EVIL BONES is by far the most demented and disturbing entry in the Temperance Brennan series. Rather than resting on her laurels, prolific author Kathy Reichs ratchets up the intensity to almost unbearable levels in a novel that will chill and thrill readers.

In the eerie prologue, a woman runs her car off the road on a stormy night and strikes a large tree. But this accident is not the most frightening thing that Bella Abato will experience that evening, as she sees something nailed to the top of the tree that completely horrifies her.

"This is a dark, brooding thriller of the highest order that also plays out as a first-rate murder mystery, featuring a killer who is operating on an entirely different wavelength and is not easy to stop or identify."

Forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan is put on a unique case involving animal remains. As an animal lover, I was particularly disgusted by the killer in EVIL BONES. This crazed individual has been mutilating small creatures and displaying them in a bizarre manner for law enforcement and forensics to find.

Tempe teams up with former homicide detective Erskine “Skinny” Slidell, and their interactions and vastly different communication styles make for some remarkably interesting conversations. She calls in a local veterinarian to assist, Ralph Balodis, who is moved to get involved after seeing a photo of one of the grisly animal displays. When a dog is shot and killed and used for another display, Balodis recognizes the animal and knows the owner. This makes for a sad moment as they must inform the man what happened to his beloved furry friend.

When a dog’s chew toy is found at the latest scene, Tempe and Slidell visit the area’s pet stores until they find one that recognizes the toy and vaguely recalls the odd gentleman who purchased it. Their investigation ranges from pedophiles to vet techs and eventually taxidermy enthusiasts, all to no avail. An elderly nun is the first to discover a display with human remains, later identified as those of a recently deceased woman whose body was dug up from her grave and used for a display that mixed human and animal parts. The game is now fully on to stop this monster from striking again.

Amidst all of this are storylines involving Tempe and her daughter, Katy, as well as her troubled niece, Ruthie. During the latter part of the book, both Tempe and I got a creepy feeling about a certain character who might have something to do with the case. You will just have to read this intense novel and find out for yourself.

The finale of EVIL BONES is a wild one. This is a dark, brooding thriller of the highest order that also plays out as a first-rate murder mystery, featuring a killer who is operating on an entirely different wavelength and is not easy to stop or identify.