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A review by carolpk
Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs
4.0
"How does one explain madness?"
This one quote alone explains a bit of my quest to read
Temperance Brennan Novels. I picked up Death Du Jour, the second in the series as sometime long ago I read the first, Deja Dead. I don't quite remember the whole of that story but knew that I wanted to delve more into the life of fictional forensic anthropologist Tempe.
I was excited in 2005 when Fox aired the pilot of Bones. The initial programs based loosely on the real life of Kathy Reichs, just whetted my appetite to read the books one day. Like most TV programs this one started out with a bang and is trickling to an end for me in its ninth season. It's hard to keep up the momentum in a long running series so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the books won't fizzle out too.
What appealed to me in Death Du Jour is the accuracy of the forensics, the attention to detail, and though some would not agree, the plausibility of plot. Reichs is setting up her character, giving us bits and pieces of what makes Tempe tick, balancing a woman who sees the worst life can bring yet hasn't lost her belief in the goodness of man. There's an ex-husband, a beloved cat, a daughter and someone I didn't realize existed, her sister Harry. Brennan describes Harry as "unbearably annoying, and totally enduring, my sister offsets with pure energy what she lacks in training or focus. I find her thoroughly exhausting." It is passages like these that Reichs uses to lighten the seriousness and gruesomeness of the work Brennan does and allows us to see her humorous side. Brennan divides her work life between North Carolina and Quebec doing some crime scene inspection in both locales. This division of locale gives the character a literal change of scenery.
Death Du Jour finds Brennan in Montreal, unearthing the remains of Sister Elizabeth Nicolet, who may or may not become a saint. In addition, a horrific fire with several charred bodies and the arrival of her sister will keep Brennan more than busy this time out. There's more, lots more but you get the picture. It's a mystery and a darn good one at that.
This one quote alone explains a bit of my quest to read
Temperance Brennan Novels. I picked up Death Du Jour, the second in the series as sometime long ago I read the first, Deja Dead. I don't quite remember the whole of that story but knew that I wanted to delve more into the life of fictional forensic anthropologist Tempe.
I was excited in 2005 when Fox aired the pilot of Bones. The initial programs based loosely on the real life of Kathy Reichs, just whetted my appetite to read the books one day. Like most TV programs this one started out with a bang and is trickling to an end for me in its ninth season. It's hard to keep up the momentum in a long running series so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the books won't fizzle out too.
What appealed to me in Death Du Jour is the accuracy of the forensics, the attention to detail, and though some would not agree, the plausibility of plot. Reichs is setting up her character, giving us bits and pieces of what makes Tempe tick, balancing a woman who sees the worst life can bring yet hasn't lost her belief in the goodness of man. There's an ex-husband, a beloved cat, a daughter and someone I didn't realize existed, her sister Harry. Brennan describes Harry as "unbearably annoying, and totally enduring, my sister offsets with pure energy what she lacks in training or focus. I find her thoroughly exhausting." It is passages like these that Reichs uses to lighten the seriousness and gruesomeness of the work Brennan does and allows us to see her humorous side. Brennan divides her work life between North Carolina and Quebec doing some crime scene inspection in both locales. This division of locale gives the character a literal change of scenery.
Death Du Jour finds Brennan in Montreal, unearthing the remains of Sister Elizabeth Nicolet, who may or may not become a saint. In addition, a horrific fire with several charred bodies and the arrival of her sister will keep Brennan more than busy this time out. There's more, lots more but you get the picture. It's a mystery and a darn good one at that.