Review: Carved In Bone ( Body Farm Book 1) by Jefferson Bass
Author: Jefferson Bass
Series: Body Farm Book 1
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime, Suspense
Publisher: William Morrow
No. Of. Pages: 352 Pages
Release Date: 24 January 2006
My Review: 5 Stars
I own a copy of this book.
SYNOPSIS:
On the campus of the University of Tennessee lies a patch of ground unlike any in the world. The "Body Farm" is a place where human corpses are left to the elements, and every manner of decay is fully explored -- for the sake of science and the cause of justice. The scientist who created the Body Farm has broken cold cases and revolutionized forensics, and now, in this heart-stopping novel, he spins an astonishing tale inspired by his own experiences.
A woman's corpse lies hidden in a cave in the mountains of East Tennessee. Undiscovered for thirty years, her body has been transformed by the cave's chemistry into a near-perfect mummy -- one that discloses an explosive secret to renowned anthropologist Bill Brockton. Dr. Brockton has spent his career surrounded by death and decay at the Body Farm, but even he is baffled by this case unfolding in a unique environment where nothing is quite what it seems.
The surreal setting is Cooke County, a remote mountain community that's clannish, insular, and distrustful of outsiders. The heartbreaking discovery of the young woman's corpse reopens old wounds and rekindles feuds dating back decades. The county's powerful and uncooperative sheriff and his inept deputy threaten to derail Brockton's investigation altogether. So do Brockton's other nemeses: his lingering guilt over the death of his wife, and the fury of a medical examiner whom Brockton dares to oppose in court.
Carved in Bone is a richly atmospheric, superbly suspenseful, and magnificently rendered trip into the world of forensic science, the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, and the dark passageways of the human psyche. Full of vivid characters and startling twists and turns, this thrilling novel heralds the debut of a major new voice in crime fiction -- and an unforgettable work from the hand of a scientific legend.
My first Jefferson Bass Book and Read.
It was descriptive and enlightening. It was technical and a welcome Mystery for me. There were multiple plots. It never was boring or too much. Kept me coming back again and again. I do not read a lot of books with a male being the main POV.
I won't say much regarding the what happened in the book. But it was a wonderful mixture of forensic science and suspense mystery as well as crime. Dr. Bill Brockton is a widower and the peek into his life and work was engrossing. Him trying to cope with his wife's death after years was heartbreaking. His passion to find the truth was and is something that kept him getting into some pickle.
I recommend the book only to readers of Mystery who love the technical aspects of books like these since it can or may tend to be too much for some of the readers.
