It's probably not wise to start a new book
series with
the latest book, especially when it's the 24th book in
the series. However, that's my special talent, and
sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I'm glad to
say that for a newbie BONE BOX did work well.
The fabulous cover for BONE BOX was the first thing that
caught my attention and I found the blurb fascinating. It
all starts with Rina Lazarus out on a walk in the woods,
taking in the scenery not at all expecting to find human
remains. Someone has buried a body and her husband police
detective Peter Decker, a former detective lieutenant
with LAPD, now working for Greenbury Police has to figure
out both the identity of the dead person and who's behind
the murder. And, it gets worse another body is found. It
seems that there is a serial killer loose.
Despite being a late comer to this series I did not find
the book hard to get into. I was actually kind of
amazed to realize that the main characters through the
progress of the
series have grown old together and started a
family and now are grandparents. Not many series that I
have read can brag about that. I have a feeling that if
you have been reading this series since the first book
was released back in the 80s reading a new book in
this series must be like meeting an old friend. On a side
note, I love that Peter and Rina are both devout Jewish
and that the Jewish rituals are a large part of their
life. I'm not used to reading modern crime novels with
devout Jewish characters. Honestly, this is probably the
first time.
I found BONE BOX to be interesting, however, not that
thrilling, although it got a bit more intense towards the
end of the book. I was not at all expecting the twist and
turns the case would take during the book's progress and
the ending was, to be honest, a bit disturbing. Some
people are just weird.
I liked the characters, Peter and Rina, and I'm looking
forward to reading the series from the beginning, to
learn how they met and everything they have been through
over the years. Another character that I liked that only
showed up for a little bit in the book, but made a big
impression was Chris Donatti, the real father of Peter
and Rina's foster son Gabriel. Chris is a dangerous
person, and it seems to be a lot of history between
Peter, Rina, and Chris and that's something that I'm
really curious to read about.
Old fans will probably enjoy BONE BOX more than I did.
Not that I thought the book was bad, but I have no
nostalgic feelings towards the characters and the case
even though it was interesting didn't really engross me
in the way I had hoped it would do. But, still, it's
definitely an interesting book.
On a crisp September morning, while walking a bucolic
woodland trail, Rina stumbles upon human remains once buried
deep beneath the forest floor. Immediately, she calls her
husband, Peter Decker, a former detective lieutenant with
the LAPD now working for the local Greenbury Police. The
body has been interred for years and there is scant physical
evidence at the gravesite: a youthful skeleton, a skull
wound, and long, dark strands of hair surrounding the bones.
As Decker and his partner, Tyler McAdams, investigate
further, they realize that they’re most likely dealing with
a missing student from the nearby Five Colleges of Upstate—a
well-known and well-respected consortium of higher learning.
And when more human remains are found in the same area,
Decker and McAdams know this isn’t just a one-off murder
case. Short-staffed and with no convenient entrée into the
colleges, Decker enlists Rina’s help to act as his eyes and
ears on campus. Winding their way through a dangerous
labyrinth of steely suspects and untouchable academics,
Decker, McAdams, and Rina race to protect their community
from a psychopathic killer still in the area—and on the hunt
for a fresh victim.