Rating: 
Summary: The first and, in some ways, the best
Review: I've read the Tempe Brennan books out of sequence - which does not seem to be an issue - and always wanted to read what started it. To some extent Deja Dead is a little raw - Tempe's character is a little undeveloped in places and the writing style changes through the book as Kathy Reichs finds her flow. Tempe is also more of a loner in this book (in detective terms) than in some of the later ones and that doesn't quite ring true.However, the plot in Deja Dead seems better developed than some of the others, it sucks you in a little more. It opens with Tempe investigating the mutilated remains of a victim - something rings a bell with her and she realizes this could be a serial murderer at work. However, she can never get the lead investigator, a chauvinistic Montreal detective, to see this. Part of the problem I have with the novel is that after a certain time it's obvious it's a serial case and the detective not accepting it becomes somthing of a joke. In any case, such quirks are fairly minor. What we do get in this book is solid forensic work, a gripping story and an introduction to a very strong character in Tempe Brennan and the start of a characteristic, very readable style. I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the Tempe Brennan books I've read and recommend them to any fan of forensics or detective novels.
Rating: 
Summary: Enough already.
Review: This book is a decent thriller, but is a little overdone with its constant details about Montreal. Every street the protagonist travels is named; every possible route is detailed with every possible fact. Things that aren't even really landmarks (like the Complexe Desjardins - even if it is the largest building in Montreal) are treated as such. She even quotes from a Roch Voisine song! Granted, it's just my opinion, but I feel that she has crossed the line between familiar and overdone.
Rating:
Summary: A-Grade Anthropology
Review: I loved Deja Dead for precisely the same reasons that many reviewers hated it. First of all, to re-visit the comparison, I think Patricia Cornwell treats her readers like credulous morons. Hence (unlike many reviewers) I took delight in Reichs' detailed and technical descriptions of Dr Tempe Brennan's forensic work. Finally, a crime writer who credits her readers with some intelligence, and doesn't stretch coincidence to breaking point! (The use of outrageous coincidence is my pet hate in crime writing, and it is a device that Cornwell relies heavily on). Second, I love Reichs' playful use of language. I think the peppering of French terms throughout the novel adds great flavour. I also relish the unusual similies: "[He] spoke eagerly, his words racing out like children released for recess" and
"Flies buzzed and circled around [the body], like academics at a free buffet", or
"That toad'll call when Mother Teresa screws Saddam Hussein". Reichs' language is evocative of both a time and a place, and I thoroughly enjoy it! Last but not least, I appreciate the fact that Tempe Brennan shows empathy, care, and respect for the people whose bodies she works on. In this way, Reichs acknowledges the real human cost of violent crime in a way that Cornwell never does. On the down side, the actual story is a lot more cliched than the manner of telling it. The heroine does all that blundering around in the dark by dodgy torchlight ... but at least she has the decency and self-awareness to be critical of her own actions: "You're losing it, Brennan, I warned myself". Even though the story is somewhat cliched, it still had me turning pages on the edge of my seat. All in all, I think this novel is a wonderful example of the genre.
Rating: 
Summary: WAY too much technical information - this ain't a textbook!
Review: Patricia Cornwell covers the same territory as Kathy Reichs and her forensic anthropologist, Dr. Temperance (Tempe) Brennan. The difference is that Cornwell knows the limits of her audience. Yes, Cornwell also provides technical information for her pathologist, Dr. Kay Scarpetta - but she doesn't overwhelm the reader with fact after fact after fact, until you're ready to scream from all the overload. Sad to say, Reichs doesn't seem to know when to quit. I might have liked Tempe Brennan if she had just given me a chance to know her. Reichs needs to cut down on her technical data - by half at least - and deal more with personal and interpersonal information.
Rating: 
Summary: Cruel murder series in Canada
Review: In summer 1994, the American Dr. Temperance Brennan works as forensic anthropologist at Montreal's Laboratoire de Médecine Legale. The discovery of a dismembered body which was buried in four garbage bags leaves Tempe suspecting that this murder case may have a connection to earlier unsolved murders. However, it's difficult for her to convince the local police of her serial killer theory, so that she decides to take the matter in her own hands, starting her own investigation.
Tempe Brennan is a convincing and believable character -- no "superwoman," who solves the case all alone. Yet her perseverance and professional competence are the crucial propelling factors finally leading to the solution of the murder series. Tempe's human weaknesses make the main protagonist very realistic. Kathy Reichs knows how to keep the interest of her reader throughout the book. Especially while reading the last 100 pages, it's extremely difficult to put "Déjà Dead" aside. Kathy Reichs' detailed researches on all kinds of science fields are remarkable, yet despite all those details the novel never gets "dry" -- quite on the contrary. The result is an excellent thriller about the abysses of human behavior.
Rating:
Summary: Great story/suspense, some elements of writing amateurish.
Review: Let me say from the outset (because I have a feeling this review may ruffle some feathers) that I enjoyed this book (my first by Reichs) on the whole. I thought the plot was well crafted, the tension was kept high, and the characters were, generally, interesting or colorful. That said, if you're a writer (or even a nut about use of language), some elements of the writing may bug you as they did me (and also a friend of mine who was reading this at the same time I was). For example, overuse of the main character berating herself with lines like "Get a grip, Brennan!" and overuse of similes and metaphors to the point of distraction. Finally, though I am a long-time reader of books which include graphic violence from authors such as Cornwell, Deaver, Carr and others, I found this story more disturbing than most any I've read. The victims are all women and the violence is very specifically directed toward women in a shocking way. That's just a heads-up to those of you who may want to avoid that type of storyline. She makes it real, that's one thing I'll give her!
