[.ca] Bones to Ashes: A Novel (ISBN 1416589112)

Save the Acknowledgements for Last:
Acknowledgements are sometimes put at the end of novels for a good reason in case they spoil a plot point. The acknowledgements in this book were at the start. Lucky for the author, I didnt know what a *L-word* was. Just in case your vocabulary is bigger than mine, I suggest you save reading the acknowledgements for last because, indeed, that *L-word* stuff was the most fascinating aspect of this novel. (Its a medical something, by the way.) In non-spoiler news, the novel brings attention to the Acadian people, whom Id never heard of before. Yay, I learned something! Also featuring are Tempe Brennans summer childhood friend, her somewhat trashy sister Harry, and a cockatiel who quotes the Black Eyed Peas and Korn. Good times!

Not top Notch:
The discovery of a young skeleton in Acadia is for Temperance Brennan (forensic anthropologist) more to her than another assignment. Tempe believes the bones could be her childhood friend Evangeline Landry, who disappeared three decades ago without a trace. Looking back Tempe vaguely remembers being told to forget Evangeline ever lived. --------------Could this New Brunswick skeleton be part of a series of cold cases Temp and Andrew Ryan have been investigating? Flooded with memories and armed with the latest techniques in forensics, Temp penetrates the past while the hunt is on to find the serial killer. Set in Canada, Ms Reichs gives us an insight into the Acadians living in New Brunswick and the "Chiac" dialect spoken there. The fast-paced story line is action-packed, as expected. The subplots are interesting; Ryan plays a big part in the book. Temp's totally irritating and over the top sister Harry shoes up playing Nancy Drew. There is a fair amount of mystery and suspense converging into an interesting conclusion. As usual with Reichs, the science is superb. The author details human decomposition, with specifics about the processes of putrefaction, mummification, and saponification. Great if you can stomach the details. This novel is not one I would describe as top notch but it is better than average.

Dem Bones:
One of the things I like best about mystery series is how the character develops. To me that is even more important than the mystery. Of course, what I really like is when the character==because of her characteristics---solves the mystery. Tempe is a great, complex character. Her character, along with her methods is what solves the mystery, but it is her relationships and family ties, and the moving back and forth between different locales, that sets this series apart. After the last book, we saw her relationship with Ryan in trouble. This was in part due to a misunderstanding of Tempe's involvement with her ex husband and Ryan's involvement with his daughter. At the beginning of this book the two must work together but remain distant. Ryan is moving back in with his ex so he can be a father to his daughter. But Ryan and Tempe still work well together. The story begins with a flashback to Tempe's youth in North Carolina where all of a sudden her friends leave. Of course, we know that these people will become important to the mystery confronting Tempe today. The mystery is complex and involves not just bones of recently murdered young girls but a very old skeleton as well. And, of course, we know that old and new must be connected. To say any more will away too much of the plot. But things do happen between Tempe and Ryan. But we must wait for the next installment to find out just what they will be. Another satisfying read from Kathy Reichs.

A new mystery excellently solved!:
Oh, do I ever adore Reichs's novels. Her novels show proof that there are no limits to one's imagination - especially when the author knows what she/he is talking about. Reichs sucks you in with the first sentence and doesn't let go until the very last word. The mystery and forensic descriptions keep you just as glued to the pages as the characters do. Again, Tempe lands herself in trouble when she does something someone asked her not to do. But she can't let go of the possibility that the remains could be those of a friend that disappeared. Twists and turns and a surprising ending make the entire book worth every single one of its 406 pages. A new twist with her ex-husband Pete could have come at a better time, and a twist with Ryan has you feeling heartbroken for Tempe - I cried right along with her, felt her heartache deeply. But her sister comes to somewhat of a rescue, even if she, yet again, manages to freak Tempe out with yet another disappearing act. Absolutely perfect - except for something unresolved between her and Ryan. I refuse to get into more detail than that - I don't like writing reviews with spoilers. Suffice it to say that her MMP of her next novel, Devil Bones, can't come fast enough! If you're a forensics/csi nut as much as I am, then this series is an absolute must read! I can't get enough! LOL, but thanks to Reichs, I can fill in the time watching Bones!

A Peek Into Brennan's Childhood:
This is the newest book in the Temperance Brennan series and it is right on track. The story starts with missing girls and unidentified bodies and ends in a web of pornography and pedophilia. This is a top-notch entry in the series. We are given a look at Brennan's childhood in this book and her sister Harry is back after an absence of several books. I find Harry incredibly annoying so wasn't too pleased to see her again. Brennan's personal life also takes a nose dive and I really don't like the path her relationship has taken. But now I find myself at the end of this series and in the position of having to wait for the next book to be published. I'll be looking forward to it.