Rating: 
Summary: Best Tempe so far...
Review: I have read all of Kathy Reichs' fiction so far and this is her best effort to date. It was a gruesome story and I have read this plot before but I enjoyed it. Her writing is getting progressively more interesting-even the technical parts which may be a bit overwhelming for those out of the medical field. Definately worth the read.
Rating:
Summary: a winner
Review: This is the way crime fiction should be written-- accurate details, believable characters, and a complex plot expertly interwoven, topped off with a solution to the plane crash that is both unexpected yet totally plausible.
Rating: 
Summary: Fatal Attraction For Forensic File Followers
Review: Temperance Brennan is a forensic anthropologist traveling through North Carolina when she hears on the radio that a plane has crashed. As a member of a DMORT team, she calls her superior, who advises her to immediately report to the scene of the accident and assist. Her heart is in her throat, since she learns that the members of a soccer team are numbered among the dead, and that it is very likely that her daughter may be one of them. The author goes into the procedures used to "link up" body parts when a crash such as this occurs, which is clinically interesting. At the scene, Brennan discovers a foot, in a coyote's mouth (more about that later) which doesn't match up to anyone's DNA profiles on the plane. This leads her to speculation and suspicion of foul play through one of three avenues: terrorists, a bomb, or a mob hit. Immediately following this discovery, she is ordered off the crime scene by her superiors and her reputation, job and life threatened. The subplot where she confers between her ex-husband and a Canadian detective (who she is interested in romantically) is well-done. The ending is very surprising ala Stephen-King (this is not a critisism---I LIKE Stephen King) though I admit it may not be to everyone's taste (no pun intended.) Lots of suspense, questions, and crises occur. Characters are strong and well-developed. The only disruption for me was the coyote scene. Having studied and lived around these scavengers for many years, the foot scene was inaccurate and temporarily threw me out of the novel. Coyotes dislike human activity, and a plane crash with fire, tons of emergency personnel, and all the trappings which go with this type of incident would scare them off, not bring in a pack looking for human remains and create the stand-off to get the foot she described. It would have been better to have a feral dog as the foot-thief. However, in retrospect, I do consider she may have picked the coyote for symbolism, rather than realism. The book is excellent, and the tape is read well by K. Borowitz. Definitely a good pick for the "Forensic Files" crowd and anyone interested in a good mystery (albeit they should have a strong stomach.)
Rating:
Summary: A truly impressive author
Review: One of the few fiction writers I can read, Kathy Reichs has really mastered the balance between cold facts and suspense. She has a wonderful sense of writing true to life forensic investigations as they overlap the true story line of her books. She's able to write about a budding romance without it seeming tacked on, which is truly a challenge. I find her books nearly jump off the page with her descriptive ability and her sense of what is really taking place in her story.
Rating:
Summary: DON'T LOSE YOUR TEMPE
Review: This is the best of the Temperance Brennan series, at least until I finish "Grave Secrets." Sure, a lot of the usual "complaints" are here: the in-depth technical medical and crime-solving data, but as always, it is interesting and helps us novices understand what's going on a little better.
This time, Tempe is investigating a horrible airplane crash, that just left me shivering. What an awful thing; the description of the carnage, graphic as it is, is horribly effective. The addition of the foot in a coyote's mouth adds more mystery to the event, and Tempe once again finds herself in deep doodoo!
There are some fine supporting characters in this, too: Crowe, the sheriff, is an Amazonian doppelganger for Tempe's perseverance, determination and strong will; of course, Andrew Ryan, is back and someday Tempe's going to see what a catch Ryan would be if she'd only "loosen up" a little.
The inclusion of her daughter as a possible passenger adds some fire, and the reason for the crash is ironically appropos.
All in all, Reichs grows her characters and I look forward to more.
RECOMMENDED.
Rating:
Summary: A NEW & BETTER FORENSIC MEDICAL EXAMINER???
