Rating: 
Summary: Back On Track
Review: Kathy Reichs is back in the game with this exciting forensic thriller, a fast-paced mystery that echoes the brilliance of the first two books in this series.This time, the venue is North Carolina, and the action begins quickly as Tempe Brennan is called to the scene of a gruesome commercial plane crash. The gritty realism of the crash site, combined with Reichs' usual unflinching descriptions of the victims' remains, forms the backdrop for a mystery that begins when Brennan finds a human foot she suspects is not part of the accident. Suddenly, Brennan is yanked from the case, her name smeared across the press, and her professional reputation put in serious jeopardy as she is accused of "tampering with a crash site." Of course she has done no such thing--as followers of this series know, Brennan is a straight-arrow forensic anthropologist whose work ethic is scrupulous. So what's going on? That question forms the rest of the story, as Brennan struggles to solve the mystery of the foot and to save her good name. She has some powerful enemies bent on stopping her, not the least of whom is the state's attorney general. There are some satisfying plot twists to this story as well: Brennan's cop friend Ryan is part of the investigation. Ryan's long-time partner was a passenger on the doomed airliner, and his remains cannot be found. The partner was escorting a well-known prisoner back to Canada for trial. Did the crash have something to do with freeing the criminal? Was he even on the plane? What caused the plane to go down? The theories are rife, and Brennan is itching to get back on the scene. Dogged by the press, in danger of losing her job at the university, humiliated and angry, she throws herself into the parallel mystery of the foot--and uncovers more than she bargained for. "Fatal Voyage" is a strong and satisfying mystery, and Tempe Brennan is back in form as the strong, no-nonsense, and likeable woman we came to know in "Deja Dead." Yes, she is vulnerable, especially in the scenes with her ex-husband Pete, whom she still loves, and in her acerbic courtship dance with Ryan, to whom she is deeply attracted. It's good to see Reich finally get control of Brennan's personal side, describing her interactions with the two men in her life in a sympathetic and believeable manner. Brennan's incredible strength in the face of professional adversity, her dogged determination to do right by the victims whose remains she must identify, and her tenacity in solving the mystery that is somehow connected with her banishment from the crash scene juxtapose nicely with her vulnerable side. And her interactions with a brand-new character, an irrascible dog who has become her simultaneous bane and companion, adds some much-needed humor to this very grim tale. It's good to see Reichs AND Brennan back in form. If the rest of the series is as strong and well-written as "Fatal Voyage," Reichs will definitely remain a formidable contender in the forensic mystery genre.
Rating: 
Summary: Head and Hands above the Rest
Review: Tempe Brennan hears on the radio while driving through North Carolina that a plane has gone down. She rushes to the scene, saves a decomposed foot from a pack of coyotes, finds out foot didn't belong on the plane, was from a much older death. What was it doing there? Why is she suddenly thrown off the team investigating the crash? And that's just the start of this fast paced, true to life, mystery thriller that will have you up all night, reading with your pulse pounding as you race through the pages. This five star book is heads and hands above "Deadly Decisions." It's so much better that it's hard to believe the same woman authored them both. It's as if Kathy Reichs knew she let her fans down a little with the last one and wanted to make up for it. Well she did, in spades. "Fatal Voyage" is one fine piece of work. I can't wait to start her next one. Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne
Rating:
Summary: A dose of science, and a fun mystery, too!
Review: I read this book as part of a forensic antropology class I am taking, and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by it. After starting another book on my reading list, THE BODY FARM by Patricia Cornwell, I quit Cornwell's book because I hated the soap-opera style and so-called scientific evidence in the story, which was so sad and inaccurate and bothersome that even I, a cinema student with just VERY minimal personal-interest background in forensic anthropology, could see huge gaping holes from square one. Fearing the same for Reichs's book, but needing to complete my assignment just the same, I started reading FATAL VOYAGE, and was pleasantly surprised. I am not a huge fan of the mystery genre, preferring nonfiction reads, but I did find that this book had a healthy dose of science along with its generally intriguing plotline, and it did hold my interest. I do have a few complaints about conveniently placed evidence (an untrainted dog happens to sniff out a key cadaver, the mysterious foot that started the whole thing is just lying there), and too contrived plot lines, but I was pretty happy with the scientific methodology presented in this story. Granted, I don't know a whole lot, but I didn't see any glaring errors. Anyway, if you like mystery, intrigue, and, of course, forensic anthropology, you will probably like this book. It's not on my all-time favorites list or anything, but at least I can say it is more of a nail-biting thriller, and less of a hair-pulling frustration, than is Cornwell's BODY FARM, and, dispite a few brow-raising coincidences, I obviously liked the book a bit, as I am here on Amazon buying a copy after checking out my initial read from the library.