Rating:
Summary: A good read
Review: I read a review of this author's newest book in Delta Airlines Inflight Mag and thought it sounded intereting. When I looked the author up here a lot of the reviews were negative. I have however enjoyed this book. It has a lot of info about forensic science which is interesting as well as a good sense of place in Montreal in the summer.
Rating:
Summary: Tempe Brennan is a refreshing entry into forensic mysteries
Review: In this debut novel, the heroine, Tempe Brennan, a forensic anthropologist originally from North Carolina is working in the bilingual Montreal coroner's office. Tempe is a fictional version of the author herself who has exactly the same experience base. A forensic anthropologist is called upon to answer many questions regarding bones/corpses that arise--are the bones human, what can be said about the age, sex etc of the person... This sets up nicely the possibilities of a good murder mystery/police procedural and Reichs does a nice job here. The first case involves the discovery of a trashbag with human remains but goes on to identify 5 women whose murders follows a pattern of mutilation and control by a serial murderer with a sado-sexist bent. Tempe uncovers possible connections between the 5 women who se murders dont follow a strict MO but do have similarities. The threat comes close to home as Tempe's best friend is missing and the next potential victim and the murderer taunts her by placing evidence in her yard and threatening her and her daughter. Tempe herself is a likable character--a divorced mother (19year old daughter lives with father) who is somewhat of a loner and a workaholic. She is not at all perfect--a struggling alcoholic who makes the decision each day not to drink and a rather pushy woman who often steps on the toes of the police investigating the murders. But she has a nice personality and her character is drawn with realistic strokes. I also enjoyed the descriptions of Montreal and the peppering of the dialogues with French phrases (always translated for non-French speakers). I did find the novel at 532 pages for the paperback version a bit too long. I also agree with other reviewers that it seemed at time Tempe had a death wish--going out on her own to investigate clues when she knew she was a target for the murderer. That aside, I found Reichs a refreshing and interesting author in the forensic investigation/murder mystery genre.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling ,chilling new voice
Review: Comparisons , they say ,are odious,but they are also inevitable especially given that drawing parallels with established authors is an easy way to market a book.Thus , given a novel written by a woman who is an expert in forensic anthropology about a woman forensic anthroplogist with maverick tendencies,you will not be suprised that "Scarpetta"comparisons are all over the jacket of this debut novel by Kathy Reichs .
Books however will always stand or fall on their own merits and those of this book are substantial.It has problems of pacing ,taking in my opinion rather too long to get going,but once this problem has been resolved it picks up nicely.
Its protagonist is Tempe Brennan ,an American forensic anthropologist ,employed by the Montreal police .She has a lot of emotional baggage-alcoholism (non-drinking type ),divorce and a sense of mild alienation from her environment as a woman in a male dominated workplace,and an American in a Canadian city riven by dissension between Francophone and Anglophone where separatism is in the air Her nights are spent in front of the TV with takeout food and her cat.
Montreal is the scene of a sereies of gruesome murders of young women whose bodies have been mutilated and violated.She insists in the face of scepticism and downright hostility from some of her colleagues ,especially the dour Claudel, that a serial killer is at work in the city.To make matters worse ,the killer aware of her interest and progress makes her and her friends a target.
There is an emphasis on forensic detail that might trouble those of a delicate disposition,but most will be gripped by the story if they can overlook the slow start.The last chapter is a mild nti-climax with an bout of psychobabble of the kind that so disfigured Psycho.
As befits the Montreal winter against which the book unfolds the prose is cold and chilly but the passages set amomg the Montreal hooker scene are tender and compassionate in a clear eyed ,unsentimental way.
My only other reservation -pacing apart-was the character of Tempe herself. She is capable,tough and resourceful the kind of person you want as a friend but her headstrong tendencies troubled me a tad.professionally,she struck me as quite hard to take and I was nodding agreement when the sympathetic cop Ryan asks at one point " Is there anyone on the planet who can get through to you ?" She goes against procedure,places herself in danger and muddies the water a time or two.Not a team player our Tempe .We need people like her but my can they be a trial .
I think I am going to like the series though since I rather like exasperating heroines and heroes .They give us a book we can argue with rather than one slipping away unremembered.
The faults seem those common to a debut and I look forward to more books
Rating:
Summary: It's not 5 star...
Review: ... but it's not as bad as some of the other reviews make it seem. If you read books with a fine tooth comb and search for plot inconsistencies, you might find the book to be the dismal read some of the other reviews have. However, reading the book purely for pleasure reading, Reichs paints lyrical pictures of the situations Tempe finds herself in. Comparisons between Scarpetta and Brennen are probably inevitable, however, Reichs writes her heroine in a different voice and with a different feel than Cornwell's Kay. Each woman is a worthy opponent in their own right but each have their own place. Kay Scarpetta has a place in the morgues and politics of Virginia and Tempe Brennen's place is in the universities and offices of the Montreal police as well as the universities in the Carolinas. A comparison between the two seems almost unfair because of the differences in the forenics employed by the two females. In this first book Tempe finds herself racing against time to find a serial killer no one else believes in. Tempe is fighting not only time but the police as she reviews the evidence. Can she find the proof she needs before her best friend Gabby, her daughter Katy, or Tempe herself becomes the next victim of a serial killer only she sees?
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