Skeleton Dance: A Novel (Gideon Oliver Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Aaron Elkins (Author)

Book Description

Series: Gideon Oliver Mysteries | Publication Date: March 22, 2000

"Many people-villagers, campers, tourists-explore these caves. People have died in them before. They slip and fall, they are crushed by loosened rocks, they die of natural causes--"

Joly looked at him, only barely managing to keep from shaking his head at the man's never-ending obtuseness.

"And do they bury themselves as well?" he asked.-- From Skeleton Dance

Les Eyzies-de-Tayac is known for three things: paté de foie gras, truffles, and ancient bones. This small French village is home to the largest concentration of prehistoric fossils in Europe and headquarters of the prestigious Institut de Préhistoire, which studies them. So when the local police inspector, Lucien Anatole Joly, finds reason to suspect foul play, he places a call to his old friend Gideon Oliver, the famed "Skeleton Detective," hailed by Publishers Weekly as "shrewd, witty, and self- deprecating, " and by the Chicago Tribune as a "likeable, down-to-earth, cerebral sleuth."

Once Gideon arrives, murder piles on murder, puzzle on puzzle, and electrifying surprise on surprise, in a series of unexpected events that threaten to tear the once sober, dignified institute apart. It takes a bizarre and startling forensic breakthrough by Gideon to bring an end to a trail of deception almost forty thousand years in the making.The Edgar Award-winning author of Loot offers a spine-tingling tale of suspicion, intrigue, and murder.

Les Eyzies-de-Tayac is known for three things: pate de fois gras, truffles, and ancient bones. This small French village is home to the largest concentration of prehistoric fossils in Europe and headquarters of the prestigious Institut de Prehistoire, which studies them. So when a local dog drags a few bones into its backyard, no one thinks twice. But when the village's chief inspector finds reason to suspect foul play he places a call to his old friend Gideon Oliver, the famed "Skeleton Detective" hailed by Publishers Weekly (starred review) as "shrewd, witty, and self-deprecating," and by the Chicago Tribune as a "likeable, down-to-earth, cerebral sleuth."

Once Gideon arrives, murder piles on murder, puzzle on puzzle, and electrifying surprise on surprise, in a series of unexpected events that threaten to tear the once-sober, dignified institute apart. It takes a bizarre and startling forensic breakthrough by Gideon to bring to an end a trail of deception, jealousy, frustration, and homicide almost forty millennia in the making.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Forensic anthropologist Gideon Oliver and his wife Julie have planned a relaxing four-week European jaunt that will allow Gideon to collect material for his upcoming book. But when a local dog digs up some very tasty--and very modern--human bones at a prehistoric site in the French Dordogne, Gideon gets a call for deductive assistance from old friend Inspector Lucien Joly. It appears that the bones are connected to the Institut de Préhistoire, epicenter of the academic debate on the proper place of Neanderthals in the progression of human evolution.

Years ago, the Institut's director, Ely Carpenter, found startling archaeological evidence that Neanderthal Man was a sensitive being with an appreciation of beauty and art: when that evidence was exposed as a fraud, Carpenter committed suicide. Or did he? These days, the remaining members of the Institut are still at dagger's (or perhaps Middle Paleolithic Acheulian cordiform hand ax's) edge. Half of them argue for the Neanderthals as card-carrying Homo sapiens, and the other half want to fling them from the family tree altogether. The academic debate is vicious, indeed--but when more bodies start to appear, Gideon must dig deep into layers of personal animosity and professional rivalry to determine which of his anthropological colleagues has more than a monograph at stake.

Aaron Elkins is the author of a number of Gideon Oliver mysteries, including the Edgar Award-winning Old Bones. It is a tribute to his skill that the dusty fragments of bone at the heart of this latest outing will capture his readers' interest, and that the ramifications of a scientific dispute seem the perfect motive for murder. Skeleton Dance carries as well all the touches that have made his previous novels successful: a genial protagonist who wavers between sharp-eyed precision and absent-minded obliviousness; an assortment of well-drawn minor characters (though their foibles may be sketched a bit too broadly, as Elkins stretches for a touch of humor); and a cozy evocation of local atmosphere. If the music of Skeleton Dance is a tune we've heard before, and the steps are a trifle well-worn, it doesn't really matter; Elkins is such a skilled partner that we'll find ourselves tapping our feet and turning the pages in easy rhythm. --Kelly Flynn