Review: REICHS is the author of 5 books but this is the first I've read.Tempe Brenner is a forensic anthropoligist which gives her a one up on a medical examiner. The author holds that title and writes accordingly. So prepare yourself for a lot of morbid details as you read how Brenner conducts her investigation of the airliner that crashed in the mountains of North Carolina. She conducts the examination of every body and body part that is collected from the crash area, which covers three ridges and valleys. If you have never thought about the injuies and mashed flesh to be recovered from the filth and stench of an airplane crash, you will find all the details layed out for you.When Brennen takes a walk to get away for an hour's respite, she finds herself surrounded by viscious animals carrying a foot from someone's leg. That may be the only piece to identify someone so she needs it. A former partner arrives in time to save her and the foot. DNA, x-rays, microscopic examinations are only some of the aides to help match up body parts with the list of passengers.But this is where the anthropology education comes in to play. Bone measurements can help identify the race of the foot's owner. Details and peoples names and ages and backgrounds go on endlessly as another source of body parts are found. Another whole story opens up and one thinks the book will never end. Thankfully it does but it leaves me wondering if I want to read any of REICHS' other books. I won't for a long time.The parts I liked the best were the descriptions of the State and the flora of the Smokey Mountainsalong with the history of the people living there.
Rating: 
Summary: What's the deal??
Review: Reichs' politically correct agenda really shows up in this one like never before, and it's not pretty.
Her obvious dislike of religion, conservatives and small mountain communities is written so smugly and condesendingly that I almost put the book away several times in disgust. But the plot line was pretty intriguing notwithstanding, so I kept reading. Mistake! The ending was soooooo ridiculas that I ended up laughing. Give me a break!
Rating:
Summary: A Very Good Forensic Thriller
Review: Tempe Brennan, forensic anthropologist, is in the middle of a plane crash investigation in the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina when she discovers a piece of evidence that doesn't fit with the rest of the debris at the crash site. She begins making inquiries into this new evidence and soon finds herself barred from the crash site and her reputation in question. Anonymous threats only prompt her to seek answers. If you are a fan of forensic thrillers and the TV show CSI, you will probably enjoy this book. Some parts may be a little gruesome for the unprepared reader. Reichs goes into quite a bit more detail involving forensic testing which some might find tedious. I, however, am a forensic junkie and found it fascinating. A major plus in this outing is the addition of Boyd, the Chow-mix dog. I think he was my favorite character. A very good forensic thriller.
Rating: 
Summary: Bet on the Dog
Review: Billed as a forensic investigator like Kay Scarpetta, Temperance Brennan is more like a Lisa Scottoline attorney running her own naive and amateurish investigations, being stifled unfairly at every turn before the ultimate "Eureka!!" A plane goes down over the North Carolina Smokey Mountains killing 80 or more, most of whom are young college students. After the preliminary forensic stuff, the reader is led to ponder three possibilities: -a bomb by people trying to take out a mob witness on the plane; -a switch by the mobster and his guard whose bodies have not been found; -a missile fired by a religious fanatic or some right wing groups that populate the hills. Tempe also discovers a bone that doesn't appear to be from a crash victim and some heavy-duty people are trying to discredit her and throw her off the case. Many convenient plot setters are pretty lame, like Tempe dropping in on Peter from whom she's been separated two years, getting it on with him then agreeing to dog sit the mutt he's taken in. The mutt turns out to be a bone sniffing champ. And the way Reichs abandons the original plot to get to the ultimate one is almost offensive, but I must admit she held my attention trying to figure out where she would ultimately take the story. In the end, however, it was a let down. So much more could have been done to run down the cult Tempe uncovered, but instead Reichs created an absurd capture and escape sequence to provide the climax. Too bad, it started out better than that.
Rating:
Summary: Fatal Voyage
Review: The best-selling author & world-class forensic anthropologist takes her heroine, Temperance Brennan, behind the scenes of a major commercial airliner crash.
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