Cross Bones

Cross Bones (2005) Kathy Reichs

There’s been a strange convergence of events that Cross Bones seems to have finished off. I finished reading A Short History of Myth and write my review, and then a group of friends starts discussing Easter and the events and the celebration and the meaning etc.

Then I read the next Kathy Reichs book, where Temperance Brennan gets pulled into a mystery involving bones that may have been found in Jerusalem and may date back to the first century.

Tempe is asked to assist in the autopsy of a shooting victim found in a closet. The wounds had been disturbed by animals, so Tempe was needed to help determine whether the shooting was a suicide or murder. Meanwhile, Tempe is given a photograph that may be somehow linked to the man’s death, which starts off a chain of events that leads her to Jerusalem.

What I particularly liked about Cross Bones is that the archeological events Tempe is drawn into come directly from the experiences of a friend of Kathy Reichs. Sometimes the truth truly is stranger than fiction, and knowing that the bones of this story come from actual events made me like this story better than I might have otherwise.

One thing about this book I strongly dislike–it’s the new “tall” mass market paperback. I hate it. Who thought this format up, and can I give them a swift kick in the shins? The next two books in the series are the same format, and I’m not particularly looking forward to the physical experience of reading these books–the taller format makes it more difficult than usual for me to hold the book open, which hurts my hands more than normal. So a boo hiss to Pocket Star Books for thinking this is a good idea.
Rating: 7/10

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