From Publishers Weekly

Academic infighting, at once comically petty and deadly serious, is the subject of Elkins's terrific follow-up to Old Bones, winner of the 1988 Edgar Award for best novel. This time, celebrated Seattle "skeleton detective" Gideon Oliver travels to the quaint French village of Les Eyzies to aid police in the identification of some human bones. At first, the bones were thought to be prehistoric fossils, common enough in a town famous for its Paleolithic caves and the world-class Institut de Pr?histoire. But closer examination reveals the deceased to have been murdered sometime within the past five years, possibly by someone linked to the institute. Gideon, now on sabbatical leave from his professorship to write a book on scientific bloopers, begins interviewing the institute's five French and American members about a notorious archeological hoax perpetrated by the former director, elusive American Ely Carpenter. The more Gideon learns about the hoax, the more he's convinced of a connection to the unidentified bones. When Gideon is attacked and the bones stolen, it's clear that one of the five scientists is responsible--probably for murder, as well. Every suspect is a full-blown comic creation capable of surprise, from the absent-minded Jacques Beaupierre, who crosses the street "somewhat in the manner of a soft-bodied sea creature undulating over the ocean floor," to the pompous ?mile Grize, who affects bow ties depicting "egg yolks exploding in a microwave oven." Mischievous wit, fascinating erudition, juicy (but never mean-spirited) academic gossip and a gorgeous setting redolent with Gitanes and goose liver combine to make this mystery an especially delectable treat.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (March 22, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688159281
• ISBN-13: 978-0688159283
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,756,353 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a former anthropologist who has been writing mysteries and thrillers since 1982, having won an Edgar for Old Bones, as well as a subsequent Agatha (with my wife Charlotte), and a Nero Wolfe Award. My major continuing series features forensic anthropologist-detective Gideon Oliver, "the Skeleton Detective."

Lately, I've seen myself referred to as "the father of the modern forensic mystery," and, by gosh, I think I am! Before "Fellowship of Fear," the first Gideon Oliver, published in 1982, you'd have to go back 70 years and more to Austin Freeman and his Dr. Thorndyke series. Between the two good doctors (Thorndyke and Oliver), there was only Jack Klugman's "Quincy," so far as I know, and he was a TV character.

The Gideon Oliver books have been (roughly) translated into a major ABC-TV series and have been selections of the Book-of-the-Month Club, the Literary Guild, and the Readers Digest Condensed Mystery Series. My work has been published in a dozen languages. Charlotte and I live on Washington's Olympic Peninsula, our marriage having survived (more or less intact) our collaboration on novels and short stories.

Although I've been a full-time writer for some time now, I also remain active in real-life forensics by serving as the forensic anthropologist on the Olympic Peninsula Cold Case Task Force.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A pleasure to read, March 27, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Skeleton Dance: A Novel (Gideon Oliver Mysteries) (Hardcover)

I wanted to wait a few days after I got this book to read it because I knew that if it was a good one, it would only take a day to read - and it only took a day. My house is a mess, but I spent a very enjoyable day with my nose stuck in this book, and it was nice to revisit some old friends in this latest Gideon Oliver book. I highly recommend it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A review of Aaron Elkins' SKELETON DANCE, April 29, 2000

By 

Tiina Ruus - See all my reviews

This review is from: Skeleton Dance: A Novel (Gideon Oliver Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Aaron Elkins has written another enjoyable Gideon Oliver mystery. Anyone who enjoys richly detailled exotic settings and an unusual assortment of clues to puzzle over will enjoy this book. The author regales the reader with lovely descriptions of pastoral France as well as some pretty intriguing anthropological data (e.g. the current new twists on an old debate about the human qualities of the Cro Magnon vs. the Neanderthal add color to the central conflict of this mystery). Unfortunately, the dialogue between characters in SKELETON DANCE is not as witty and smooth as in earlier books of the series. Since Elkins relies primarily on dialogue to flesh out his characters, the book suffers a bit in this regard. Still, as the season of lazy afternoons is almost upon us, the book is a good addition to any bach bag or picnic pack.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Steady Elkins, September 21, 2001

By 

Jason Birkby - See all my reviews

This review is from: Skeleton Dance (Gideon Oliver Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read "Loot" by Aaron Elkins and found that art can be a great center for a mystery novel. I was a little skeptical that Elkins series revolving around an archaeology would be as good. I am glad I gave it a shot. Gideon Oliver the main character in this series is a wonderful character that any mystery fan can get into.

The story starts when a local dog starts bring home human bones from a cave in France. However these bones are no remains of any old Cro-magnon. These are much to new. Oliver is brought in to determine the age of the bones, and slowly uncovers a scandal in the local institute of archaeology. At the institute is a group of possible suspects of the unknown victim in the cave. Oliver along with detective Joly must put all the pieces together to solve this tricky murder.

This novel remains me of Agatha Christie, with it's uniquue locatons and list of suspects. Elkins has a great ability to weace a great story along with not the most enthralling topics. However he makes it work and should be on everyones too read list.