Rating:
Summary: Most Satisfactory!
Review: 'Deadly Decisions,' the predecessor to 'Fatal Voyage' was something of a disappointment when compared to Kathy Reichs' first two novels about Temperance Brennan. Too much attention was paid to family and emotional problems, too much of a 'pity me' attitude, and, to be blunt, a very monotonic plot. Reichs' writing carried the book through, but if the stories would have continued in that pattern the series would have suffered greatly. One Patricia Cornwell is enough. This tale, which starts out with Tempe's arrival at a horrific plane crash in the mountains of North Carolina, is something else again. Not only is she writing much more like her old style, Reichs has also picked up the pace and cleaned up some of her characterization considerably. Tempe's involvement in the crash site as a forensic anthropologist assigned to the gruesome task of piecing together the remains of 88 victims is a fascinating study. Many of the victims are college soccer players, and the loss of life brings an almost overwhelming sense of grim tragedy to the tale. To add to the mystery, one of Tempe's walks around the crash site precipitates her into a confrontation with coyotes over a human foot. Tempe is rescued by her old friend, and almost lover, Montreal detective Andrew Ryan. Ryan is in North Carolina because his partner, Jean Bertrand, was on the flight escorting a criminal back to Canada. Surrounded by tragedy Tempe and Det. Ryan find themselves thrown together in an uncomfortable intimacy. One which provides most of the humor in this macabre story. The foot, in the meantime, has it's own mystery - it seems to belong to no one who was on the plane. Unexpectedly, Tempe finds herself being hounded by Parker Davenport, the Lt. Governor, and Larke Tyrell, the medical examiner. Soon her only friends at the site are Ryan, a FBI agent, and Sheriff Lucy Crowe, who has no affection for Davenport and a great deal of savvy on her own. Investigations into the origin of the 'extra' foot trigger a reaction that verges on attempted character assassination. Finally, Tempe is banned from the crash site. Rather than simply go home, Tempe decides to fight back, and launches her own investigation. With amazing results. The interplay between the techniques used in solving the plane crash and the knowledge that Temperance brings to bear on the solitary limb is fascinating. For those who read forensic mysteries because they love the details, 'Fatal Voyage' is a great treat. The gradual unfolding of the rest of the plot, with its historical and political themes is done seamlessly, without introducing any unnecessary complication. And the rich characterization is a surprise bonus, as Tempe confronts some of her own issues head on, pointing to further developments. We can expect Andrew Ryan to reappear, and I have to hope that Sheriff Crowe also becomes a regular. Reichs has outdone herself.
Rating:
Summary: Actually a four and 3/4 star mystery!
