works to identify the skeletal remains and cause of death, Detective Andrew Ryan seeks her help with several cases involving missing girls and unidentified bodies, raising the possibility of a serial killer. With her workload overwhelming, Tempe's life starts falling apart: her visiting sister's impulsiveness puts both of them at risk; her long-estranged husband, Pete, announces unsettling plans; and Ryan—the man in her life—makes a difficult personal decision. Reichs deftly provides enough background to make this a successful stand-alone, at the same time advancing relationships between characters for her increasing legion of fans, who won't want to miss this one. Leber, Michele

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 290 KB
• Print Length: 320 pages
• Publisher: Scribner (August 28, 2007)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000UG78LS
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,284 in Kindle Store (See Bestsellers in Kindle Store)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tempe in the footsteps of Longfellow..., September 16, 2007

By	Veggiechiliqueen - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Bones to Ashes: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels) (Hardcover)

Tempe Brennan's back in her tenth mystery. For those not in the know, Dr. Temperance Brennan is a forensic anthropologist who divides her time between Québec and North Carolina. No stranger to personal trouble, she's an ex-alcoholic and single mother assigned to gruesome, personally dangerous cold cases. This time, Tempe's on the trail of her vanished childhood friend Évangéline Landry, a young Acadian who summered at Pawleys Island back when Tempe was a child. Tempe and Évangéline would spend the summers creating poetry and staging dramas as Évangéline shared her love of Longfellow's epic namesake poem (his Évangéline included a romanticized account of the Acadian deportation and its aftermath). One day, Évangéline Landry vanished without a trace, and for thirty years Tempe has longed to know what happened to her.

One of Tempe's coworkers in Québec wants her to look at a skeleton uncovered in New Brunswick, and Tempe starts to put together pieces that point to Évangéline. She is consumed with uncovering the truth behind her friend's disappearance at her own personal risk. As with previous novels, Reichs does her homework well. Acadia was an area of Eastern Canada originally settled by the French, who were later forcefully evicted by the British. Many exiled Acadians fled to Louisiana, where the name "Acadian" shortened to "Cajun." Next to Québec, New Brunswick has the largest percentage of Francophones in Canada (35% of the province is French-speaking).

Tempe's quest takes her to the small town of Tracadie-Sheila, New Brunswick. I admit, I was curious in Reichs' choice of town, because one of my favorite Francophone pop artists, Jean-François Breau, (Expose) is from Tracadie-Sheila, as is Star Académie winner Wilfred Bouthillier. One reason I love Reichs' books is because I lived in Québec and majored in Québec Studies, and she effortlessly manages to work in in-the-know elements of modern Quebecois culture. No mention of Breau or Wilfred, but Garou's Seul makes an appearance (in the first Temperance Brennan novel Déjà Dead, it was Roch Voisine's Helene).

Tempe's on-again, off-again romance with Detective Ryan is definitely off-again here. Ryan has his hands full with cold cases and personal problems, and although the two consult each other, there's precious little romantic involvement this time around. However, the vibrant cast of supporting characters fills the void.

As usual, there are dark subject matters here that may offend some, including post mortems and torture, exploitation and rape of minors, so consider yourself warned. The dialogue is witty and balanced, the pacing generally impeccable, although the ending seemed a tad rushed. Unlike some of the past few Tempe novels, I felt that this was an excellent effort that was truer in spirit to some of the first few Reichs novels. It generally doesn't stray from the realm of believability, and Reichs' expertise as a forensic anthropologist and her experiences living in Québec lend Tempe an unshakable credibility.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from Reichs, August 28, 2007

By	Ann Spencer (Carmel, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Bones to Ashes: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels) (Hardcover)

Just back from a trip to New York, and my niece who works in the publishing industry there surprised me with a signed copy of the thriller of "Bones to Ashes." I have been a huge fan of the Temperance Brennan forensic thrillers and have been anticipating this book since I finished "Break No Bones: A Novel." Temperance's relationship with Detective Ryan has crashed and burned, so she welcomes looking into a cold case of an unidentified skeleton. The bones turn out to be of a young girl. Temperance finds her self believing they are the bones of her childhood friend who disappeared when she was 15. Now she must deal with investigating her friends death while coming to terms with her feelings for Ryan as they work on the case together. This is another winner from Reichs, who again proves she is the best in this genre. I really felt like I was cheating getting to read this book before everyone else!

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A technical crime novel, September 26, 2007

By	Fred Camfield (Vicksburg, MS USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Bones to Ashes: A Novel (Temperance Brennan Novels) (Hardcover)

This is the 10th novel in a series, but the first one that I have read. Consequently, I was not biased by other novels in the series and judged the novel on its own merits. It reads well as a stand alone novel. Temperance Brennan is a forensic anthropologist employed by the police in Montreal Canada. As a child, she spent her summers at the seashore in North Carolina. A childhood friend was a slightly older girl from Canada who spent summers with an aunt and uncle. One summer the friend was suddenly rushed away without saying goodbye. The aunt and uncle implied something bad, but would not provide details. All contact was cut off.

Now Temperance is investigating human remains in Montreal, and her investigations turn up the skeleton of an unidentifed teenaged girl from the area where her friend had lived. Could it be the remains of her childhood friend?

The investigations reveal both family secrets and a very bad criminal activity. There are suspects, but some very surprising revelations. There are some young women injured by their families either deliberately or through negligence, and predators prowling in the dark. There is some discussion of social phobias, distrust of authorities, etc., especially in insulated communities that have suffered wrongs in the past.

Some readers have noted that scenes in the novel can be a little gruesome. It does give somewhat detailed descriptions of autopsies in the morgue. The author is a forensic anthropologist, as is the main character in the novel.