Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: This book is categorized as a suspense-thriller, but it barely meets the requirements of this genre. I've heard a great deal of praise for Reichs' first novel, Deja Dead, and in retrospect I wish I had read it instead of this one.
Rating: 
Summary: My first and last book I'll ever read by Kathy Reichs
Review: This is the kind of book you want to read ONLY if you are interested in forensic science in a college textbook sort of way. The characters were too numerous and boring. The only character I liked was Boyd/Hooch - the dog. The plots were also too numerous and boring. If you want to read about human bones, bear bones, bird bones, etc., this is the book for you. Me? I think I'll go start the 4th Harry Potter now.
Rating:
Summary: A Disappointment
Review: This is the sixth in the series, and Ms. Reich is slipping in the thrills department. The story takes place in North Carolina, while Tempe is supposed to be on vacation. This is a nice change. But it made for a tame read, compared to her others! But at least it wasn't bogged down by all the coincidences all her previous books presented. Maybe that was the problem, this time it was too "realistic". Ha! Overall, a mediocre read.
Rating: 
Summary: When it Rains, it Pours
Review: Three seemingly unrelated crimes, coming one on top of the next, overwhelm forensic anthropologist, Dr. Temprence "Tempe" Brennen and all three are puzzlers. The story opens with Tempe examining the burnt skeleton of a newborn that was found in a woodstove. The child's mother has vanished. Then she's called out to the scene of a light plane crash. The plane crashed into a rock face and the pilot and passenger are as burnt as that baby, but they are covered with a strange black substance, and as if she didn't have enough on her plate now, her faithful pooch ferrets out a cache of what at first seems to be animal bones, but they're not.
Kathy Reichs twists and weaves these three mysteries throughout the story like the master she is. I was kept guessing and on the edge of my seat, gnashing my teeth as I tore through the pages of this tense thriller that blends excellent forensic science with even better characterization. Tempe Brennen is a heroine to die for and if you haven't read about any of her exploits yet, it's high time you got started.
Rating: 
Summary: Average entry in 6-book forensic anthropologist series
Review: We've read this entire series and have generally been pleased with the story lines; the reasonably charismatic leading lady, Tempe Brennan; the dual setting of Charlotte and Montreal; and the technicalities of the work being performed to identify victims from bones and chasing clues sometimes all the way to the perpetrators. Much of the books sounds almost autobiographical, as both the technical work and the geographic settings mirror the real life profession of author Dr. Kathy Reichs. We felt her just prior novel, "Grave Secrets", suffered from too much detective work and chasing of criminals, for which Tempe has no particular training nor skills, just a penchant for action. In that book, her specialty skills took second place by far. However, in this latest novel, if anything we have a flood of victims so dominating Tempe's time she barely has a few hours for Canadian love interest Andrew Ryan, a real detective who is visiting Tempe in Charlotte for their first really serious affair. Some scenes with Ryan and daughter Katy added some human interest to an otherwise somewhat gory story. In fact, there wind up being so many dead bodies, including several skeletons of black bears (hence the pun book title), one almost needs a scorecard to keep all the characters and happenings straight. There was a very interesting description of how certain animal organs are being illegally harvested for sale to (mostly) Oriental customers whom attribute curative powers to, in this case, bear gall bladders of all things. Meanwhile dope smuggling, rare bird smuggling, and (by the way) a human murder or two, keep the plot jumping with developments. There are in fact so many sub-plots that miraculously intertwine before it's all over that the book suffers in our mind from being "over-worked".Reichs has enjoyed success with fresh forensic territory and great timing with the high level of current interest in "CSI" and similar TV shows. A tendency to overwhelm us with detailed analysis in the early books has given way to complicated plot development, no doubt under the guidance of the editors and publishers to "dumb" things down and appeal to a broader audience. Reichs has built a nice fan club to date, but the spotty reception given her last two outings may indicate trouble is brewing. We'd suggest that if you're new to this author, start with one of her first couple of books and let these later ones go for a while. Meanwhile, we hope Reichs can set a firmer direction with her next Tempe Brennan adventure.
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