Part of Body Farm, book 4
First published 2009
Bill Brockton discovers Dr. Leonard Novak floating dead in a frozen pool. The forensic anthropologist expects a routine case until the autopsy reveals something shocking: a radioactive pellet killed the elderly physicist from within. Novak worked on the Manhattan Project at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where the military built atomic bombs during World War II. Someone used the scientist's own deadly expertise against him. Brockton turns to Beatrice, Novak's former wife, for answers. She captivates him with stories that shift between past and present, truth and fiction. Her mind wavers between sharp clarity and confusion. Through her unreliable memories, Brockton pieces together the victim's wartime secrets. The investigation leads him deeper into Oak Ridge's buried history, where brilliant minds raced to create America's most destructive weapon. As Brockton unravels the mystery, he uncovers truths more disturbing than the murder itself.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
Setting: Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Period: World War II
356 pages · Hardcover · William Morrow
Content warnings: death, murder