by Kathy Reichs
Part of Temperance Brennan, book 21
First published 2022
Forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan enjoys a quiet winter in North Carolina, spending time with her daughter Katy, who has returned from army service. The peace ends when they discover a box containing a fresh human eyeball on Tempe's back porch. GPS coordinates carved into the eyeball lead her to a Benedictine monastery and another grisly find. More bodies follow, including a mummified corpse in a state park. Each killing mirrors a case from Tempe's past, crimes she once investigated or narrowly survived. Someone is targeting her with deliberate precision, but their identity and motive remain hidden. Detective Erskine "Skinny" Slidell, now retired but working cold cases, joins the investigation with his trademark dark humor. Their search takes them into a survivalist's compound where the atmosphere grows increasingly menacing. The stakes become personal when Katy vanishes. Tempe must confront her professional history to save her daughter and stop a killer bent on revenge.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, personal-vendetta
Setting: North Carolina, Benedictine Monastery
Period: Present Day
352 pages · Kindle Edition · Scribner
Content warnings: death, graphic-violence, murder