by Kathy Reichs
Part of Temperance Brennan, book 20
First published 2021
Forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan receives an urgent call while heading to Isle of Palms. A storm has deposited a medical waste container on the South Carolina beach. Inside lie two decomposed bodies, wrapped in plastic and bound with electrical wire. The details trigger a disturbing memory. Fifteen years ago in Quebec, Tempe worked an unsolved case with identical characteristics. She flies to Montreal to reopen the cold case, seeking help from her boss Pierre LaManch and her partner Andrew Ryan. Back in Charleston, a different crisis unfolds. A flesh-eating bacterium strikes the population. Thousands rush to test for a genetic mutation that makes them susceptible. Panic spreads through the city. Tempe discovers the murder victims from both cases share a blood connection. More shocking still, the killings and the disease outbreak stem from the same source.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, cold-case
Setting: Isle of Palms, South Carolina, Quebec, Montreal, Charleston
Period: Fifteen Years Ago
364 pages · Kindle Edition · Scribner
Content warnings: medical-trauma