Dem bones gonna rise again…
A forensic anthropologist examines bones to determine what kind of animal or human they belonged to. Their age, gender, and if possible, how they died. When the bones are still inside the flesh for instance, the medical examiner would possibly call on the services of a forensic anthropologist to determine various factors pertaining to that woman which, for various reasons, might have a bearing on the case.
In the case of a young woman killed in a hit and run. Besides determining whether it was accidental or deliberate, assuming the latter; then, was she under aged? The perpetrator’s motives assume a far more sinister aspect than if she was an adult. Child trafficking? If her bones were damaged, the breaks may give a clue as to the type of vehicle involved…
In the case of parcels containing the mummified remains of Peruvian dogs, confiscated by the US Customs, a Desert Storm veteran has question to answer regarding antiquities.
The same anthropologist, Dr Tempe Brennan of Charlotte, State of North Carolina, not only has these cases on her plate, she agrees to go to Afghanistan to examine the exhumed bodies of two villagers shot by a US lieutenant in a small village. Shot in the chest as they came at him, or in the back as they ran away?
Kathy Reich’s 16th Brennan novel is yet another gripping detection yarn. As forensic anthropologist for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, State of North Carolina, and for the Laboratoire des Sciences Judiciaires et de Médecine Légale for the province of Quebec, she knows her bones. She is one of only fifty forensic anthropologists certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology.
And, as a fine crime fiction writer, she weaves a technical tale of intertwined evil and doggedly pursuing good.
The threads are not, of course, as disparate as they might seem; but that they should all tie together is stretching it. Some of the characters in the protagonist’s life from previous books appear but have no bearing on this one and serve no purpose. One does fight, a little, not to drown in the flood of acronyms, as well.
Nevertheless, a satisfying read, indeed.
