Katie Reichs: Book Report

Kathy Reichs is an NY Times BestSeller American crime writer and forensic anthropologist. Reichs has written the famous series called “Temperance Brennan” that consists of 19 novels. Dr. Reichs is one out of only one hundred forensic anthropologists to be certified by the American Board of Forensic Anthropology. The main character Dr. Temperance “Tempe” Brennan is similar to Reichs, as she is a forensic anthropologist and archaeologist. Tempe investigates human remains at crime scenes in the situation where flesh is too degraded for a corner to obtain evidence.

The novels are focused around her life, and was first introduced in the first book “Deja Dead” of her novel series. “Flash and Bones” is the fourteenth novel in the series.

Reichs novel series inspired the famous Fox Television drama “Bones”, which aired for twelve seasons and recently ended in March of 2017. The main characters in “Flash and Bones” are Temperance Brennan, NASCAR crewman Wayne Gamble, Cindi who isa high school senior and aspiring professional race car driver, and Cale Lovette.

“Flash and Bones” by Reichs is a suspenseful novel centered around Tempe working in Charlotte, North Carolina for a NASCAR case. After reading this novel and comparing it to other previous novels in the series, my conclusion is that it is a mysterious and well informative book on NASCAR and its history and impact on American culture, filled with humor, however, it was not interesting, predictable and missing some forensic information.

One of the best aspects of the book is that it is mysterious and cliffhangers at the end of chapters.

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Reichs also included some humor between the characters, and some conversations were funny to read. On the other hand, one of the worst aspects of the book I found, is that since it is centralized around NASCAR, if you do not enjoy this topic, the plot and will be boring. Another worst aspect on the book is that there was less forensic information compared to her other books. Temperance seemed as if she was added to this case and was there for forensic observation, versus the case being hers. The plot of “Flesh and Bones” begins with Brennan being called to examine a body that was found in a barrel of asphalt besides a racetrack in Charlotte, North Carolina. Once the body is discovered and made public, possible identifications of the body immediately follow.

Wayne Gamble claims that it is possible it could be the body his sister Cindi, whom was 17 years old. Gamble claims this because him and his girlfriend disappeared twelve years ago without leaving a trace. Cindi dreamed of being a NASCAR driver and her brother told her Charlotte is the place where she needs to be. The investigation is taken place, and the police come to the conclusion that they believe Cindi and her boyfriend Cale ran away to get married, and disregarded their case. Another possible identification of a middle aged man is brought to attention, whom was reported missing by his wife. Tempe observes and examines the body, however she can not completely a match. Before being able to examine further, the body is suddenly claimed by the FBI and is tested positive for poison ricin. The body is then accidently cremete.

She becomes angry and decides to investigate into the two missing people cases to find out who is lying. She works with Det. Skinny Slidell and Cotton Galimore and the Speedway security chief and they examine past testimonies. The book ends with Tempe being threatened and bothered by her ex husband Janis Petersons whom brings a load of domestic problems. Tempe observes and examines the body through forensic investigations. She assess the condition of the remains of the body. When the body covered in asphalt arrived to the lab, she assembled cameras, calipers, clipboard and a magnifying lens, put on gloves, and took X rays, measurements and microscopic observations. The microscopic investigations revealed the bones and teeth were compatible with the rest f the sandpit skeleton. Based on the teeth marks, she concluded the trauma was from manual strangulation.

Tempe concluded this by examining the hyoid, which showed fractures on each of its wings. From the jaw, she observed a molar and premolar was missing on the upper left and three of the remaining molars had cavities, and the wisdom teeth were erupted but the first and second molars showed very little wear. The purpose of all of these observations was to narrow down them into a profile, and then take the profile and compare it to possible matches. Based on the observations, she concluded on an age estimate and completed the biological profile: Male, white, 30-40 years old, 5”7 and a smoker. These scientific concepts are used commonly in crime scene investigations. The physical evidence is often transported from the crime scene in a way that prevents any change from taking place, and further examined at the lab.

After reading this book, I do not recommend reading this book, because it is not worth spending the time. I believe one should not read this book because it is one of the worser ones in her novel series. If someone wanted to read the book, they should reconsider if they are not interested in NASCAR and the history. This is because Reichs spends a lot of time focusing on that rather than on the forensic investigation aspect. I enjoy these novels and the TV drama series because of the forensic/scientific aspect, as I think they are fascinating and awesome when I can make a connection to in class and fully understand what the situation is. Based on my interpretation of “Flash and Bones” compared to other novels in the Temperance Brennan series is not worth reading. I found the plot to be overall boring. While there was a little humor and some mystery, I still did not find it interesting enough. I found myself not wanting to pick the book up again and continue reading because it seemed I was at a boring part of the book all the time.