Review: Wow. Great book. I had read Reich's before and enjoyed her, especially with the forensic science. For some reason, Reich is not near as dark as other current forensic novels. Though she involves the reader in the science, I don't think it is overdone. The plot of this book is way above most other plots in mysteries. I can actually see something like this happening. In my reading for my work in bioethics, just when you can't think man can do anything worse then what he has done, you find out otherwise. There are so many types of prejudice out there. The thought that some men would feel that their intelligence and wealth puts them on a higher plane than other humans, and therefore, those who are less intelligent then them should provide for the needs of those more intelligent men, has it's basis in fact. James Watson, the discover of DNA, which Reich uses in her books and in her real-life jobs, has made statements about getting rid of the genome for 'ugly women' and those with disabilities. Other men have suggested using the disabled for organ donors (of course without their consent), and several European countries are allowing doctors to 'euthanize' at will, so here we have 'intelligent' men making God-like decision. Reich's plot is no big surprise, but it sure would scare me to be in that situation in finding a house with obvious burial spots with no explanations! A very good read...very good plot, fair characterization, good science. Karen Sadler
Rating:
Summary: Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs reviewed by Stephen
Review: Temperance Brennan gets a call to go check out a crash site. she goes there and finds out a mysterious foot that didn't belong to anyone at the crash. But before she can find out where the foot is from she gets kicked off the demort team. But she comes back and she finds out about bones in the wall of a lodge cabin. She finally gets a warrant and gets a chance to search the lodge cabin. There were very weird things in this cabin that nobody could describe. If you want to learn more about this book go out and read it on your own. This book gets much more action packed and has a very twisted ending. Kathy Reichs truly did a great job on this book. I would reccomend it to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Read This on a Plane
Review: This book should come with a warning, don't read on a plane. In fact after you get through the beginning, you may never fly again. Stephen Kingzian in her lurid description of a crash site, Reichs will have you gagging as you read, but you won't be able to skip ahead, her writing is that good. "Fatal Voyage" has is all. Blood, gore, suspense, conspiracy and so much more. When Tempe Brennan is working the above mention crash site, she comes across more than just dead body parts from the sky. She finds a coyote with a foot in its mouth. She wrests it away, discovers it's been around a heck of a lot longer than any of the other body parts that are littering the crash site. Naturally, Tempe, being Tempe, wants to know the how and why of it and that gets her thrown of the crash team, but does that stop her? Of course not. And of course she's gonna get in dutch with the authorities, and of course she's gonna get herself in danger. I could go on forever about this book. I was so pleased with it, especially after the little disappointment I felt with the last. But this way more than makes up for it, this book put Kathy Reichs right up on top. Yeah, Kathy. Five stars. Reviewed by Vesta Irene
Rating:
Summary: A gripping tale mixing forensics and warm characters
Review: This was the first Kathy Reichs novel I read - and now I want to read all of her Temperence Brennan books! Kathy Reichs has created a wonderful character in Tempe; she's extremely realistic - in fact, we wonder where she ends and where Kathy begins! Fatal Voyage starts out with Tempe exploring a wooded area, finding all sorts of body parts in weird positions. This book isn't for the squeamish! This opening is extremely entriguing as we begin to find out what the focus of the story will be. Tempe finds herself getting drawn into the events in an extremely personal way - she has to battle emnity from once trusted colleagues while still trying to tiptoe around her relationship problems. Along the way we get a heavy dose of forensic science. I'm a big fan of this but I think you would enjoy this novel even if you don't. One minor quib I have is that the exposition of the science tends to come in dialogue with one player playing the domain expert and the other playing the...(most of the time). This gets a bit waring after a while - straightforward explanations would have been preferable. Anyway, it's a minor distraction as Tempe makes her way, trying to identify where a series of mysterious deaths come from. Are they related to a mysterious preacher? Are they anything to do with key elected officials? Why are once trusted friends suddenly no longer on her side? If you haven't read a Kathy Reichs book before, read this one. If you have read one and liked it, you'll love this!
Rating:
Summary: Good forensic thriller!
Review: A good mystery that kept me hooked. I could not wait to find out what was going to happen to Tempe. I liked the narrator too--she really developed the accents in her reading. Since most of the characters were southerners with the drawl, she read their voices that way. One of the prominent characters was also Canadian, and she used an accent for his readings too. I liked that little touch, it made it seem more authentic. After hearing this book, I will look into more of Kathy Reichs books!
Rating:
Summary: Do Not Try to Read This Book with Dinner
Review: I knew better, oh, I knew better, I had read the first two Temperance Brennan books and I knew that the author did not pull any punches with her descriptions of what a forensic anthropologist will run into (and I would not have it any other way, believe me, EXCEPT, when I pick a book to take to a restaurant.) Temperance begins this story by responding to a call about a downed plane. The plane was carrying mostly college students. The crash site is horrific. The demands, physical, mental and emotional on the crash site investigators is horrendous. Then she finds a body part that belongs to no one in the crash, and discovers that there is someone who wants her off the case permanently. I'm not sure I buy all of the details of the conclusion, but that was an afterthough. While I reading it this was a fast paced and gripping story-- but not accompanying a rare steak.
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